If you’ve ever dropped a pickle spear into your pint glass (no judgment), Pabst Blue Ribbon just made your life a whole lot easier. The budget lager has officially teamed up with Grillo’s Pickles on a limited-edition pickle beer that brings vinegar, garlic, and dill flavors straight into the can. The PBR x Grillo’s Pickles collaboration was first unveiled at the NACS 2025 trade show and has now started showing up in stores across the country.
- The beer clocks in at 4.7% ABV and comes in 12-oz cans.
- It’s a limited-run pickle beer that blends the classic PBR lager with vinegar, garlic, and dill notes from Grillo’s Pickles.
- The vibrant green cans pair Pabst’s classic logo with Grillo’s recognizable pickle imagery.
What This Pickle Beer Actually Tastes Like
The Pabst Blue Ribbon Grillo’s Pickle Beer isn’t trying to be a gose or a sour. It’s classified as an American Light Lager on Untappd. That means the base is still the easy-drinking PBR that people have been cracking open for decades, but with a noticeable twist of pickle brine flavor layered on top.
Early reviews from drinkers on Untappd paint an interesting picture. One reviewer noted that the pickle flavor is “mostly in the nose,” describing it as “slightly brackish and herbal but finishes like PBR.” Another said it “tastes like sparkling water with pickle essence” and added that “compared to other pickle beers, it’s not super salty.” So if you were worried about drinking a liquid pickle, it sounds like PBR kept things on the lighter side.
That restraint actually makes sense. PBR has always been a no-fuss American lager, and going too far in the pickle direction could have alienated fans of the original. This approach lets curious drinkers dip their toes in without committing to a full brine bath.
Two Brands with Surprisingly Deep Roots
Pabst Blue Ribbon was named for the blue ribbon it received at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair and became a symbol of quality and tradition. It eventually grew into one of the most recognizable names in affordable American beer. Today, the Pabst portfolio also includes legacy brands like Schlitz, Old Milwaukee, Lone Star, and National Bohemian.
Grillo’s Pickles has a pretty great origin story of its own. The company started in 2008 in Boston, Massachusetts, when Travis Grillo began selling his family’s pickles from a small wooden cart in Boston Common. The brand was built on a simple dill pickle recipe that had been passed down in the Grillo family for over a century. What made Grillo’s stand out was a dedication to all-natural, preservative-free recipes using fresh cucumbers, garlic, vinegar, dill, and salt.
That scrappy wooden cart turned into a national operation. By 2013, the company was pulling in a million dollars in annual sales. By 2019, Grillo’s had sold over 5 million pounds of pickles from more than 10,000 retail locations, including Whole Foods and Walmart. So this collaboration pairs a beer brand with 130+ years of history with a pickle brand that built its reputation on freshness and a family recipe.
Riding the Pickle Flavor Wave
This PBR pickle beer has plenty of momentum behind it. Pickle-flavored products have been gaining real traction over the past couple of years. Pickles have become one of the most popular flavors in food, and nearly two-thirds of consumers globally expressed positive feelings about pickles across social media during the prior year, according to data from Innova noted in April 2025.
Grillo’s itself has surged in popularity through limited-time collaborations and consumer interest in tangy, dill flavors. The brand has previously partnered on a nonalcoholic Bloody Mary cocktail mix with Campbell’s V8, a Pickle de Gallo Schmear with PopUp Bagels, and a hard seltzer with Two Robbers. A beer collab with PBR feels like a natural next step, especially with grilling season on the way.
PBR has been busy with its own cross-brand ventures too. The brand recently partnered with Smithfield Foods on a limited-edition bratwurst infused with PBR beer, aimed squarely at barbecues and casual summer gatherings. Pickle beer fits right into that backyard cookout energy.
Is the PBR Pickle Beer Worth Trying?
If you’re a pickle fan, this one is a no-brainer. The 4.7% ABV keeps it sessionable, and the flavor profile seems designed to appeal to a broad audience rather than pickle diehards alone. Based on early reviews, it won’t knock you over with salt or vinegar. Think of it as PBR with a fun, briny wink.
The PBR Grillo’s Pickle Beer is available in six-packs through retailers like Instacart. Since it’s a limited release, you’ll want to grab it sooner rather than later if you’re curious. Whether it ends up as a one-and-done novelty or earns a spot in regular rotation will depend on you and about two million other pickle enthusiasts across the country. Either way, it’s a fun excuse to try something new this spring.
