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From homebrew kit to independent brewery, Dainton Brewery is the classic story of a hobby turned into a passion. Dan Dainton started in 2008 with a homebrew kit gifted to him from his mother, making some truly awful beer dubbed the Filthy Lager or “Flager”. Yet after much trial and error, the mission was clear: learn how to make the best beer possible.
Over the years I have tried a few different beers that incorporate pickles and as silly as it sounds, none of them seemed bold enough to put the pickle flavour at the forefront. As a fan of Dainton Brewery, I was very interested in trying their “Pickle Dan – Rueben Rye Ale”.
In their words: “There are really real, surreal and unreal similarities between Rick and Dan. perhaps if they collabed on a science project they’d make this beer…. Or start an interdimensional war? maybe both“.
In case you don’t know the Rick they are referring to is the highly intelligent and constantly inebriated scientist from the cult animated series “Rick and Morty“. Brewed with smoked malts, rye and pickles from local company Dillicious, the flavour is described as “taking a bite out of a big fat traditional Reuben Sandwich“. This description is definitely apt, the first sip introduces the rye and malt, then followed by the sourness of the pickle. I was pleasantly surprised by the strength of the pickle flavour, previous Pickle beers that I had tried were sours and artificially flavoured lagers where the pickle aspect seemed like more of a gimmick. The Pickle Dan shows that a Rye Ale is an excellent platform for the pickle flavour.
Dainton is not afraid to be adventurous with their brewing and if you are a beer fan, it is definitely worth exploring their range.
The Stats:
Style: Rye Ale
Brewed: Carrum Downs, Melbourne AUS 
ALC: 5.5%
IBU: 15
SD: 1.5
EM Score: 4 / 5
Brew origin:
Roggenbier or Rye Beer was common in Germany, particularly in Bavaria and typically refers to the use of rye for brewing. This was until the 15th century when the region suffered a period of bad harvest, so it was ruled that rye was to only be used for baking and barley would be used for brewing, Roggenbier disappeared for almost five hundred years. Today, Rye Beer refers to rye being substituted for a portion of the barley and is considered a specialty beer that may be brewed with unusual fermentables such as rice, corn, or wheat.
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