In some circles, hot sauce is as American as apple pie. Take Tabasco: a trusted condiment common in American homes, sports bars and diners. So when Drew Wolf moved from New York to London more than 15 years ago, he realised that “one thing missing from every shelf in the UK was a decent, bright-red, no-frills hot sauce. Everyone had that in my life growing up.”
It was during lockdown in 2020 that Wolf – a creative director in the advertising industry – founded Kold Sauce. His fascination with fermentation grew after reading The Art of Fermentation by Sandor Katz, and he “started playing around with the method, edging towards a fermented hot sauce”. Though it began as a way to raise money for food banks and the Black Lives Matter movement, as Wolf kept selling out batches, he realised he had more than a side hustle on his hands. Now, Kold Sauce is stocked on its own online store, as well as in delis and wine bars around London and beyond.
Part of that success is down to the fact that Kold Sauce uses three types of chilli. Each is selected from the New Spitalfields Market in Leyton for its individual flavour and heat level. “We have hot, mid and less-hot,” says Wolf. “We use scotch bonnet habaneros that are bright red, fruity and super-hot, then red bird’s eye chillis, and our base pepper is red cayenne.” He experimented with dozens of combinations, opting to use multiple chillis to push the flavour profile beyond mere “spicy”. “It’s more about a feeling – there’s a big flavour profile before you get to the spice,” says Wolf.
Kold Sauce takes its name from the way it’s produced: without heat, unlike many other sauces on the market. Wolf uses natural fermentation to develop the sauce’s fresh and fruity flavours. Over six to eight weeks, the combination of salts, sugars and the “grace of fermentation”, the natural sugars in the chillis are broken down and turned into acid. Eventually, the chilli fibres break down and turn into sauce. “I don’t even make the sauce – it makes itself,” jokes Wolf. He then adds a splash of rice wine vinegar for flavour and a secret spice blend. Kold Sauce’s charm is that it complements, rather than overpowers, other foods. “It’s a team player,” says Wolf.
It’s a hot sauce beloved by chefs, having been used by Rogue Sarnies, Bad Boy Pizza Society and Caravel. And wine shops also love Kold – its fermentation method is similar to that used in winemaking, which makes it easier to explain to customers.
The original bright-red hot pepper sauce remains the hero, while more recent product launches include the Kold Gold sauce, made from Alfonso mangos and Cuban yellow habaneros, and Kold Green, with green cayenne, habanero and bird’s eye chillis. Kold is not slowing down, and Wolf promises to “always continue to work with amazing products, brands, and ingredients”.
London Pantry is a series celebrating ingredients made by London’s greatest producers that have gone from cult classics to kitchen staples.
