BUILD YOUR BLOODY MARY BAR

BUILD YOUR BLOODY MARY BAR

Shopping list + setup guide

Build Your Bloody Mary Bar

something worth serving.
38–50
Bloody Marys
38 spicy · 50 mild

Game day, brunch or any old Sunday: set up a self-serve Bloody Mary bar and let everyone build their own. One bottle of Bloody Mary Elixir does the heavy lifting; your favorite Pacific Pickle Works jars do the rest.

Download the printable guide (PDF)

Shopping List

The Bloody Mary

  • 1 × 16 oz Pacific Pickle Works Bloody Mary Elixir
  • 3 or 4 × 46 oz cans First Street Tomato Juice, not from concentrate — 3 cans for spicy (about 38 drinks), 4 cans for mild (about 50 drinks)
  • 1 × 1.75 L Cutler’s Vodka — enough for 38 drinks at 1½ oz each. For the mild batch, add a 750 ml bottle. Keep chilled.
  • 25–35 lbs ice — some to keep everything cold, plenty more for glasses

The Rim

  • ¾ cup celery salt
  • ¾ cup coarse kosher salt — mix 50/50 with the celery salt
  • 10–12 fresh limes, cut into wedges (for rimming and the garnish bar)

Equipment

  • Large pitcher or 2-gallon beverage dispenser
  • Jigger or measuring cup
  • Shallow dish for the salt rim
  • Cutting board + knife
  • Large ice tub or cooler for chilling bottles
  • Separate ice bin + scoop for serving ice
  • 38–50 glasses (12 oz)
  • Cocktail skewers (50+), small bowls or trays, tongs, napkins

The Garnish Bar

Plan on 2 jars of each for the spicy batch; add a third of your favorite for the mild batch.


¡Ay Cukarambas! 2 jars
Semi-spicy garlic dill pickle spears. The classic spear for the glass.

Jalabeaños 2 jars
Spicy jalapeño green beans. Heat, crunch and color.

Stokra 2 jars
Hot jalapeño okra. The classic Bloody Mary garnish.

Fresh extras
Celery (2–3 bunches), lime wedges, 2–3 lemons (optional)

Level It Up optional


Pandemonium Pickles
Spicy habanero halves for the heat-seekers.

Asparagusto!
Pickled asparagus spears — tall and dramatic.

Carriots of Fire
Pickled carrot sticks for sweet heat and color.

Pickled in Pink
Pickled red onion for the skewer.

Pickle Brine
Add ½ oz for a “dirty” Bloody, or pour pickleback shots.

Michelada Shrub
Set out a Mexican lager for a michelada beer-back.
Setup

Five steps to a self-serve bar

1

Mix the Base

In a large pitcher or 2-gallon dispenser, combine the Elixir and tomato juice. Pick your heat:

Spicy · 3 cans
16 oz Elixir + 138 oz tomato juice
= 154 oz · about 38 drinks
Mild · 4 cans
16 oz Elixir + 184 oz tomato juice
= 200 oz · about 50 drinks

Stir thoroughly and keep the base cold on ice. The mild batch is about 1½ gallons, so use a 2-gallon dispenser or split it between two pitchers.

Don’t add the vodka to the pitcher. Keeping it separate lets everyone make theirs the way they like it — and the base doubles as a Virgin Mary for anyone skipping the vodka.

For each drink: pour 1½ oz Cutler’s Vodka and 4 oz Bloody Mary base over a glass full of ice, then stir.

2

Build the Rim

  • Pour the 50/50 celery salt + coarse kosher salt into a shallow dish.
  • Cut the limes into wedges.
  • Run a lime wedge around the outside edge of each glass.
  • Dip the rim into the salt mixture and set the glass aside.
Pro tip: Rim the glasses shortly before serving so the salt stays crisp instead of getting wet and running down the glass.
3

Build the Garnish Bar

“Put me in the glass, coach.
I’ve been training for this.”
Pickle Guy, the Pacific Pickle Works mascot, winking and pointing

Drain your Pacific Pickle Works garnishes and arrange them in individual bowls or trays:

¡Ay Cukarambas!
Pickle spears
Jalabeaños
For heat and color
Stokra
The classic okra garnish

Then add celery stalks, lime wedges and cocktail skewers — plus any of your Level It Up jars.

Make a few skewers ahead. Build some samples before guests arrive — ¡Ay Cukarambas! + Stokra + Jalabeaños — then let everyone build their own. Keep finished skewers on a chilled tray, or keep garnishes refrigerated until service.
4

Set Up the Bar

Arrange the station in this order so guests can work their way down the line:

1
Rim
Salt mixture + lime wedges
2
Ice
Glasses + serving ice + scoop
3
Pour
Vodka, then Bloody Mary base
4
Garnish
PPW jars, celery + citrus
5
Finish
Skewers + napkins
Rim › Ice › Vodka › Bloody Mary › Garnish
5

Keep Everything Cold

  • Set the Bloody Mary base, the vodka and any backup tomato juice on ice before and during service.
  • Keep a separate supply of clean ice for filling glasses — never use ice from the chilling tub in drinks.
  • Replenish the serving ice as the party goes on instead of letting the same ice sit out all day.

The Formula

Ingredient Spicy · ~38 drinks Mild · ~50 drinks
The Bloody Mary
Pacific Pickle Works Bloody Mary Elixir 16 oz (1 bottle) 16 oz (1 bottle)
First Street Tomato Juice (46 oz cans) 3 cans · 138 oz 4 cans · 184 oz
Cutler’s Vodka 57 oz · 1 × 1.75 L 75 oz · 1.75 L + 750 ml
Ice 25 lbs 35 lbs
The Rim
Celery salt + coarse kosher salt ¾ cup each ¾ cup each
Limes 10 12
The Garnish Bar
¡Ay Cukarambas! · Jalabeaños · Stokra 2 jars each 2–3 jars each
Celery 2 bunches 3 bunches
Cocktail skewers 40+ 55+
Per Bloody Mary1½ oz Cutler’s Vodka + 4 oz Bloody Mary base + ice + garnish

Shortcut: the Mighty Bold Bloody Mary Deluxe Kit

Two bottles of Bloody Mary Elixir plus Jalabeaños, Asparagusto!, Carriots of Fire and Stokra — the base and the garnish bar in one box. Just bring the tomato juice.
Shop the kit

Must be 21+ to enjoy the vodka. Please drink responsibly and never drink and drive.

 

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