How Bloody Can You Get?
TASTE-TESTING EUGENE’S BLOODY MARYS
by Vanessa Salvia
T
he Bloody Mary, that quintessential tomato and vodka
drink, is no longer considered just a hangover correc-
tive. When well garnished with vegetables and per-
haps a shrimp (and even a hamburger, as I found at
one Junction City spot), it’s a darn good approxima-
tion of a soup and salad — virtuous enough to provide some vita-
mins while smoothing out any roughness of the day.
A classic Bloody Mary comes with a celery stalk, a pickled green
bean and, perhaps, a dill pickle spear and an olive or two. Given
today’s farm-to-table sensibility and cocktail experimentation,
you’ll have to look far and wide to fi nd this side-salad combo. After
trekking to nine local establishments on my quest, I found only one,
at The Cannery, that provided the pickled green bean.
The Cannery’s bartender asked me how spicy I wanted my drink,
and I went with “spicy-spicy,” which was a mistake. The Cannery
infuses Sobieski vodka with jalapeño and habanero. Overall, it was
tasty, but I couldn’t make peace with the level of heat. The sweet,
pickled-pepper garnish and the ice water chaser provided the only
relief.
The Barn Light crafted a Bloody Mary using a fl otilla of
ingredients. Sea salt, cayenne, Old Bay seasoning, lime juice,
Sriracha, Worcestershire, Tabasco and horseradish went into the
jalapeño-infused Monopolowa vodka and top-secret tomato juice
blend, along with a fl oat of espresso stout. For garnish, they went
the nontraditional route with a slice of maple bourbon-glazed bacon.
The bacon was certainly delicious, but in the future I’ll save the
meat for my bourbon cocktails. I really missed the pickled tidbits.
Lucky Noodle wins for the freshest, crispest celery. I was offered
a choice of the regular or the spicier Hail Mary; in the interest of
science, I ordered one of each. Made with jalapeño basil vodka, the
Hail Mary was noticeably spicier and slightly more herbal. Simply
garnished with lime, celery and olives, it was tasty but perhaps a bit
spendy at $8 for the regular and $9 for the Hail Mary.
Jackalope’s drink was tasty but nothing special, though it did
come with a nice cherry pepper. At High Street Café, a generous
pour of Fleischmann’s vodka sank to the bottom of the house-made
tomato mixture and melted ice, though the pickled garlic garnish
was a nice addition. To be fair, the bartender told me she is not
normally a drink maker.
The Pour House surprised me with a pickled carrot garnish,
though its drink had too much horseradish and too much olive juice,
lending it an inescapable bitter edge.
For a Bloody Mary along with a delicious breakfast, it’s hard
to beat Brails, whether you’re hungover or not. There were two
other stand-outs: Horsehead and The Rodeo Steakhouse in Junction
City. Horsehead bartender Kelly Wilson expertly combined A.1.,
Worcestershire, celery salt, cayenne, Sriracha, olive juice, vodka
and tomato juice. Before serving me and my companion, he taste-
tested each one and garnished them with umbrellas. They were
delicious.
The Rodeo Steakhouse was the winner for the most creative
garnish. Its tasty drink comes in a quart-size Mason jar along with
olives, lemon, lime, celery, slices of smoky cheese, slices of pepper
jack cheese, a grilled shrimp and a hamburger slider. Totally worth
the drive to get this delicious “soup and sandwich” combo for only
$9.99.
As I embarked upon this quest and chronicled my taste-testings
on Facebook, I was given many suggestions of “must-try” drinks I
just couldn’t get to. A last-minute Facebook throwdown from The
Davis will likely kick off part two of the Bloody Mary Diaries. ■
RODEO STEAKHOUSE WINS
PHOTO BY TRASK BEDORTHA
www.eugeneweekly.com
SWIZZLE 2014
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