tomato-based cocktails

constitute a category of drinks long dominated by the Bloody Mary and her sanguinary kin, such as the Bloody Caesar and the Bloody Maria, which combine some form of spirit with tomato juice, Worcestershire sauce, and other seasonings. See Bloody Caesar, Bloody Mary. In relatively recent years, however, mixologists have created a variety of tomato-based cocktails that take advantage of the fresh flavors of the fruit just off the vine.

One of the easiest methods of infusing fresh tomato flavors into a cocktail is by muddling tomatoes in a shaker before adding other ingredients. This technique is used, for example, in Julie Reiner’s tequila-based Maria Sin Sangre; its recipe starts with muddling half a dozen cherry tomatoes with basil leaves and simple syrup. Scott Baird of San Francisco (1981–) begins his bourbon- and beer-based Spaghetti Western in a similar manner. See Reiner, Julie.

Another commonly employed method to extract tomato essence for use in cocktails is to make tomato water by straining chopped or puréed tomatoes. While Alexandria, Virginia, bartender Todd Thrasher (1969–) wasn’t the first mixologist to replace packaged tomato juice with tomato water in the Bloody Mary, he may have done the most to popularize the updated version with his nearly clear Tomato Water Bloody Mary. Chicago bartender Charles Joly (1976–) has also relied on tomato water for the various iterations of his Midnight Mary, the latest of which brought the venerable brunch staple firmly into the twenty-first century with the addition of nitrogen-frozen basil foam.

See also tomato juice.

By: David Mahoney