Now we all know that competition BBQ is all about who has the best meat on Saturday, but at some contests the organizers like to have a little fun by adding a Bloody Mary category. This ancillary is normally judged on Saturday morning before the big show begins.

It gives teams an opportunity to show off another skill that most pit masters have....being able to make a good drink.

After many bottles of vodka and several trophies, I've perfected a Bloody Mary that'll give anyone a run for the money. Here's what you'll need:

• 1 Bottle of decent Vodka (it dosen’t have to be the most expensive stuff on the shelf; but you do need a good quality vodka like Skyy or Absolute)
• 1 Bottle of Zing Zang bloody mary mix (this stuff makes a great Bloody Mary on it's on, but when you kick it up with a few other ingredients, it'll set you free!)

Next you'll need:

• Horse Radish, I use the stuff found in the refrigerator section at the super market
• Worcestershire Sauce
• Frank's Red Hot Sauce
• Cracked Black Pepper
• Green Olives
• Kosher Dill Pickle Spears
• Seasoned Salt
• Garlic Powder
• Cayenne Pepper
• A Lime

To make the Bloody Mary start with a 20 oz Glass filled with Ice. Measure 2 oz of the vodka and pour in the glass. Add ½ teaspoon of Horse Radish, 2 dashes of Worcestershire, and 2 dashes of Frank's Red Hot Sauce.

Using a Pepper Grinder, add several cranks of Black Pepper, a sprinkle of the Seasoned Salt, dash of Garlic Powder & Cayenne Pepper.

Using a teaspoon, measure 1 tsp of the Olive Juice and Kosher Pickle Juice.

No fill the rest of the glass with the Zing Zang mix.

Next cut a lime into wedges and squeeze one of them into the glass.

Now using a separate glass, pour the mixture from glass to glass several times. This incorporates all of the flavors and makes for easy “mixing” of your drink.

To serve the Bloody Mary, I like to give it my own little "BBQ" spin...

I pour a little of The BBQ RUB on a plate, then using another lime wedge go around the rim of the glass. Dip the rim of the glass in the bbq rub and let it sit a few minutes to dry. You can do this step before mixing the Bloody Mary to allow it time to dry.

Pour the mixture into the rimmed glass and garnish. For the garnish I use a pickle spear or celery and a beverage toothpick stacked with Green Olives. You can get creative here and use pickled green beans, pickled okra, boiled, deveined shrimp, olives stuffed with jalapeno or feta cheese…or just about anything you can imagine.

Bloody Mary's go great for brunch or to shake a hangover. Make these for your friends and they will love you.

I know there's a lot of different variations of this drink, but I've impressed a lot of folks and won a few trophies with this recipe.