Bloody Mary cocktails go extreme
Modern cocktail garnishes include togarashi and garnished with bacon, dilly beans and more
There’s no question that the bloody mary is the currentqueenof BayArea cocktails, whether we’re talking brunch sip, tailgate drink or New Year’s Day tradition. But what’s new in the world of merry mary mixology — whether at home or inyour favoritebar — is how we’re dressing this classic tomato-based beauty. You might want to set aside that wimpy celery rib.
“The rimis the first thing you taste,” says East Coast cocktail and food writer Ellen Brown. “It sets the scene.”
These “accessories”— the modern spice rims and garnishes that adorn the glass — are not only personal and customizable, Brown says, but they can be themed to match the flavor profile you’re building in the cocktail
Classic? Nothing rims a glass better than salt or Old Bay. GoingMichelada style? Try Tajin, the zingy Mexican seasoning made with dehydrated lime juice and ground chiles. Truth is, you can find excellent rims in the supermarket spice aisle or make one with ingredients you already have.
In her latest volume, “The Bloody Mary Book: Reinventing a Classic Cocktail” (Running Press, $18), Brown shares her favorite homemade rim mixture, a riff on Old Bay made with smoked paprika, granulated garlic, black pepper, celery seeds and dried thyme. She also loves using Cajun seasoning and common grilling seasonings, like McCormick’s Grill Mates Roasted Garlic and Herb.
New-wave garnishes require only a little more work. Brown devotes an entire chapter to towering toppers, which are spearing some pretty meaty accompaniments these days. Her Gazpacho Mary, for example, keeps the Spanish theme going with skewers that alternate pitted Spanish olives and chorizo, while her crisp, pickled dilly beans go with just about any bloody mary.
For those seeking a carnivore fix, Brown points to beef jerky and promises that making your own is not difficult. Her do-it-yourself jerky recipe starts with top round, bottom round or flank steak marinated in 12 ingredients, including apple juice, balsamic vinegar and liquid smoke. It’s dried inawarmoven for about six hours to finish.
And then, of course, there’s always crisp bacon.
Anthony Castillo’s Bloody Hail Mary is an ode to the rasher. Castillo, the barmanager at Emeryville’s Honor Kitchen & Cocktails, uses a bacon-washed vodka in his bloody hail mary, then rims the glass with house-made bacon salt. The cocktail garnish includes a slice of bacon, in addition to the classic trio: a cornichon, pickled pearl onion and olive.
For a classic rim, like the one on Honor Kitchen & Cocktail’s House Bloody Mary, made with a vodka infused with three different peppers, Castillo suggests using celery seed and adding salt to taste. “It turns out less salty than celery salt and gives you the dryness you want before your first sip,” he says.
Michelle DeSpain’s Asian Bloody Mary is such a bold reinvention of the classic cocktail that it won the bloody mary contest at the Heirloom Tomato Harvest Celebration hosted in September by the Los Gatosbased World Tomato Society. DeSpain, the bar manager at Willow Street Pizza, currently offers the cocktail as a weekend special.
She garnishes the tamari-wasabi-Sriracha-spiked cocktail with a simple skewer of pickled and fresh cucumber slices with a sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds on top. Her rim? Togarashi, the Japanese seasoning made with red chili pepper, orange peel, sesame seeds, ginger and seaweed.
“The rim and garnish just really bring the Asian flavors and spices together,” DeSpain says.
Gazpacho Mary
Serves 6 INGREDIENTS
2 cups tomato juice ½ cup strained tomatoes (passata di pomodoro)
¼ medium red onion, diced
½ cucumber, peeled and diced
½ red bell pepper, seeds and ribs removed, diced 2 large garlic cloves 1 jalapeño or serrano chile, seeds and ribs removed, diced ¼ cup balsamic vinegar ¼ cup freshly squeezed lime juice
1 to 2 tablespoons harissa, or more to taste
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
Salt and freshly ground black pepper 9 to 12 ounces vodka Rim: 1½ tablespoons kosher salt mixed with 1½ tablespoons smoked Spanish paprika
Garnishes: Boiled shrimp, red bell pepper strips and skewers of pitted Spanish olives alternatedwith cubes of Spanish ham or chorizo DIRECTIONS
Combine the tomato juice, strained tomatoes, onion, cucumber, bell pepper, garlic, chile pepper, vinegar, lime juice, and harissa in a food processor or blender. Puree until smooth.
Strain half the mixture through a fine sieve, pressingwith the back of a spoon to extract as much liquid as possible. Stir the mixture into the unstrained half, stir in the cilantro and seasonwith salt and black pepper to taste. Chill the tomato mixture well. (The mix can bemade up to 2 days in advance and refrigerated.)
Rim six 14-ounce glasses with a combination of kosher salt and smoked Spanish paprika, if desired. For individual servings, pour 6 ounces (¾ cup) of the mix into a pint glass, add 1½ to 2 ounces vodka, and fill the glass completely with ice. Roll the drink — pour it between 2 pint glasses — to mix and chill each drink. (Or pour the vodka and tomato mixture into a pitcher filled with ice, stirring with a long-handled spoon, so guests can serve themselves.)
Strain the drink into a rimmed glass using a funnel to avoid wetting the rim. Add ice cubes and garnish each drink with a boiled shrimp draped over the edge of the glass, a skewer of olives and ham, and strips of bell pepper.