It was a snowy Saturday in southern Alberta, but it was scorching hot at Exhibition Park in Lethbridge.
The event was the first of its kind in western Canada, according to Dylan Lowry, the organizer behind the all-day hot sauce exhibition called Heating Up The Prairies.
Lowry, owner of Beyond Hot, a specialty hot sauce shop in Lethbridge, said the turnout showed the great talent in the southern Alberta hot sauce scene.
“We’re helping a lot of these local people take their business to the next level,” Lowry said. “There are some great craftsmen here in our own backyard.”
About 50 vendors were expected, but a Friday night snowstorm brought that number down. Still, dozens turned up to bring the heat along with vendors selling kettle corn, beef jerky and other snacks.
These included Danny Robdrup and his family from Watering Eye Hot Sauce. They make hot sauces in small batches from peppers grown in southern Alberta — which Robdup says began when “like many others we found something to do during the pandemic.”
“We started with a cayenne pepper plant… It spread from there and ended up doing a small grow downstairs in our house that was all peppers and hydroponic.”
Robdrup said it means a lot to attend the fair.
“We’re getting our name out there and we’re able to deliver what we think are some of the best sauces available,” he said.
It’s not just about the spiciness: taste also plays a role. Watering Eye Hot Sauce products include hot peppers, but also African and Indian spices and fruits such as strawberry, pineapple and mango.
Some varieties were sold out at the fair.
“The community support has been great,” said Robdrup.
Hot sauces have steadily grown in popularity over the past few years, owing to both the pandemic and social media. Follow the YouTube show Name iswhere celebrities are interviewed while eating chicken wings with 10 different ever hotter sauces is watched millions of times.
Its popularity extends beyond the screen, too: the show’s sauces, which change each season, are coveted by condiment connoisseurs.
The increased demand is a trend continued by Atty Charles of Atty’s Crazy-Hot Sauce. He said many people in Lethbridge were familiar with his hot sauce “and it’s becoming increasingly popular”.
While his shop is online, he said taking part in Heating Up The Prairies gave him a chance to reach new audiences and hopes it’s a step in getting his hot sauce in stores in the years to come sell.
Visitors to the show also had a chance to try different sauces in a Hot Wing Challenge – an endurance battle to see who can handle the heat.
Chris Gregus entered and made it to the second round before dropping out.
“It was pretty wild from the start,” he said, adding that spice is usually welcome: “I just like the pain it brings, but that was just way too intense for me.”
Organizer Lowry said that even if the expo saw a lower turnout, he was just happy to share his passion for hot sauce with the world.
Donations from the exhibition went to the Interfaith Food Bank Society of Lethbridge.
