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New York Post
07-07-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Brooklyn's 'show sauna' competition, where masters wow sweating crowds
Call them hot and unbothered. During late June's heat wave, when most New Yorkers sat pinned to air conditioners, 1,200 sauna enthusiasts swarmed Brooklyn's Bathhouse to witness the country's first sauna master smackdown. Some wore bell-shaped felt bucket caps to prevent overheating and to signal: This ain't my first hydro-deo. Others were Bathhouse regulars who, like any good New Yorker, saw a line — in this case for the wellness venue's 80-seater 'event sauna' — and joined the queue. 16 Bathhouse in Brooklyn held the US's first-ever show aufguss competition. Aysia Marotta 16 Sauna masters performed 13- to 15-minute routines with lights, music, dance, narration, costumes and props for sweating audiences. Aysia Marotta Called competitive show aufguss (pronounced 'off-goose') — a German term for a type of guided group sauna experience common in Europe — the two-day event featured 10 of the nation's top sauna masters, who took turns spinning towels like lassos and pounding aroma-infused ice balls onto hot stone as a panel of judges and fired-up fans looked on. Each 13- to 15-minute routine also brought the heat with lights, music, dance, narration, costumes and props intended to blow hot air and tell a story. One master with the apropos last name Fiery portrayed the evolution of hip hop. Another depicted a terminal illness. 'The Celestial Sisters of Fire and Ice' interpretive-danced their way through a fight and reconciliation. 'Fire can help warm and ice can help soothe, and those working together creates a more beautiful world,' the real-life siblings and Vegas showgirls cooed. The goal of those in the hot seat? To rack up enough points in categories like heat distribution and towel technique to secure the title of first US aufguss champion — and advance to the world championships in Italy this fall. 'I'm so nervous,' Thor Moeller admitted a few hours before stepping onto the steamy stage. After all, a lot could go wrong. He once dropped a hot stone. 16 Over 1,000 sauna enthusiasts came for the two-day competition. Aysia Marotta Others have smacked spectators with spinning towels. You can get off beat or over time. There's choreography to forget, essential oils to burn, lines to miss. One of the day's first performers had already burned and crashed — straight into the sauna's glass door. Outside, Moeller consoled the rumor mill in earnest: 'I didn't see any blood.' 'It's kind of like being a samurai. A sauna master comes to you and they're like, 'You're a sauna master.' It's very unofficial.' Travis Talmadge, Bathhouse cofounder It was a lot to absorb on a Monday afternoon when both the literal and figurative world was burning. But when you're sticking to strangers just trying to breathe through the next hot minute, 'a lot' is relative. That's the whole point. 'You can experience beautiful art if you're just open for it,' said Lasse Eriksen, a Norwegian jury member and vice president of the Aufguss WM, described as the FIFA for aufguss. 'But if you just want to sit there and critique, you can do that, but then it becomes very hot. And then you just want to leave.' 16 'The Celestial Sisters of Fire and Ice' interpretive-danced their way through a fight and reconciliation. Aysia Marotta 16 Competitors earn points in categories like heat distribution and towel technique. Aysia Marotta Auf-what? 'Aufguss is immersion into the way of sauna. That's the important thing: It's still sauna,' Eriksen explains. But rather than sweating it out alone, aufguss is communal and guided. Rather than leaving when you get too hot, the ritual has a beginning and end. There's also math (hot stone plus ice equals steam) and science (wafted steam feels hotter than still steam). The actual temperature, however, remains the same — around 185 degrees Fahrenheit. 'People are always like, 'How hot are you going to make it?'' Moeller, 32, said. 'I'm like, 'How hot can I allow you to feel the sun?'' 16 There's an art to aufguss, where sauna masters manipulate steam and how hot the room feels. Alonzo Solarzano, Bathhouse's first director of aufguss, is seen competing. Aysia Marotta 16 They use props, like Nico Fiery, who poured water from a sneaker. Aysia Marotta Show or 'theme' aufguss is classic sauna on steroids. It can be the difference between a bartender cracking open a beer and a mixologist crafting a cocktail blindfolded — and then lighting the garnish on fire. It is, many sauna masters will tell you, a multi-sensory experience. Competitive show aufguss, then, asks: Who does it best? The answer comes down to five elements: professionality (if you drop a towel, you mustn't use it again), heat distribution (why should one row get all the good stuff?), towel technique (a helicopter is a classic; a release-and-catch throw is risky but wows), fragrance (real birch beats synthetic lavender) and storytelling (audience members' tears and laughter are a good sign). Sauna masters 'need to learn to connect with the sound, to move the wind and the smells and create it comfortably hot, not too early, not too late, right in the middle,' Eriksen explained. 'The music has the right build up, the volume is just the right build up. When everything is in line and everything is perfect, then you have a maximum score. And that is almost impossible.' 16 Sauna masters 'need to learn to connect with the sound, to move the wind and the smells and create it comfortably hot, not too early, not too late, right in the middle.' Aysia Marotta 16 There is actually a sauna culture in America now,' Bathhouse's cofounder Travis Talmadge (pictured) said. Aysia Marotta The road to sauna master Aufguss has long been a familiar offering in European saunas, but it's only recently gained steam in the US, in large part due to the burgeoning 'social wellness' movement, said Don Genders, CEO of Design for Leisure, an event co-sponsor and maker of spa environments like sauna cabins. Clubbing is out, tubbing is in. 'It's almost like a perfect storm,' Genders said. And New York is its eye. While Bathhouse is the first in New York to develop an aufguss program, the city can't seem to get enough of water-based wellness. Canadian bathhouse Othership landed in New York last year. Aire Ancient Baths launched on the Upper East Side in 2025. There's also Remedy Place and the Well. 'There is actually a sauna culture in America now,' Bathhouse's cofounder and sauna master competitor Travis Talmadge said. 16 Most of June's competitors (like Tovi Wayne, pictured) honed their craft by finding mentors, obsessing over YouTube videos and practicing. They invested in towels with the preferred grip, weight and length. Aysia Marotta And with sauna culture comes sauna masters. How exactly does one become such a thing? 'It's not like a driver's license yet,' Eriksen said. In fact, Talmadge said, 'it's kind of like being a samurai. A sauna master comes to you and they're like, 'You're a sauna master.' It's very unofficial.' Not that aspiring and accomplished masters don't take it seriously. Most of June's competitors honed their craft by finding mentors, obsessing over YouTube videos and practicing. They invested in towels with the preferred grip, weight and length. Alonzo Solarzano, Bathhouse's first director of aufguss, rented out studio space and made multiple calls to a childhood friend with acting expertise to suss out his storyline. 'The advice I got was: You want to end on a positive note,' he said. While many sauna masters have some performance background and innate hand-eye coordination, 'there's really no barrier to entry — that's what I love about it,' Genders said. 'It's incredibly democratic.' 16 The Celestial Sisters earned the top prize for pairs. Aysia Marotta 16 Rather than sweating it out alone, aufguss is communal and guided. TJ Lupo is seen performing 'Reflections of Grief.' Aysia Marotta Solarzano, for one, had never been in a sauna — let alone heard of aufguss — when he got a job as a therapy attendant at Bathhouse in Williamsburg in 2021. The 29-year-old had recently moved to New York after burning out as a dancer in his Massachusetts hometown. He figured the gig would help him reset. Then Bathhouse offered its employees aufguss training. Over the next few years, Solarzano traveled abroad to learn from the auf-GOATS and quit his other job in data engineering. 'He was like, 'Aufguss is my identity,'' Talmadge recalls. Moeller, a native New Yorker with a beard, man bun and golden retriever energy, found aufguss after moving to Austria in 2015 to work at a ski resort. He's now a sauna meister at a different resort — and Austria's 2023 show aufguss national champion. 16 In the US, people are clothed, typically in swimsuits. That's not always the case in other countries. Aysia Marotta Competing in the US, though, is different. Here, guests aren't naked. That fact eliminates at least one European debate: 'Do you sit directly on the wood? Do you have a towel between your skin and the wood? A number of different people have analyzed the situation,' Moeller said. TJ Lupo's path to aufguss traces to his 'very dark past.' The sauna master at MindZero Wellness in Virginia underwent brain surgery for a tumor and discovered contrast therapy while recovering. The spa owner, a Czech native, introduced him to aufguss. 'I found waving towels, so emotionally, I'm able to handle things much easier just because I have an outlet to express myself,' he said. 16 Jury member and six-time Danish national aufguss champion Ong Lai Pang of Malaysia set the stage. Aysia Marotta 16 Many attendees wore felt hats. Aysia Marotta Competition heats up When the door opened to Bathhouse's event sauna on Day 2 of the competition, jury member and six-time Danish national aufguss champion Ong Lai Pang of Malaysia set the stage, as he did before every show. 'One, two, three!' Pang, who resembles a monk, albeit one spotted wearing an 'I love naked people' T-shirt, bellowed. 'Aufguss!' the crowd shouted back. 'Three, two, one!' Pang continued. 'Family!' onlookers roared. Solarzano was set to take the stage. Two girls in the audience were among the many there for the home-turf favorite. 16 'When people ask me what they do,' said the mom of the Celestial Sisters, 'I always tell them: They're living their dream.' Aysia Marotta One, a Bathhouse regular, had seen Solarzano practicing and knew she had to come to his show. Her friend was more skeptical. She worried about the 'cringe' factor and her ability to withstand the heat. 'I'm a baby in the sauna,' she confessed. (You are allowed to leave, though few do.) But when the lights came up after Solarzano's Western outlaw-themed, country ballad-inspired performance of loss, deceit and redemption, the friend was still there. She'd seen expert-level double-towel tricks for the first time. She'd clapped along to the music and gasped at the drama. The sweat was an afterthought. 'That was actually one of the best things I've seen all year,' she said. The jury agreed: Solarzano took first place. The Celestial Sisters earned the top prize for pairs. Their Midwestern mom teared up. 'When people ask me what they do,' she said, 'I always tell them: They're living their dream.'
Eater
11-06-2025
- Business
- Eater
A Legendary Chicago Name Dips Into The World of Condiments
Walter Kinzie wants people to think bigger when it comes to selecting what they want to dip their foods into, to go beyond typical options like barbecue sauce. A direct descendant of John Kinzie, one of Chicago's first settlers; he's who the street's named after. Walter Zinzie founded Kinzie Foods in 2022, a sauce company with off-the-wall flavors including pickle, espresso, and Carolina Reaper Walter Kinzie encourages consumers to expand their usage to upgrade their Bloody Marys, dips, schmears, stews, and more. 'This was just a byproduct of growing up very, very poor,' says Kinzie. 'We couldn't afford to go get all the different condiments out there. We used barbecue sauce on everything. It wasn't something that was saved for smoked meats or brisket or ribs.' The flavors are tangy, rich, sweet, and spicy (the kind that provides a flavorful zing, not an uncomfortable burning sensation). Kinzie doesn't spend much time on research and development. With an informal cooking background, he makes small batches, tests the product, and if it's up to his liking, it goes to market. Kinzie didn't set out to be a food entrepreneur. As founder of Encore Holdings, Kinzie was already running a successful event production company out of Grand Rapids, South Dakota, which he started in 2010. Headliners for his event included Garth Brooks, Metallica, and Bon Jovi. It was this first business that gave birth to his second. 'I started sharing bottles of my aunt's barbecue sauce as a thank you for people I worked with,' says Kinzie on his gifting practice at Encore. 'I wanted to provide something really special for my clients, for the celebrities I work with, and folks like that, where they knew I made it. I never wanted a business out of it. The business was created out of a demand, not a desire.' Fiery, a spicy smoke sauce with more flavor than heat, was the first recipe his Aunt Ann created. It was home-cooked and jarred in plain Mason jars, which were gifted with no markings. The first label employed was hand-drawn by his daughter, printed, and glued on. As the flavor options grew, a simple green duct tape was used, and the name of the condiment was written out by hand. Over time, demand for Aunt Ann's sauces grew. So much so that Kinzie decided to start charging people for the bottles with the hope that it would minimize his workload. It had unintended consequences. 'I basically got to a point where I had to charge people because it was something that I couldn't afford to just keep giving away,' he remembers. 'I fully expected everyone to say, 'Hey, thanks for the gifts over the last several years, but we're not willing to pay for it,' and the exact opposite happened. More people started paying for it.' The company website went live on October 3, 2024, as a direct-to-consumer brand. Kinzie selected various markets across the U.S. to test his product at food shows and community events. Seattle, Cleveland, Denver, and Chicago were among the cities selected. Kinzie chose them because they were places where he 'didn't already have strong connections.' It was a way to test whether there really was interest in what he was selling or if his network was simply paying him lip service. One city stood out above the rest. 'Chicago really embraced our product,' says Kinzie. 'This is based on metrics; this isn't anecdotal belief. The market embraced funkier flavors like espresso and pickle, more so than any of the other markets we're in. It's no surprise to me, [Chicago] is a market that appreciates barbecue and is very food-focused and always on the cutting edge.' Armed with this information, nine months after the business launched, the entrepreneur decided to redirect all marketing and advertising dollars toward Chicago. Even with John Kinzie's Chicago ties, it's a city that Walter Kzine only recently started to get to know. However, it's a city that already knows him. 'I was staying at the Residence Inn on Kinzie Street during a sales trip last winter, and the lady that checked me in asked, 'Are you related to the murderer?'' says the founder. 'I was like 'I'm related to the guy that donated the land that the streets are named after' and she was like, yeah, and he murdered someone right outside where our hotel is right now.' I went upstairs, got settled, and the first thing I Googled was that.' Walter is a descendant of John Kinzie, a Quebec native who lived from 1763 to 1828. Beyond being credited as one of the city's first non-indigenous settlers, he's also credited with the city's first murder in 1812. He would flee Chicago before returning in 1816, where he spent his remaining years. Walter grew up in Edna, Kansas, and up until he began Kinzie Foods, he hadn't spent much time in Chicago. That's all changing, and it appears as if he's already beginning to see the twists and turns the city provides. '[John] had this very strange affinity with Chicago, with the land, unsuccessfully running for mayor, murdering someone, and now one of the most prestigious streets in the community named after him,' says Kinzie. 'That's a story made for Chicago, if you ask me.' And so is the tale of the man who returns to the city his ancestor helped build 200 years later, with a plan to make a name for himself. Kinzie's sauces can be purchased online, food festivals, and will be part of the Windy City Smokeout lineup. See More:
