Virgin Mary Recipe: The Alcohol-Free Bloody Mary

Ingredients

5 oz tomato juice good quality, chilled
½ oz lemon juice
3 dash Worcestershire sauce
2 dash sauce such as Tabasco
pinch of celery salt
pinch of black pepper freshly ground
1 tsp prepared horseradish (optional)

Garnish: Celery stick, lemon wheel · Ice: Ice cubes

Method

Fill a highball glass with ice cubes.
Add tomato juice, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, celery salt, pepper and horseradish if using.
Stir well with a bar spoon, or roll the drink gently between two shaker tins so it mixes without foaming.
Taste and adjust salt, pepper and heat.
Garnish with a celery stick and a lemon wheel.

Watch it made

Virgin Mary

Taste

Savoury and full bodied: ripe tomato, sharp lemon, umami from the Worcestershire sauce and a peppery, spicy finish. Salty and thirst quenching rather than sweet.

History and origin

The Virgin Mary is the Bloody Mary without vodka. The Bloody Mary's origin is disputed: one popular account credits the bartender Fernand Petiot, who is said to have mixed vodka and tomato juice at Harry's New York Bar in Paris in the 1920s and later refined the spicy version in New York. Other stories exist, and the name itself has several competing explanations.

The alcohol-free version is as old as the habit of serving the drink at brunch. It is also known as a "Bloody Shame" in some English-speaking countries. Because all the seasoning stays, the Virgin Mary keeps nearly the full flavour of the original, which makes it one of the most satisfying non-alcoholic drinks at the bar.

Bartender tips

Rolling (pouring the drink back and forth between two tins) mixes the seasoning without making the tomato juice frothy the way shaking does.
Traditional Worcestershire sauce contains anchovies; for a vegetarian drink, use a vegetarian Worcestershire style sauce.
Chill the tomato juice in advance so the ice does not water down the flavour.

Variations

Virgin Caesar: Use clamato (tomato and clam juice) instead of tomato juice and rim the glass with celery salt.
Green Mary: Use green tomato or cucumber juice with a little green hot sauce for a fresher version.