A short history of Bloody Mary and a special sauce to mark its 100th anniversary
Is it a drink? Is it a meal? Is it both?
Back in the summer I spent around six weeks in Kyiv and I tried a Bloody Mary for the first time. I was living in what was essentially a shared apartment, which literally had its own built-in bar. As in a proper bar with a proper bartender, who also happened to be excellent at his job. So one night I said to him, “Look, I’m gonna try your Bloody Mary. If I don’t like it, that’s it, Bloody Mary ain’t my thing.” But I did like it.
A friend of mine, from Arizona, once told me the Bloody Mary is an institution in the US [even though it was probably not invented in the US], and he added, “it’s basically a meal. You get your tomato juice, your Tabasco sauce, you can add pepper, vegetables...” He was half serious, half joking.
As with most cocktails, it is nigh on impossible to determine who invented it and when and where with absolute certainty, but most drink experts agree that it was Fernand Petiot, a French bartender, who came up with the recipe while working at the New York Bar in Paris in 1921.
According to the traditional recipe, a Bloody Mary should always include vodka, tomato juice, lemon juice, Tabasco sauce, celery salt, black pepper and, this is crucial, Worcestershire Sauce.
This year marks the Bloody Mary’s 100th birthday, and Bloody Drinks, the creator of the canned Bloody Mary cocktail, has partnered up with Worcestershire Sauce producer Lea & Perrins to release a limited-edition can to celebrate. Only 1,921 cans will be produced – a nod to the year 1921.
How do you feel about a Bloody Mary? Do you drink it? Let me know in the comments below.
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Comments (7)
I've yet to try it - but I'm immensely doubtful about a savoury cocktail
It’s my favourite cocktail. After Moscow Mule, Mojito, G & T, Tom Collins and three others
Right! 🤣
Bloody Mary is ok
Probably not my favourite but certainly a good pick. I think it’s one of those cocktails that can be very good or terrible depending on how good the bartender is
Definitely not my favorite but I don't hate it. You are correct the person making the drink make a big difference but I think it is a very mood based drink as well.
When I worked at a restaurant for 3 weeks, the Bloody Mary was the choice drink for all the old ladies at brunch 😂