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CraftJacks

The Martin House Best Maid Sour Pickle Beer

Martin House Brewing Company out of Fort Worth, Texas brews the Best Maid Sour Pickle Beer. We've heard of craft beer breweries making some funky beers, and this dill pickle juice with an abv is no exception. We imagine the flavor to be huge, because everything is bigger in Texas, especially Dallas.

Martin House Brewing Company's Best Maid Pickle Beer
A true sour Gose! | photo credit to Martin House Brewing Company

Say you're from New Jersey, what do your buddies say when you show up with two six-packs of boozy dill brine in your hands? Crazier, a whole case of beer? They brought their favorite IPA or a Belgian Wit, spiced with some coriander. You took it up a notch, and rightfully so. The world doesn't need more takes on an IPA. It needs sour pickle juice beer, clearly.

We love pickles, so we're intrigued by the ingenuity of this Texas craft brewery to brew such an eclectic and distinct craft beer. It's doubtful we will get to visit the Martin House Brewing Co taproom, given the travel restrictions of COVID. Perhaps some day we will get our hands on it. Though, we can't see ourselves suffering from Cenosillicaphobia on this particular beer. One is probably enough. Ok, maybe two or three.

Plus, it sure beats a bloody mary when it comes to morning breakfast beers.

What is a pickle beer?

Martin House's Sour Pickle Beer is, at its core, a Gose. Pucker up, as it was inspired by their The Salty Lady Gose. Texans apparently enjoyed the Best Maid Pickle Beer so much the first time that it's limited release in 2019 created demand for a 2020 re-brewing.

The sour ale combined with a Gose puts the sea salt-edness of the Best Maid pickle brine together with the refreshing lemon/tart/citrus profile of the beer.

This feels like a good beer to drink if you're going to play Pickleball. You know, because of the name.

Best Maid Spicy Pickle Beer

Martin House brews a second version that is a bit more zesty. They even threw a launch party for the super limited release. The launch party featured live music, 4 different types of spicy pickle beer, and local bbq food trucks. The 4 spicy versions were:

– Xtreme Sour – Xtreme Hot – Bloody Mary – Jalapeno Bread N Butter

What to pair with a pickle beer?

Is it fair to say that this beer might pair best with Beer Battered Fried Pickles? Maybe a key lime pie? It definitely pairs well with a cheeseburger straight off the grill - you know the type, two all beef patties, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions, on a sesame seed bun - where this sour beer base is the special sauce.

Pulled pork sandwiches, Turkey clubs, Beer Brats, and Chicken Cutlet subs would (probably?) go well with a Best Maid Sour Pickle Beer. As for sides, potato salad and cole slaw would be our choices. You wouldn't want to get crazy and mix Salt & Vinegar chips with a pickle beer. That's just crazy talk.

Map of where to find Martin House Brewing beers

Below is a map that Martin House Brewing Co put together to find a list of all of their craft beers around the area.

Other breweries brewing sour beers

Sour beers are an interesting accessory to the craft beer brewing arsenal. Lost in a world of IPAs is a tasty sour.

These breweries brew beers that are perhaps not as crazy as the Best Maid Spicy Pickle Beer. Kettlehead Brewing of Tilton, NH brews a bunch of sours. Same with Side by Each Brewing of Auburn, ME and Hops and Growlers all the way down in Mississippi.

Vitamin Sea Brewing of Weymouth, MA has what they call their Sour Pipe Project. Their Blueberry Pancake Ale and Lemon Meringue beer, who's name escapes us at the moment, are out of this world.