Mardi Gras Cocktails: Sazerac

by Sarah J. Gim, Posted Feb 26th 2006 @ 9:15PM

sazerac It's not really a Mardi Gras party without indulging in a drink, or two, or a half dozen, so don't forget to add some cocktails to your Fat Tuesday Feast.

Sazerac might be the world's oldest known cocktail. Granted, not the oldest liquor (or wine), but cocktail which, by "definition," is a mixture. We're not exactly sure where the name comes from, but it could be from a French brand of cognac called Sazerac-du-Forge et fils, or it could be named after the cafe in which it was first reported to be made, the Sazerac Coffee House in New Orleans (thus, its association with New Orleans and Mardi Gras). It doesn't matter because a sazerac by any other name still tastes as sweet.

To make a Sazerac cocktail, crush one sugar cube with a drop of water in the bottom of a glass. (Some recipes call for 1 tsp. simple syrup instead.) Add a few drops of Peychaud's Bitters, 2 oz. rye whiskey, a few ice cubes, and stir. Pour this into another glass that has been swirled with a few drops of Pernod (or absinthe, you decide). Twist a lemon peel over the cocktail.

Purists will say that you cannot make a true Sazerac without the Peychaud's bitters, and that you don't add the lemon peel to the drink after you twist. As far as the rye whiskey, I am guessing a fine cognac would work just as well, if not better, but don't use Bourbon. Save that for a mint julep on Derby Day.

Filed Under: Drink Recipes, How To
Tags: alcohol, america, cocktails, drinking, drinks, food and drink, food and wine, mardi gras, MardiGras, sazerac, southern states, spirits, whiskey, whisky