Heat Hot Sauce Hot Sauce of the Month Club
Choose your Own Heatventure
What’s Hot
What’s Not
When you think hot sauce, you don’t always think of Northern California, do you?
Well, welcome to Cali.
What is Heat Hot Sauce Shop
Located in Berkeley, Heat Hot Sauce Shop is a store (both online and an actual retail store) that carries a large selection of high heat, exotic and artisanal hot sauces from small batch manufacturers across the US and the world.
Hot Sauce of the Month
Heat Hot Sauce Shop offers a hot sauce of the month club that sends out a curated selection of their products right to your door. Unlike other competitors, you get a bit more choice with these guys right off the bat.
You can choose to get mild and medium sauces that area heavier on flavor, you can choose to get sauces that will crater your colon with heat, or a hearty mix of both.
It’s up to you.
Price
Note: Prices correct as of writing. Prices are in US Dollars (USD). Please note all packages are pre-paid.
Pricewise, how much you pay for your subscription really depends on how many bottles you select and how hot you want your sauces to be.
Mild to Medium & Classic Plans
3 Bottles –BEST VALUE
| Pay as You Go | 3 Months | 6 Months | 12 Months | Quarterly | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price per box | $28.99 | $28.99 | $28.99 | $28.99 | $28.99 |
| How many boxes total | 1 | 3 | 6 | 12 | 4 |
| Total Cost | $28.99 | $86.97 | $173.94 | $347.88 | $115.96 |
| Price Per Bottle of hot sauce | $9.66 | $9.66 | $9.66 | $9.66 | $9.66 |
| Shipping | FREE | FREE | FREE | FREE | FREE |
1 Bottle
| Pay as You Go | 3 Months | 6 Months | 12 Months | Quarterly | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price per box | $13.99 | $13.99 | $13.99 | $13.99 | $13.99 |
| How many boxes total | 1 | 3 | 6 | 12 | 4 |
| Total Cost | $13.99 | $41.97 | $83.94 | $167.88 | $55.96 |
| Price Per Bottle of hot sauce | $13.99 | $13.99 | $13.99 | $13.99 | $13.99 |
| Shipping | FREE | FREE | FREE | FREE | FREE |
Extra Hot
3 bottles –BEST VALUE
| Pay as You Go | 3 Months | 6 Months | 12 Months | Quarterly | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price per box | $34.99 | $34.99 | $34.99 | $34.99 | $34.99 |
| How many boxes total | 1 | 3 | 6 | 12 | 4 |
| Total Cost | $34.99 | $104.97 | $209.94 | $419.88 | $139.96 |
| Price Per Bottle of hot sauce | $11.66 | $11.66 | $11.66 | $11.66 | $11.66 |
| Shipping | FREE | FREE | FREE | FREE | FREE |
1 bottles
| Pay as You Go | 3 Months | 6 Months | 12 Months | Quarterly | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price per box | $15.99 | $15.99 | $15.99 | $15.99 | $15.99 |
| How many boxes total | 1 | 3 | 6 | 12 | 4 |
| Total Cost | $15.99 | $47.97 | $95.94 | $191.88 | $63.96 |
| Price Per Bottle of hot sauce | $15.99 | $15.99 | $15.99 | $15.99 | $15.99 |
| Shipping | FREE | FREE | FREE | FREE | FREE |
As a subscription box, where Heat Hot Sauce Shop’s Hot Sauce of the Month Club really stands out compared to others is in the flexibility of their monthly hot sauce boxes.
To begin with you have your choice of picking how hot you like it:
- Mild & Medium (a selection of mild to medium heat sauces)
- Classic Mix (a mix of hot and mild/medium)
- Extra Hot (for you high scoville sauce enthusiasts)
You can also pick how many bottles you’d like in each box, either 3 or 1 full sized hot sauce bottles, and they have a full range of subscription plans as well, ranging from month to month to yearly and quarterly.
Combined that makes for 30 possible combinations of hot sauce boxes to choose from.
But Is the Heat worth the Price?
Generally speaking we think Heat Hot Sauce Shop’s hot sauce of the month club is worth the money.
In an absolute dollar sense, you do get a slight discount on average on the hot sauce (more so if you subscribe to a 3 bottle a month plan). Generally, hot sauce bottles in this premium category will run you $15-20 retail once you factor in shipping.
That said, the real value in these types of subscription boxes is the curation and delivery each month of hot sauces. Heat Hot Sauce Shop will leverage their experience to find and sort through new hot sauces, letting you discover new tastes and flavors that aren’t usually easy to find and deliver them right to your door each month.
Also, unlike many competitor box subscriptions, Heat Hot Sauce Shop allows you to choose to auto-renew or not, which we like. With auto-renewal, if you forget to cancel before your subscription expires the company in question will automatically re-subscribe you and charge accordingly.
With all that said, we do find Heat Hot Sauce Shop’s pricing structure to be a little odd.
Unlike most competitors they don’t (as of writing) offer a price break per box with longer subscriptions. Usually, the longer you subscribe to a monthly box the more of a discount per box the company will offer as an incentive (because of the larger up front cost).
This is not the case with Heat Hot Sauce Shop’s hot sauce of the month club. Whether you subscribe month to month or for 12 months, the price per box remains the same. So while the plans start off competitively priced with competitors, other hot box subscriptions will eventually beat it purely on price due to offering discounts on longer subscriptions.
Now it’s not a deal breaker by any means, it’s just something that’s a bit odd in this space.
Bottom line, what’s the Best Value?
Pricewise, we find the best value in the 3 bottle boxes as you’ll save more money per bottle of hot sauce.
- $9.66 vs. $13.99 per bottle for Classic and Mild & Medium plans (36.6% difference)
- $11.66 vs. $15.99 for the Extra Hot plans (31.3% difference)
As for how long you should subscribe for, it depends on how many bottles of hot sauce you want for your money. Keep in mind you’ll get full sized bottles of hot sauce every month or every 90 days, depending on your plan.
If you’re dipping your toes into the hot sauce game, you might want to keep it light and go with a quarterly plan. You’ll still get a decent selection of hot sauces but won’t be overwhelmed by having a couple dozen Scoville sizzlers lining your shelf.
If you’re trying to build a collection or are giving a gift to a hot sauce enthusiast you might want to go for the 6 to 12 month plans and get the most full sized, premium hot sauces possible.
How it works
Once you subscribe to the service, the company should ship your first box out within a week or so. The company extends its flexibility to your initial shipping date as well, letting you ask for special timing in your confirmation email, which is cool.
After that, your boxes should come each month.
If you need to cancel, you can cancel anytime before the first and you’ll stop getting your packages.
We really like that you have the choice to turn off automatic renewal of your subscription from the get go. The way to do it is a bit odd, in the payment details section, select your purchase as a gift subscription and auto-renew will be off by default.
What’s in the Box?
Once you’ve subscribed to Heat Hot Sauce Shop’s hot sauce of the month club, each month you’ll receive the number of bottles you’ve ordered (1 or 3 bottles), obviously.
On top of that, the company likes to throw in a couple packets or small containers of various fiery condiments, generally pepper sauces, Serrano hot sauce and the like. We like that they include these as they act as a little taster or sample of other sauces that you can quickly try out on a quick snack.
Like other better quality hot sauce subscriptions, the company also includes cards with a little bit of information on the sauces that you get, so you know a bit more about them. These include asting notes with flavor profiles to look for, ideas for food pairings and a little heat thermometer to give you a vague idea of what you’re about to put yourself through.
Finally, you can add customizable notes to your first box if its a gift (or if you want to be your own pen pal).
Club Perks
In addition to the stuff they include in each box, Heat Hot Sauce Shop will give you a few perks for being part of their monthly subscription club.
Most notably, they’ll offer you a code for free shipping on anything in their store. This is kind of cool as their store is fairly extensive and has a lot of high quality items that you might want to try (or try again).
They also give their subscribers exclusive early access to their new products, so you can singe your taste buds before regular customers can, which is always a nice feeling.
What Types of Sauces are there?
Every month you’ll be sure to get full size 5 oz (148 ml) bottles of small-batch, artisanal hot sauces from across the US and around the world. These sauces are generally higher quality than what you might find at a supermarket, often using unusual or exotic ingredients to achieve their flavor and level of spiciness.
What particular sauce you actually get, however, depends largely on what kind of subscription you choose heat-wise, and what the company picks for that month.
Mild to Medium
The subscription is pretty self-descriptive.
The sauces you’ll get here aren’t just about the heat, but involve exotic or high quality ingredients and flavors.
Sure, they’re still made with some kick, but we’re not talking 1,500,000+ colon cratering scovilles here. Think Serranos, Jalapenos and Habaneros, not Ghost and Reaper Peppers.
The point here is to taste and enjoy the unique flavor profiles as well as the heat. To give you an idea you might see some sauces with roasted garlics, various spices, smoked onions, bourbon, maple syrups, or even various fruits and berries.
Extra Hot
If you’re a hardcore chilihead, or just enjoy watching loved ones take the liquid equivalent of a blow torch to the tongue, this ones for you.
The sauces in these boxes lean more to melt your face, rather than taste.
While some sauces may use some exotic ingredients and have interesting flavor profiles, they tend to take a backseat to the heat. You’re in the land of Carolina Reapers, Pot Primo peppers, Ghost peppers, Trinidad scorpion peppers and the like.
Classic
When in doubt, mix it up.
These boxes will have a good mix of sauces ranging from mild to hot, balancing flavorful offerings with the delightfully devilish.
We feel these are great if you’re undecided or looking to add to a collection.
Who picks out the sauce?
The company, founded and run by dedicated chiliheads, does.
What if my package arrives broken?
As they say the best laid plans…
While Heat Hot Sauce Shop does a pretty good job packing things up, sometimes things happen and your glass bottle of hot sauce becomes just a hot packaged mess.
In the event that occurs, you can contact the company with proof and they will work with you to replace it or give you a refund.
You should note that they are a smaller business, and therefore get overwhelmed during certain times and have been known to take time replying. That said, past customers have been satisfied with the company’s response when breakages have occurred.
Giftability
Heat Hot Sauce Shop’s hot sauce of the month club makes a pretty good and easy gift to give.
As you purchase the subscription, you are given an option to send it as a gift and are given the ability to send a customized note along with it, which is nice.
They’ll even keep your gift a surprise to the recipient if you want.
Conclusion
Although their pricing structure is a little odd, we think Heat Hot Sauce Shop’s hot sauce of the month club is an excellent choice for those who want a little more choice in their choice of high heat subscriptions. With their high quality sauces, free shipping and various perks, we think you’ll enjoy this high heat club even if your tongue may not.
Bill Ross – A pitmaster and smoker enthusiast, Bill served up delicious brisket and ribs for almost 15 years around the great state of Florida before becoming our go-to expert for all things BBQed, smoked and/or marbled. When he’s not checking the bark on his brisket, he can usually be found fishing or reading.