What could be a more fitting Fourth of July meal than a hot dog, especially in Maine?

Here, the hot dogs are red, the rolls are white and you’re blue – when they’re all gone, that is.

Revered by locals, sought out by tourists, the “red snapper” is as much a part of summer in Maine as lobster rolls and blueberry pie. According to Elizabeth Bean Trommer of W.A. Bean and Sons in Bangor, it’s the natural casing that provides the trademark “snap” when you bite into a red hot dog.

“The red color has nothing to do with the taste,” Trommer explained. “People don’t believe that. They swear up and down that they taste different, but they don’t. At least, they shouldn’t.”

But try telling that to the die-hard hot dog fans, who insist that redder is better.

“I don’t know – I just like them better. That’s all,” replied John Moholland of Chester, a regular at Doe’s Dogs in East Millinocket, when asked why he preferred red hot dogs to brown. He stops at the hot dog stand every time he and Jeanie Smart drive their 18-wheeler through town.

People like Moholland and Smart are the reason why W.A. Bean & Sons sold 349,219 pounds of hot dogs last year, most of them red. To achieve the color, the hot dogs are finished in a shower of hot water infused with a combination of red and yellow dyes, known in the industry as “red casing shade.”

Not to be confused with a “red hot,” which is a sausage in hot dog’s clothing, the red snapper is all frank, all the time. And its history is as colorful as its skin.

According to Allan Ross, an expert in natural casings whose family has been in the meat business for generations, the use of red dye was born of necessity. The reddish-brown shade of a hot dog is a natural byproduct of the smoking process. But decades ago, it was difficult to produce uniform-looking sausages and hot dogs, so manufacturers decided to take matters into their own hands.

“They did it for eye appeal in the marketplace,” Ross said by phone from Michigan, where he runs Little Silver Corp., a natural casing supplier. “The smokehouses weren’t so sophisticated and it was difficult to dispense and distribute the smoke evenly to give it the color.”

W.A. Bean & Sons started making hot dogs in 1918, when the company moved to a long-since-leveled plant behind the Freese’s Building. Back then, all of the other meat companies in town – and there were a bunch of them – were making red hot dogs.

Today, W.A. Bean & Sons is the only hot dog manufacturer in the state, and red snappers make up the majority of its business. In addition to marketing its own product, the company also manufactures Rice’s brand franks, which look similar but are made with a different recipe.

“Way back, there were Wilson’s, Armour and Swift – all of the big names made all of their products regionally,” David Bean said. “All of the other companies, they got bigger. They’re all gone and we’re still here and we’re the only ones making hot dogs.”

Nationwide, Bean’s plant is one of only a handful making red hot dogs. Contrary to popular belief, the red hot dog can be found in other parts of the country, including Nebraska and western Iowa, but, “It’s a shrinking segment,” Ross said.

The red snapper is far from the only hot dog to list dye among its ingredients. However, the use of natural casing makes it more labor-intensive and more expensive to produce. Today, the majority of hot dogs on the market are made with a cellulose casing, which is removed after the hot dogs are cooked – hence the lack of snap.

And while snap is essential, everyone agrees that the flaming red casing is what really sets the beloved hot dog apart.

“It’s funny. Maine people get it, but we’ve had a few people from out of state run up to the window and say, ‘Something’s wrong with my hot dog,'” Whitney Strout, a manager at Dana’s Grill at Dockside in Hampden, said. “We have to explain to them – it’s a Maine thing.”

By the numbers

July is National Hot Dog Month, so here are some facts and figures about the favored food:

Pounds of hot dogs sold by W.A. Bean & Son in 2006: 349,219

Percentage of those that were red: 90 to 95

Number of hot dogs consumed in the United States from Memorial Day to Labor Day: 7 billion (or 818 per second during that period)

Number of hot dogs expected to be consumed in the United States on Independence Day: 150 million (or enough to stretch from Washington, D.C., to Los Angeles over five times)

Average number of hot dogs per pound: eight

– Sources: W.A. Bean & Sons; National Hot Dog and Sausage Council

Grand Stands in Eastern Maine

Bolley’s Famous Franks

38 Water St., Hallowell, 622-2951

96 College Ave., Waterville, 873-6264

What sets it apart: Grilling in peanut oil

Favorite topping: sauteed onions

Hot dog color: Brown

On the side: chocolate milk

Dana’s Grill at Dockside

100 Marina Road, Hampden, 990-3307

What sets it apart: Dry grill

Favorite topping combo: mustard, relish and onions

Hot dog color: red

On the side: fries and coleslaw

Doe’s Dogs

Medway Road, East Millinocket, 723-1020

Note: Doe’s Dogs cart will be in Millinocket for the Fourth of July celebration and return to its regular location on July 5

What sets it apart: Grilling in olive oil with celery salt

Favorite topping: “everything” – ketchup, mustard, relish and sauteed onion

Hot dog color: red

On the side: a can of soda

Scotty’s Roadhouse

Intersection of South and Pine Streets, Dover-Foxcroft

What sets it apart: Local ingredients, butter-toasted bun

Favorite topping: mustard, relish and sauteed onions

Hot dog color: red (you can also get a footlong hot dog in brown)

On the side: hand-cut fries

Scott’s Place

Renys Plaza, Camden

What sets it apart: grilling in peanut oil

Favorite topping: ketchup, relish mustard and onion; bacon and cheese is a close second

Hot dog color: brown

On the side: a bottle of water

Wasses Hot Dogs

2 North Main St., Rockland

Renys Plaza, Belfast

What sets it apart: grilling in peanut oil

Favorite topping: mustard, relish and sauteed onions

Hot dog color: brown

On the side: chocolate milk