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Private company

Dave's Gourmet

Logo: davesgourmet.com3

American sauce manufacturer

Dave's Gourmet is a company notable for creating and introducing Dave's Insanity Sauce, which formerly held the title of "world's hottest sauce. " The sauce is widely distributed through gourmet hot sauce boutiques and online hot-sauce sites.2 Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 21, 2026.

Overview

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Dave's Gourmet is a company notable for creating and introducing Dave's Insanity Sauce, which formerly held the title of "world's hottest sauce." The sauce is widely distributed through gourmet hot sauce boutiques and online hot-sauce sites.2

The story

The original Dave's Insanity Sauce premiered around 1993 and was one of the first sauces to be made directly from capsaicin extract, allowing it to be hotter than the hottest habanero-pepper sauces of the day. It has been rated at 180,000 Scoville units, compared with 2,500 for Tabasco sauce. Part of the messaging behind the sauce name (Insanity) was founder Dave Hirschkop's wearing of a straitjacket at events promoting his products.

From Wikipedia’s article on Dave's Gourmet, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4

Products and brands

  • hot sauce

Listed on Wikidata.1

Sources

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    Company websiteDave's Gourmet logo
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