Saint Lucifer Spice - Story of a Spice Blend Company
Our Spicy Roots
We're both passionate about food and we both like spicy. My grandfather was Italian, a big farmer. He would always feed me those long hot peppers as a kid and my father did the same. I just always enjoyed spicy hot peppers in any which way or form.
But my love for spice wasn’t just about eating it, it was about making it. Back in college, we were throwing a party at the beach, and this guy, Ted, starts making homemade salsa. And it was making me mental because it was literally some of the best salsa I had ever had. I was already trying to make salsa myself, and the fact that he did it better than me? It kind of made me hate him at the same time. Because I was trying to make salsa and make it well. And the fact that he did it better than what I could do and it was so fresh made me mental almost made me dislike him pretty much, But over time we became good friends.
The Birth of a Unique Spice Blend
We were always looking to top our pizza with something spicy, something better than what we were using. We were using crushed red pepper like it was candy. And crushed red pepper is good, but you have to use a lot of it and it gets a little aggravating.
I took the liberty of taking these peppers and putting them in balsamic, blanching them, and sticking them in the fridge. Ted literally took the liberty months later of taking them out of the balsamic vinegar, putting them in the windowsill with some garlic and then dehydrating them with the sun.
Ted crushed them up, put it into a little Molly McButter seasoned jar, and wrote on it. I still remember it clear as day on a little post-it note, it said "Ted's Lucifer". So it's in the cabinet, we're trying it out, we're tasting it. I'm like, this is fantastic. It was a complete joint effort at that point.
We dried these little peppers out, added some additional ingredients, and it was like an episode of Seinfeld where they're making all the sausages. We bought dehydrating machines and we just started dehydrating these peppers like lunatics. But getting the blend right wasn’t easy. The first ten recipes? Horrible. Too hot, too salty, just not balanced. We were throwing so many different ingredients in, trying to recreate the magic of that first batch. And finally, at lucky number 11, it happened. That moment started a thirst for more—we knew we had to take this beyond just a hobby and make a truly great spice blend company.
From Hobby to Company
It kind of started that thirst for more. We knew we had to go to the next stage which is find a legit bottler and blender to start making this stuff commercially. The hobby became a focus, and we just knew that there was a better way to season your pizzas and your pasta. And then it just went on from there to eggs, to veggies, fish, meats, you name it.
The Saint Lucifer Name
We wanted to have a name that stuck with you. Never meant to offend anybody by it, we're both Catholics in our own right, but when we added the "Saint" to the "Lucifer", we were forcing you to think of two separate things that are completely opposite, but when they work together, they do, and it really comes through in our spice.
Breaking into the Spice Blend Market
Creating St. Lucifer is the ultimate sale. You conceptualized a product, brought it to market. You didn't even know who your sell point was or was going to be. And to create a market for yourself is kind of, you know, I'm quite proud of that.
But we didn’t take the traditional route. Most people told us, “You’re never getting into Wegmans or Whole Foods. You need a distributor, a slotting fee, all that.” But instead of waiting, we just started dropping off product to them. Sampling, getting it in front of people. One day, I’m in Wegmans wearing my Saint Lucifer t-shirt, and the general manager literally runs over to me, taps me on the shoulder, and asks, “Where’d you get that shirt?” I tell him I’m one of the owners, and he says, “We have your product in the back, and we’re addicted to it. We use it on everything.”
That moment changed everything. We got into a few local Wegmans, and the product started flying off the shelves. Four weeks later, we get a call from Wegmans corporate—they want us in every store. I remember looking down at my phone, calling Ted like, “What the hell just happened?”
Taking the Leap
Turning this into a full-time business wasn’t the plan—until life made it the plan. One day, I was laid off. Fired out of the blue. And what felt like a crisis turned into the biggest blessing in disguise. Suddenly, I had nine months to focus entirely on Saint Lucifer. No distractions. Just making it work. Later, Ted would go through the same thing—losing his job and putting all his energy into our spice. Those moments forced us to go all in, and looking back, we wouldn’t have had it any other way.
What Sets Saint Lucifer Spice Blends Apart
You do want to find that niche thing. You do want to be different than the others. But I think what really sets us apart is that we really believe in what we're doing and what we're making.
Our product should be sitting right next to the salt and the pepper on the table. It's a different fourth dimension of flavor that spice can bring to you. It's that warming sensation in your mouth, but with our spice it doesn't overtake the food or the palate. It's complementary to most any dish that is complement to a garlic or a salt, because those are some of our main ingredients in all of our spices and the heat flavors.
Saint Lucifer Spice Product Line
Our first product was our Habanero table spice. Our second born was the Jalapeno table spice. Our third, if I remember correctly, was our Bloody Perfect dry instant Bloody Mary mix. And then we had a seafood spice.
Then we broke out of the spice category and went into a balsamic vinegar infused with habaneros. And we did the same with an extra virgin olive oil infused with habaneros imported from Latina Italy. Our final product that we have ready right now is our Calabria chili oil.
A Message to Our Spice Blend Enthusiasts
Special thanks from Ted and I to all you who have helped us get to this point. We're not going anywhere. Can't thank you guys enough. And if there’s one thing I can say about this journey—it never stops. I literally think about Saint Lucifer in my dreams at night. Every single day, we’re finding ways to make it better, bigger, and more accessible. This isn’t just a product. It’s a passion. A way of life. And we’re just getting started.
Check out our website. Find us on Amazon. We also sell wholesale. Shake a little, shake a lot. You control the spice level.
