Honey Sweet BBQ Sauce

Honey Sweet BBQ Sauce with lots of honey and very little heat

Rufus Teague's Honey Sweet BBQ Sauce is a mild, dark red barbecue sauce with 10% honey. Sweet, smooth, and only very slightly smoky. Not a spicy sauce, but rather the tamest in the range, bottled in the flat whiskey flask.

Honey Sweet BBQ Sauce is the mild, honey-sweet barbecue sauce from Rufus Teague in Kansas City. 10% real honey gives it a soft sweetness, accompanied by a dark tomato base and just a hint of smoke. Once again, the exact recipe remains a family secret, but we’re happy to reveal a few ingredients: pureed raisins, orange juice, and a spoonful of anchovy paste, which provides a savory depth to balance the sweetness in the background. This makes it the ideal starting point if you love BBQ but aren't looking for heat.

Soft honey sweetness with a touch of smoke

You taste the honey first, then the dark sweetness of molasses and brown sugar, while the smoke remains only quietly in the background.

The Honey Sweet is the tamest sauce in the range – barely any heat, but round, sticky, and deep. Alongside the honey, molasses and brown sugar provide a dark, almost malty foundation. Orange juice and raisin paste add fruity notes, while a little anchovy paste and tamari soy sauce provide a savory counterpoint to the sweetness so it doesn't become overwhelming.

On the spoon, it feels almost like dark syrup, smooth and thick. That is exactly how it coats the meat, and it shines as soon as the heat caramelizes the honey. If you like barbecue without the burn, this is the perfect choice for you.

The sauce for ribs, wings, and kids

Honey BBQ sauce loves slow-cooked meat: spare ribs, chicken wings, pulled pork, and classic burgers become shiny and sweet with it.

It belongs on ribs, applied as a glaze in the final minutes when the honey caramelizes into a glossy crust on the grill. Because it is so mild, children love it too – no fire, just sweetness. It is a staple for dipping fries, nuggets, and corn on the cob, and it’s just as good on a cheese sandwich.

If you prefer something heartier, combine it with a dollop of KC Gold Mustard – sweet meets mustard; it works surprisingly well. And if you like your sweetness with more smoke, take a look at the Smoky Apple. This way, you'll find the right level of sweetness for every barbecue evening.

From hobby griller to a brand from Shawnee

Behind Rufus Teague is John McCone, who founded his BBQ brand in the Kansas City area in 2004 and named it after a fictional character.

For a long time, John was simply the guy grilling on his patio on weekends, until a Father's Day grill gift and a competition win turned it into more. The hobby grew into a small manufacturing facility in Shawnee, right next to Kansas City, the capital of sweet and smoky BBQ sauces. Over 20 years later, the brand sells its sauces in the USA and several other countries.

To this day, Rufus Teague bottles its sauces in the flat 16-ounce whiskey flask – a nod to the legend of the old BBQ master of the same name who never actually existed. Like all the brand's sauces, the Honey Sweet is gluten-free, kosher, and made without GMOs, using natural ingredients and having won multiple awards.

In our Rufus Teague range, it is the sweet entry point. From here, the path leads through the medium-spicy Touch O'Heat to the fiery Blazin Hot – but the Honey Sweet remains the sauce for the whole family. We carry six sauces from the brand, ranging from mild to fiery. BBQ barely gets any sweeter.