Kroger Candied Dill Spears

Kroger Candied Dill Spears

Aren't the holidays fun!?  Its a time when you get to sample everyone's latest recipes, family favorites and the little treasures you find at the grocer.  This year, pickle fans, was a pickle at the center of attention!  Gretchen was responsible for putting together a relish tray and went to Kroger to stock up, and while the standard sweet gherkins, green and black olives, bread 'n' butter sweets made it to the tray, everyone was surprised by the Candied Dill Spears in the tray.

Wait-wait-wait!!  Candied Dill ??  Yepper, you read right. To come right to the point, in place of the clove flavor we're all used to in normal sweet gherkins, or the bread'n'butter flavor, they used dill instead.  Its an unexpected little zing at the end of your bite.  The pickles are thoroughly infused with the sweet syrup, as other sweets are, but the dill flavor combined with the sweet'n'briney flavor is definitely unique.  The crunch is fantastic, and very much reminds me of my grandparents' 14-day sweet pickles.  I suspect they've gone through a few cycles of alum to get that crunch.

These are definitely yummy little treasures, but they're to be savored one at a time--I don't think anyone will be pounding through a jar of these in short order.  They're totally unlike any pickle I've had before, and I'd highly recommend picking up a jar.

Claussen Hot & Spicy Spears

Claussen Hot & Spicy Spears

I was in Kroger today and saw this new variety in the meat section next to the other refrigerated Claussen pickles. The fire-red label caught my eye (take note, marketeers!), and I had to have a look.  I've liked Claussen Deli Dills for their crisp crunch and unique flavor, and lately have had a thing for a little heat and spice, so $3.79 and a trip home, and I was set to give them a try.  Oh, if you have a Kroger card, they're only $3, so really, not even all that expensive!

As you can see in the picture, the bottom is layered with garlic, mustard seeds, herbs, dill and red pepper chunks.  Yummy!  The spears all look nicely cut and very uniform (take note, Vlasic, yours have been slipping lately).  The whole package is very inviting.

First, because they're Claussen deli dills, they're nice and crunchy, as we'd all expect.  They've got that Claussen flavor, heavy on garlic that will seem very familiar.  After the fist bite, there was a little heat at the back of your throat, but nothing terribly impressive.  My initial thought was that Claussen's interpretation of "hot" was a bit subtle and a little disappointing compared to the smack on the head that Vlasic Zesty's give you.  However, after the 3rd bite, the hot & spicy artillery caught up with the garlic scouts.  These things have a healthy punch afterall!  The heat is very nice, and not at all overpowering.  They're slow to throttle up, but never get wild enough to be objectionable.

I have to admit to eating a couple, putting the jar back, and then 20 minutes later, going back to the fridge to try another.  And, 20 minutes later, going back for another.  Hrm...seems they're mildly addictive...nothing on the label indicates such... ;)

I think Claussen hit a home run with these.  If you're in the mood for a Claussen Deli Dill, but want something with a little kick, the Hot & Spicy variety will fit the bill.

Cortas Pickled Cucumbers

My wife found these in a middle-eastern grocery store and picked them up, knowing that I'm a pickle nut...er...reviewer.  From the jar, they look like ordinary dill pickles, but looks can be deceiving...

These are possibly the weirdest pickles I've ever tasted.  I honestly can't decide if I like them or hate them.  The ingredient panel says they have garlic (you can see the clove of garlic in the picture, too!) and green pepper and "spices".  You can definitely pick out the garlic, but the rest of the flavor is not objectionable, but its definitely different.  Even though these are vinegar pickles, they have a flavor that reminds me of the "musty-ness" of fermented pickles.  I'm convinced it has to be the green pepper, but there's an additional spice that is in the mix.

They are exceptionally crisp pickles.  Texture-wise, they're exactly what I like: crunchy, and not at all soggy, like some pickles can get.  These are not skinned at all, which may contribute to their excellent texture.  I think they were picked rather young, too, so they have a gerkin quality about them.

You know these are "not from around here", because they're really-really long and slender cucumbers.  As you can see, this is a tall-style jar, and they chose that style jar for a reason: these babies are LONG.  This makes for a single pickle that'll answer any craving you might have, but as with all things positive, there's a catch.  These pickles are devilishly hard to get out of the jar when you first open it.  They're packed in there very tightly, and because they're long, it only provides more resistance to being moved.  They were hard enough to get out that I actually scraped the skin off of one with my fingers in my attempts!  My wife was laughing at me until she gave it a try--same results.

These pickles are unusual and they taste good, but they're definitely in condiment territory, and not in the habitual munching class.  I still can't figure out whether I like them or hate them....