The Sazerac

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Mixing glass or pint glass
• •Bar spoon
• •Hawthorne strainer or julep strainer
• •Old Fashioned glass (rocks glass)
• •Muddler
• •Jigger

Instructions

1. 1

   Chill the serving glass

   Fill an Old Fashioned glass with ice and cold water. Set it aside while you build the drink. The glass needs to be cold, truly cold, because the Sazerac is served without ice. That chilled glass is all that stands between you and a lukewarm disappointment. Give it at least two minutes.

   Some bartenders chill the glass in the freezer ahead of time. This works, but the traditional ice bath method is part of the ritual. Honor it when you can.
2. 2

   Muddle sugar and bitters

   In a mixing glass, place your sugar cube. Add three to four dashes of Peychaud's bitters directly onto the sugar. The red bitters will stain the cube, softening it. Add just a splash of water, maybe a teaspoon, and muddle until the sugar dissolves completely. You should not feel any grit when you stir. If you're using simple syrup instead, just combine it with the bitters and skip the muddling.

   Peychaud's bitters are non-negotiable. They were invented in New Orleans for this exact cocktail. Using anything else makes a different drink entirely.
3. 3

   Add whiskey and stir

   Pour two ounces of rye whiskey into the mixing glass. If you want a touch more complexity, add one dash of Angostura bitters here. Fill the mixing glass with ice and stir for a full thirty seconds. You're chilling the mixture and diluting it slightly. This is not shaking. Shaking introduces air bubbles and clouds the drink. Stirring keeps it silky and clear. The glass should be cold to the touch when you're done.

4. 4

   Rinse with absinthe

   Dump the ice water from your chilled serving glass. Immediately pour in the absinthe or Herbsaint. Swirl it around the entire interior, coating the sides and bottom. This is a rinse, not a pour. You want a thin film of that anise-scented spirit clinging to every surface. Discard the excess liquid. What remains is the perfume of the drink, the first thing your nose encounters.

5. 5

   Strain and serve

   Strain the stirred whiskey mixture into your absinthe-rinsed glass. No ice in the serving glass. This is how New Orleans has been doing it for over 150 years. The drink should be cold from stirring, amber and clear, maybe two fingers deep in the glass.

6. 6

   Express the lemon

   Cut a strip of lemon peel about an inch wide and two inches long. Hold it over the drink, yellow side facing down, and pinch it firmly to express the oils. You'll see a fine mist spray across the surface. Run the peel around the rim of the glass so the citrus oil greets your lips with every sip. Here's where tradition splits: some drop the peel in, some discard it. At Lagniappe, we discard it. The oils are delivered, the job is done. The peel floating in the glass looks untidy to my eye.

   Express the peel over a candle flame if you want to see something beautiful. The oils ignite briefly, caramelizing slightly and adding a subtle toasted note. Impressive at dinner parties.

Chef Tips

• •Rye whiskey is the modern standard, but the original Sazerac used cognac. Try it both ways. A good VSOP cognac makes a softer, rounder drink. Rye brings spice and bite. I love them both.
• •The quality of your ice matters more than you think. Cloudy freezer ice with off flavors will transfer those flavors to your drink. Use fresh ice or invest in silicone molds that make clear cubes.
• •For a party, you can batch the whiskey, sugar, and bitters portion in advance. Keep it refrigerated. When guests arrive, you only need to stir with ice, rinse glasses, and strain. Cuts your prep time in half.
• •Herbsaint is the traditional New Orleans absinthe substitute, created after Prohibition made real absinthe illegal. Now that absinthe is legal again, use whichever you prefer. Herbsaint is sweeter, absinthe more assertive.
• •If someone tells you they don't like whiskey, make them a Sazerac anyway. The sugar, bitters, and absinthe transform the spirit into something entirely different. I've converted many skeptics this way.

Advance Preparation

• •Glasses can be stored in the freezer up to 24 hours ahead for instant chilling.
• •Simple syrup can be made weeks in advance: equal parts sugar and water, heated until dissolved, then refrigerated.
• •Batched cocktail base (whiskey, sugar, bitters) keeps refrigerated for up to one week. Stir with ice and strain to serve.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 70g)