One of my favourite cocktails happens to be Canada’s most popular one; but it also happens to be a drink order that will garner strange looks and many questions if ordered just about anywhere else in the world. It’s a beverage truly unique to the Great White North, which is a shame, because it’s delicious. It’s the Bloody Caesar.
A standard Caesar at a Canadian cafe, along with Canada’s other favourite drink: beer.
Or, more familiarily known as simply a Caesar. That’s right – if you’re travelling in Canada and have a craving for a Caesar salad, don’t just ask your waiter for a “Caesar” because you will get a drink instead. Though it might not be such a bad thing, because with its hearty portion of Clamato juice and vegetable garnishes, a Bloody Caesar is almost a meal in itself.
You might have heard of Caesar’s American cousin, the Bloody Mary. So what is the difference between Caesar and Mary (besides one being a Roman Emperor and the other an English queen?). The main different is the use of Clamato juice in a Caesar – a mix of clam broth and tomato juice – versus just straight tomato juice in the Mary. But there are also some more subtle differences between the two cocktails.
[images from here, here, here, and here]
Personally, I’m a bigger fan of the Caesar. Maybe it’s my Canadian biased, but I like the vinegary hit from the clam broth and find it gives the cocktail more dimension than the Mary, despite Bloody Mary’s longer ingredients list. And the celery salt rim adds a special touch.
A mediocre, garnish-less Caesar on Canada Day in Trafalgar Square.
As I said, Caesars are hard to find outside Canada’s borders, and to be honest, whenever I do have one away from home, it is never quite so good. So if you are interested in trying our national cocktail, either make it at home, or wait until you visit our country.
And when you do visit (and you should!) keep in mind that Caesars are best drunk at brunch the morning after, during lazy cottage weekends, mid-afternoon on the patio – and always extra spicy.
But to give a completely non-biased view and show both sides of the story, I should mention that WB doesn’t like Caesars at all. But he also doesn’t like onions or red peppers – so we can’t really trust him, can we?
What is your favourite cocktail? Does your country have a national cocktail?
