Hot sauce enters the craft era: ‘It’s pretty much like profiling wine’

Natural Australian hot sauces are on the rise, with a focus on ‘what you can do with chillies beyond just heat’. Photograph: Mat's Hot Shop

“We can break down the hot sauce industry into three different eras,” says Mat Garthwaite of Melbourne-based Mat’s Hot Shop. Yes, that’s right, hot sauce has eras and a growing craft movement. Who knew?

Table sauces, like Tabasco – “literally just chilli and vinegar” – are the first era, says Garthwaite.