Bloody Mary

You already know that Old Fashioned was a drinking paradise long before it became a trendy cocktail bar in Gràcia. The small space run by Luca and Bruno, my favourite bartenders, turned out to be a bit too small for the amount of cocktail fans coming in, seduced by the quality and the collosal sex appeal of their Bloody Mary.

Along with another out-of-this-world barman, Alessandro, the duo opened a cocktail bar nearby which has the Bloody Mary as its 'raison d'être' and has become the Holy Grail of tomato juice and vodka with Perrins. With the elegance of three brown Chester sofas and a bay window overlooking the quiet street of Ferrer de Blanes, the Bloody Mary Cocktail Lounge surrounds you with good retro music, dim lighting and angle-shaped bar lined with bottles. Luca says they work with a catalog of some ten different Bloody Marys.

And the best bit is that they suggest pairings with some of their more sophisticated variants, creative blends that come with a well-paired tapa. The Bloody Caesar is an insane experiment with the flavour of clams and a very refreshing tuna tapa. It's an orgiastic drink that goes down like water. And I'm about to keel over in pleasure when Luca serves burrata with a Bloody Mary with truffle essence and zest. There's also a capful of guacamole, which goes with a Bloody Mary with mezcal, which I don't order out of prudence. This is ecstasy dressed in red, a winning proposition, a modern cocktail bar indeed! Gràcia needs more bars like this.