Meet Sean Dick of RedBeards Hot Sauce in Huntington Beach

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sean Dick.  

Thanks for sharing your story with us Sean. So, let’s  start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
RedBeards was started as a business three years ago…but  that is not when the sauce started. The sauce started when  a good friend brought over 5 pounds of habanero peppers  and said “You like hot peppers, do something with these”… So, the first thought was salsa, but that would fill the fridge,  so while I was smoking a couple of pork butts, the habanero  peppers went onto the top shelf, and these bright orange  peppers turned into golden caramel-colored balls. One bite  and the decision was simple. We are going to make hot  sauce. That was 20 years ago.  

I have always loved Louisiana style hot sauces, but over the  years, they seem to have become either really peppery or  really vinegary, and I also loved Pico Pica hot sauce because  they left the seeds in the sauce, so you knew there was  going to be some heat. But our focus was on Flavor not  Pain, we wanted to make Louisiana style sauces that could  become tabletop condiments in restaurants that would  compliment a meal but not take it over with too much heat.  We also needed a little milder sauce, just because a lot of  people were gun shy of any hot sauce that has the word 

“habanero” in it. So we also made a jalapeño version which  is milder and has a tanginess to it.  

Over the past three years (pre-covid) we were growing  rapidly, building our brand, self-funding, getting into fairs,  festivals, on Amazon, into specialty stores, and into  restaurants (where we become the servers favorite sauce)…  We also were introduced to a company called Veterans Q  BBQ Sauce and we added that to our line for one reason… Veterans Q donates their profit to credible Veterans  Organizations, and we are in So Cal so we BBQ year round  and everybody wants to help a Veteran in need. And when  blended with our sauces, it makes for an amazing bbq glaze!  We have now purchased inventory and equipment to hit the  ground running as soon as this virus has relocated to  another planet.  

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue  your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough  people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would  you say things have been easy for you?
The start was bumpy, lots of hurdles to get over especially  getting approved by the state, in fact when we finally  thought we were done and we could schedule our first state  inspection, here came another curveball, you need a  cannery license, so Carolyn went back to college (online)  and took the cannery class at UC Davis. 

Now was where to get the bottles, the labels, the caps?  Found brokers that sold in small volumes and started there.  And then, where to make it?…we knew we could make it at  home, but then that info had to go on the label, and that  probably wouldn’t be too interesting to a food service  company or restaurant, so we needed a commercial kitchen,  we looked at a few and decided to go with The Hood  Commercial kitchen in Costa Mesa and they have been  fantastic to work with during our companies growth.  

So, as you know, we’re impressed with RedBeards Hot  Sauce – tell our readers more, for example what you’re  most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
We love to cook and eat good food, bbq-ing at least three  times a week. We would make hot wings and toss them in  our sauce at least once a week. That is how RedBeards was  born, out of our love for good food and hot sauce. We were  always throwing together spices to put on the wings, pork,  chicken and steaks and that is how our #8 dry rub came  about.  

So we decided to become a hot sauce and bbq rub company,  specializing in making Louisiana style sauces with the focus  on flavor not pain and rubs that are a great foundation for  bbq, and that can be used as a seasoning, dry rub, or dry  brine. A condiment that will compliment a meal without  burning your face off. 

We are most proud of the overall RedBeards image. Sauces  that come in flasks with a great label, a logo that is  recognizable at first glance, that Louisiana style sauce with  layers and layers of flavor, and a price point that makes it  affordable for everyone to be able to try and enjoy.  With over 10,000 hot sauces in the market, how do you  stand out? Make a sauce that is Flavorful not Painful, a  sauce worthy enough to be a part of your meals, a sauce you  can cook with, a sauce that is complimented by delicious  rubs, and they go together so well to make a pallet pleasing  experience and make it at a price point that people can  afford. Our flasks are 6.7 ounces, where a normal hot sauce  bottle is only 5 ounces…and with RedBeards our sauces  have no water added…you get pure delicious sauce.  

So, what’s next? Any big plans?
2021 will start with some amazing news…  

Our Fire Roasted Jalapeño Hot Sauce just voted the #1  Louisiana Style Hot Sauce in the United States by the  Prestigious Scovie Awards.  

That will help us as we look forward, with the focus on  expanding the product line and teaming up with a food  service broker to get us onto every restaurant table that  offers a hot sauce as a condiment. Timing is going to be key,  that is why we have purchased the equipment and 

inventory to hit the ground running as soon as it is safe for  everyone to get out and get back to as close to normal as  possible.  

Controlled growth will also be key, no-one wants to grow  broke, and because we self-fund RedBeards, we must stay  focused and stay on the correct course.  

Our newest item is our Steak Shake which gives your steaks  steakhouse flavor right at home, and we have also tried it  on shrimp, fish, ribs and in beef stroganoff and they all  were delicious.  

Pricing:

• Fire Roasted Jalapeño 6.7 ounce flask is $7.95 plus shipping
• Fire Roasted Habanero 6.7 Flask is $9.95 plus shipping
• 5 ounce #8 Dry Rub is $7.95 plus shipping
• Salivating Sampler (all three of the above in a gift box) $29.95 FREE SHIPPING
• 10.5 ounce Steak Shake is $12.95 plus shipping

Contact Info:

• Website: getredbeards.com
• Phone: 714.393.7328
• Email: redbeardshotsauce@gmail.com
• Instagram: @getredbeards
• Facebook: @getredbeards

Suggest a story: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.