Hott began as a series of kitchen experiments — fermenting chillies, blending fruit, citrus and spice to see what worked. Some experiments were great. Some definitely weren’t.
How It Started
At the time I was studying for my master’s degree and needed something that felt completely different from coursework. Cooking had always been a way to unwind, and when I discovered fermented hot sauce it clicked immediately.
Before long I was fermenting chillies, blending different ingredients and filling the fridge with bottles. When space started running out I began giving them to friends, and a few of them suggested I should start selling it. That’s how Hott slowly took shape.
Flavour First
For a long time hot sauce was mostly about heat or acidity. Vinegar-forward sauces still have their place — Tabasco is one of my favourites — but I’ve always been more interested in how flavour and heat work together.
At Hott we pair the heat to the flavour, not the other way around. Too much heat can drown out ingredients, while too little can make a sauce feel flat. The goal is always balance.
Experimentation
Inspiration for a sauce can come from anywhere. Sometimes it’s a style of sauce you want to put your own spin on — pickle juice buffalo or a seaweed Louisiana-style sauce. Other times it’s something more experimental, like lychee and lemongrass or charred peach, scotch bonnet and spiced rum.
Some ideas work brilliantly. Some don’t. That’s part of the process.
How the Sauces Are Built
All of our chillies are fermented, and we also ferment bell peppers to create a naturally acidic base. This adds depth and brightness without relying on harsh vinegar.
Most ingredients are fermented separately to keep flavours clean before being combined. Recipes are built using percentages so once the balance is right the sauce can be scaled up without losing its original character.
What Matters Most
You can create wild flavour combinations or collaborate with big brands, but none of that matters if people don’t actually enjoy the sauce.
At the end of the day that’s the real test.