Ginsoak’s Pic-Ale-Chilli
I first heard about this amazing sounding chutney, when @ginsoak and @the_brew_co we’re talking about it, so I stuck my nose in as it sounded really interesting….next thing I know the very kind ginsoak offered me a jar of her next batch despite the_brew_co’s best attempts to snaffle it for him self. Now I have tried it I can see exactly why he didn’t want to let a jar go.

Pic-Ale-Chilli
Pic-Ale-Chilli is basically ginsoaks home made version of piccalilli , it contains. Chilli and Ale – which give’s it it’s rather catchy name. I can’t remember if the chillis were home grown but I think they were, the ale used was Hop Ripper IPA which is brewed by the_brew_co.
Before I even opened the jar I was amazed by the vibrant yellow of it’s contents, it wasn’t day glo yellow like a lot of he shop bought piccalilli so it was off to a great start! The jar opened with a lovely pop then I dived straight in, scooping a huge dollop up and landing on on top of the slice of ham and cheese on my cracker.
The texture was great, lovely great big chunks of cauliflower, onion and chilli, it was also nice and sticky so it didn’t slide straight off the cracker, the chunks also gave it a really lovely crunch.
Taste wise pic-ale-chilli was out of this world, It was sweet, sour and above all had a brilliant balance of chilli flavour and heat. The onions gave it a lovely pickled sweetness and a lovely crunch. The heat didn’t hit me straight away but then I felt my tongue followed by my lips start to tingle….awesome!
My only criticism is that the jar wasn’t big enough – it is so moreish it should come in 1litre tubs. I had intended to share it with my dad but he didn’t come round in time and before I knew it the whole jar was gone….it goes really well with ham, cheese, sausages,  bacon, beef and chicken.
Chilli Up North Verdict: Simply awesome, surely the best use in the world for cauliflower. (Heat Rating: 8/10)



November 17th, 2009 at 09:39
ha! excellent write up – bless you, glad you liked it. not sure i can offer you a 1 litre tub of it, but will get another jar to you from the next batch
(btw – yes, they were home grown chillis)
November 19th, 2009 at 10:05
Glad to hear they were home grown chillis i kind of remembered you posting a pic of some chillis on twitter lol
December 16th, 2009 at 20:45
[...] and Beer Pairing of the Year: @Ginsoak ’s Pic-Ale-Chilli with cheese and crackers and Thornbridge Halcyon. (Runner up: Wasabi [...]