George's Bloody Mary Mix. Mouth Watering.
I can be wary of pre-made bottled bloody mary mixes. We all know the downfalls, and I’ve outlined them here many times. But lately, I’ve seen a multitude of revamped, locally sourced, small batch, geographic specific and damn delicious recipes hit the market. Vintage Vine literally blew my mind, offering up the first five celery stalk bloody mary to hit our books. And Demitri’s delivered a wide variety of seasonings and rim salts fit for any discerning bloody mary palate. So when I received a bottle each of George’s bloody mary mix and George’s mild bloody mary mix, I wondered if they would meet this new standard. They did.
To begin, I couldn’t help but crack open the “regular” George’s mix. I like my bloodys spicy, and the fact that they had to make a separate “mild” version told me this was going to be good. And holy, spicy horseradish, it was good. Not having experienced a bottled, horseradish-heavy mix yet, I was very pleased to see the bits and pieces of this spicy addition floating amid the slightly citrusy tomato juice backdrop.
For a side by side comparison, I next opened the mild bottle. But a curious thing happened. As I poured this deliciously, fragrant red mixture into my glass, my mouth began to uncontrollably water. And with each whiff, my salivary glands exploded with anticipation. (As an aside, and for purely experimental purposes, I just smelled this mix again, and damn, same thing happened!) Like its spicier counterpart, the mild mix also contained little bits of horseradish, though not as dominant and not nearly as spicy. An initial celery salt taste quickly dissipated into a slightly peppery finish. But unlike the “regular” version where horseradish is clearly the star, the mild version’s tomato juice carries the entire cocktail, offering up a lemony, slightly sweet base that perfectly balances the savory pepper and horseradish heat.
Surprisingly, my personal preference, though only by a hair, was for the mild version, with its more nuanced intricacies, over the “regular” version, with its distinctly brighter, bolder and spicier horseradish focus. Both George’s Bloody Mary Mix and George’s Mild Bloody Mary Mix receive 4.5 Celery Stalks.
I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”