January 2020 - 15

McClure's Bloody Mary mix, Pigeon Hill vodka team up
By Zeke Jennings
VGN Correspondent
McClure's Pickles co-founders (and
brothers) Bob and Jim McClure wanted
to pair their Bloody Mary Mixer with a
vodka to create a canned ready-to-drink
Bloody Mary, but they didn't want to
change the mix's original formula to do it.
Ironically, what made the gourmet
picklers' mix special also was what
made it difficult to work with in terms
of combining with alcohol to create a
packageable product.
" Whenever we've tried to get our
Bloody Mary mix into a spirit-based
format, we were told, 'You can't use your
Bloody Mary mix because it's got too
many fresh ingredients,' " Bob McClure
said. " Well, that's what makes it flavorful
and unique. "
With the exception of the tomato
puree base, McClure's processes the other
fresh ingredients in the mix at its Detroit
facility and warehouse - including
garlic, peppers and dill - to go with its
signature pickle brine. McClure's makes
four flavors of gourmet pickles - garlic
and dill, bread and butter, a spicy version
and a sweet and spicy version, as well as
relish and sauerkraut.
the right mixer and the right hoses and
tubes and pumps, but we can do that, "
McClure said. " We are able to make large
batches of our mix in totes and send that
to Pigeon Hill, so they can pump that
into their tanks.
" When you get a premixed can of
our RTD product, it really tastes like
our Bloody Mary mix and all the
fresh inclusions. "
The cocktails hit shelves earlier this
summer. They are 7.5% alcohol by
volume and are typically sold in
four-packs.
" We think it'll be great for brunches
and great for (tailgating) gamedays, "
McClure said. " The funny thing about
Bloody Marys is everybody has their
own way they like to make them. We
don't want to take away from that. You
can take a can and pour into a nice cool
glass and dress it up whichever way
you want, whether with a pickle spear,
Worcestershire sauce, celery.
" Ours is vegan and vegetarian; we
don't have any allergens. That's a nice
bonus to consumers. "
Pickle cucumber sources
Michigan grows more pickle cucumbers
any other state, but Bob McClure
acknowledged the growing season is short.
" When we first started out (in 2006),
we were getting them from whomever
we could get them from at a good price,
because we were small and we didn't
have bargaining power. ... Even then,
we used local processors and local
growers to help us get through certain
seasonal gaps, " he said.
" Now we have enough buying power
where we're contracting with farmers.
During the summer season from July
through September, we're ordering from
McClure's Pickles processes fresh garlic, dill
and peppers in its Bloody Mary Mix.
Photo: McClure's Pickles.
our Michigan farmer. The rest of the
season we use Mexico, Texas, Florida
and up through where the sun warms
up the ground. Then we'll move up
through the Rust Belt until we get back
to Michigan. " VGN
CUSTOM BUILT
HARVESTERS
Bob McClure holds up jars of his company's
pickles, which are processed and distributed
from a facility in Detroit. Photos: Zeke
Jennings
" We'll chop out the garlic, the peppers,
the dill - we mix it all together in a
brine, " McClure said of the Bloody Mary
mix process. " It will then pump into the
filling station and the Bloody Mary mix
jars just keep rolling down. It's just like
we do when we're making pickles, but the
Bloody Mary is a far easier process
because it's going through a tube instead
of hand-dropped into jars. "
After inquiring with several vodka
distillers and even one failed attempt,
McClure's approached Pigeon Hill
Brewing Co., located about 200 miles
away in Muskegon, Michigan. Jim
McClure was familiar with Pigeon Hill's
owners, and the brothers liked the idea
of partnering with another Michigan
company, but one based on the opposite
side of the state.
" (Pigeon Hill) has a great presence on
the west side of the state, like we do on
the east side, " Bob McClure said. " We
thought, 'Let's make this work.' "
Whereas others said McClure's mix
wouldn't work, the folks at Pigeon Hill
were willing to get creative with a new
process to maintain the integrity of the
ingredients and create a safe, shelf-ready
canned product.
" Pigeon Hill said ... we have to find
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