Ah, the classic Bloody Mary: the go-to Sunday brunch favourite (sunglasses, optional). Who can we thank for this quirky concoction of vodka and tomato juice? All credit goes to Fernand Petiot, an American bartender at Harry’s New York Bar in Paris.
In the 1920s, young Fernand mixed equal parts tomato juice and vodka to create the first version of a Bloody Mary. Returning to New York in 1934, he brought the recipe with him and spiced it up with black pepper, cayenne pepper, Worcestershire sauce, lemon and a solid dose of hot pepper sauce, creating the blueprint for an American classic.
The Bloody Mary has to be one of the most recognisable cocktails in the world, with its huge stick of celery often pointing out of the dark red mixture. There are plenty of theories regarding the name of this cocktail, with some pointing to historical figures like Mary Queen of Scots, while others believe it was created to honour Mary Pickford, who was considered early Hollywood royalty.
Another theory, and one confirmed by a manager of Harry’s New York Bar, is that one of the people who the drink was originally made for decided it looked, for some reason, like his girlfriend, who he met at a cabaret. Her name was Mary and the cabaret was called ‘Bucket of Blood’ – the Bloody Mary was born.
