The Red Snapper cocktail is sometimes humorously called the “Better Bloody Mary”. If you order this cocktail at the bar, most likely you will be served a Bloody Mary with Gin added in the place of Vodka.
The Red Snapper’s origin story is an interesting one, and is also closely connected to the Bloody Mary itself. A bartender by the name of Petiot who originally worked at Harry’s American Bar in the 1920s, moved to the United States and became the head bartender at the St. Regis Hotel in New York. Petiot not only claims to have made several spicy additions to the original Bloody Mary cocktail to make it the drink that it is today, he is also responsible for creating this particular cocktail as well.
This savoury cocktail came about when it turned out that the St. Regis hotel disapproved of serving a cocktail called “Bloody Mary” because they found the name unseemly, thus the name was changed to Red Snapper. Another problem arose when it turned out that Vodka was not available in the United States at that time. Therefore it had to be replaced with Gin, which surprisingly ended up being a welcome addition.
Just like the Bloody Mary, this spicy drink is also relatively complicated and a bit harder to make due to its extensive list of ingredients, but it is worth it for cocktail lovers and Bloody Mary fans to try at least once.
Here is a recipe for this spicy savoury cocktail.
Ingredients:
- 45ml Gin
- 90ml Tomato Juice
- 15ml Lemon Juice
- 2 Dashes of Tabasco sauce
- 2 Dashes of Worcester Sauce
- 1 Dash of Rice Wine Vinegar
- 1 Pinch of Sea Salt
- 1 Pinch Ground Black Pepper
- 2 Pinches Celery Salt
- 5ml Ruby Port
Preparation:
- Add a few ice cubes to a Highball glass
- Add all the ingredients to the glass and stir
- Float with a thin layer of port
Equipment:
- Highball glass
- Stirrer
- Ice cubes