The best-tasting salsa: Pace and Tostitos (tie)
Methodology:
Five brands of salsa were tested in this taste test. We used small tortilla chips, and double-dipping was strictly forbidden. This was, to date, our best sample size. We had 43 people participate as taste testers at work. The sample consisted of a good cross-functional representation of research scientists, engineers, marketers, and administrative assistants. The five brands tested were Pace, Chi-Chi's, La Victoria, Newman's, and Tostitos. All brands were medium spiciness.
Here's how people's top choices ranked:
Pace= 14 people
Tostitos= 14 people
Chi-Chi's= 7 people
Newman's= 5 people
La Victoria= 3 people
Though it was a tie for first place votes, Pace had a very large number of second-place votes, so it could be considered the winner if you get into second choices. La Victoria was intensely disliked by several people, who described it as "tomato soup." Those who liked La Victoria didn't want a lot of chunks in their salsa, and wanted it to be long-lasting. Pace was quite chunky. I liked Tostitos best, but Pace was also quite good. I would probably choose whichever was cheapest between those two.