The Official Cocktail of New Orleans

It's often said that the word "cocktail" originated in New Orleans. That it is derived from the French word coquetier, an egg cup that was used to serve spirited beverages in the Crescent City in the early 19th century. Whether New Orleans is the official home to the "cocktail" or not, a visit to NOLA (as the city's affectionately called) proves, if anything, that they take their drinks seriously. And now, the city has been honored with its own official cocktail--the sazerac.

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Sazerac--the official cocktail of New Orleans.























Ingredients
1 cup sugar 1 cup water Ice cubes 1/4 cup rye whiskey or bourbon 1/4 teaspoon bitters 1/4 teaspoon anise liqueur Lemon rind twist

Preparation Cook 1 cup sugar and 1 cup water in a small saucepan over medium-high heat for 5 minutes; stirring until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat, and cool.

Pack a 3 1/2-ounce cocktail glass with ice cubes, and set glass aside.

Combine whiskey, bitters, sugar syrup, and a few ice cubes in a cocktail shaker; stir to chill.

Discard ice cubes in cocktail glass. Coat inside of glass with liqueur, shaking out excess liqueur. (For stronger licorice flavor, leave excess liqueur in glass.) Rub lemon rind over rim of glass, and discard rind.

Strain whiskey mixture into prepared glass. Serve drink immediately.

Note: For testing purposes only, we used Jim Beam Straight Rye Whiskey, Peychaud's Bitters, and Herbsaint anise liqueur. Rye whiskey is distilled from rye grain instead of wheat and barley, giving it a smooth, rich flavor similar to that of bourbon.

Article by Jennifer V. Cole/ Photo by Virginia Switzer

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