Meet Judy Bennett, founder of Portland Bloody Mary Mix, who was recently Double Winner again (the first time in 2023) for the Best Bloody Mary and The People’s Choice – Bottled Mix – at the Portland Bloody Mary Festival.
Bennett attributes the Bloody Mary muse to her “two mothers” – her birth mother taught Judy to be meticulous, get good grades, and do the right thing; her aunt (and nanny from age 3 to 11) told irreverent jokes, considered beer a complete dinner, and drove a purple Cadillac. Despite their different personalities, both moms could agree on one thing – a good Bloody Mary. They also unknowingly instilled in Judy two traits which made her a successful entrepreneur: be a risk taker but be fastidious.
Putting her own mixes in a bottle were the result of a book Bennett wrote which includes 45 Bloody Mary recipes, vintage photographs, and trivia. Later, someone suggested she bottle up one of her recipes, so she went to the Oregon State University Food Science folks for advice, took some classes and worked in the lab until she had something viable.
“I’ve tried normal people hobbies and I’m not good at them,” says Bennett, “but for some reason this lit up my brain – the creative side, the science side.”
The problem initially was that the pasturization process ruined the fresh integrated flavors Bennett worked hard to create, so she turned to a recommended co-packer. “I took my jar of fresh tomatoes, avocados and onion and before the pasturization asked can you make something that tastes like this? They were successful.”
When the first batch was produced, Bennett asked to buy the absolute minimum order. “It was maybe 12 cases,” she recalls. “When I picked it up it looked like so much – I cried all the way home,” indicating she was terrified she wouldn’t sell it. She now makes 300 cases a month.
When asked what sets her mix apart, Bennett says she uses a vegetable-based Worcestershire sauce (traditional Worcestershire contains anchovies) so it’s vegetarian without sacrificing the delightful umami flavor or using excessive salt. She also swears by Heinz white vinegar which has good flavor and is the only kind of vinegar that is gluten-free and is a healthy preservative. Her products have no lab-grown chemicals to add flavor, color, or shelf life.
A Portland native, Bennett’s first tie to Walla Walla was as a Whitman student, returning every few years to attend reunions, before being lured back and moving permanently in 2018 with her husband, Tom. In 2022, they opened the popular eatery American 35 in Waitsburg where Judy built her reputation behind the bar. In 2025, they moved the restaurant to downtown Walla Walla renamed as Fiasco on Main, where Judy holds court as one of the most creative, respected concoctionoligists (as dubbed by a fan on Instagram) in town.
“When you get a Bloody Mary it truly is about the mix,” says Bennett. “It’s also a choose your adventure game. I change it up all the time to suit my mood or the occasion.” If you want to get a taste of her prowess, the current Bloody Mary offerings at Fiasco include the Spicy made with Hot Monkey vodka, Bennett’s spicy mix, finished with a lemon Brioschi rim; Smoky made with Madre mezcal, her smoky mix, and a smoked sea salt rim; and Sweet Onion made with Browne rye, the Walla Walla Bloody Mary Mix (using the famous Walla Walla sweets), with a garlic rub rim.
You can find the line of Portland Bloody Mary Mix – Smoky, Spicy, and Walla Walla Sweet Onion – at Fiasco, select stores in the Pacific Northwest, and on Amazon.