Edmond Segbeaya is the man behind the “Hottest Sauce in the World.” Ebesse Zozo Hot Sauce. It is a West African Hot Sauce. Edmond hails from Togo and is now based on in Nelson, BC. His sauces are fiery hot, but full of flavor. With various degrees of hotness, you can use Ebesse Zozo Hot Sauce on any type of foods. We got a chance to talk with Edmond while he was staying with us here at Hotel C and learnt more about his business. We also got samples of his sauces and awesome bright T-shirts. Thanks, Edmond!
“For the fourth year running, becoming something of a tradition, Nelson, B.C.’s “hot sauce guy” burns the competition at 2 major internationals zesty foods contests once again. Edmond competed with over 600 other entrants in the 2006 America Best Zesty Professional Foods Contest to win First place for his HOT Hot Sauce, in August in Anaheim, California. He went on to win Second place for his NEW EBESSE ZOZO CAYENNE TINCTURE in October in Albuquerque, New Mexico at the 2007 Scovie Awards (www.fiery-foods.com)
Ebesse Zozo Hot Sauce: 1st Place – Hot Sauce XXX no extract category (2006 America Best Zesty Professional Foods Contest: www.abfevents.com/winnerscircle.html)
Ebesse Zozo Cayenne Tincture: 2nd Place – Hot Beverage Habanero base category (2007 Scovie Awards: www.fiery-foods.com) ”
H: How did you like staying here?
Edmond: I like it a lot; it is a very nice and cool place with a great ambience and atmosphere. And of course all of the girls at the front desk are great! Ha-ha. I always drive by here, but this is the first time that I booked here.
H: How often are you in Vancouver?
Edmond: It depends but at least 10 times a year. In fact I was in Vancouver for 3 weeks during the Olympics.
H: That’s great! I’m so glad that you got to experience that wonderful atmosphere and festivities during the Olympics. How did you enjoy the Olympics here in Vancouver? Did you get a chance to take part in any of the festivities?
Edmond: I was pretty busy doing demos for Whole Foods, Capers, and Granville Island. When I am here, I usually meet a lot of people from outside of the country. But on the day I took a break and was having a meal at Earls in Burnaby, I got a chance to meet the #7 women’s hockey team gold medal winner: Cherie Piper. I even got to hold the medal and it was so heavy.Another time, while out with a good friend, I also met the 4 time female world luger champion and 30 time Alberta champion.
H: So how did Ebesse Zozo hot sauce come to be?
Edmond: I started in 2002 and it was actually an accident. I had just moved here from Germany and was looking for white peppers to make the sauce for my family. I couldn’t find it anywhere. Finally I found a carton at a Kootenay Co-op store in Nelson. The next week I went back and bought another carton, and the next. I was making this for my own use and to share with friends and family. So the produce manager at the store asked me why I was buying so much and I brought a sample for him and his coworkers. They loved it and found it unique, flavorful and hot and gave me some feedback as well. And they asked me if I wanted to sell it and I said “How?” So on April 2nd my sauce was introduced in their deli and eventually I started packaging it. Originally it was in frozen form but it had a shorter shelf life of about 3 months. And eventually, I started to improve the packaging. At that time I was a Business admin student when I started to package and sell my sauce.
And one day, I was contacted by Chile Pepper Magazine to enter the 2004 Fiery Food Challenge in Texas. I called my uncle in Orange County and after doing some research, he called me back and told me that if I want to promote and sell my hot sauce, that is the best place to be. I was lucky because out of the contest of 803 competitors in different categories, and 200 in the international category that I was in, I won 3rd place. Every year I go to different exhibitions and competitions all over the place. In 2005, I won first place for People’s Preference Award Category at Chile Pepper Zest Fest and 3rd place in the Condiment Dipping Sauce Category.
H: Where can I buy more of your sauce here in Vancouver?
Edmond: My sauces are available mostly in Canada. Alberta, BC, Newfoundland, Ontario, Saskatchewan. There is also a specialty store in Ohio called Jungle Jim’s, which carries it. In Vancouver, you can buy the sauce at Whole Foodsin West Vancouver, Robson, Cambie and Kitsilano. Capers also carries Ebesse Zozo Hot Sauce. Other locations include, Fresh Is Best on West Broadway, Edible BC at the Granville Island Public Market, and Jamaican Pizza Jerkon Commercial Drive. Soon, my sauce will also be available at Urban Fares around Vancouver. You can of course find my sauces online on my website and on the Dragon’s Den website. I have shipped my sauce all over the world from online orders; to Japan, Asia, Africa, and Europe. Many people order during Christmas time as well.
H: What kind of exposure have you had for your sauces?
Edmond: I was on City Cooks with Simi Sara and she had to have a glass of milk on the side because it was too spicy! Ha-ha. I was also on Urban Rush and the Morning News. There were also two documentaries and one of them was filmed by CBC , entitled “Territoire del’autre” (Territory of the Other) featuring myself in the community of Nelson. I have also been featured in major newspapers like the Vancouver Sun, and magazines like BC Business and Kootenay Business Magazine.
I showcase my sauce at various trade shows all over North America and Europe. I have also been at the Taboo Naughty but Nice Show here in Vancouver. I have also been at Eat Vancouver; the Food and Culinary Festival for 5 years and may be there on the upcoming event as well.
The best opportunity I have had is to be on the Dragon’s Den. I was actually away in Europe when they tried to contact me and when I came back, people were saying that Edmond, you have to do a speech for the Dragon’s Den and I was selected as one of the 5 people to be on the show. This was out of 60 people who spoke. My episode was aired during the 4th Season on the 2nd episode. In fact, you can still purchase my sauce online through their website as well. For my pitch, I brought exotic dishes for the dragons to try with my sauce. I knew that Arlene Dickinson did not eat hot food so I recommended the extra mild sauce for her but she insisted on having the hot flavor. In the end she was crying and they even had to redo her makeup. My target was Kevin O’Leary and he smartly chose to try the medium flavor. As for Robert, he tried my hot sauce and said it wasn’t hot. He said he wanted more so I gave him a liquid form of my sauce and that finally got to him. Brett Wilson said that it was the hottest thing he’d ever tasted. In the end, I didn’t come out with a deal. But it was great exposure and one of my best experiences ever. The dragons were very nice as well.
H: Wow… Your sauces seem really hot. Even the Dragons couldn’t handle it! Will it be too hot for me? What levels of spiciness do your sauces have?
Edmond: There are 4 kinds: Hot, Medium, Mild and Extra Mild.
H: Great! I’m excited to try it now, but what can I eat your sauce with?
Edmond: You can eat it with anything. You can put it on eggs, barbecue, spaghetti, couscous, etc. Some people have actually submitted recipes to me on my website. For example, some people have put the hot sauce on ice cream! One interesting recipe is to put the sauce with some oil and make a spicy popcorn topping! If you Google my sauce, you can find many recipes as well as reviews. In fact, if you search on YouTube, you can even find an 11 yr old girl who drinks a bottle of my sauce.
H: Yum… So, what’s the secret ingredient?
Edmond: There is no secret ingredient! All the ingredients are listed on the bottle. But you could have all the ingredients and never make it like my sauce. It’s an old, old family recipe passed down from my grandmother and mother. My grandmother told me I’ve been eating hot foods since I was 2 months old.