Tabasco quietly releases its own sriracha hot sauce
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Will Tabasco's Sriracha out sell the original? (Tabasco Country Store)
The sriracha industry is on fire --and is about to get hotter.
Amid uncertainly about the future of sriracha hot sauce maker Hoy Fong Foods, family-owned McIlhenny Co., makers of Tabasco, quietly released its own version of the sweet and garlicky sauce.
According to the Tabasco Country Store website, the new "Premium Sriracha Sauce is a masterful blend of spicy, sweet and savory flavors, that is authentic to South East Asian cuisine." Tabasco’s new sauce is currently only available through the company’s official online store.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}So why release the hot product in secrecy?
GrubStreet is predicting that this is just a test run, and product or packaging is likely to change before a national roll-out. A company statement said that the new product is only a "limited edition."
While the sriracha may be synonymous with Huy Fong Food and its signature green-capped bottle with the rooster label, the word sriracha can not be trademarked because it’s derived from Si Racha, the name of a city in Thailand, according to the L.A. Times. Trader Joe’s and several other companies have released similar sriracha sauces, but experts say McIlhenny Co. poses a real threat with their new product since their brand is a household name.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"They know there’s going to be a sustainable demand and they’re gearing up for it, so they become the known brand," says Darren Tristano, a food industry consultant with Technomic told Time.
Tabasco Sriracha, at $4.99 for a 15 oz. bottle, its sauce is pricier than Hoy Fong’s that retails for under $3 for a 17 oz. bottle.