Things Canadian #2 -- Bloody Caesars -- Canada's Most Popular Cocktail
The Bloody Caesar cocktail is consumed about 350 million times a year in Canada. With a population of about 35million people, that’s a lot of drinks. Other than border towns along the Canada - US border and in areas of Europe where there are concentrations of Canadians, the drink is largely unknown.
Asking for it in the States will often find you receiving a Bloody Mary instead. Similar, but not the same.
So, What is a Bloody Caesar?
The ingredient which makes the drink so unique is clam juice. The original creator of the drink would mash clams to get the juice for use in the drink. About the same time the Caesar (as it was originally called) was gaining popularity in Canada, the Mott’s company in the US was developing their Clamato juice.
The first year, Clamato barely sold 500 cases. After its introduction into Canada, sales took off with people using it to create their own Caesars.
Source
Who Came Up With the Bloody Caesar?
Walter Chell is credited with creating the drink in 1969. Chell was a restaurateur tasked with creating a signature drink for the opening of a new Italian restaurant at Calgary, Alberta’s Calgary Inn which is now called the Westin Hotel.
Chell was of Italian descent and one of his favourite dishes was Spaghetti alle vongole (spaghetti with tomato sauce and clams). The drink quickly gained popularity and started to spread across the country. Some 45+ years later, the drink is still popular.
What’s in the Caesar?
The original recipe for the Caesar follows the ‘one, two, three, four’ rule of mixology. It goes like this:
1-1.5 oz vodka
2 dashes hot sauce
3 dashes salt & pepper
4 dashes Worcestershire sauce
Topped off with 4-6oz of Caesar mix (tomato & clam juice)
Mix, add ice and serve in a glass rimmed with celery salt. Add a crisp celery stalk, garnish with lime. It’s a drink that can be mixed in bulk and stored.
These days you can purchase Caesar coolers with it already mixed:
Over the years many variations have been developed. Playing with the drink is popular enough that the Motts Company holds an annual “Best Caesar in Town” competition at the Prince Edward Island Shellfish Festival.
There is Even A Caesar Recipe Book
Get the Book
This recipe book contains fifty unique Caesar recipes and twenty food dishes to pair them with.
Next time you fancy something different to drink. Try this Canadian classic.
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I love drink recipes. Thanks for posting
While many are arguing back and forth over whether pineapple belongs on pizza, I'm over here asking, "Why the heck are people mixing CLAM JUICE into perfectly good alcohol?"
because it makes a perfectly good and very popular drink.
is it most popular? wow they do taste good!
i have sure seen some CRAZY ones over the years! lol like this one
they keep putting crazier and crazier things in them lol one even had a PIZZA! hahaha
yes they do taste good ... I've only had the odd one as the tomato is a bit too acidic for me and I'm more of a beer drinker thank liquor.
That picture looks like someone had a bit of drink with their meal.. or something LOL
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