Smucker’s New Sweet Heat Honey Is a Perfect 10/10

Mike has had it too good for too long. But another big name has finally gotten into the hot honey game. Smucker’s has entered the chat. Last month, I went to Pizza Expo Columbus to sniff out what’s new in pizza and pizza accessories, and Smucker’s Sweet Heat Honey was the biggest find of the weekend (but not the only one—stay tuned for my review of two new sauces from Sweet Baby Ray’s!). With permission, I smuggled a full test bottle back home to take detailed tasting notes. Let’s find out whether this sweet heat is really cooking.

New Hot Honey!

Smucker’s Sweet Heat Honey

Pros: Mike’s Hot Honey is a good spicy honey, but Smucker’s Sweet Heat Honey is a good honey with spice. Smucker’s honey is so sweet and flavorful that the spice isn’t the whole point. The name says it all: This isn’t just hot; it’s got a sweet heat that doesn’t overpower the honey’s original flavor. The brand was sampling this honey on its own and on slices of pepperoni pizza (America’s favorite method of hot honey consumption, as far as I can tell); the balance of sweetness and heat worked its magic in both contexts. The list of just four ingredients (honey, chili pepper, vinegar, and salt) proves that complicated isn’t always the path to success.

Cons: I have no complaints. This is the perfect hot honey; I’ll be savoring every drop of this test bottle until I can get my hands on more—even if I have to buy in bulk (more on that below).

Credit: Liv Averett / SodaSeekers

Rating:

10/10

Sporks

When can I try Smucker’s Sweet Heat Honey myself?

That’s the awkward part, folks. For now, Smucker’s doesn’t have a confirmed timeline for when this may hit retail. Smucker’s will release this in May 2026 exclusively through their foodservice distributors, at which point restaurants will be able to source it in bulk for use as an ingredient. Per the conversation I had with the Smucker’s brand reps at Pizza Expo, they’re optimistic that the response will warrant a retail launch to follow…but no one knows when that would actually happen. Feel free to start a petition in the comments.