Barbecue sauce preference can be very personal when it comes to flavor and texture
Walk into any grocery store and you'll find an entire section of an aisle dedicated to this
tangy, sweet sauce. Stubbs Barbecue Sauce has quite the following, but many people may not
realize that bottles weren't sold at supermarkets until much later. That's because Stubbs first
began as a restaurant in Lubbock, Texas, which also served as a music venue attracting crowds
from all over. As for the sauce, it would be a few decades before the man known as Stubb
would consider bottling up his recipe and putting his face on the label
This company would later be worth millions, too, all in the name of a delicious, sweet sauce
Christopher B. Stubblefield, or Stubb as family and friends knew him, was the man behind the well-known barbecue sauce. But selling his own sauce wasn't initially
on his radar, nor would it be for several years. His adventures in all things barbecue began while stationed as a gunner in the Army Stubb was part of the U Army All Infantry in the 96th Field Artillery during the Korean War After two injuries he became a mess sergeant which gave him plenty of cooking
experience. But when he was honorably discharged in 1967, he moved back home to Lubbock, Texas
where he was inspired to open a restaurant. By 1968, he opened his first restaurant and
called it Stubbs Legendary Barbecue. It was a small operation with a maximum capacity of 75 people
He served beef brisket, ribs, sausages, and chicken, which were smoked in the outside
hickory pit located behind his restaurant. It became equally popular as a hangout spot
and a place to listen to live music while eating scrumptious barbecue, especially on weekends
In fact, musicians would come to play in exchange for tips and good ol' barbecues since Stubb
didn't have the cash to pay them. "'Stubb's Barbecue actually, like Joe says, is a place for the musicians, a lot of bands
that's been put together here.'" Less than two decades later money and tax problems forced Stubb to close its doors According to the company website he told Texas Monthly put it this way I got run out of Lubbock cause I was broke busted and disgusted
I can't fight the IRS with barbecue and sauce.'" Soon, Stubb relocated from Lubbock to Austin, Texas, where he started working at a barbecue
place. In 1986, he left that job to open a new restaurant and music venue of his own
Sadly, it closed down three years later, but that's when inspiration hit. At the suggestion
of several friends, he decided to bottle up his sauce and sell it. In the beginning, he
reused bottles and jars and simply removed the labels. He hand-poured his sauce and corked
each container with a jalapeno pepper. Bottles could also be purchased with an audio cookbook called Stubbs Blues Cookbook Cassette
which was recorded on a cassette tape. Stubbs' barbecue brand, which also includes rubs and
marinades, was sold to McCormick & Company in 2015 for a hefty sum. According to a press
release in 2015 Stubbs products complement McCormick range of grilling items with the addition of authentic Kraft barbecue sauces McCormick plans to drive sales of the Stubbs brand through expanded
distribution, increased household penetration, and innovative flavors. Thanks to this acquisition, you can find the Stubbs brand in many places around the world. In May of 1995, Stubb died at
the age of 64 due to congestive heart failure. Nevertheless, his spirit lives on not only
through his line of barbecue sauces, marinades, and cookbooks, but also through the restaurant
in Austin, Texas that he once had to close. After his death, his partners raised money to purchase the historical building that housed
his restaurant so they could bring people together to enjoy barbecue and live music
once again. Even though his first restaurant had been closed for years, his friends crafted a life-size
bronze statue of Stubb that was placed near the original location as a tribute to him
and his hometown. So if you ever find yourself passing through Lubbock, you can pay your respects to Mr. Stubb