We at the Booze Quest Labs have been taking the past couple months researching the best Bloody Mary in Los Angeles. It's been quite painstaking and extensive, but I think I've found the perfect mixture of tomato juice, spices, garnishes, and any other item that can make an outstanding cocktail. Here are my findings:
Jerry's Deli, Studio City, CA:
Glass: daiquiri glass
Consistency: watery
Strength: weak. Probably less than 1 shot of vodka
Garnish: lemon wedge
Analysis: Seeing the paleness of the cocktail got my hopes up that it would be a stronger drink, but it was just water that made the Bloody Mary at Jerry's so washed-out. I barely tasted any kick or spices, so it tasted essentially like a watery tomato juice. Even after adding Tabasco sauce, it still was not tasty enough.
Final score: 3/10
Wood Ranch Restaurant, The Grove, CA:
Glass: pint glass, salt-rimmed
Consistency:thick, with a viscosity level of approximately 3 outta 5.
Strength: strong. Probably about 1 1/2 shots of vodka
Garnish: lemon and celery stalk
Analysis: Nothing surprising here. This is your standard, run-of-the-mill Bloody Mary that you learn in bartending school. Nothing inventive or new, but the taste was good enough to kick it over an average rating.
Final score: 6/10
The Lobster, Santa Monica Pier, CA:
Glass: highball glass
Consistency: thick, with a viscosity level of approximately 4 outta 5
Strength: strong. Probably about 2 shots of vodka
Garnish: celery stalk, lemon wedge, jumbo-sized shrimp
Analysis: The spices were well-toned and the vodka was evenly distributed. The garnish of a jumbo-sized shrimp made this taste like a shrimp cocktail with vodka. Which, in my book, is absolutely delicious.
Final score: 9.5/10
Cheesecake Factory, Brentwood, CA:
Glass: pint glass, salt-rimmed
Consistency: thick, with a viscosity level of approximately 4 outta 5
Strength: strong. Probably about 2 1/2 shots of vodka (only after I flirted with the bartender for 15 minutes.)
Garnish: 2 huge pimento-stuffed olives, celery stalk
Analysis: So close... However, there wasn't any good kick in the mixture. I spotted that another of their cocktails on the menu came with bleu cheese-stuffed olives, so I thought I'd try an additional Bloody Mary with this garnish. This proved to be a drastic improvement.
Final score: 9/10
Sweepea's Lounge, Los Angeles, CA:
Glass: chilled pint glass
Consistency: thick, with a viscosity level of approximately 4 outta 5
Strength: strong. I filled it to about 2 1/2 inches, with ice.
Garnish: 3 bleu cheese-stuffed olives, celery stalk
Analysis: Using Mr. and Mrs. T's Bloody Mary mix (that you can get on any grocery store in the liquor aisle), the additional tang of the bleu cheese in the olives adds a superb taste to the mixture that can simply be stated in one word: perfection.
Final score: 10/10
Final Results: My version of the Bloody Mary was compiled by taking the above analysis and experimenting with various mixtures in numerous stages until I reached the highest exactness. Most noteworthy about the Mr. and Mrs. T's mix is that it also comes in a bold variety. Therefore I have proven that the "Little Red Hen" philosophy is correct: If you want something done right, you gotta do it yourself.
What's your favorite Bloody Mary recipe?
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