The classic New Orleans cocktail...

The Sazerac

This is my slightly modified version of New Orleans' original cocktail, "The Sazerac." The history of this particular libation is pretty interesting, so I took the liberty of pasting an excerpt from the cocktail book Speakeasy below:

"The Sazerac was invented by pharmacist Antoine Amedee Peychaud in New Orleans

sometime in the early 1800s. In his French Quarter drugstore, M. Peychaud served his

concoction of Sazerac cognac, absinthe, sugar, and his homemade bitters in the large end of

an egg cup-what the French call a coquetier. (There had been speculation that the word

cocktail comes from the mispronunciation of coquetier, but this myth has since been

disproven.) Later, rye whiskey replaced Sazerac cognac because it was more readily

available, but the name stayed. The traditional making of a Sazerac is a ritual still

practiced in New Orleans. It begins with the bartender pouring Herbsaint into a rocks

glass, then tossing the glass in the air while yelling "Sazerac!" Coating the inside of a glass

with liquor is referred to as "seasoning" the glass. The glass is then chilled as the cocktail

is made. "

Now that you know a bit of the history behind it, hopefully making one will be a bit more fun. My recipe is below:

1 teaspoon Pernod or Herbsaint liqueur

1 teaspoon simple syrup

(great recipe for simple syrup here: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/simple-syrup/)

1 and 3/4 oz whiskey (I used Gentleman Jack, which is my favorite)

3 dashes Angostura bitters

1 lemon peel twist for garnish

Chill a cocktail glass of your choice. Add the Herbsaint or Pernod to the glass and swirl it around to coat both the sides and bottom of the glass. Discard about half of the remaining liquid (I usually do this by drinking it). In a cocktail shaker, combine the simple syrup, whiskey, bitters, and ice cubes. Shake for around 30 seconds. Strain into the prepared cocktail glass. Twist a lemon peel over the drink, drop it in, and enjoy!