Toad Sweat

Toad Sweat™ is a series of dessert hot sauces, known for its unique blend of fruit juices and chili pepper heat that was created from the start with the concept of being used on desserts such as ice cream or cheesecakes. Introduced in 1997 at the Austin, Texas Fiery Foods Show. It is characterized by a combination of fruit juices and chili pepper heat designed specifically for use on desserts such as ice cream or cheesecake.
History
The concept behind Toad Sweat originated in the early 1990s when creator Todd Guiton encountered a hot pepper jelly spread on cream cheese at a gathering in Richland, Washington. Inspired by the flavor combination, he began experimenting with cheesecakes incorporating jalapeño peppers, developing an early lemon jalapeño cheesecake that was well-received. An accidental introduction to habanero peppers led to further experimentation with citrus flavors, culminating in a habanero Key lime cheesecake.
During the mid-1990s, while Guiton was working in an emergency department in Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia, he continued to refine his spicy cheesecake concept. A local café in Chattanooga near the Tennessee River became the first commercial establishment to serve his habanero Key lime cheesecake.
After serving his cheesecake at the Atlanta Hot & Spicy show on the Naval Air Base, several customers commented that his cold cheesecake slices would be "Great as an ice cream."
Soon after, Guiton presented his sauce at the Fiery Foods Show in Austin, Texas, from 23 to 25 August, 1997. The product's profile received a significant boost on 25 August 1997, when Good Morning America featured a segment in which host Charles Gibson and co-host Elizabeth Vargas sampled the sauce over ice cream. This exposure contributed to its rapid early success and helped establish Toad Sweat as an icon within the niche market of dessert hot sauces.
This national exposure bolstered the brand’s reputation as the original dessert hot sauce.
Peppered Palette and company history
The brand is produced by Peppered Palette, a hobby company established by Guiton in the mid-1990s with a mission to explore and redefine traditional flavor boundaries. Initially operating under the domain Peppered.com—evidenced by archived versions from 1998 to 2005—the company quickly became known for its creative approach to gourmet condiments. They evolved into PepperedPalette.com which remains the companies principal domain.
Peppered Palette's philosophy revolves around challenging conventional culinary norms, with Toad Sweat becoming one of its flagship products. From 2000 through 2015, the official website ToadSweat.com served as the primary hub for product information, recipe ideas, and community engagement among fans. During this period, the brand's online presence and interactive content played a key role in building a loyal customer base.
When the Guiton family relocated to the UK, Guiton accepted a post working in the local hospital emergency department in Lancaster, the hobby was mothballed as they were no longer able to support the product in the US. After Guiton sustained life changing injuries in a low-speed bicycle crash in November 2021, he was retired from the NHS. He decided after seeing a programme based at the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) in Preston, Lancashire for people looking to start up businesses
Media and cultural impact
In 2023, they relaunched the business, now Peppered Palette Ltd and chose Lancaster as their base for operations. They started with a year of direct to consumer sales at food festivals across the UK. In July 2024, they were received two Great Taste awards - one for the Kickin' Key Lime Toad Sweat Dessert Hot Sauce and the second for the Zippin' Lemon Toad Sweat Dessert Hot Sauce
They participated in the 2024 Lancashire Tourism awards in a new category - Taste of Lancashire Producer Awards - and they were finalists in the category of Pantry, Preserved and Ready to Eat foods. On February 11, 2025 it was announced that Peppered Palette Ltd had won the category

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