Bloody Caesar

No, the Bloody Caesar is not related to the Caesar salad. And if you initially thought it was, then you probably aren’t from Canada. The Bloody Caesar, also known as just the Caesar, is Canada’s answer to the Blood Mary. The cocktail is so popular in Canada that the drink was officially named Canada’s National Cocktail by Canada’s parliament in 2009, according to the Toronto Sun. The building blocks for both of these popular brunch cocktails are similar: a vodka base, tomato juice, Worcestershire, a blend of spices, and a kick of heat. But the Bloody Caesar goes a step further with added clam juice, for a whiff of brininess that marries with the tomato juice and other ingredients for a balanced and bright tasting cocktail that’s perfect for brunch.

The Bloody Caesar dates back to 1969, and was invented by Walter Chell at the Calgary Inn in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. According to the Canadian Encyclopedia, Chell was asked to create a drink in celebration of the inn's new Italian restaurant. He drew inspiration from spaghetti alle vongole, a pasta dish made with clams. Chell mashed clams to produce “clam nectar” and mixed it with tomato juice and spices. The final formulation included vodka, tomato juice, clam juice, Worcestershire sauce, and a blend of savory spices. The cocktail is now typically made with Clamato—a commercially made blend of tomato juice, clams, and savory spices—instead of a blend of fresh clam juice and tomato juice. It’s a wonderfully savory eye-opener that’s the perfect balance of sweet, spicy, tart, and umami all in one sip. Here’s how to make one so good, you’ll see why Canadians love it.

Tips for Making a Brunch-Worthy Bloody Caesar at Home

Skip the Clamato. OK, some die-hard Bloody Caesar fans might gasp at my recommendation to skip the standard mixer in a Bloody Caesar. For a large scale busy bar that’s serving hundreds of these cocktails a day, using this commercially made tomato and clam juice blend makes sense: It’s shelf stable and already blended, minimizing the amount of prep needed to make a high volume of drinks to order. But for making a small batch at home, I urge you to use a combination of canned tomato juice and a high-quality bottled clam juice, which will add a more assertive briny flavor than premixed Clamato (I like to use Bar Harbor). I promise you the mixed drink will not taste overtly clammy. The broth adds a savory and refreshing backbone to the drink. Of course, if you simply can’t part with your Clamato, you don’t have to. Just swap in 3 3/4 cups Clamato for the tomato and clam juice, and omit the granulated sugar and optional MSG.

Up the umami. What makes a Bloody Caesar so great is its complexity. It has an intense level of umami in each sip. To create a seriously savory Bloody Caesar at home, add Worcestershire sauce (which is an ingredient in most recipes for the drink), but go a step further and add a couple of less expected ingredients to the mix for the most piquant cocktail possible. The first is fish sauce. You won’t be able to distinguish the fish sauce flavor in the final drink—it just enhances the briny, savory appeal. 

Secondly, I recommend adding MSG to the mix. I got the idea of adding MSG from the ingredient label on bottled Clamato mix itself. It's what gives Clamato its signature savory flavor, so it made sense to add a small amount to my home recipe. The MSG is optional, but having tasted batch after batch of this brunch cocktail, I found that the flavor in the versions with just a pinch of MSG always tasted better seasoned, with a welcome meaty undertone that made me want sip after sip. A sprinkle of dried oregano and garlic powder round out the drink with an earthy flavor, and while optional, I like to add a few dashes of Tabasco and freshly cracked black pepper to my drink when serving for a touch of heat.

Go all out with the garnishes. Perhaps the best part of a Bloody Caesar (and a Bloody Mary!) is the bounty of garnishes. The drink is big and bold, and the garnish should be, too. Consider a Bloody Caesar a form of individual expression and follow your creative urge wherever it takes you. I like to garnish mine with spicy pickled green beans (try it, trust me), green stuffed olives, a wedge of lemon or lime, and a cocktail shrimp hanging over the edge of the rim. But any salty little bites speared onto toothpicks or floating in the drink are sure to enhance the drink. There’s no wrong way to garnish a Bloody Caesar, and the result is a drink so satisfying, you might never make a Bloody Mary again.