• by Danielle Oster , July 2, 2024

You might not associate caffeine with the backyard grill. But the many hours that go into proper barbecue means backyard cooks may very well benefit from a pick-me-up.

Drawing the connection, and launching ahead of grilling’s biggest holiday, energy shot company 5-Hour Energy launched a campaign built around the release of 5-hour Energy-Inspired Energizing BBQ Sauce.

"From my own family cookouts, I know how exhausting BBQing can be. From grilling to hosting and all the fun lawn games that happen in between, it's often an all-day affair," Jeff Sigouin, president and COO of 5-Hour Energy parent company Living Essentials, said in a statement. "As we continue to redefine what 5-hour Energy is and can be, we're excited to be the first energy brand to offer hardworking BBQ aficionados what they really need — a caffeinated sauce to help stay focused and keep the party going."

The brand could use a bit of a pick-me-up itself. According to data from Statista, 5-Hour Energy sales have declined from nearly $242 million in 2015 to approximately $177 million in 2023, amid a growing energy drinks market.

The brand is making the limited-release caffeinated barbecue sauce available to fans for free, even covering shipping costs, via a promotional giveaway on its website. A  release announcing the launch of the sauce, describes it as having a “sweet and tangy Peach Mango flavor and the caffeinated kick you'd expect from a 5-hour Energy shot,” suggesting it does not’ simply incorporate the ingredient in its recipe (which is probably for the best). Developed in collaboration with The National Food Lab, the sauce contains 60 mg of caffeine per serving.

5-Hour Energy originally launched the product on June 27, with regular drops over the course of the subsequent four weeks for those quick enough to submit an order before it’s gone. It’s currently sold out, but visitors can sign up for a notification when the next batch is made available.

To spread the word about the promotional release, 5-Hour Energy enlisted a familiar face to anyone who’s seen one of the most-streamed TV series ever: Brian Baumgartner, best known for portraying accountant “Kevin Malone” on NBC’s “The Office,” for an influencer marketing campaign.

One  of the character’s most memorable scenes involved his spilling of a large pot of homemade chili (a scene later recreated for a Bush’s Baked Beans National Chili Day ad), so it may not come as a surprise that the actor isn’t a stranger to the culinary arts. But his passion for barbecue goes beyond mere backyard enthusiast. Baumgartner just published a cookbook entitled “Seriously Good Barbecue Cookbook: Over 100 of the Best Recipes in the World” this May.

The actor spread the word about the Energizing BBQ Sauce with a video on his Instagram page featuring him incorporating the sauce into his pulled pork sandwiches, which has generated over 16,500 likes.