Delivery Rank -Formosa Hot Sauce: Handcrafted to Perfection

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Sarah KirtonWriter

Fact checked by Deborah Leigh

Updated on Feb 28th, 2025

Formosa Hot Sauce: Handcrafted to Perfection

Julio Lopez Velasquez, CEO and Founder of Formosa Sauce Inc., has been dedicated to crafting healthy and flavorful hot sauces since 1984. Inspired by a family recipe from a small village in Mexico, Julio perfected this family treasure over the years. Today, Formosa Sauce Inc. proudly shares its 100% natural, vegan and glutenfree hot sauces, blending authentic flavors with a commitment to quality for over 39 years. DeliveryRank offers you an exclusive interview.

Formosa Hot Sauce emphasizes all-natural, gluten-free, and vegan products. Could you share more about the development process of these sauces and the challenges you’ve faced in maintaining these standards while ensuring bold, unique flavors?

I’m a former chef, and back when I had a restaurant with my sister-in-law, we used to sell our original hot sauce the habanero flavor, directly to customers. Eventually, I decided to bottle the sauces, and I developed new recipes to expand the range. From the start, it was a challenging journey—as any new business is—with licenses, permits, pricing, and countless other hurdles to navigate.

What set me apart, though, was my focus on branding. I worked tirelessly to get it just right, ensuring our product stood out. Unlike many others, our sauces are vegan, gluten-free, all-natural, and versatile—they can be used as a cooking sauce, marinade, or even a traditional hot sauce.

Our first big breakthrough came when we showcased at the Fancy Food Show in New York. We presented ourselves as a much larger company, only bringing 50 cases with branding that looked professional and polished. That effort paid off—we secured our first major order for 10,000 bottles. But that was also when reality hit. At the time, I was still cooking from home, and I had no idea how I was going to produce such a large quantity.

That order forced me to learn quickly—everything from working with the health department to securing an industrial kitchen, sourcing bottles, and managing production and labeling. It was overwhelming, but we fulfilled the order. It wasn’t without mistakes, though. In the beginning, we were hand-filling bottles with a pitcher! But through trial and error, I refined the recipes and streamlined the process.

Now, we’re capable of producing up to 2,000 bottles a day. Our sauces are sold across the United States, Canada, and even Japan. It’s been a long road, but one filled with invaluable lessons and growth.

The introduction of the Roasted Peppers flavor highlights your commitment to innovation. What inspired this particular flavor profile, and how does it complement the rest of your product line?

Our journey began with our original Habanero sauce, which we sold at our restaurant before I decided to expand into bottled products. Before presenting at the show, I developed a Chipotle sauce, but I quickly realized there was demand for something even milder. That’s when I created the Jalapeño sauce, which many people enjoy using almost like a dressing.

As someone who loves Cajun food, I wanted to create something truly special and versatile for those flavors. I came up with the idea to roast seven different types of peppers, experimenting with combinations to achieve the perfect smoky, hickory flavor. It took about four months of refining the recipe, adjusting acidity levels, and ensuring it could last at least two years without preservatives. The result was something I’m incredibly proud of—it’s like my baby. This sauce stands out from the others, not only in flavor but also in versatility. It pairs beautifully with Cajun dishes, and you can pour it over just about anything for a rich, smoky kick.

The process was a labor of love, involving countless measurements, trials, and adjustments, but it was worth it to create something completely unique and true to my vision.

Formosa offers a variety of packaging options, including gift wooden boxes and larger quantities like the half gallon and gallon-sized Roasted Peppers and our other flavors as well. How do you tailor your marketing and distribution strategies to cater to both individual consumers and wholesale clients?

From the beginning, I’ve always had a strong foundation in sales, having run two other companies and worked extensively in the field. I’ve also ventured into film production and real estate, but when I decided to focus on this business, I knew I had to approach things differently.

At the Fancy Food Show, we received numerous offers from distributors, but I quickly realized their terms primarily benefited them, not us. I knew taking that route could jeopardize the business, so I made the decision to forgo traditional distribution. Instead, I focused on building direct business-to-business relationships, starting locally with wineries and expanding across the United States. Leveraging my experience in the culinary world—running a restaurant and catering business—I recognized a demand for larger quantities like half-gallons and gallons, especially among cafés and restaurants. Today, many businesses use our products for cooking, mixing dressings, and enhancing their offerings.

It wasn’t easy at first. I spent considerable time sending samples, reaching out, and building connections, but the effort has paid off. We now have over 120 stores across the U.S. carrying our products. On the consumer side, I focused on visibility by attending trade shows and partnering with larger companies for pop-ups, allowing people to try the products firsthand. This grassroots approach helped generate buzz, and now, we have a loyal customer base ordering directly from our website.

To diversify further, we’ve established an online presence through platforms like Amazon, Walmart, and Etsy, targeting multiple markets simultaneously. By handling distribution in-house, we’ve eliminated the need for middlemen, allowing us to maintain control and profitability. The business-to-business approach has been especially successful, bringing in one to two new customers weekly while allowing us to grow steadily and sustainably.

Your website includes recipes and a journal. How do you see these resources enhancing customer engagement, and what role do they play in shaping the Formosa brand's identity?

As a chef, I’ve always focused on showcasing our products in a way that feels authentic and engaging. If you look at our social media, it’s all about food—I’m constantly cooking, taking pictures, and sharing ideas. To elevate this, I bring in a professional photographer two to three times a year to capture recipes I’ve created, making everything look polished and appealing. These images, along with new recipes and flavors, are included in bi-monthly email that we send to our customers. This keeps them excited and inspired, showing them how to use our products creatively.

Our email campaigns often lead to customers reaching out with questions like, “How can I use this in my cooking?” We always direct them to our Instagram, where we have an extensive collection of recipes and tips. We also collaborate with other chefs from diverse culinary backgrounds—Mexican, Indian, and more—who use our hot sauces in unique ways. When they share their creations, we feature them on our social media, highlighting the versatility of our products. This approach not only engages our audience but also celebrates the creativity of chefs who love our sauces.

As a business rooted in Milpitas, California, how has your local community influenced the direction of your product offerings and overall growth?

We’ve built strong relationships with local businesses, which has been a cornerstone of our growth. For example, we supply Napa Valley Farms at the airport, Heat Hot Sauce Shop, We Olive as well as numerous wineries and restaurants in the area. These local partnerships are incredibly meaningful to me, and I still personally deliver to some of my first customers, even though I don’t have to. I value these relationships deeply because they played such an important role in helping our business grow.

It’s always exciting to hear from people across the world who’ve discovered our products. We often get messages from Europe saying, “I tried your hot sauce at a winery in Napa,” or emails from unexpected places where our sauces have made their way through resellers. It’s amazing to see how our reach has expanded organically.

In addition to working with local businesses, I’m actively involved in the community. I collaborate with the Chamber of Commerce and participate in charitable initiatives with organizations that address food insecurity. We also work with big companies like Facebook, PayPal, and others for events and pop-ups, which allows us to connect with people on a more personal level. Giving back is an important part of what we do—it’s not just about making a profit but also about supporting the community that has supported us.

If you would like to find out more about Formosa, please visit https://www.formosasauce.com/

Read What the Buzz is About!

Thank you to Food Guru, Ariel Sultan for this great write up about 7 great brands including Formosa Hot Sauce during the Winter Fancy Food Show.

 

2016 SF Fancy Food Show: 7 Buzz Worthy Food Businesses

 

 

Every year, we attend the Winter Fancy Food Show in San Francisco looking for the stand outs among 80,000 products on full display. Food/beverage companies launch new products hoping to grab the attention of distributors, retailers, press, and consumers. We narrowed down our focus on foods that caught our eyes and satisfied our appetites. Then, we challenged these companies to give us some creative uses and recipes. They delivered with some surprisingly delicious ideas!

 

 

Miyoko’s Kitchen: Dairy Good yet Vegan

About 30 years ago, Miyoko’s Kitchen was founded by a vegan and former cheese fanatic, Miyoko Schinner. Missing the funky, stinky, and creamy dairy-based cheeses, Miyoko set out to create a vegan version. When a close friend mentioned her skepticism, “that’s never going to happen, so what are you going to do?”, Miyoko spent 1 year learning about cheese which resulted in writing a very popular vegan cheese book.

 

Borrowing from classic techniques for cheesemaking using molds, coating in ash, and adding unusual ingredients, Miyoko created a line of cheeses using cashews as a base for products like: Mt Vesuvius Black Ash, Double Cream Chive, and Double Cream Sundried Tomatoes. In 2016, she expanded to include vegan butter. It’s divinely savory, and you can hardly tell the difference between dairy-based butter.

A Miyoko Kitchen favorite is using Mt. Vesuvius Black Ash to make a hot canopy on a croot with a ripe pear and a red wine glaze: http://miyokoskitchen.com/black-ash-pear-crostini/.

Photo from Miyoko’s Kitchen

 

 

Sierra Nevada Cheese Company Gets Local

Raised on a dairy making solely raw fluid milk, Ben Gregersen decided to improve his craft by returning to his roots in Denmark where he learned the art of European-style cheesemaking. In 1997, Ben partnered up with John Dundun, a longtime friend and dairyman, at Ben’s family dairy – Gregersen Family Creamery. They worked to develop cheese after hours and sell at local farmers markets. When demand rose, their passion for cheese also grew.

 

The founders of Sierra Nevada Cheese Company relocated to Willows in 2003 and drafted an impressive line of dairy-based products. Staying true to farmstead practices, they work closely with neighboring farms to feature their premium, grass-fed, non-GMO, and RBST-free milk. Their customer friendly products include the Graziers line, goat Kefirs, yogurt, VAT cultured European butter, and cream cheeses.

Check out their Peach Shortcake recipe featuring their quality products: http://www.sierranevadacheese.com/recipes.php.

Photo from Sierra Nevada Cheese Company

 

 

Wine Rayzyn Co., Dried from the Vine

Wine Rayzyn, a 3-generation family-run business, converted their small Napa Valley winery into a vineyard of dried grapes. The patriarch, Chris Cates, was a cardiologist who encouraged his patients to drink a glass of red wine a day for a healthy heart. At Wine Rayzyn, they “leave no grape behind” because they sustainably gather unused wine grapes from neighboring vineyards.

 

These are not just any kind of raisins, but they have a seriously addicting taste and crunch. Having been big fans of grapes, but not of the shriveled kind, we had our first real crush on these wine grapes after sampling them at the Winter Fancy Food Show. With all the antioxidants, polyphenols, and fiber, Wine Rayzyn is naturally a superfood.

It is perfect as a stand alone snack, on top of yogurt, salads, mixed in with a holiday stuffing, cereal, and on a cheese plate paired with wine. A recommended recipe is the quinoa salad with a healthy dose of Wine Rayzyns: Kale RayZyn Salad.

Photo from Wine Rayzyn

 

 

Far Leaves Tea: Two for Tea

Founders Donna and Peter met over a cup of oolong tea in Donna’s home country, Taiwan. They shared in the philosophy of mindful living while drinking tea, which drew them to love the industry and each other. In 1998, they began spreading the ideals of “slowing down, paying attention, and savoring life” through their premium loose leaf teas. Now, they are proud to welcome tea lovers to their tranquil tea house in Berkeley. Consumers can purchase white, green, puer, black, and herbal infusions, “teas from all kingdoms” on their website.

 

Tea is not only for drinking, but it is a key ingredient in Donna’s Puer Tea Cake: http://www.farleaves.com/blogs/news/80654081-celebrating-holidays-with-puer-tea.

Photo from Far Leaves Tea

 

 

San Francisco Salt Company, Shaking it up!

In 2002, Lee Williamson left his tech management career behind and was inspired to start a spice business after seeing a vendor selling salt at the farmer’s market. San Francisco is a city known for top chefs, fine dining, and accessibility to local produce. To season up the Bay Area’s fresh foods, San Francisco Salt Company offers a colorful array of high quality sea salts from around the world with a selection of flavor profiles. Additionally, sea salts have far greater health benefits than the commercially processed salts.

 

When we travel internationally, we like to shake up our dishes with spices from other countries. How ironic that some of the highest quality and most unique blends can be found in our hometown of San Francisco!

Lee, the founder, likes sprinkling Red Hawaiian Salt onto vanilla ice cream. He also suggests adding sea salt to chocolate is a decadent way to go! http://www.sfsalt.com/home

 

 

 

Formosa Hot Sauce: Spicing up the Palate

Julio Lopez came to the United States as an immigrant from Guatemala. He worked his way through the food line starting as a dishwasher, and eventually to a chef position. Julio stepped away from food service to go back to school and build a real estate business. His dedication to food always lingered, so he developed all-natural Guatemalan hot sauces. Along with his brother-in-law, Julio began selling their specialty sauces to South Bay restaurants. When the popularity grew for the products, he knew he had a winning concept.

 

While sampling the hot sauces at the Fancy Food Show, we noticed that they were creamy and only mildly spicy. We were surprised when Julio told us that after testing the hot sauces in a lab, they were all vegan/gluten free!

Try out Formosa Hot Sauce as a topping, marinade, a dip, or even in a jalapeño margarita. Julio thinks that the most interesting recipe using his hot sauces is the Formosa Cajun Cream Sauce in a pasta: http://www.formosasauce.com/recipes/.

Photo from Formosa Hot Sauce

 

 

Owl’s Brew, Tea Time with Crafty Cocktails

There’s just something about this company that really struck us – between the great design of their packaging and the perfectly blended tea mixers for cocktails. Jennie Ripps, the founder, already owns a custom organic tea blending company called BrewLab Tea, which services New York restaurants. Drawing from her background, she was interested in mixing tea and botanicals with spirits for a healthier and tastier option instead of using juices and syrups. In 2013, she launched Owl’s Brew to push the boundaries of mixology and has successfully experimented with mixing her blended teas into wine and beer.

 

At the Owl’s Brew booth, we tasted the highly coveted Pink & Black blend mixed with tequila. We also were fortunate to try out their new blend, Wicked Green, which adds a spicy kick to any drink. The flavors are enticing and the ease of use is ideal for any budding mixologist.

They even have a super chill Owl’s Brew recipe book that’s loaded with creative ideas for using their products to make specialty drinks and even tea-infused foods. Try out their Coco Brew this winter: http://www.theowlsbrew.com/recipes/index/details/id/18/.

Photo from Owl’s Brew

As we sampled and schmoozed our way through the Winter Fancy Food Show, these 7 buzz-worthy food businesses, gave us more reasons to head to the nearest stores with many uses and recipes that go beyond what’s in the package.

 

#FormosaInTheWild

After some intense reconnaissance, we have secured some drop zones for Formosa Hot Sauce. We will be leaving a bottle in plain sight for a lucky passerby. We will also post a photo of the bottle in its location as a clue to our Instagram followers. (@formosasauce) If you happen to find a bottle in the wild, don't forget to #FormosaInTheWild. Good Luck!

40th Winter Fancy Food Show

The whole Formosa team is excited to participate in the 40th Winter Fancy Food Show. This will be the second Fancy Food Show we participate and are busy planning to make the Winter show our best thus far.  We had an amazing experience in the Summer Fancy Food Show this summer in New York. We met many unique vendors and experience positive feedback from many attendees. We are excited to meet more new interesting people this time around on the west coast.

Anyone in the San Francisco area who would like to receive an invite from us to attend the Winter Fancy Food show message us at info@formosasauce.com. The show dates are January 11-13 2015 in The Mascone center in beautiful San Francisco. If already attending stop by and say hello we would love to hear from you, our booth # is 885.