THUNDER BAY — Hundreds of local pickle lovers met at the Sleeping Giant Brew Company on Saturday to relish in a variety of pickle-inspired cuisine, beer, seltzers and more for its first-ever Pickle-Fest.
The family-friendly event was open to all ages and featured over 10 vendors, a pickle-eating contest, a pickle general store in the taproom and fun activities for children, including face painting.
“We kind of kept it a bit smaller this year,” said Andrea Mulligan, the co-founder and president of the Sleeping Giant Brewing Company.
“But we have everything from local pickled eggs to pickles themselves, of course, stuffed pickles, emotional support pickles — I didn’t know that was the thing, but it is — clothing, merch, jewelry (and) all sorts of creative things are available.”
Beefcakes was also open at the brewery, added Mulligan, specializing in some great local dill-inspired creations.
“We’re really excited to have them join in and be creative,” said Mulligan.
Two regulars of the brewery came out for the day just to try the pickle beer. The man said they loved all of the company's brew right from day one.
“Normally, we drink their sleeping giant Skull Rock (stout), which is beautiful, but for special occasions like this… I’m trying the pickle beer and pickle (is) very, very different, but quite enjoyable,” said the regular.
The regulars were also enjoying the afternoon after buying some pickled eggs.
“It’s from the Tarrymore Farm... They had a lot of nice choices, but we picked the one that has the nice red pepper into it because… we like hot foods, so this is going to be a real treat for us,” said the regular.
The festival has also been really great, added another attendee who previously saw the event on Facebook.
While everything was really good, she said, the sour pickled beer was "actually really tasty.”
“I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about it, but it’s really good,” said the attendee.
The attendee also bought a pickled-themed Heartbeat Hot Sauce made in Thunder Bay.
“It’s really good. My mom loves it, so I bought it for her,” said the attendee.
Mulligan said they always love to try to do some unique things that nobody’s ever seen before.
“We’re doing something unusual. I don’t think it’s ever been done in Thunder Bay,” said Mulligan.
As part of the Pickle-Fest, the Sleeping Giant Brewing Company also made a monetary donation in support of the Shelter House.
“They have a pickle costume, so if you’re lucky, you can spot the pickle moving around in the brewery and our grounds, but we’re definitely excited to build... support (for) Shelter House and our community in that aspect this weekend, too,” said Mulligan.
Aligning with the effort, Mulligan said, Shelter House was also creating awareness and collecting donations themselves.
“We’ll gladly take donations if it’s easier at the brewery and send it their way, but definitely go online and support Shelter House,” said Mulligan.
Going ahead, she said locals can also definitely look forward to another Pickle-Fest sooner than later.
“We’ll announce the date next week, where we can highlight a lot of our local harvesters who are pickling mainly in the fall,” said Mulligan.
The beer, alongside some other pickle items, are also available after Saturday.
