Linneweber’s Sauce Company is a seed-to-sauce business based out of Knox County, Indiana, that offers handcrafted, award-winning sauces, seasonings, hot honey, and Bloody Mary mixes. Founder Chris Linneweber painstakingly attends to every detail of the process, which often takes well over a year to go from seed to retail ready. The products are sold online, at several businesses and restaurants around Southwest Indiana, and at farmer’s markets. Chris enjoys using new types of chili peppers and is constantly experimenting with his products, so you never know what you might find!

Chris spent many years traveling for his career in industrial construction and welding. He was never able to have a garden of his own, but he would occasionally experiment with creating pastes, powders, and sauces when his friends had extra chili peppers. When people began asking where they could buy his creations, he knew he was onto something.

COVID presented an opportunity for him that may never have happened otherwise. Travel was put on pause for his day job, so Chris used that extra time to research licensing, food safety, and the legal requirements to turn his hobby into a business. It just so happened that the same year, a friend planted over 110 chili varieties, giving him plenty of produce to launch his business.

Since then, things have grown “crazier and crazier” as Chris has steadily increased production while continuing to manage every part of the operation himself. Growing peppers from seed, harvesting, fermenting, creating the products, selling at markets, and handling wholesale and online orders could easily be five or six separate businesses. But for Chris, maintaining full control is worth it, because it’s the only way he can guarantee the uncompromising quality of every product he makes.

His biggest challenge? Balance. Chris juggles a full-time day job with nights and weekends spent in a shared commercial kitchen refining his products. At times he’s processing peppers when he’d like to be selling at a market. But his loyal customer base—and love of competition—keep him motivated. Linneweber’s Sauce Company has earned multiple awards, including International Awards: 2023 Poblano Banana Plum Mild sauce, 2024 No-Heat Waterbellon MILD Sauce, and 2025 Honey BBQ Seasoning. 2025 also brought the first ever Scovie Award for the Pumpkin Ghost Pepper Hot Sauce. The “Hodgepodge” Hot sauce won an award at the first annual Wabash Pepper Fest and Hot Sauce Expo. The recent 2026 Scovie Awards garnered 3 wins - the Spicy Bloody Mary Mix, the Citrus Seafood Seasoning, and a first place prize for the Hot Honey. Chris continuously develops new recipes based on emerging pepper trends and customer feedback at events.

Chris attributes his success to the friends and local farmers who have supported him from the beginning—those who grew peppers, helped bottle sauces, or lent equipment at low cost. The Southwest Indiana SBDC, Southwest Purdue Ag Center, The Pantheon, and an INTAP award have helped him better understand pricing, cost of goods, and scaling sustainably. Despite rising costs and industry pressure to cut corners, he remains committed to doing things the right way: sourcing locally whenever possible, fermenting for months or longer, and avoiding shortcuts and additives.

His unique 1.7 oz bottles allow for lower shipping costs, more variety, less waste, and high portability, helping customers try many flavors without commitment or clutter.

Chris hopes to one day secure his own kitchen, expand production, grow more peppers, and increase his retail reach, without compromising quality.

His advice for aspiring entrepreneurs? “Get ready to work harder than you’ve ever worked in your whole life. But you’re investing in yourself—not someone else’s dream. Starting is easy. Scaling is the hard part. Especially in food.”

Linneweber’s Sauce Company sells online and through wholesalers across Evansville, Vincennes, Sullivan, Terre Haute, Washington, and beyond. Hot honey, seasonings, and Bloody Mary mixes have become customer favorites alongside his ever-changing sauce offerings. Order online at https://www.linneweberssaucecompany.com/ or follow Linneweber’s Sauce Company on social media to see where Chris will be next and taste his handcrafted, farm-fresh sauces for yourself