A Father's Day Message of Love

Greg woke up this morning to a note from Rudi, Greg's oldest son, who owns Rudi's Hot Sauces, down in Halifax. I don't know which one of us choked up more when I read it. Greg is letting me share it with you. <3 Happy Father's day. ----- My father, The Peppermaster, lives, eats and sleeps for hot peppers. Hailing from the tropical islands of the Bahamas, peppers have always been a big part of his life, and thus mine. My dad was so engrossed in his spicy food production that in 2013 I decided to join him. Of course, I maintain a healthy addiction for spicy sauces, elixirs, mashes and all things that burn my mouth, but the real reason I got into the hot sauce biz was to reconnect with my father. Starting with a long walk on a NS beach in 2012, together, we developed Rudi’s Hot Sauce. A unique line of premium finishing sauces intended to go directly on the table alongside the salt and pepper. Before all this, he was following his dreams in life, as I was mine. Now, five years later and we’ve never been closer. It’s been an amazing experience, from designing labels to developing new products or tweeking old ones, coming up with game plans for shows, markets, and retail, stemming peppers and cooking big pots of delicious hot sauce, bottling, labeling, lidding, sampling, selling, we’ve done all this together. A true father/son production, as it says right on each bottle. Going back in time, it all started in Canning, Nova Scotia at The Apple Tree Landing restaurant during the 1980’s. I grew up in our family apartment tucked down below in the basement, a bustling fine dining restaurant thriving overhead. For over a decade my dad, Greg Brooks, was head chef and owner. He began bottling his spicy sauces and selling them at the cash, and with my help, at craft shows in Halifax. They sold so well, he eventually closed the restaurant and went into hot sauce production full time out of Wolfville under the name, Constant Creations. So many people remember eating at our family restaurant and we are still proud of it to this day. Now, our family runs a business called, ‘Brooks Pepperfire Foods’ based out of Rigaud, Quebec. There, along with myself, Tina, the ‘Peppermistress’ and Dom and Marshall, the ‘Apprentices’, Rudi’s Hot Sauce is cooked and bottled before being shipped off to Halifax, where I, Rudi, have successfully dominated the local hot sauce scene. With dreams of someday opening a facility here and taking over the world, for now I remain content in spending my time, sampling, selling, distributing, and best of all, eating, my delicious hot sauces! Sweet Cherry Bomb and Smoky Jalapeno Bacon are my top sellers, but Candy Reaper Burn, Mellow Mojo Verde and Bold Chili Scorch all put up a good fight. Goat Pepper Fire and Thai Bird Tang are still my favourites though, simple, clean and versatile, true Caribbean sauces. All my products are low in sodium, most contain no added sugar, all are gluten free and packed with fair trade, organic ingredients. From mild cherry peppers to the Carolina Reaper, and all varieties between, Rudi’s Hot Sauce delivers flavour and heat. Known for having a delayed burn effect that comes on after the flavour and lasts a long while. As I always say, Let the Peppers Shine. And, Dad, happy Father’s Day, working with you has only changed my life for the better. Love you! Peppermaster & Son -- Greg Brooks, Rudi Brooks

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