 I've literally made thousands of Caesars over the last 40 plus years tending bar. And the other night, when I put the Tabasco sauce into the drink, it hithy ice, bounced off, and went straight into my eye. Jesus, what are the chances of that happening? I think there's better odds in playing lottery. The language coming out of my mouth was, how should I put it? Colorful. The whole bar heard me screaming. I mean, it really, really heard. I went to the eye washing station in the back, and that was a joke because I couldn't see anything. Eventually, after 20 minutes of washing my eye out with cold water, I was back at the bar, cautiously making more Caesars. It was back in 1969 while working the Owls Nest bar at the Calgary Inn in Alberta, that mixologist Walter Chell developed an original drink to celebrate the opening of a new Italian restaurant called Marcos. Inspired by his favorite Italian dish, Spaghetti Vongole, Chell set out to create a cocktail that would capture the past as hardy clam and tomato flavors. He hand-mashed the liquid from baby clams and mixed the juice with tomato, alcohol, and seasonings. Essentially, a spicy twist on the already popular Bloody Mary. Walter Chell called his creation the Caesar, possibly after the Roman Emperor, or maybe my cat. My cat's name Caesar, but mind you, that would make him really, really old, wouldn't it? Anyway, like the drinks name, say, purist would say the original recipe for the Caesar has also been betrayed. Ha, I'll be tray! Ah, die Caesar! There are varying accounts of Mr. Chell's exact original formulation, but he told a reporter shortly before his death in 1997 that his secret ingredient was a dash of oregano. And, that his Caesar contained no Tabasco. We're not sure when the garnish of celery came on the scene, and there's inconsistency around using lemon or lime wedges in the cocktails early days. I know because back in the 1970s and into the 80s, we always use lemon. Today in the bar, it's always lime. As far as the name the Bloody Caesar is concerned, the story goes that there have to be a British man at the bar who tasted Mr. Chell's Caesar and said, Walter, that's what damn Bloody Caesar! That's a damn bad accent! Ha, thereby giving the drink its full name, bartender lore. I love it. Okay, right around the time Walter Chell created his Caesar, the Duffy Mott company patented the key ingredient in a Bloody Caesar, canned, clomato juice. And that's a good thing because it's doubtful the Caesar would have caught on if every bartender was expected to hand crush their clams and to make their juice. And through some clever marketing, today Mott's clomato is almost synonymous with the drink itself. Practically every bar in Canada coast to coast uses Mott's brand of clomato juice. You know, Mott's even hired Chell to consult on its clomato mixture, and they used him to introduce the concept in ads. For the years, Mott's have come up with a few different flavors of clomato juice. There's the original blend, which is a savory flavor of the classic Caesar taste we've come to know. A spicy blend that was brought out in 1983 for those who like it hot. One made with the works in 2004. That one is spicy and gets even more heat with the addition of horse radish. A lime version, which is a light and refreshing citrus twist on the classic original. And finally one called pickled bean, which has a bold and tangy taste. But there's one clomato blend that you may not have heard of. You won't even find it on Mott's website. They're probably too embarrassed by it. I think they might have brought it out in the 1960s. I'm not sure, but for me it was back in the 1980s, the late 80s. The bar I was working in at the time, they got their hands on this version of Mott's clomato juice called beefmattle. It was like drinking beef consomme. Oh my god, it was horrid. We actually talked about it in one of my podcasts. Yeah, beefmattle. You have all these guys and dolls sitting at the bar drinking their Caesars made with beefmattle. It was a sight to behold. The drink had a very unappealing dark brown color and kind of tasted like fatty beef broth. You know, there were a few people that liked it. It didn't fly and we soon got rid of it. Now of course, like many stories, there are holes in the narrative. To understand the evolution of the Caesar, we have to step into my way back time machine again, set the dial to 1895 and we've got something rudimentary and very similar to the Caesar called a clam cocktail in George J. Kapler's book, Modern American Drinks. Here's his recipe. Put into a large cocktail glass, a half dozen little neck clams with their liquor, season with pepper and salt to taste, add two dashes of lemon juice, one dash to basco sauce, and a very little cayenne pepper. Then, in a 1909 edition of the New York evening telegram, there's a recipe for a dui clam juice cocktail, which sounds very close to the modern day Caesar. The drink was created in honor of Admiral George Duy capturing the Spanish fleet during the Spanish American War. This would place the drinks invention to 1898. Even earlier in 1886, the New York star observed that most men about town know the virtues of a cocktail of clam juice before breakfast. Possibly a hangover cure. By 1936, Frank Meyer, bartender at the Ritz bar in Paris, includes a clam juice cocktail in his book, The Artistry of Mixing Drinks. In a shaker glass with ice, he combines a small pinch of celery salt, two or three drops of Tabasco sauce, and one half glass of clam juice. Oh yeah, a teaspoon of ketchup. Where's that? Catsap. Ketchup? Catsap. Ketchup? Catsap. Anyway, it's very similar to the Caesar we know today in most respects. But have you noticed, you know, there still isn't any alcohol going on here. That didn't happen until the early 1950s when New York syndicated columnist Walter Windchell, the kind of similar names in the Walter Chel, Walter Windchell. He shared his recipe with what he called the Smirnoff Smiler. He called it the best pick me up since Eve winked at him. By 1967 in the Harlem Valley Times, there was a recipe for something called reindeer milk. That one didn't catch on, maybe because the recipe called for eight ounces of vodka. You know, the next time you go into a bar, you should ask for some reindeer milk. Just to see what to get. Huh? reindeer milk. And in around the same time Walter Chel created the Caesar, Mots was pushing their juice in a trendy new vodka cocktail called a clam digger. Despite any questions about the origins, the Caesar remains inarguably a Canadian cocktail. I mean, it's woven into the fabric of the country. With well over 400 million Caesars consumed in Canada every year, that's a lot of Caesars considering there's only what? 35, 36 million people in Canada? It's the country's most popular mix drink. So popular that it has officially been named Canada's National Cocktail by Parliament. National Caesar Day? Yeah, there's a National Caesar Day. It falls each year on the Thursday before the May 2, 4 long weekend. Not like Canada's unofficial kickoff to summer. Now the Caesar is virtually unknown outside of Canada. Only in recent years has it made its way across the border. And many Americans have never heard of it. If you order a Caesar in the US, you might get a salad. But wouldn't you think that Caesar's palace in Las Vegas should make the bloody Caesar their official house drink? Just a thought. Let's make a Caesar. The first thing we want to do is uh, rimmer glass. Now you know, I've made a lot of Caesars in my lifetime. I really have. I don't know how many. I mean, 40 years times. I don't know. 20, 30, 50, a night. All right. I'll just cover the lip with my lime. And we got a nice rim going on there. Now years ago, uh, it was always celery salt used. But um, I bought some store-bought, which is lovely actually, matten steves to Canadian guys. Why not? Anyway, filler up full of ice. And you always want to kind of fill it up, not over your ice bin. Because that way, you don't get celery salt or spices into your ice. Vodka is next. I've got absolute vodka. Uh, I should have probably bought Canadian vodka, but uh, this is what was on my bar. Two ounces. First thing up is, uh, Worcestershire. Uh, Worcestershire. Worcestershire. What's this here sauce? Ha! Lots of it. I like lots of it. Usually it's only a couple dashes, but I don't know. I like it. The basketball is next. One drop. Why one drop, you ask? Well, it's a lot easier to, uh, add more heat if you need it than to take it away. One drop. Good. Well, let's fill it up full of plumato juice. Now, I should use mods, but I can't. Because there's MSG and there's glucose fructose in it. I'm going with Walters, because it's all natural. And I mean, look at the color. They use dye in there. Walters doesn't. Walters Caesar mix is made with all natural ingredients, and free of added MSG, high fructose corn syrup, artificial colors, and flavors. They use ocean-friendly clam juice from the North Atlantic in their mix, earning a sustainable stamp of approval. Okay, let's fill it up. Yeah. This is looking mighty fine. And we're going to just give it a little stir with our bar spoon, mix it all in there. Oh yeah, just looking mighty fine. All right. Now for the fun part. Garnishing. Now, today, the modern definition of a Caesar can be taught with practically anything. I've seen everything from spring rolls to a lobster tail, and brimmed with everything from bacon bits to Tim Horton's coffee grounds. You've got your traditional celery in line, along with things like a piece of fried chicken. A hamburger, or even a clubhouse sandwich. Of course, we have celery, your traditional celery. Some lime, some fresh lime, and actually, you know what? I'm just going to squeeze that lime in there, just like that, and grab another slice, just for garnish. Mm-hmm. There's your traditionally garnished Caesar. But you know today, we often garnish with spicy beans. I've got a refreshing cucumber slice. I've got... That's crazy talk. I've got some onion rings. Why not? Let's see. Oh, it's sure. Oh my God. I don't think I can get one more on there. Okay. And I've got these wonderful shrimp that I just finished off the barbecue. You know, olive oil and butter, salt and pepper. And yeah, they're going to go in our drink too. Oh my God. Ha-ha-ha. It's a party. It's a party in a glass. I've got a wonderful piece of bacon. How do I want to do that? Just like that, maybe. Whoa! I got a dill pickle slice. Which should I put it? Ha-ha-ha-ha. Right in there. And why not an olive as the crowning touch? Oh yeah. Look at that, baby. A little salt. A little pepper. And why not Walter Chels' secret ingredient of oregano? Oh yeah. Look at that. Look at that. Look at that. Ha-ha-ha. That's a meal in itself. Oh, we need a straw. And we're good to go. Let's give it a go, eh? Oh, that's really good. I like them a lot better than Bloody Mary's. They're a lot more refreshing. Make a Caesar if you can get your hands on, um, comato juice because, um, they're delightful. Refreshing. Good. And, you don't have to cook dinner. Ha-ha-ha. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Let's fill her up. Okay, let's fill it up. I'm on Patreon now. Yeah. For just a few dollars a month, you get access to things that nobody else sees. You get bloopers, you get podcasts, newsletters and sneak peeks. You get a whole wackest stuff, you know. So, become one of my booze hounds and help support the show. This stuff gets extended and every little bit goes back into the show. Thanks in advance. Call it what you will. A Caesar, a bloody Caesar or a three-course meal. It's ridiculous. Ridiculously good. Mm-mm. Hit the subscribe button, check some other videos out and make this damn thing. They are good.