Classic Bloody Mary

Bloody Marys are my favorite brunch cocktail. I’ve even been known to order them sans-alcohol, if I’m not in the mood to imbibe. While some people drink the savory, spicy cocktail for the supposed hangover remedy, I’m all in on the flavor. 

While I love the flavor of horseradish, the one part of Bloody Marys I don’t care much for is the texture of prepared horseradish in my cocktail. I solve this by blending some of the tomato juice (I like the clean flavor of Sacramento brand) with the horseradish until smooth. From there, it’s just about picking my garnishes. I will happily accept any and all Bloody Mary garnishes — and trust me, there are many wild ones out there — but I love the classic leafy, tender celery heart and a few pimento olives.

The Bloody Mary was invented in the early 1920s at Harry’s American Bar in Paris by bartender Ferdinand “Pete” Petiot. He reportedly mixed together a concoction of tomato juice, vodka, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper. Some stories suggest the drink is named after Mary Queen of Scots, the actress Mary Pickford, or a lovelorn young woman named Mary, yet the origin remains unknown.

Petiot brought the Bloody Mary stateside in 1934, serving it at the King Cole Bar at the St. Regis Hotel in New York. Here, he added lemon juice and Tabasco to suit the tastes of his American customers. The Bloody Mary didn’t become a brunch fixture until the 1960s, due to an aggressive marketing campaign by Smirnoff Vodka.

• Make the Bloody Mary mix. In a blender, combine lemon juice, half of the tomato juice, Worcestershire sauce, prepared horseradish, hot sauce, celery seeds, and kosher salt. Blend until smooth. 
• Refrigerate the mix. Transfer the Bloody Mary mix to a pitcher and stir in the remaining tomato juice. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or ideally overnight. 
• Serve. You can either serve the cocktail individually or make it a pitcher drink. For individual cocktails, pour 2 ounces cold vodka into a glass and top with Bloody Mary mix, stir, and finish with garnishes. For a pitcher, add 2 cups of vodka to the pitcher with the mix and stir. Pour into ice-filled glasses and garnish as desired. 

Here are a few of the many versions of Bloody Marys to try.

• Red Snapper. While originally the red snapper was just another name for the classic Bloody Mary, today it refers to the same cocktail base with gin instead of vodka.
• Caesar cocktail. Instead of tomato juice, this Canadian cocktail starts with a base of Clamato (or a combination of tomato juice and clam juice). 
• Bloody Maria. Either tequila or smoky mezcal stand in for vodka in this twist on the original. 
• Michelada. It can be as simple as swapping vodka for beer, but some recipes skip the tomato juice entirely, opting instead for a well-spiced and seasoned Mexican lager.

You can add your own twist to the cocktail. Here are some ideas to get you started.

• Stir in pickle juice for an extra sour, briny boost of flavor.
• Rub the edge of the glass with lemon, then coat the rim in Tajín or another chili seasoning.
• Garnish with pickle spears and other pickled vegetables, or go more daring with crispy bacon strips, poached shrimp, and meat snack sticks.
• Swap tomato juice for V8 vegetable juice for a bolder vegetal flavor.