Pickle Tea, the origin story

Me and pickles? We go way back.

It was summer break, 1997. Yes, I was eleven. The previous fall, my best friend moved to a city 6 hours away. We had been inseparable until she moved. When summer finally came, she invited me to visit— she and her Mom were coming into my town, and I'd get to drive back with them to stay a whole week.

Fast forward to us, reunited and having ridiculous fun together. Drinking glass after glass of our favorite summer drink: ice cold pickle juice. Mmm, tangy.

Oh, you want more pickle stories? I'll happily oblige.

There's a special place in my heart for briny, crunchy, baby dill pickles. We always had them in the house when I was a teen. My favorite movie snack was— spoiler, not popcorn— baby dill pickles + Hershey's chocolate kisses. (Sidenote: I am the weirdest).

My brothers and I were watching our favorite movies (like Office Space and The Big Lebowski) on repeat. During our movie marathons, I’d eat a chocolate kiss, and then take a bite of pickle. And then a chocolate kiss, and then a bite of pickle.

I consumed hundreds (thousands?) of pickles and chocolate kisses during that time. The feeling of sweet, creamy chocolate getting slapped in the face by salty, crunchy dill... Blew. My. Mind. (Still does.)

Fast forward again, to January 2020, and a conversation with a friend (you know who you are, Leah!) about tea, and flavors that we like. She mentioned her "affection for anything pickle-flavored". Suddenly, the conversation took a turn into all things pickle, our mutual love for them, and us musing about creating a pickle-flavored tea.

Many recipe iterations later, I finally had a blend that I was happy with. I gave it to Leah as part of her birthday present, and she signed off on it!

Pickle Tea is our creation.