The Sazerac Cocktail
The Sazerac Coffee House (founded in 1850 at 13 Exchange Alley in New Orleans) is long gone, but the splendid Roosevelt Hotel still exists. Lovingly restored after Katrina, its beautiful interior houses the stunning Sazerac Bar (see the picture at the top of that page), where Gov. Huey P. Long once reigned, Ramos Gin Fizz in hand. On the evening of April 10, 2010, I found myself in New Orleans for the first time in my adult life, so I strolled up Canal Street to the Roosevelt and into the bar.
I sat at the bar and ordered (what else?) a Sazerac, reputedly America's first cocktail. I watched the bartender carefully as she prepared it. Then I ordered another and wrote down the recipe on a napkin. I mostly drink gin and various bitter concoctions, like Campari and Fernet Branca; I drink very little whiskey and almost never anything sweet. But this wonderfully complex libation won me over immediately: aromatic from anise, tart from lemon, sweet from sugar, an edge from bitters, and spicy rye whiskey underneath.
When I returned home a few days later, I sought out the ingredients and started making my own. It takes a little time, but it's definitely worth it.
Ingredients
- 1/4 oz. simple syrup
- 1 1/2 oz. Sazerac Rye
- 1/4 oz. Herbsaint
- 3 dashes Peychaud's bitters
- Lemon peel
Glossary
- Sazerac Rye is a brand of rye whiskey. Use rye, not bourbon (definitely!).
- Herbsaint is a brand of absinthe substitute, native to New Orleans.
- Peychaud's is a brand of bitters, also native to New Orleans.
Preparation
- Fill an old fashioned glass with ice; roll the glass between your palms to chill it well.
- Pour rye over plenty of ice in cocktail shaker. Add simple syrup and Peychaud's, stir well (don't shake!) and set aside.
- Empty the ice from chilled glass.
- Swirl Herbsaint to coat the glass, then discard excess.
- Twist lemon peel, rub around rim, and drop into glass.
- Pour chilled rye mixture into glass.
Alternatives
- Use Sazerac Rye if you can find it (and can afford it!), but Old Overholt is easily available and a very reasonable substitute.
- Use a different anisette if you cannot find Herbsaint.
- Some bartenders use both Angostura and Peychaud's bitters, but I dislike the taste of the Angostura.
- The classic preparation dashes the Peychaud's onto a sugar cube and then crushes the cube, but I prefer to use simple syrup instead.
- Chuck Taggert's Sazerac page gives many more Sazerac preparation alternatives.
See also
While writing this page, I found Chuck Taggert's lovely Sazerac page. A Google images Sazerac bar search brings up some interesting pictures, both current and historic.