The Best Tabasco Hot Sauce Flavors, Ranked

There aren’t many hot sauces in the world more ubiquitous than Tabasco. You’ve seen it at every diner in every corner of the country. It’s made an appearance at every supermarket you’ve ever been to. If you are my childhood friend’s dad, you might even have a tiny little bottle of it in your jacket pocket at all times. How many Tabasco sauces are there? Which Tabasco sauce is the hottest? The good folks at McIlhenny Co. are always up to something, so I figured I’d grab a variety pack and get to work answering those questions. Here are six Tabasco sauces, ranked.

Prices and availability are subject to change.

Related: I Tried the Tabasco Hot Sauce Salad Dressing and Here's What Happened

$38 for a six-bottle variety pack from Amazon

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I’ve always been partial to this green beauty. It’s a little bit less spicy than Original, so it’s safe to get a little bit more on your food than you expect. The sweet tang of the jalapeños and vinegar mimic a tasty green salsa, perfect for some tacos or maybe a little breakfast torta. It's bright and piquant, and absolutely perfect.

Related: We Tried 20 Popular Hot Sauces. This Is the Best

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I feel strongly that you already know what Tabasco sauce tastes like. That vinegary sweetness never gets old to me, and I love the firm slice of heat that the flavor takes. I don’t think bacon and eggs have a more suitable condiment than a bottle of Tabasco. I’m a customer for life.

What’s most interesting to me, though, is that Classic is the hottest flavor. I wouldn’t have expected that. Even on the box, there’s a little spiciness-flame-indicator, and Classic has the most, with two out of five. I would have expected Cayenne or Jalapeño to come out ahead there. 

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OK: yes. Yes, yes, yes. This is a great idea. It’s more vinegar-forward than other Buffalo sauces you might have tried before, but it absolutely works. It’s sticky enough to cling to whatever you’re coating with it, but thin enough to not completely ruin the fried exterior of any chicken or cauliflower you might be tempted to eat with it. This is great stuff.

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Wow. There is a lot of flavor here. This chipotle pepper offering is deep, soulful, and full of smokiness, almost like a Carolina (vinegar-based) BBQ sauce. The flavor is actually so powerful that while it’s not that spicy, I’d urge caution when saucing up your food. A little bit goes a long way here.

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We’ve got ourselves a little bit of a mystery. This bottle says “garlic pepper sauce” on the front and across the green label up top, but the box it came in clearly reads “cayenne.” To make matters more complicated, the bottle in the photo on the box also says “garlic pepper sauce.” Then, garlic is mentioned in the ingredients but cayenne is not. It just says “red pepper,” which I’d chalk up to a vague ingredient list, but the Buffalo sauce does in fact list cayenne as an ingredient. I can’t imagine you’re as invested in this mystery as I am, but something needed to be said. Somebody at McIlhenny is either a little bit confused, or they are playing a prank on me.

What does it taste like, you ask? It’s fine. Milder than most. Kinda garlicky.

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Sweet, yes, spicy, no. Not remotely. According to the ingredients, it’s made with pear. I don’t taste that, but this does oddly enough remind me of a sweet Thai chili glaze. I’d dip an egg roll into this. Save this for the spice-haters in your life.