Crooked Stave & The Real Dill Collaborate On Pickles

Born out of a love for craft food and beer, Briners & Brewers is a series that marries the crafts of brewing and brining. For each release, The Real Dill partners with a local brewery to create a pickle based on one of the brewery’s beers. Previously, the pickle company has collaborated with Odell Brewing Company and Great Divide Brewing Company. For the third release, The Real Dill has paired up with Crooked Stave Artisan Beer Project to cook deliciously, savory pickles.

“We are both big beer lovers and wanted to find a unique way to celebrate all of the great beer made locally and collaborate with producers we admire,” said Tyler DuBois, co-founder of The Real Dill. Each time we do one of these collaborations, we learn as much as possible about the other’s production processes so we can find a way to bring them together. As it turns out, there are a lot of similarities between beer and pickle making.”

The process to make the collaboration pickles is not a simple matter of pouring beer into brine. Milled barley can be used to sweeten the brine, hops can be used to add depth and bitterness, and for this particular release, the brine was aged on oak and dry-hopped.

In all three releases, The Real Dill goes beyond using the beer in the pickle brine by creatively bringing out the same raw ingredients used in beer making. The collaboration draws from the inspiration behind Crooked Stave’s Colorado WildSage Brett Saison. The unfiltered beer pays homage to the state of Colorado by incorporating all local ingredients, and fresh herbs such as lemongrass and sage. The latter ingredients were chosen to enhance the savory flavor profile of the pickle. For those looking to enjoy the beer alongside a pickle, Colorado WildSage is now available in cans.

“Being able to work with another artisan company and create something that showcases both brands is the best part about our industries,” said Chad Yakobson, owner of Crooked Stave. “We both have strong passions to create the best product possible, which is highlighted in this fun pickle.”

The third release of the Briners & Brewers series will be available in early September at The Real Dill’s online shop and Crooked Stave’s Taprooms, as well as select liquor stores within The Real Dill’s distribution footprint. 1,000 of the jars will have a removable limited edition wood sticker.

Join The Real Dill and Crooked Stave for a Briners & Brewers launch party at the Crooked Stave Taproom (3350 Brighton Blvd, Denver, CO 80216) on Thursday August 31st at 5 p.m.