I ranked 4 brands of beef hot dogs, and the organic ones had the most flavor and snap

I tried four kinds of beef hot dogs from Nathan's, Sabrett, Applegate, and Ball Park.Erin McDowell/Business Insider

• I tried beef hot dogs from Nathan's, Sabrett, Applegate, and Ball Park.
• Ball Park had the thickest frank, but I thought Applegate's organic hot dogs packed the most flavor.

Ahead of Memorial Day weekend, I decided to try four different kinds of hot dogs to see which one I would choose for my own cookout.

The months between Memorial Day and Labor Day are recognized as "hot dog season" by the sausage industry. According to the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council, Americans consume roughly 7 billion hot dogs during this time and produce roughly $614 million in hot-dog sales.

I opted for beef hot dogs from Applegate, Sabrett, Nathan's, and Ball Park. The Sabrett, Nathan's, and Ball Park packages each included eight beef franks, while the Applegate package included six.

I cooked each type of hot dog the same way. Then I tried each one on a Martin's long potato roll, topped with Heinz ketchup and French's classic yellow mustard.

Here's how all four hot-dog brands ranked, from worst to best.