Pickle juice is often used as a chaser for alcohol, but what about combining the flavors in a completely different way? Mixing pickle juice and vodka to make a cocktail is one option. Or, you could make a pickle juice vodka infusion instead, which is an even better approach.
Now, there are two main ways to make pickle juice vodka and they give you slightly different results. The first approach is to simply mix vodka and pickle juice together. That isn’t exactly an infusion (it’s more of a quick and easy cocktail instead). Still, it’s the fastest way to add pickle flavor to your vodka. This style might be all you need.
The other option is infusing your vodka with pickles themselves. There are a few variations on this idea, as you’ll see in the recipes below. There are also plenty of pickle juice vodka brands. These vary in their approaches, creating interesting flavor combos. The pickle notes are intense for some of these, while others are much more nuanced.
Pickle Juice Vodka Infusion Recipes
Pickle Infused Vodka
This recipe comes from Heidi at foodiecrush.com, who clearly loves her pickles. The recipe is simple, as you might expect, relying on a combination of vodka, pickle juice, and some extra pickle spears and veggies.
Including pickles and pickle juice is an excellent approach. This provides more flavor than you’d get from an infusion on its own. Lisa also has an impressive bloody Mary recipe that uses her vodka – just in case you need some inspiration.
Dill Pickle Vodka
Trish from rhubarbarians.com keeps things pretty simple, which isn’t a bad thing at all. Her basic recipe just relies on a few familiar ingredients: cucumbers, dill, and spices.
You can also add a clove of garlic. This is an optional ingredient, as it makes the vodka much more savory. Whether that works will depend on your flavor preferences and how you plan to use the vodka.
Vodka Tonic Refrigerator Pickles
This recipe has a slightly different focus. You’re basically making refrigerator pickles, except that vodka is now one of the main ingredients.
As the name suggests, there’s also tonic in the mix. This makes the liquid taste much like a vodka and tonic cocktail, just with extra flavor from the cucumber. The pickles themselves should taste amazing too.
Not surprisingly, this recipe would work just as well with gin instead of vodka. Why not experiment with both variations and see which one you prefer? Either way, the full details can be found at practiganic.com,
The Best Bloody Mary Vodka Infusion-Infused Vodka
As you might have guessed, this recipe doesn’t just focus on pickle juice vodka. It features a much more complex vodka infusion instead, one that includes onions, cucumber, celery, carrots, and even lemon.
The combination of ingredients creates a more complex vodka infusion than just using cucumbers on their own. The style really would be perfect for a bloody Mary, although there are plenty of other potential uses as well.
Katie also mentions that you can add sliced jalapeno into the infusion towards the end. Just don’t do so early on, as the vodka could end up too spicy. For full details, check out the recipe post at aforkstale.com.
Pickle And Jalapeno Infusion
Tito’s Vodka provides this recipe as one of their many recommendations for how to use their vodka (you can find full details at titosvodka.com). This recipe offers an interesting twist, as it relies on pickle juice and a whole jalapeno.
The jalapeno adds a hit of spice to the vodka, while you’re getting plenty of flavor from the pickle juice. You could add a pickle or two into the jar as well, if you want to increase the pickle flavor even further.
Bloody Mary With Dill Pickle Vodka
We clearly have a theme here – pickle juice vodka being used in a bloody Mary. Makes sense, right? After all, pickle vodka works best in savory cocktails and the bloody Mary is easily the most famous savory cocktail out there.
This time, the recipe comes from Emily at westoftheloop.com. The focus is on the bloody Mary recipe, but she does step us through making pickle infused vodka as well. She uses the common ratio of one part pickle juice to three parts vodka, which is an excellent starting point.
Boozy Koolickles
Koolickles are an interesting idea. They’re basically pickles that have been removed from their brine and soaked in red Kool-Aid, water, and sugar.
This recipe, from thrillist.com, follows the same idea, except that it uses vodka instead of water. The process gives you vodka that’s infused with the flavors of Cherry Kool-Aid and pickles. The pickles end up tasting pretty good too, so it’s a win-win.
Brands Offering Pickle Juice Vodka
Making your own pickle infused vodka is easy enough. However, the flavor profile mightn’t be as complex or as interesting as you hope for, so why not buy pickle vodka instead? There’s a surprising number of brands out there, including some that are very delicious.
Texacraft Sour Pickle Vodka
Texacraft Sour Pickle Vodka truly lives up to its name, as this expression is tart and offers bold pickle flavors. The color and flavor partly come from the use of real pickle juice as part of the infusion.
Because the flavor is so strong, Texacraft Sour Pickle Vodka is best used in savory cocktails. It’s particularly good in a bloody Mary, but don’t be afraid to experiment. You might also sip this vodka or use it as a shot.
The only catch is the alcohol percentage. Taxacraft’s expression comes in at 25% ABV, which is lower than many other flavored vodkas.
My Big Pickle Vodka
My Big Pickle Vodka is clearly having fun with imagery and their company’s name. And, why not?
The story goes that the company was offering bloody Marys with pickle juice at a neighborhood yard sale. They ran out of bloody Mary mix, so they started to just combine pickle juice and vodka instead. The popularity of the mix helped them to realize that pickle juice and vodka work well together – so, My Big Pickle Vodka was born.
This expression comes in at 30% ABV and has an interesting flavor profile. The dill pickle flavor is certainly there front and center, coupled with spices and even some herbal flavor tones.
For those who love experimenting, the company also offers My Big Jalapeno vodka. You could even mix the two to get a flavor profile that’s similar to jalapeno infused pickle juice.
Herbesco Pickle Vodka
Unlike the previous two entries, Herbesco Pickle Vodka comes in at 40% ABV. That’s because this is a company that focuses on vodka infusions, rather than pickle juice itself.
This also means that the vodka has flavors inspired by pickle juice, rather than tasting exactly like the juice. Indeed, Herbesco even talks about balancing the classic flavors of cucumbers, garlic, and dill with spices and a floral aroma.
So, pick up this expression if you’re looking for something nuanced and interesting. If you want something that tastes exactly like pickle juice and vodka, another product might be best. Thankfully, there are plenty of others to experiment with.
Original Pickle Shot Vodka
Here we have The Original Pickle Shot Vodka. The company originally started with three friends who got drunk together, then looked in the fridge for a hangover cure the next day. Their original mix relied on pickle juice and tequila, but they now produce pickle juice vodka instead.
There are two main flavors – Dill Pickle Vodka and Spicy Pickle Vodka. Both can be purchased in large bottles or small ones and found throughout the country.
The Spicy Pickle Vodka is a nice twist on the classic recipe, although some people find it to be a little too intense. If you’re sensitive to spice might want to stick with the original bottle instead.
Chilled Dills Pickle Vodka
Chilled Dills Pickle Vodka comes from a relatively small company, one that is focused on making the absolute best pickle vodka that they can. To do so, they use careful distilling and infusing processes, along with plenty of quality checking.
Chilled Dills appears to just have this single product, which is actually excellent news. Seriously. Companies that specialize like this often create much better products than those who diversify.
The World Famous Pickle Vodka
Finally, we have The World Famous Pickle Vodka. The name is a bit over the top, honestly, as the vodka certainly isn’t world famous. But, we can forgive them for that, as this is a popular pickle vodka expression.
There are two versions to experiment with here. The Original has all the flavors you’d expect, while the Spicy adds a distinct spicy kick to the mix.
Bonus: The Tipsy Pickle
Finally, we have The Tipsy Pickle. This product takes the opposite approach, as it offers sliced pickles that have been infused with vodka.
All the classic ingredients are in the pickles too, including cucumbers, garlic, dill, and pickling spices. There are even some juniper berries to add extra flavor.
There is one catch though. While the vodka provides some interesting flavor, all the alcohol gets cooked off as part of the brining process. As such, these aren’t alcoholic pickles at all
How Do You Use Pickle Juice Vodka?
So, now that you have your flavored vodka, what do you do with it?
A bloody Mary is an excellent starting point. After all, this cocktail tastes fantastic with pickle juice, so why not use pickle vodka instead? You might even use pickle juice and pickle vodka in the same drink
The same applies to all the bloody Mary variations, like the Ceasar, bloody Maria, and bloody bull. Or you could branch out and try the vodka in other pickle juice cocktails. The pickle juice will often add a layer of extra flavor, making your cocktail even more interesting. Beyond this, why not experiment? Plenty of cocktails will work well with the savory flavor of pickle juice. This is particularly true for any that were originally designed with gin as the base spirit.
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