About Us

 As a kid, Robb spent summers on his grandparents’ acreage in Des Moines, Iowa.

Grandpa John was a true salt-of-the-earth Iowan. He grew up on a farm and took a bullet for his country. He came home, married his sweetheart Helen, and started a family. He fixed small engines and grew sweet corn on the side. When harvest came, the family filled the back of Grandpa’s old blue Chevy and parked on a neighborhood corner to sell it. Thirteen ears in a dozen. Robb got to keep some of the money.

It was more than pocket change. It was the feeling of creating something with your own hands and watching your neighbors bring it home for dinner. They were happy to spend their money on it. That mattered. That feeling never left.

Years later, Robb and Amanda built a life together, and it was no surprise they chose an acreage of their own. Some traditions are worth continuing. Before long, there was a very large garden. At first it was simply to feed family and friends, especially sweet corn. They started calling it Brown Dogs Farm, named after their three brown dogs: Prince, Mookie, and Hank.

What began as a backyard project caught the attention of the restaurant group Robb once worked for, Full Court Press. They encouraged him to create a hot sauce they could carry in their local restaurants.

Within a year, Robb had taught himself not only how to make hot sauce, but how to make it differently. That meant finding the right co-packer to bring it to life. He partnered with Valentine Food Company in Indianola, Iowa, just twenty minutes from Brown Dogs Farm. Keeping production close to home mattered.

By leading with fruit and flavor, he created sauces bold in color and layered in taste. At a time when many sauces were vinegar heavy and built around how much heat you could tolerate, Brown Dogs Farm focused on flavor first. The goal was never just heat. It was something people would actually enjoy putting on their food.

From restaurant tables to farmers markets, and eventually to store shelves across the Midwest, Brown Dogs Farm grew much like the summer sweet corn that started it all.

And despite managing a growing business, the sweet corn still gets planted every summer, shared with family and friends the same way it always was.

Robb and Amanda still show up at farmers markets, restaurants, and stores today. There is no better feeling than seeing someone genuinely happy to spend their money on something you made yourself.