Ever wonder why people drink Bloody Marys in the morning? Well, aside from the obvious excuse to get your drink on at 10 a.m. (or earlier!) the Bloody Mary can, hypothetically, help a hangover to a certain degree.

Now don't quote us here because the science in all of this is somewhat spotty — after all, what enthusiastic drinker isn't looking for a cure-all the morning after? — but the basic idea is that alcohol contains trace amounts of methanol, which the body converts to toxic formaldehyde. Yeah, the stuff with which they preserve dead bodies (which might explain why we feel like dead warmed over with a hangover.)

Stay with us here. When someone gets methanol poisoning, they are given ethanol to stop the body converting methanol to formaldehyde. According to Adam Rogers, author of Proof: The Science of Booze, there is a hypothesis that a hangover is actually a form of methanol toxicity; so, if you have another drink — like, say, a breakfast concoction of tomato juice dressed up as a boozy Bloody Mary — the ethanol (alcohol's main element) in the booze will cancel out the over-abundance of methanol and, presto, you feel better. Like we said, it's spotty science, but hey, it's as good an excuse as any (as is the new year) to enjoy a Bloody Mary.

So in honor of the new year (January 1 is also National Bloody Mary Day), here are four fiendishly good and entirely original examples of Bloody Marys that only exist in L.A.

The Attic's Slider Bloody Mary; Credit: Iano Dovi

The Attic's Slider Bloody Mary; Credit: Iano Dovi

The Attic's Build Your Own Bloody Mary
You can literally eat your breakfast, or lunch as the case may be, with the Attic's Bloody Mary, which you can build your own or choose a pre-topped masterpiece. If you subscribe to the “eat fatty foods” scenario in relation to curing a hangover, then this drink has you covered with chunky bacon slices and meaty slider all perched atop the drink's rim. 3441 E. Broadway Long Beach; (562) 433-0153.

Blood & Smoke; Credit: M.B. Post

Blood & Smoke; Credit: M.B. Post

Manhattan Beach Post's Blood & Smoke
Bacon-infused Koval White Rye adds a whiskey twist to the housemade Bloody Mary mix, kicked up with Sriracha salt in the drink and on the rim. The cocktail is topped with a speck-wrapped pickle twist for a crunchy, fatty burst of texture and flavor that could only happen in mashed—up L.A. 1142 Manhattan Ave., Manhattan Beach; (310) 545-5405; eatmbpost.com

Venice Whaler's Crab Shell Bloody Mary; Credit: Moretti Photography

Venice Whaler's Crab Shell Bloody Mary; Credit: Moretti Photography

Venice Whaler's Crab Shell Bloody Mary
Created by Anthony Settecase, this Bloody is a salute to the history of the Venice Whaler building, dating back to 1944. Its original name was the Crab Shell, thus the obvious and menacing crab claw topper. The drink beneath the claw includes tomato juice, Clamato, fresh Lime juice, olive juice, salt, pepper, Chipotle Tabasco and a celery salt rim. 10 Washington Blvd.
Marina del Rey; (310) 821-8737; venicewhaler.com
Church Key Canned Bloody Mary
It's a Bloody Mary… in a can.  Pretty basic stuff, except it's… in a can. Andy Warhol would have loved this one. And that man knew how to party. 8730 Sunset Blvd. Los Angeles; (424) 249-3700

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