We here at the Weekly, of course, love Gringo Bandito, not just because it's an OC label, not just because Dexter Holland is behind it, but because it's wonderful–it has now supplanted Cholula and Tapatío as my hot sauce of choice. But what I also love about Gringo is that they're not merely content to putting sauce in bottles and calling it a year; they're always tweaking with their promotions to make people realize this is something serious.
Need proof? Check out their private reserve collection, which they quietly unveiled last year but are pushing this time around.
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Every year, Holland makes a special small batch with a tweak–this time around, he introduced the ghost pepper into the mix. And he also adds in a bunch of specials to justify paying a bunch for a bottle of hot sauce–for instance, if you pay $75, you get two bottles of the 2012 Private Reserve in a pine box hand-numbered and signed by Dexter himself, along with two Gringo Bandito guitar picks, a card, a T-shirt, and a chance to win a guitar signed by Dexter himself. There's a second tier, but I love the $15 “Cheapskate” edition–a bottle wrapped in a “plain paper bag.” HA!
Even better is the promo ad they recorded for the Private Reserve, which you can only hear on their website, where you can also order the special bottles (at this time, you can only order through there). Dexter only did a couple, so get them while they're hot hot hot (you'll have to see their promo to get that line)!
