Nadia Ernestus Pushes Hamptons Brine To Next Level - 27 East

Food & Drink

Food & Drink / 1388991

Nadia Ernestus Pushes Hamptons Brine To Next Level

icon 9 Photos

The Southampton Fire Department displayed Edward Corrigan's firefighting gear Thursday morning in his memory. ANISAH ABDULLAH

The Southampton Fire Department displayed Edward Corrigan's firefighting gear Thursday morning in his memory. ANISAH ABDULLAH

Nadia Ernestus with some Hamptons Brine products at her home in Sag Harbor last week. ALYSSA MELILLO

Nadia Ernestus with some Hamptons Brine products at her home in Sag Harbor last week. ALYSSA MELILLO

Nadia Ernestus with some Hamptons Brine products at her home in Sag Harbor last week. ALYSSA MELILLO

Nadia Ernestus with some Hamptons Brine products at her home in Sag Harbor last week. ALYSSA MELILLO

Nadia Ernestus with some Hamptons Brine products at her home in Sag Harbor last week. ALYSSA MELILLO

Nadia Ernestus with some Hamptons Brine products at her home in Sag Harbor last week. ALYSSA MELILLO

Palmer & Purchase management team from left to right: Nadine Rote, Abbie Durkin and Diana Jankovski. ANISAH ABDULLAH

Palmer & Purchase management team from left to right: Nadine Rote, Abbie Durkin and Diana Jankovski. ANISAH ABDULLAH

Students at Southampton High School held a sit-in on Wednesday morning in response to the Tuckahoe merger being voted down.  DANA SHAW

Students at Southampton High School held a sit-in on Wednesday morning in response to the Tuckahoe merger being voted down. DANA SHAW

authorAlyssa Melillo on Mar 16, 2015

Nadia Ernestus is truly “The Kraut Kween.”The Sag Harbor resident coined the quirky nickname herself while spending the last year starting up Hamptons Brine, a line of raw, lacto-fermented sauerkraut—available in regular, chunky and spicy varieties, as well as with kale—and kvass, the juice left over from the fermentation process.

With her product sold in more than 12 health food stores across the East End, Ms. Ernestus said she is ready to expand Hamptons Brine to the rest of Long Island and Manhattan. But it’s going to take a little help from the general public.

The certified health coach recently launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise at least $12,000, which will cover the myriad costs associated with growing her business, including the purchase of a used delivery van with refrigeration, and an organic certification. As of this week, the campaign is just shy of $3,500, with about two weeks to go.

“People are ordering in the city and all over Long Island,” Ms. Ernestus said, sitting at her kitchen table last week. “And it’s expensive to ship it, because it’s heavy. We cannot afford distribution—our costs are very high. So, we’re running our own deliveries. I need something with refrigeration, because now, in the winter, it’s not so bad. But in the summer, I’ll be in trouble.”

The genesis of Hamptons Brine can be traced back to Hayground School in Bridgehampton, where Ms. Ernestus hosts workshops on fermentation. After some of the participants suggested she market her sauerkraut—a recipe she learned to make from scratch during her childhood in Moscow—it got her thinking.

Just a few months later, Ms. Ernestus had gathered a team of five friends and secured a space at the Stony Brook University Business Incubator in Calverton. And there, it began.

Having found her rhythm, Ms. Ernestus said each batch is fermented for about a month before packaging, which takes place once a week.

Hamptons Brine products, which netted about $4,000 in sales its first year, can be found at Provisions Market in Sag Harbor, Simply Sublime in East Hampton, and Naturally Good in Montauk, as well as in stores on the North Fork and points farther west. However, that income alone will not support the operation that Ms. Ernestus envisions, which she said will likely require a more private production facility.

“I’m still staying small this year. I’m not ready for mass production. I don’t know if I can do it at the facility where I am,” she said. “I mean, artisanal means artisanal.”

For more information about Hamptons Brine, visit hamptonsbrine.com. To donate to the Kickstarter, visit https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1098249962/hamptons-brine-raw-lacto-fermented-sauerkraut-and.

You May Also Like:

Wellness Monday Presents 'Trust Your Gut' with Nadia Ernestus at The Church

Nadia Ernestus will ask audiences to think about gut health, the human microbiome, fermented foods ... 3 Jul 2025 by Staff Writer

Food News for June 26, 2025

Claudio’s Lands in Paradise: A Taste of Greenport Now in The Bahamas New York’s legendary ... 23 Jun 2025 by Staff Writer

Farm and Forage — a Chef's Shortcut to a Better Lunch

There’s a moment in every Hamptons summer when hunger hits hard and suddenly the dream ... 19 Jun 2025 by Robyn Henderson-Diederiks

Food Stuffs for June 19, 2025

Tuna Tour Coming to Westhampton Beach Sushi by Boū will bring the National Tuna Tour ... 18 Jun 2025 by Staff Writer

Foodstuffs, June 12

Duryea’s Orient Point Opens for the 2025 Season   Duryea’s Orient Point, 40200 Main Road ... 12 Jun 2025 by Staff Writer

Foodstuffs: Food and Wine Collab, a Solstice Dinner, Cooking Classes and Sweet Treats

Five Rosés and Five Courses: An Almond and Channing Daughters Collaboration Almond Restaurant will offer ... 4 Jun 2025 by Staff Writer

Spring Fever: Dirt, Blossoms and the Season’s First Asparagus

It’s finally here! Spring has sprung, and the traffic proves it. Garden centers are suddenly ... 29 May 2025 by Robyn Henderson-Diederiks

Foodstuffs: Wine Pairing Dinner, Spring Specials and a Night of Fun for a Good Cause

Spring Specials at Almond Almond Restaurant has announced new spring specials. A two-course prix fixe ... 26 May 2025 by Staff Writer

Foodstuffs: The Season Openers

Lands’ End and Round Swamp Farm Tote Time Lands’ End is teaming up with an ... 19 May 2025 by Staff Writer

Foodstuffs: Happy Hour, Taco Time, Tequila Dinner and New Eateries

Happy Hour on the Harbor Bostwick’s on the Harbor is now open for its 33rd ... 12 May 2025 by Staff Writer