One Of The Worst Mixers For Bourbon Is A Popular Cocktail Staple

For something that's mostly intended for fun, there are still a lot of rules around alcohol imbibing. Bourbon is particularly vulnerable to scolds. First, you have to know what rules to follow when buying bourbon to begin with. Picking the proper glassware for this finicky American spirit can be a whole side quest in itself. There's also the oft-debated matter of whether or not you should let your bourbon breathe. Navigating these practices takes time, and ruling out certain ingredients can make it easier to parse more appropriate pairings. Store-bought bloody Mary mix and bourbon, for example, is generally not a great combination.

Bourbon is already sweet enough on its own, and a lot of commercial bloody Mary mixes add sugar in large quantities. Salt often follows closely behind on the long ingredient list, and before you know it, your studiously selected bourbon is awash in generic, plastic-bottled flavors. While bourbon's bouquet of elements, such as caramel and vanilla, can mingle wonderfully with these savory notes in more measured quantities, they tend to butt heads in the mass-market measures that you'll find in many mixes. However, bourbon (as evidenced by countless brunch menus) can complement a scratch-made bloody Mary.

While those sweet, saline bloody Mary mixes just don't mesh, bourbon does much better with a fresh bloody Mary blend. You might already have the basic bloody Mary ingredients in your pantry. In addition to some decent bourbon, all you'll need is a big splash of tomato juice, Worcestershire sauce, horseradish, hot sauce, lemon, salt, and pepper — just stir the mix with ice and strain it into a glass. A leafy celery stick and some speared olives are a nice touch, and you can get even wilder with the garnishes from there.

Standard vodka-based bloody Mary cocktails are always impressive with seafood adornments like shrimp or even lobster claws when aiming to land over the top. Bourbon often has a deeper, richer flavor profile than a neutral vodka, which may lead it to overpower certain seafood elements. Instead, try creating a savory bourbon bloody Mary with thick-cut strips of bacon or cubes of pungent blue cheese — these ingredients have strong flavors that don't argue with the spirit. Add a little beef broth into the bloody Mary base, and you've practically created brunch in liquid form. However, if you're not a fan of umami cocktails, a bourbon bloody Mary might not be an ideal mix.