New Orleans is a special city, especially when it comes to cocktails. The Sazerac is New Orleans’ most famous cocktail and is a wonderful complement to any special occasion, especially in the South. Today, the Sazerac Bar in New Orleans Roosevelt Hotel specializes in making the perfect Sazerac cocktail.
The Sazerac cocktail has undone many variations since the early 1800s. (Liquor.com)
RELATED: How to Score Premium Allocated Bourbons
The Original Sazerac Cocktail
One difference with the original Sazerac cocktail stresses the use of two Old Fashioned glasses. Cocktail mixing accessories were not an option in the 1800s, so the use of bar glasses was common. Absinthe, which can be purchased at most upscale liquor stores today, was banned in the U.S. for many years.
2 Old Fashioned glasses
1 sugar cube
3 dashes Peychaud’s bitters
2 ounces Sazerac Rye Whiskey
Rinse of absinthe or Herbsaint
Twist of lemon peel for garnish
Directions:
- Pack on Old Fashioned glass with ice and set aside to chill. Muddle the sugar cube with the bitters in another. Next, add ice and rye whiskey. Stir thoroughly to chill the liquor.
- Empty the ice from the first glass, then add about an eighth of an ounce of absinthe or Herbsaint. Swirl the liquid around in the glass, making sure to fully coat the inside, then dispose of the excess liquid. Strain the cold rye whisky mixture in the absinthe-coated glass and garnish with a lemon peel.
Make sure you stir the cocktail mixture well. Never shake a cocktail mixed primarily with spirits. Doing so will “bruise” the liquor.
History of the Sazerac Cocktail
The Sazerac cocktail began in a coffee house along Bourbon Street in New Orleans, Lousiana (whiskeygoldmine.com)
The Sazerac cocktail dates back to around 1838 when Antoine Peychaud developed and served the cocktail to his fellow Masons. Peychaud’s favorite French brandy was Sazerac-de-Forge et fils. Sometime later, Rye whiskey replaced Cognac. Some recipes today still call for Cognac. Absinthe was added in the early 1870s by bartender Leon Lamothe.
An updated 1940s version reflects the recipe’s evolution. The updated Sazerac recipe blendes rye whiskey, bitters, cane syrup, and Herbsaint, an anise-flavored liqueur made in the Crescent City following the nationwide ban on absinthe in 1912.
In the mid-19th century, distillers and farmers shipped rye whiskey’s from America’s heartland, down the Mississippi River to New Orleans. Around this same time, coffee houses and saloons lined Bourbon Street, including The Sazerac Coffee House, which invented the infamous Sazerac, making it New Orleans’ most famous cocktail.
Sazerac Rye is not only a fantastic whiskey but also the name of a major beverage company. Irrespective of recipe changes, rye and Peychaud bitters remain the cocktail’s staple ingredients. “The Sazerac is a perfect metaphor for a Southern gentleman,” Chef Paul Fehribach told Garden and Gun magazine.
RELATED: 12 Summer Red Wines Under $25
Sazerac Cocktail circa 1940
Sazerac Cocktail circa 19402 oz. rye whiskey
2 dashes of Peychaud’s bitters
½ oz. cane syrup
1 bar spoon Herbsaint
Orange, for garnish
Chill a rocks glass. Place 1 cup of ice cubes in a cocktail shaker, and add the rye, bitters, and cane syrup. Stir gently with a bar spoon for 10 seconds, then allow to rest on the ice for a few moments while you cut a fresh orange peel garnish and rinse the glass. With a vegetable peeler, cut a fresh section of orange peel ¾ inch in diameter for the garnish, avoiding the white pith as much as possible. Add Herbsaint to the chilled glass, give it a swirl, and pour off the excess. Stir the whiskey mixture another 5 seconds more and strain it into the glass. Garnish with orange peel. (From chef Paul Fehribach, Big Jones, Chicago, Illinois)