The Solothurn Mittelland runs on Bielersee whites from Twann and Schafis, Bürli bread from the local Beck, and the Italian-Swiss kitchens that came up around clubs like FC Italgrenchen. Pot Uno's, the small-batch hot sauce label run in Grenchen by Jean-Paul Peronace using tomatoes and chilis from his grandmother's garden in Calabria, has taken a Silver Medal in Salt & Condiments at the European Hot Sauce Awards 2026 (heatawards.eu), Europe's flagship hot sauce competition, with Angel Dust.
Pot Uno's started in 2012 in the kitchen of the FC Italgrenchen clubhouse and now runs out of Peronace's own lab in Grenchen, still by hand and still in small batches. The range includes Assbuster (Ghost Pepper with tomato and mango), Painapple (7-Pot Pepper with pineapple, lemongrass, basil and turmeric), the Calabrian chili oil pressed from his family's olive groves, and Angel Dust, the dry seasoning that took the Silver. Peronace keeps a full-time job alongside the label, deliberately resisting mass production.
Nathan Austin on Angel Dust:
"Angel Dust is the rub format played straight. Salt as the base, paprika and chili for depth, then a Mediterranean herb shelf, rosemary, thyme, oregano, behind it. Most BBQ rubs in this category lean on sugar to round out the finish. Angel Dust doesn't, and the herbs do that work instead." – Nathan Austin, Tasting Editor, Republic of Heat
Angel Dust took a Silver Medal in Salt & Condiments: a dry seasoning built on 50% salt, 10% chilis, with paprika, rosemary, thyme, oregano, caraway, cardamom and garlic, no added sugar. Designed as a rub for pulled pork, ribs, brisket and poultry. Named in tribute to Diego Maradona, who loved an asado.
"Honestly still speechless. We make this in Grenchen, by hand, in small batches, and taking a Silver in Salt from a blind European panel is hard to take in. Massive thanks to everyone who's been with us on this." – Jean-Paul Peronace, Pot Uno's Infamous Hotsauce
The European Hot Sauce Awards 2026 ran over 200 sauces from across the continent through blind tasting this year, scored on five criteria by a deliberately mixed panel of chefs, sommeliers, critics and chilli specialists. Salt & Condiments, with nine European entries, sits as one of the harder categories to land a podium in because the dry-seasoning format leaves no sauce, no acid and no sugar to hide behind.
"Salt & Condiments is the format where the judges taste exactly what you put in the jar. Angel Dust took Silver in a category where the spice blend has to carry every criterion on its own, and Pot Uno's pulled it off without reaching for sugar. We're watching closely for what Jean-Paul brings next." – Neil Numb, Founder, European Hot Sauce Awards
Angel Dust and the full Pot Uno's range are available from potunos.com. Full EHSA 2026 results across all 16 categories: heatawards.eu/results/2026?utm_source=press_release&utm_medium=press&utm_campaign=ehsa2026&utm_content=pot-unos.
PRESS RESOURCES Press kit (photos, logos, AI lifestyle composites credited Republic of Heat / European Hot Sauce Awards 2026): https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1ppJGmMkyqbk3LuEecaJJ8-OyoCnHM9eF?usp=drive_link
ABOUT POT UNO'S INFAMOUS HOTSAUCE Pot Uno's Infamous Hotsauce is a small-batch hot sauce and chili label run in Grenchen, Kanton Solothurn, by Jean-Paul Peronace. Started in 2012 in the kitchen of the FC Italgrenchen clubhouse, now produced in Peronace's own lab. The range, including Assbuster, Painapple, the Calabrian chili oil and the Angel Dust seasoning, is built around tomatoes and chilis grown in the Peronace family garden in Calabria. Available at potunos.com.
ABOUT THE EUROPEAN HOT SAUCE AWARDS The European Hot Sauce Awards (EHSA) is the professional competition for commercially produced hot sauces in Europe, run annually since 2024 from heatawards.eu. EHSA was born out of the Berlin Chili Festival, which has run since 2019 and returns 4–6 September 2026, and became an independent competition in 2024. Over 200 sauces from producers across the continent were entered in 2026. Entries are judged blind across five criteria: aroma, heat profile, flavour, creativity and finish. The 2026 edition covers 16 categories, with Gold, Silver and Bronze medals awarded across multiple positions in each. Each category also names a Best in Category, the top Gold. EHSA is run independently of any single producer or retailer.
ABOUT REPUBLIC OF HEAT Republic of Heat is a European hot sauce subscription designed to show off the flavours coming out of Europe and help solve the distribution problem independent makers face. Founded June 2025 in Berlin by Nathan "Naga" Austin and Simon "Scoville" Gardner. The Discovery subscription delivers three handpicked craft sauces plus a spicy extra to subscribers across the EU each month. Press partner of the European Hot Sauce Awards 2026. republicofheat.com.
PRESS CONTACT Press: Republic of Heat, on behalf of European Hot Sauce Awards contact@republicofheat.com +49 176 41601284
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