Ease that New Year’s Eve hangover with the best

COCKTAILS

Bay Area bloody marys The popular ‘cure’ first came to America in 1934, but the recipe continues to evolve

The St. Regis’ famous Bloody Mary is now served at hotels around the world, from the OG St. Regis New York, pictured, to the St. Regis in Osaka, Japan, where it’s made with wasabi, yuzu and sauce. Tis the season for the “hangover-curing” beverage, it’s been said. COURTESY OF ST. REGIS NEW YORK

Fernand Petiot designed the first Bloody Mary for Vincent Astor, after the New York millionaire had overindulged at a party the night before. COURTESY OF THE ST. REGIS NEW YORK

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By John Metcalfe, Jason Mastrodonato and Kate Bradshaw

Staff writers

The quintessential brunch cocktail started with a rich guy’s hangover.

If John Jacob Astor IV hadn’t died on the Titanic in 1912 and left his $87 million fortune to his son, Vincent, and if Vincent hadn’t had a few too many one night in Paris and stumbled into Harry’s New York bar the next morning, the Bloody Mary might not exist.

The year was 1934, and Vincent was paying the price for a late night out.

French bartender Fernand Petiot knew of a cocktail that could help. It was a simple drink featuring tomato juice and vodka, spiced up with salt, pepper, lemon juice and Worcestershire sauce.

“He loved it,” says Bill Dante, a longtime bartender at the St. Regis New York’s King Cole Bar, once owned by Astor. “So Fernand Petiot started making it for people at Harry’s in Paris. They loved it, and it became very popular.”

When Astor returned to New York and reopened the St. Regis’ King Cole Bar at the end of Prohibition, he offered Petiot a ticket to New York and a job as his new bartender, where he could serve Bloody Marys to Astor and all his friends.

It was a hit, particularly at brunch. There was only one problem: the high-society people of New York often included British folks who were not fond of the word “bloody,” a slur in the old country.

So they renamed the cocktail and called it a “Red Snapper.”

Today, the St. Regis in New York is enjoying a grand reopening after renovations. And while it no longer serves brunch, the Red Snapper remains a popular menu item.

“Vincent was a very big drinker,” says Dante, the bartender. “He died of cirrhosis of the liver. But the Bloody Mary absolutely works. It’s the combination of the spices, tomato juice and the alcohol. It has nutritional balance, it’s good for your stomach, and the alcohol, once it enters your bloodstream again, neutralizes the hangover.

“The key is to stop there and not continue drinking. The best thing to do is to have one stiff Bloody Mary and then get on with your day.”

Petiot worked at the bar until 1963. Pictures of him are hanging in the downstairs area of the St. Regis.

The original garnish was a lemon wedge, and that’s how it’s still served at the New York bar.

But the St. Regis hotel chain adapts its Bloody Mary based on the city. The St. Regis in Osaka, Japan, for example, makes its Shogun Mary with wasabi, yuzu and soy sauce, while the one in Rome uses basil, oregano and olive oil.

Dante offered this tip to anyone making a Bloody Mary at home: “Remember the basic elements.”

“The original recipe did not have horseradish and didn’t have Tabasco,” he says. “It was black and white pepper, a dash of cayenne — very little cayenne, because it’s very powerful. That’s the heat, the spice. And celery salt, which has flavor, Worcestershire sauce, which has the dark essence, that creates the flavor. And some lemon juice.

“If you’re making it for yourself, do it to taste. Add to it until it tastes right to you. Some people like more cayenne, more lemon juice, you vary it.”

Bill Dante Bartender, St. Regis New York’s King Cole Bar, home of the original Bloody Mary; st-regis.marriott.com.

St. Regis New York Bloody Mary

INGREDIENTS

11 ounces Bloody Mary mix (see below)

1 lemon wedge, for garnish

Directions

Fill a 12-ounce Blood Mary glass with ice. Add vodka. Fill glass with Blood Mary mix and garnish with lemon.

The Signature St. Regis Bloody Mary Mix

Makes 3 gallons

INGREDIENTS

Juice of 3 lemons

2½ large (#10) cans tomato juice

5 ounces Worcestershire sauce

10 dashes Tabasco sauce

2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons ground cayenne

1 tablespoon celery salt

2 tablespoons whole black peppercorns

Directions

Pour ingredients into a container and shake well. Use immediately or seal and refrigerate. Strain peppercorns from mix before adding alcohol.