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Cocktails, the celebratory drinks, are designed to cater to every mood and occasion. From a chic Martini to a colourful Margarita for a beachy day, you have so many options to choose from. While you already must be enjoying most of them, are you familiar with where they came from, the variations over the years, and the tales of secret ingredients?
To uncover the story behind one of the most traditional cocktails of all time, here is all the information you’d like for the New Orleans special – Sazerac. It is also known to be a local variety of cognac or a whiskey-based cocktail. While it was first made in the 19th century, there’s a lot more to this cocktail that is often in the debates of ‘the first-ever cocktail that was ever made.’
Sazerac And Its Origins
The story of how Sazerac was first made dates back to the 1830s, when a Creole apothecary, Antoine Peychaud, migrated to New Orleans from the West Indies. He opened a shop at 437 Royal Street in the early 19th century, where he made a mix of spices with his old family recipe that was later known as "Peychaud's Bitters". Soon enough, the bitters made their way up to cocktails, and one of the major features was the French Sazerac.
However, the ingredients of Sazerac changed due to the American Civil War, which affected the flow of European imports. After that, the base spirit was changed to more available rye whiskey, which gave the cocktail an American variation. By the 20th century, the Sazerac recipe was perfected and standardised. Further, in 1908, the Sazerac company was founded, which started the production of its own rye whiskey brand that was specially made for the Sazerac cocktail.
As of today, Sazerac is one of the most beloved cocktails for whiskey lovers. It’s no longer just about ingredients. The cocktail is more about reminiscing about the culture of New Orleans with a glass of the cocktail and people dancing in the jazz clubs. So, the next time when you’re sipping the fuzzy cocktail, you’re raising a glass to a centuries-old tradition and also keeping it alive!
The Recipe Of Sazerac
Ingredients:
- 3/4th jiggers of whiskey
- 2 dashes of Peychaud bitters
- Absinthe
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar syrup
- 1 lemon peel
Instructions:
- Take a clear glass, wet it with absinthe, and add ice cubes.
- Add sugar syrup with Peychaud bitters and mix them well.
- Pour in the whiskey and stir till the drink is chilled.
- Garnish it with the lemon peel, and enjoy the rich flavours.