FAQ (The Dill and Nothing But)
What made you want to start pickling?
It's the question we hear all the time: What made you want to make pickles? The very short version...it started with an article about a "pickle guy" and an artisan movement in food, and ends with a love for cooking and the joy of seeing people loving your wares.
Epic is built on the passion for fabulous food for individuals with a similar drive for great things. We aren't your grocery or deli dill. And we aren't the sad spear that's usually served with your burger. We're the gourmet you want, and the taste you can't live without.
Now where's that Epic bloody mary?
Where are you based and what makes your product Epic?
York County Pennsylvania, the Factory Tour Capital of the World®. Although we don't currently offer factory tours, it's on our list. And yes, every single product we carry is produced by hand, by us, in our York County shop. We don't mess around!
Do you grow your own produce?
Nope, we're picklers, not farmers - so we leave that part to the experts. We use a wholesaler to source the FRESHest produce around. So no matter where it is grown, we only use the best - and nothing but. And yes, we do source local when possible!
These say handcrafted, what does that mean?
Per the Meriiam-Webster Dictionary, handcrafted means "created by a hand process rather than by a machine". That's exactly what we do! Wash, cut, slice, stuff FRESH produce - all by hand. And I've never met a machine that can make a pickle better than we can.
Been saving your jars, can you re-use them?
That's another NO. Although we have reused jars personally, for a business it's very much frowned upon. Per FDA guidance, jars may lose their integrity in the process and should not be reused. You are welcome to reuse them yourself, or recycle, but we will not accept them. Never hurts to ask!
Hey Eric, what's up?
Not much, but who's Eric? We assume people just mistake "Epic" for "Eric", but you're almost always talking to Rob (the founder/owner/pickler extraordinaire). No offense to all the Eric's out there. That is, unless everyone calls you "Rob"?
What's up with the blue garlic?
Garlic contains anthocyanins, water-soluble pigments that turn blue, green or purple in an acid solution. While this color transformation tends to occur more often with immature garlic, it can differ among cloves within the same head of garlic. The garlic flavor remains unchanged, and is totally edible.
On the same subject, garlic contains sulfur compounds which can react with copper to form copper sulfate, a blue or blue-green compound. The amount of copper needed for this reaction is very small and is frequently found in normal water supplies. Raw garlic contains an enzyme that if not inactivated by heating reacts with sulfur (in the garlic) and copper (from water or utensils) to form blue copper sulfate. The garlic is still perfectly safe to eat.
Why is my pickled cauliflower pink?
Color pigments in some varieties of cauliflower turn pink in the acid vinegar solution. Commercially pickled cauliflower is treated with sulfur dioxide to prevent this color change. Pink cauliflower is safe to eat.
What's Hotter - Spicy or Hot?
As all peppers are different, the heat index will vary slightly from batch-to-batch in spicy and hot varieties. But hot is meant to be hotter than spicy - period.
Gluten and Allergies, do I have to worry?
All our products are GLUTEN FREE - no wheat or other grains with gluten, including barley, rye, and oats. There are also no milk products, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, or soy in our products nor our entire facility.
The ONLY allergen in any of our products is Anchovy/Shellfish in our Bloody Mary mix. The brand of worchestershire sauce we use contains anchovy, but NO soy.
Do you make a Horseradish Pickle?
We wish! And we've tried!! There is a chemical reaction that occurs when you cut or grate horseradish which gives it its heat and aroma. Once exposed to air or heat, horseradish will lose its taste and become bitter. As we heat our pickles to preserve them, all the flavor disappears. Therefore, if you've had a horseradish pickle, it's probably been added to cold or lacto-fermented pickles.
The brine must have leaked out of my Okra and/or Cauliflower?!?!
No, no it hasen't. As long as the button top lid is still in it's unopen position (button sucked in), there's nothing getting in-or-out of that jar. Okra are pods which suck in all that beautiful brine, hence the low brine appearance. Likewise, Caulflower are like sponges and sometimes have the same result. Voila!
What does Seasonal Variety mean?
Great question! Some of our products are seasonal due to raw product availability or seasonal releases. For instance our super-hot pickles are only offered when the peppers are available locally - generally around Labor Day. Our Pumpickles were originally only available in the Fall, but we try to keep some in stock as they are not dependent on seaonal produce.
When will I get my order?!?!?!
We ship all orders as quickly as possibly but generally within a few business days. And NO, paying more for faster shipping does NOT mean they will go out quicker. We're a small company, so we appreciate your understanding.