week 2 recipe: the bitter end bloody mary

Let's take a break from the daily grind and get down to the real reason we're here. The sauce.

PerryA and I need to develop a drink menu. First up and most important? The Bloody Mary. I may not know everything about the bar business. What I do know is this: regulars are born of a consistently good bloody mary.

Feels so wrong to admit that soon after we knew the bar was set to be in our future I began obsessing about crafting a signature blend. While The Bartender calculated his mind dizzy with figures and facade changes, I mindfully sifted through ingredients--the must-haves and the have-nots--wondering how we could make ours stand out. I'm sure there was a twinge of selfishness in this mind-play. I rarely suffer through a Sunday hangover without this remedy.

After weeks of wonderment and verbal strategy sessions with PerryA, we dive into an impromptu crafting session after The Bartender and I return from a date night spent rushing from restaurant to movie theater in hopes of relieving our minds of the bar, if only for a few hours. The distraction fails. We talk about the bar throughout dinner and zoom back immediately after the movie lets out, with a new register and a feeling relief at being back in the room.

PerryA gets to mixing our calculated measures. I jot down the recipe. Photograph the three rounds it takes to reach the right texture and spiced heat.

The recipe is crafted just in time. Soon after we concoct the mix, whispers about a tradition the previous owners put in play begin filling in the pauses of our conversations.

A "bloody mary bar" in the early morn of Thanksgiving. There are tales of lobster and shrimp garnishes.

An 8:00 AM opening. As a bloody mary fiend, this tradition I can get behind.

the bitter end bloody mary
We aim for a bloody mary that kicks your hangover to the curb while reviving your senses with slight heat, lots of flavor and a smooth body. A mini dill pickle is an irresistible garnish. Fancify with shrimp even! This recipe is for a single serving in a frosty pint glass. Multiply as needed or just whip up a pitcher portion and enjoy your day off. Cheers!

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 heaping teaspoon horseradish
1/4 teaspoon sriracha sauce
1/8 teaspoon wasabi powder
2 teaspoons worchestire sauce
1/2 teaspoon celery salt
Juice from a quarter of a lime, reserve the wedge
1-1.5 cups V8 tomato juice
1.5 shots vodka
2 mini dill pickles, 1 in the mix, 1 for garnish
3 olives
a glass rimmer of a few pinches of ground pepper and a pinch of salt

Fill a shaker with ice. Shower the ice with pepper, horseradish, sriracha sauce, wasabi, worchestire sauce and celery salt. Pour the lime juice, tomato juice and vodka over the mixture. Toss in a pickle. Seal the shaker with its cover and shake vigorously for a minute, until your hands feel the achy chill of the ice. Rub the lime wedge around the rim of a pint glass. Run the rim through the pepper and salt blend to coat. Pour the bloody mary into the glass and garnish with the other pickle and a few olives.