About Gringo Bandito

 

"People who like hot sauce are a certain type of people. They're passionate. They'll have a bottle with them wherever they go. I'm one of those people. And when I'm into something, I really get into it. It's like my music—I liked records, so I learned how to play a guitar. After that? A band" 

Behind the not-so-famous hot sauce line from Dexter Holland

Gringo Bandito was started in 2004 by Dexter Holland, singer for the multi-platinum punk rock band The Offspring. Passionate about peppers (and molecular biology), Dexter spent two years experimenting with his personal hot sauce recipes to get the perfect balance of flavor, texture and heat. The first batches were a labor of love, a Christmas gift for the crew at his Nitro Records label in Huntington Beach, California. 

The response to Dexter's new hot sauce was so positive that he decided to make it a brand. Gringo Bandito's first commercial batches were made by hand, and were distributed in select Southern California restaurants and boutiques. Sales were modest at first, but steadily caught fire.

 Now, Gringo Bandito is a worldwide brand with well over a million bottles enjoyed and a loyal fanbase. Dexter's recipes have won accolades from Playboy, the Scovie Awards, and more. And, the brand has been featured in the nation's top magazines, and has been reviewed far and wide by the biggest hot sauce fans around.

The small batch tradition continues today -- each batch of sauce is blended to perfection using hand-selected ingredients sourced from the best pepper purveyors around. No concentrates, no synthetics and no preservatives.

"I just thought it would be cool to have a hot sauce," says Holland. "I gave away the first batch as Christmas presents to my friends. They liked it so much, I knew I had to share it with the world. It all started small, but it has just kept on growing. I never expected it to become all this."

 

When Dexter isn't busy cooking up hot sauce and taste testing new recipes, he's often touring the world as the lead vocalist for The Offspring -- the Southern California punk rock band with over 45 million albums sold and a billion Spotify streams.