Frank's RedHot

Frank's RedHot is a cayenne pepper hot sauce produced by McCormick & Company, a publicly traded spice and flavoring giant. The brand originated in 1920 in Cincinnati, Ohio, when German immigrant Adam Bernauer and his partner Frank began bottling a cayenne pepper sauce to accompany their tomato-based barbecue sauce. The company was originally called the Frank Tea and Spice Company, and the sauce sold under the RedHot name. In the 1970s, the brand was sold to Durkee Famous Foods, a division of Reckitt Benckiser, before McCormick acquired it in 2017 as part of a $4.2 billion purchase of Reckitt's food business.

The Original blend registers a mild 450 Scoville Heat Units (SHUs), making it one of the gentler options on the market. Even the XTRA Hot variety, at 2,000 SHUs, remains milder than rivals like Tabasco, Cholula, and Tapatío, edging only slightly above Sriracha. This approachable heat level has helped the sauce carve out a unique niche: it delivers tangy, vinegary flavor without overwhelming spice, appealing to those who want kick without punishment. The sauce is famously the key ingredient in Buffalo wings, though the Anchor Bar in Buffalo disputes the claim that Frank's was the original sauce used in 1964. The brand's marketing leans heavily on this association, along with its irreverent slogan and partnerships with the NFL and NHL.

Frank's RedHot is the best-selling hot sauce brand in the United States, holding approximately 29% of the market as of 2023. Its product line has expanded beyond the Original sauce to include XTRA Hot, Buffalo Wings Sauce, Sweet Chili, Stingin' Honey Garlic, Kickin' BBQ, seasoning blends, pickles, salsa, and snack collaborations with Utz for chips and popcorn. The brand is manufactured at McCormick facilities in Baltimore, Maryland, and Bakersfield, California, and is distributed in over 40 countries. Industry analysts estimate annual U.S. retail sales between $500 million and $600 million, making it a key growth driver for McCormick's consumer segment.[edit]