Meet the best drink you think you’ll hate
Whiskey and pickle juice? At first, the combination sounds bizarre and maybe, literally, a little difficult to swallow. To a whiskey aficionado, possibly downright blasphemous. But try the Pickleback, and you may change your mind. One shot of whiskey with a spicy pickle juice chaser turns into an almost magical series of flavors--sweet, then a sour blast, followed by a spicy finish.
The Pickleback made its way to Champaign-Urbana the way many ideas do-with a person who comes here from a larger city for family, for school, or with a significant other. This drink happened into town with mixologist Rusty Van Praag, who moved to central Illinois to be a little closer to family. Formerly of the Breslin Bar & Dining Room in New York City, Rusty has settled into a role of mixologist at Bacaro in downtown Champaign. He brought the Pickleback with him and bequeathed it as an off-menu drink to the Black Dog Smoke & Ale House in Urbana.
Like many drinks, the history behind the Pickleback is a little uncertain, but according to lore, it probably originated from a request by a southern woman at the bar of the the Bushwick Country Club in New York City. Whiskey Town, also in New York City, might be responsible for some of the evolution of the drink. They tried the Pickleback with vodka, gin, tequila, and whiskey, but of all the combinations Jameson Irish Whiskey seemed to turn out the best.
Jameson, a blended Irish whiskey, boasts a sweet flavor that holds through from the very first note to the finish. This even vanilla-and-spice sweetness makes it the perfect candidate to contrast the dill pickle juice. To get the most dramatic effect, drink the shot as it was meant to be had, with the full shot of Jameson quickly followed by the full chaser of pickle juice.
Remember, this drink is not on the menu at Black Dog, but you can order it there anytime or make your own version of it at home. The proportions of the drink are equal: a shot of Jameson and a shot of pickle juice. It sounds deceptively easy, but the homemade pickling liquid and hot pepper juice make the drink.
To recreate this drink yourself, get ready to do some pickling at home or use the juice of some local or gourmet dill pickles and mix with a little hot pepper juice before you serve. You might replicate the sweet-then-sour-and-spicy progression of the two shots in succession, or create your own version of the Pickleback at home. And the price of experimenting with this drink at home is reasonable. A 750 ml bottle of Jameson's Irish Whiskey runs approximately $25 and contains about 17 shots.
Black Dog Smoke & Ale House's Pickleback costs $5, and Black Dog is located at 201 North Broadway Avenue in Urbana.
Thirsty Around Town explores alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages found in different venues around the Champaign-Urbana area. If you have a favorite obscure drink, email me. I want to try it!
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I would actually consider myself to be a whiskey afficionado (or at least a strong enthusiast), and I can totally see how this could work. I’ve occasionally gotten hints of pickle from rye whiskies, Templeton in particular, so the idea is not without precedent for me. I’ll be curious to see how that flavor goes with Jameson, though.
Here’s a drink for you that surprisingly lives up to its name.
The AWESOME:
1 part vodka
2 parts light american macro beer
2 parts lemonade
serve cold in a 12 oz glass/plastic solo cup.
No joke, this is delightful, especially in the summer; its very thirst-quenching.
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The Alan Partridge lookalike on the right in the first small photo has nothing to condescend to anyone about. AH HA!
Snell and the little Hitlers of the neighborhood association need to chill out. Legitimate businesses should have the freedom to exist without having to endure the slings and arrows of ignorant and misguided opposition.
represent, Matt.
Yeah, I’d agree that Transporter Room 3 is the worst house venue I’ve ever seen.
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I think it’s neat that SP has turned rightward, now espousing a Tea Party-style frustration with government regulations & taxes.
This makes me so sad. (Happy to live in Urbana, though!) Crave Truck has been a GREAT addition to the food choices in C-U, and it’d be a travesty to chase them away. This town should be supporting small businesses. I’m glad to hear that they’ll still…
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What? Echo! (Echo!) Where’s the dischord and dissent?
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And without bloodshed. Sounds like the Savoy trustees aren’t as narrow-minded as some of their whiny pants constituents. Do you think quack Snell is already planning an asinine counterattack or is he still laying low after those “threats” against his person?
hey, if hair ain’t gon’ be over your head, my jokes may as well be.
Okay, almost 24 hours later and I finally got Issac’s Summer joke. I’m an idiot.
Excellent. I am glad sometimes American dreams are encouraged, rather than stifled.
Swap the dog for a fire pit and it sounds like you’re writing about my back yard. Very nice.
funny, as your summer begins, another Summer ends.
@Dan - Wow. Unfortunately, I have to refrain from further comment due to a previous employment relationship. But with that brief context you might be able to imagine possible comments or responses I could have.
Oh, by the way, the “Champaign County YMCA” no longer exists. The official name is now the “Stephens Family YMCA” (the website has not been updated, but check out the latest program guide). And no, it’s not just the name of the building. It’s the name of the organization.
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