Easton Reed, Gourmet Sauces from Ryan's Specialties
Easton Reed is the gourmet brand from Ryan's Specialties in Augsburg, the company behind American Heritage. Under this name, they produce barbecue sauces, ketchups, fruit chutneys, organic maple syrup, Scottish shortbread, and popcorn—cooked in Europe and inspired by American cuisine.
Easton Reed is a gourmet brand from Augsburg, developed by Ryan's Specialties, the company that has been bringing American delicacies to Germany for over twenty years. While the recipes are inspired by American cuisine, they are cooked in Europe. The brand's motto appears on every label: "Crafted for the Love of Food."
The name comes from a family story
Easton Reed is not a company name or a place, but a character that embodies the brand's philosophy.
The story released by the company about the brand is about a man who loved to cook, not for the sake of perfection, but to bring happiness to the people at his table. In this narrative, passing on a recipe means passing on a piece of memory, and that is exactly what the brand name aims to represent.
Ryan's Specialties leaves it open whether this grandfather truly existed, and we do the same. However, the reality behind the brand is quite concrete: an importer based in Augsburg's Martinipark that has been bringing sauces, syrups, and confectionery from North America to German shelves for over two decades.
The company carries established US brands under the name American Heritage and its own line under Easton Reed. Sabine Ryan leads the company, which handles both distribution and recipe development.
Two decades of importing have resulted in precise knowledge of which American flavor profiles resonate in German kitchens and which do not. This experience is now in every bottle of the brand's own line, from the selection of ingredients to determining how sweet a barbecue sauce should be for the local palate.
Smoke, fruit, and honey from the sauce range
The sauces come in slender 260 ml glass bottles and cover the entire spectrum of the American barbecue shelf.
The Ribhouse BBQ Sauce represents the classic school of thought with tomato, brown sugar, and molasses, just as it appears on tables in rib houses across the Midwest. Alongside it is the mild Honey BBQ Sauce, which contains no heat and is therefore also a hit with children.
Things get a bit livelier with the Honey Chili Barbecue Sauce, where a red chili paste provides warmth without burning. The Maple Chipotle Sauce pairs Canadian maple syrup with smoked chili, combining sweetness with smoke. Smoky, sweet, spicy—the shelf is organized in that order.
Things get fruitier with the Peach Whiskey Sauce, featuring peach purée and a splash of Scotch whisky, and the Raspberry Chipotle Sauce, which pits raspberry against smoke and pairs surprisingly well with cheese.
The Apple Onion Fig Sauce with black figs, apples, and balsamic vinegar is the most elegant in the series and belongs more on a cheese board than at the grill. The Ginger Teriyaki Sauce shows an Asian inspiration, with Japanese soy sauce and caramelized ginger that plays to its strengths in the wok.
All eight varieties are formulated to be distinct from one another, rather than just slightly variations of a single recipe. If you would like an overview, you can find the entire series on our BBQ Sauces shelf, alongside the other brands in our range.
Fine pairings for the cheese board
Under the name "Fine Pairing," Easton Reed offers fruit chutneys, where each variety has its own specific spice accompaniment.
Cranberry meets ginger and cinnamon; peach meets thyme and maple syrup; cherry meets red wine and black pepper. Plum gets anise and bitter orange; blueberry gets rosemary; and the raspberry is even paired with onion and balsamic vinegar. The idea behind it is always the same: a fruit, a partner, and both should elevate each other.
The jars contain 230 grams and are designed for exactly what is missing alongside a strong cheese: a fruity acidity that lightens the bite. They work just as well on crostini, with game, or with a festive roast, and during the darker months, the cranberry variety particularly stands out—one jar lasts for several evenings.
The shelf is rounded out by a savory Sweet Honey Mustard, creamy and mild, as well as a ketchup series with significantly more character than the usual bottles.
The selection ranges from Farmhouse Ketchup to a barbecue variant, a banana ketchup, and a Truffle Ketchup with a hint of truffle. If you enjoy such accompaniments, you can find the chutneys and our entire ketchup range nearby.
Maple syrup, shortbread, and popcorn
The sweet side of the brand begins with organic-quality maple syrup, bottled in 250 ml glass bottles.
It is available as "Amber Rich Taste" with a mild, round flavor and as "Dark Robust Taste" with a stronger caramel note, plus a variant with cranberry. On pancakes, in porridge, or over fried bacon, the difference between the two grades is apparent from the very first spoonful.
In addition, there is Scottish shortbread in three varieties: classic butter, salted caramel, and chocolate chip, each in a 175-gram pack. The biscuits are also available as a set if you want all three varieties on the coffee table, and this selection quickly becomes a great gift.
Easton Reed packs popcorn in small 60-gram bags, coated with either almond brittle, maple, or cocoa. It is much more finely seasoned than the cinema popcorn that usually comes to mind. For an evening on the couch, one bag is enough for two people, and because the bags are small, they also make a great addition to a gift basket.
Nut spreads are also part of the assortment, including a cream made from hazelnuts, dates, and raw cocoa, as well as creamy and crunchy peanut butter, both without palm oil. A cotton bag featuring the brand's logo completes the picture, showing that Easton Reed is intended as a brand rather than just a collection of individual items.
Cooked in Europe, inspired by America
The fact that the sauces are produced in Europe is not a minor detail, but a decision with a history.
Ryan's Specialties developed the line after changes in EU import regulations made some popular items from the United States difficult to obtain. Instead of leaving these gaps on the shelf, the company recreated the flavor profiles it has known from two decades of importing.
They were newly formulated using European ingredients and according to European standards. This can be verified on every label. As a result, the ingredient lists are longer and more precise than some US originals, and the nutritional information is fully provided.
For you, this means familiar American aromas, labeling according to European standards, and significantly shorter distances to the warehouse than sea freight entails. Availability is no longer tied to customs issues either. The brand's organic items, primarily the maple syrup, are monitored by the eco-inspection body with the number DE-ÖKO-037.
Ryan's Specialties, based in Augsburg's Martinipark, is responsible for the brand; this is where the recipes are developed, the labels are checked, and the batches are approved. If you want to compare the American original, you can find it at Stonewall Kitchen from Maine. You can see what we currently have in stock from the brand in the product grid below.
