Whether you’re showing off your best hot sauce recipe or incorporating the latest pepper crop from your garden, making hot sauce is a unique and tasty Christmas gift for friends and family. There’s a reason we sell so many hot sauce labels; people love spicing up their food! Habanero, jalapeño, serrano and other peppers are gardeners’ favorites, and their spicy piquancy adds zest to homemade hot sauce. If you’re thinking about mixing up your own batch of hot sauce for Christmas gifts, then you’ll need to find the right bottles. Typically, that means bottles that are 4 to 5 ounces in size. This must-read guide provides a sample of three different types of hot sauce bottles to buy and the labels to fit them.
Dasher Bottles for Hot Sauce
The most popular choice for hot sauce bottles is the 5 oz. glass dasher bottle. It’s typically 6.68″H x 1.81″ in diameter and brings to mind the traditional Tabasco sauce bottle everyone recognizes. It’s called a dasher because the topper dispenses only dashes of hot sauce, which if your sauce is smokin’ hot, is probably a good thing. This bottle is available in small quantities, which makes it even more appealing for budget conscious Christmas shoppers.
- Kegworks offers a single 5 oz. glass bottle at $2.29, but if you buy 12 or more pay only $1.79 each.
- Amazon sells a 5 oz. glass bottle in cases of 12 with black shrink bands for the bottle necks, priced at $14.95.
- Plastic (PVC) 5 oz. hot sauce bottles are available from the Cary Co. starting at $0.44 USD.
TIP: If you decide to buy in bulk from an online wholesaler make sure the lids and dasher inserts are included in the price. Some sites offer lower prices for large orders, but the caps and inserts are not included.
Labels for Dasher Bottles
For labeling the 5 oz. dasher bottle you’ll want to check out the 3″ w x 2″ h sticker. Some bottles can handle the 2″ w x 3″ h size so before you order make sure you measure your bottle’s label panel. Select a pre-made hot sauce design and add your words or make one from scratch.
Swing Top Bottles
The alternate to the dasher bottle is called the swing top or flip top glass bottle. It comes with a swing clamp top plus a gasket which prevents leaks and is universally described as airtight. For hot sauce gifts the 4.25 ounce size is just right.
One drawback to this bottle is how fast the hot sauce comes out. Unlike the dasher bottle, there’s nothing to regulate the hot sauce flow, so beware! This bottle is available with round or square bases depending on the source. Most bottles run right around 5 inches in height.
- Get one 4.25 oz. glass swing top from Amazon priced at $8.79. A pack of 20 is $64.99 which brings the price down to $3.25 each.
- Specialty Bottle sells single 4 oz. bottles starting at $2.51. That price holds up until the quantity of 119.
- One bottle is $3.59 from Everything Kitchens.
- The Container Store lists this bottle as a 4.25 square hermetic bottle on their website for $4.49 each. If you plan on shopping in-store check their site for availability via zip code search. The two stores near me had 18 and 4 in stock.
TIP: Buying by the case can bring the price down in some instances. At Amazon buying a case of 20 brought the price down. At Specialty Bottle the case price for 20 bottles stays the same as if you buy a single bottle.
Labels for Swing Top Bottles
To label a mini swing top bottle choose the dropper bottle on our website. Check the measurement against your bottle and see if it works for you. It’s 3″ w x 1.5″ h. Design your own hot sauce label for this bottle size here.
Mini Squeeze Bottles
If glass bottles aren’t your first choice due to concerns over breakage, then plastic squeeze bottles are an option to consider.
- Walmart sells 4 oz. plastic squeeze bottles. The bottle is 4.7″ h x 1.6″ diameter. They come with a pre-cut hole for precise portions, but you can cut a larger hole for faster dispensing. Think twice about that if your hot sauce is off-the-charts hot!
- Even Target gets in on the act with a 4 oz. squeeze bottle. The top looks just like the orange Elmer’s glue cap only in black. The dispenser tip is a bit unconventional for hot sauce, but they claim it’s good for sauces and condiments. It’s sold online only at a regular price of $24.99 for a 24 pack. The bottle diameter is 1.8″ and it’s 5.3″ h.
TIP: When buying plastic food containers check to make sure they are food-grade and BPA free.
Labels for Squeeze Bottles
Because the base of the plastic squeeze bottle is fairly small the recommended label sizes are 3″ w x 2″ h rectangle and 2.5 inch circle.
Make Homemade Hot Sauce Gifts this Christmas
It’s hard to go wrong with homemade food gifts since they’re made from the heart. These small bottles filled with your own hot sauce are just the thing for stocking stuffers. If you have questions about making personalized stickers for your hot sauce chat with us weekdays 9 to 3 Pacific time on our website bottleyourbrand dot com.
