I’m not going to lie; it took me several days to work up the courage to try The Bay. It’s vodka, infused with Chesapeake Bay seasoning. The same salt-heavy spice you put on shrimp and crabs. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been known to put bay seasoning on everything from fish to mashed potatoes, but vodka?
I let the bottle sit on my bar for days, then gave it a go, sipping it over ice first. It smelled like a low-country boil and tasted a lot like, well, vodka, that’s been hanging out on a shrimping boat in a Maryland harbor. Not bad. Then I sipped it straight from the bottle because I’m a journalist and journalists go the extra mile in pursuit of the truth. And here’s the truth. Straight from the bottle, The Bay is surprisingly drinkable. A little briny up front followed by the heat of both the alcohol and the seasoning.
But The Bay isn’t supposed to be a sipper. This vodka has a nearly singular purpose in life—to make kick ass Bloody Marys. There’s a recipe for a basic Bloody Mary on the bottle, and more versions on the website. I made my own version (see below, but I’ll give you a hint, there’s bacon) using a healthy dose of The Bay as the foundation.