Welcome to Fred's Alchemy
We put this on everything…
The Name
Fred's Alchemy isn't just a clever name we thought sounded cool (though it does). "Fredo" was what Damian's (Damo) dad called him when he was little. He passed away when Damo was just seven, but that nickname - and everything it represented - stayed with him.
"Fred's" is our tribute to a father who left too soon. "Alchemy" is about transformation - how grief becomes drive, memories become motivation, and how a kid who lost his dad way too early became the chef who built all of this.
Every bottle carries that story.
The Chef: Damo
Damo has been slinging food for over 30 years, which is a polite way of saying he's seen some things. He started as a qualified butcher, quickly decided that wasn't his vibe, and landed a kitchen hand gig at Black Stump (the famous Australian restaurant chain, not an actual burnt tree stump). After one well-timed tantrum, he worked his way up and never looked back. Since then? Pubs and Cafes to Fine dining and everything in between - if there's a kitchen, Damo's probably cooked in it. He's a jack of all trades and confidently spicy in both personality and palate.
The chilli oil started because he genuinely didn't like what was in the supermarket. So, he made his own. Friends and family became obsessed. Then one day he came home and announced he was turning it into a business. As you do.
The Boss: Ammers
That's me - Annemaree. I'm the number one taste tester, chief motivator, and the business brains (aka the actual brains). After 22 years in insurance, I'm still your classic corporate girl by day and business entrepreneur by night.
My job is to make sure Damo's genius ideas actually make sense in the real world, keep us on track, and occasionally remind him that "just winging it" is not a business strategy. One day, we'd love for this passion project to become Damo's full-time gig. But for now, we're building it on nights and weekends whilst I navigate the corporate world.
The Love Story
We've been together since April 2020. In the words of the wise storyteller Rihanna, we found love in a Covid place (our pandemic-era twist on her famous song about finding love in unexpected circumstances). While the world was falling apart, we were falling in love over lockdown. Romantic? Questionable. But here we are.
The Mission
We genuinely want to give the people what they want: ridiculously good chili oil (and other products we're developing that we're very excited about) without all the crap.
Because Ammers has some dietary requirements and deserves flavour without compromise, Fred's Alchemy is gluten-free and made with avocado oil. If it works for her, it works for everyone. No seed oils, no gluten, no excuses - just layers of flavour that make you wonder why you've been eating boring bland food your whole life.
We're building something here. Something that honours the past, feeds the present, and stimulates the senses, one bottle at a time.
Welcome to Fred's Alchemy. We put this on everything…
