Bloody Mary Festival Returns for a 2nd Year

HERMANTOWN, Minn.–Bloody Mary’s have been becoming quite popular in the Northland with another Sunday brunch dedicated to the tomato-y drink.

Polished Pineapple Events held a Bloody Mary festival at the AAD Shrine. Bloody Mary makers from around the Midwest and one from Florida gathered for a casual day sampling all the different mixes.

“The interesting thing about this event is there are so many different kinds of Bloody Mary’s,” said organizer and owner of Polished Pineapple Events Candyce Thompson. “So if you think a Bloody Mary is just a Bloody Mary that is not the case by any means. You have a bunch of different ones here from all different kinds of spicy. A lot of them are actually homemade mixes. It’s small companies that make them and perfect it the way that they like their Bloody Mary’s. So not one bloody Mary in this room is the same.”

Vendors were excited to share their take on the vodka-tomato concoction as attendees had the chance to vote on who they thought had the best mixture. The winner of this event was Thumbs Up Jamaican Jerk, who is based out of Duluth. However, we spoke to one of the owners of Kickled Mary whose claim to fame is that it’s homemade.

“The first sip, you’re going to know right away that it’s the freshest. You’re gonna taste it,” said Co-owner of Kickled Mary Kelli Cadwell. “But what’s really cool about it is you’re expecting certain ingredients to be in there and they’re not. I think it has more of a salsa flare to it. That’s why you can cook with it too.”

Polished Pineapple says that they look forward to continuing this popular event and their next festival is on May 27 in Breezy Point. General Admission is $35. Designated Drivers get in for $15.