Here's our Complete Guide to the New Orleans Sazerac
How to use this guide
We have compiled a tremendous amount of the latest resources surrounding the New Orleans Sazerac Cocktail. Take a moment to skim through the Index of topics to find what you are looking for. If you are simple looking at how to make the Sazerac we recommend you jump directly to that section. If you are looking for a information on sazerac ingredients, we have that too. Otherwise, if you’re here to learn more about the background or other information, please feel free to start from the beginning.
What we're hoping to achieve
We hope to keep this guide a living document through both our updates, and your feedback. Have thoughts you’d like to share or feel like we missed something? Let us hear feedback through the comments section.
Please if you enjoy this content take a moment to like or share this Complete Guide to the Sazerac on social media and check out our other, related content. You can find social media sharing links in the icons at the bottom of this page.
Jump to section
What is a Sazerac and how did it become The City of New Orleans’ Official Cocktail?
Legend and Lore
There’s a tremendous amount of myth surrounding the Sazerac and the drink’s early beginnings in New Orleans. As time passed, parts of the legend on the creation of the Sazerac in New Orleans were both validated and dispelled. We have done our best in compiling this Complete Guide to examine current facts along with long-standing oral histories that have been passed down in the City of New Orleans which leas to what we believe is an all-encompassing guide. We explain what the Sazerac is, where it started, how it evolved, and what ultimately lead to the validation of the Sazerac’s importance to the City of New Orleans when the Louisiana Legislature named it the Official Cocktail of the City of New Orleans in 2008.
The Sazerac is a Rye Whiskey based cocktail which is made and served similar in a short, low-ball glass, similar to an Old Fashioned.
Many of the Sazerac ingredients originated in New Orleans and were made explicitly for crafting Sazeracs. Starting with the bitters used, Peychaud’s bitters, discussed later in depth, moving to Absinthe substitute created by a local New Orleans Herbsaint was then crafted to use in place of Absinthe when Absinthe became illegal in the United States by a local New Orleanian.
Visiting The Sazerac House today in New Orleans
We should qualify this entire guide by saying, if you are truly interested in learning more about the full history of the Sazerac, you owe it to yourself to make the pilgrimage to the recently opened Sazerac House in New Orleans.
Opened by The Sazerac Company and the Goldring Family, this free, immersive experience will give you the best experience to taste the flavors and see tremendous memorabilia and recreations. Much of what we have consolidated here can be learned on a tour there, so if you make it to New Orleans, you owe it to yourself if you are willing to read a guide like this on the Sazerac, to participate in the amazing experience that is Sazerac House. And no, New Orleans Food and Beverage is not sponsored by The Sazerac House or The Sazerac Company. We’ve just been there and experienced it, and we know the city of New Orleans is fortunate to have The Sazerac House and it’s wonderful, knowledgeable staff. You can read our review in our Post below.
History of The Sazerac
Antoine Peychard and his Coquetiers
According to Stanley Clisby Arthur, a famous Louisiana based journalist who published “Famous New Orleans Drinks and How to Mix ‘Em,” a New Orleans pharmacist named, Antoine Amédée Peychaud, served the first versions of the Sazerac in New Orleans. Peychaud was a Haitian immigrant who fled after his father lost their sugar plantation during the famous Haitian Revolution. He arrived in New Orleans and opened a pharmacy where he served his family’s proprietary blend of bitters mixed with Cognac in, “coquetiers.” The coquetier was an egg shaped cup that is shaped similar to the modern jigger and some believe to be the design to be inspired from th coquetier. A local New Orleans business imports Sazerac-de-Forge et Fils Cognac.
Eventually the supplier of that cognac shares it with The Merchant Coffee House in New Orleans in the 1850’s creating the Sazerac Cocktail. The Sazerac Coffee House in New Orleans was purchased by Thomas H. Handy from Sewell Taylor. It is widely believed that Handy was the businessman that was originally selling the Cognac to Peychaud. Today a bottle of Thomas H. Handy The Roosevelt Hotel also began serving the drink among other establishments in the area and the Sazerac Cocktail was born. Eventually in the 1870’s Absinth was added to the mix as the, “hot new ingredient,” for local bartenders, creating the flavor combination found in the modern Sazerac ingredients.
Sazerac-de-Forge et Fils Cognac
Most cocktail historians agree that Cognac was the original base spirit for the drink known today as the Sazerac. After Peychaud served his bitters and Cognac in his pharmacy, commercial viability of the drink was sought after in nearby, “coffee houses,” which back then were basically just bars. The primary coffee house that began serving the Sazerac, was the Merchants Exchange Coffee House. According to oral history the original Sazeracs were served with a brand of cognac named Sazerac-de-Forge et Fils which was potentially acquired and sold in the mid-1800s by Sewell T. Taylor, the Sazerac Coffee House’s proprietor. This Cognac is likely where the name Sazerac likely became synonymous with the drink. Before then it was likely just marketed as a coquetier of Peychaud’s bitters
The name comes from the Sazerac Family in the Coganc region of France where Bernard Sazerac began making Cognac in his family’s Cognac distillery in the 18th century. Bernard Sazerac’s business expanded and he eventually acquired the Jardins du Logis de Forge estate, which at the time was a coveted growing estate in the Cognac growing region of Western France. This same family was commissioned to make cannons for the United States in the Revolutionary War by Benjamin Franklin at the forge their family acquired.
While the Sazerac brand of Cognac no doubt played a role in the ultimate naming of the Sazerac drink we know today, it is still not clear to some cocktail historians that the first iterations of the drink prior to the Sazerac brand of cognac were ever made in the City of New Orleans. This, “Cognac as the original base spirit for sazeracs,” narrative was disputed by David Wondrich in his 2018 work on the subject of the history of the Sazerac. Wondrich claims there is little documented proof of recipes calling for Cognac in a Sazerac style drink prior to the Sazerac-de-Forge et Fils brand of Cognac’s first appearance and early marketing by Sewell Taylor. He also writes that Sazeracs were never served with Cognac as the base and that Sazerac-de-Forge et Fils, and it was likely always Rye Whiskey or Bourbon.
Today’s Sazerac Company would likely dispute Woodrich’s findings, seeing as they have relaunched the brand of Sazerac-de-Forge et Fils Cognac and are currently marketing the beverage to revisit the Sazerac’s roots in Cognac.
America substitutes Rye for Cognac
According to the oral history of New Orleans and most cocktail historians’ writings on the Sazerac, in the late 1800’s, an insect infestation caused The Great French Wine Blight, crippling France’s Wine and Spirit industry. The insect that caused this blight, was the Grape Phylloxera, which ironically was imported from America to England by botanists hoping to show off the exotic grape vines they found in the new world. From England the Phylloxera spread into the rest of Europe causing extreme crop loss and economic devastation. Critical spirits for making the traditional Sazerac, like the then popular—Sazerac-de-Forge er Fils Cognac—which had become the preferred Cognac for making this New Orleans cocktail, were no longer easy to acquire in the United States. However, lack of a particular spirit never stopped New Orleanians from making the drinks, so they resourcefully turned to what they had plenty of—Rye Whiskey.
In the early 1800’s there was 3 times as much Rye Whiskey coming out of Pennsylvania’ annual production than Kentucky’s entire Bourbon annual production, so needless to say it was affordable and plentiful. As the name implies, Rye Whiskey is primarily made with at least 51% rye as the spirit’s grain; whereas, standard whiskey can be made corn, wheat, or a mixture of grains.
The Loss of Absinthe and emergence of Herbsaint
In 1912 the United States but a Federal ban on the
consumption and production of Absinthe. It was widely believed that Absinthe
was causing significant hallucinogenic effects and that people had died
drinking Absinthe. An enterprising New Orleanian named J. Marion Legendre had
learned how to make Absinthe in France in WWII, and launched a substitute which
he called originally called, “Legendre Absinthe.” This substitute for absinthe
brought the anise, licorice flavor to the Sazerac that would be missing with
the loss of Absinthe.
The Legendre’s Absinthe substitute did not contain the
primary target ingredient of the ban—Wormwood—therefore it’s use was not
stopped but the Federal Alcohol Control Administration did require Legendre to
remove the word Absinthe from the name. He rebranded the product to Herbsaint,
which is still used today as the primary drink ingredient for making Sazeracs
even though the Absinthe ban in the United Sates was lifted in 2007.
The Sazerac Industry
The Merchant Exchange Coffee House, later known as The Sazerac House
Sewell Taylor ran the Merchants Exchange Coffee House which was established around 1850 in the French quarter. It was said that Taylor was the businessman who really branded the cocktail as Sazerac when promoting his Sazerac branded cognac to serve with the drinks in his Coffee House. After some changes in ownership change, the Merchants Coffee House was eventually was renamed to the Sazerac Coffee House.
The Sazerac House in New Orleans has renamed their gift shop today to the Merchants Exchange Company as a nod to this classic Sazerac heritage.
The Modern Sazerac Bar in The Roosevelt Hotel
While it is said that Sazeracs were always served in the Roosevelt, the actual namesake Sazerac Bar did not come into existence until Seymour Weiss purchased the rights to use the name from The Sazerac Company in 1949.
Weiss opened the first post-prohibition Sazerac Bar and renovated a storefront across from the Roosevelt on Baronne Street. He then hyped the establishment through local news. Weiss abolished a previously held, “men only,” in this bar which create a nightly, “Storming the Sazerac,” by local New Orleans women. After tremendous success and expansion of Weiss’ venue into other New Orleans downtown spaces, the bar eventually consolidated. In 1959, the Sazerac Bar name was transferred to the Main Bar of the Roosevelt Hotel. This was fitting, since Sazeracs are said to have been traditionally served since the early days of the cocktail. The Sazerac Bar in The Roosevelt still serves guests today and is a highly recommended stop if you are ever staying in New Orleans.
Huey P. Long, the former Governor and U.S. Senator for the state of Louisiana, used the 12th floor of the Roosevelt as his Louisiana headquarters and personal New Orleans residence in the 1930’s. A long held New Orleans City oral legend says that Huey P Long personally flew bartenders from the Roosevelt hotel to New York City with him to team NYC bartenders how to properly make and serve New Orleans style cocktails such as the Sazerac and Ramos Gin Fizz.
The Sazerac Company of today
The Sazerac Company was created when Thomas Handy purchased the Sazerac Coffee House in 1869, who began expanding its portfolio of brands and selling bottled Sazerac cocktails. There were a series of ownership exchanges between Thomas Handy and others as financial panics ripped through the decades, but ultimately ownership did settle with Thomas Handy. In 1980’s William Goldring began acquiring the company until he eventually had full control.
Today’s Sazerac Company is a multi-billion-dollar spirits company behemoth with a portfolio of 300 brands and operations all of over the globe. Some of their recognizable brands include many bourbons, bitters, and discount liquors. These include notable names, such as, Buffalo Trace, Blanton’s, Pappy Van Winkle, Eagle Rare, Bittermens, Fireball, and many more. Although they had always been an acquirer and manager of a portfolio of spirits, their major portfolio expansion through acquisitions truly began in the early 1990’s and broadened scope to include join ventures going through the last few decades as they built one of the largest Spirits businesses in America.
In October of 2019 the Sazerac Company officially opened their New Orleans distillery experience called The Sazerac House at 101 Magazine Street. Although, it is not in the original location of the Sazerac Coffee House, it is in fact a wonderful recreation of many of the scenes that would have been found in the original coffee houses and bitters pharmacies that first served Sazeracs in New Orleans. You can find original bottles of the bottled Sazerac Cocktail that was sold by the Sazerac Company in the early days of it’s existence, along with other vintage memorabilia.
How to make a Sazerac
Instructions & Recipes
Making this classic cocktail may seem intimidating if you’ve never made one before, but it is truly a very simple process that in my opinion is even easier than making an Old Fashioned. There are many versions of the Sazerac, but if you want the no-nonsense classic version, we’ve put the recipe down below for our the Classic Sazerac made with Rye Whiskey as it is traditionally served in New Orleans today.
Sazerac
Ingredients
- 3 dashes Absinthe (Can substitute anisette or herbsaint)
- 1 jigger Rye or Bourbon Sazerac Rye is the premier choice
- 1 tsp sugar (or 1 sugar cube)
- 1 dash Orange Bitters
- 1 dash Angostura bitters
- 1 twist lemon peel
Instructions
- Combine ingredients in a shaker
- Shake well for 30 seconds
- Pour into glass
- Squeeze the lemon peel to spritz on top of the drink then garnish with the lemon peel
Notes
The original Sazerac
If you order a Sazerac today in New Orleans you can expect that it will be a Rye Whiskey based cocktail, usually with Sazerac Rye, as the base. It is then typically stirred with Peychauds and Angostura bitters, some simple syrup, and finally poured and served in an Herbsaint washed glass and stirred. If you’re at a higher-end cocktail bar they may make use of real absinth instead of Herbsaint and Gomme syrup in place of simple syrup. They may also include additional bitters or potentially even blend in other spirits such as Cognac or Run with the base Rye Whiskey.
Many cocktail historians share different beliefs on where and how the first true Sazerac was served. Some say it started right in Peychaud’s pharmacy when he was combining his bitters with Cognac and serving them in unique glasses on Royal Street in New Orleans. Others say the, “original version,” did not appear until Sazerac Brand Cognac was combined and served in the Sazerac Coffee House. You’ll even find some skeptics that say the genesis of the cocktail known as the Sazerac began outside of New Orleans. Whatever history you chose to believe, here are the versions of what we and the modern day Sazerac Company themselves consider to be their registered trademarked The Sazerac Cocktail: https://www.sazerac.com/our-brands/sazerac-rye-whiskey.html
Evolution of the Ingredients
Many of the Sazerac ingredients originated in New Orleans
and were made explicitly for crafting Sazeracs. Starting with the bitters used,
Peychaud’s bitters, discussed later in depth, were created by a New Orleans
pharmacist that served the first versions of the cocktail. Herbsaint was then
crafted to use in place of Absinthe when Absinthe became illegal in the United
States by a local New Orleanian.
The Zazarac and other base spirit blends for a Sazerac
So where does the Bourbon Sazerac come in? Well there’s little doubt that through the years many Americans substituted Rye Whiskey for Bourbon as it was plentiful in America, but the Old Fashion came to eventually dominate this class of Bourbon Cocktails.
A popular Sazerac variation recognized around the world is the, “Zazarac,” or “Zazarack.” Depending on where and when you ordered this drink you may have been served a Sazerac with Bourbon or even Rum as the base. The, “Zazarack,” first appeared in 1910 when, Jack’s Manual, published a recipe with a 100% Bourbon Whiskey base. Jack’s Manual, was written by Jack Grohusko. Jack was a New York bartender at Baracca’s. This is the first published version to call for a base of strictly Bourbon whiskey instead of the then popular Rye Whiskey. This led to the creation of on of the first of many New York variations on the classic Sazerac.
We then find another variation when Harry Craddock included a version with rum in his, Savoy Cocktail Book, which was included 750 recipes compiled for the Savoy Hotel in London. Another Rum version appeared in 1928 when Harry MacElhone included in his book, Harry’s ABC of Mixing Cocktails, recipe which called for a base of Rye Whiskey with a splash of rum with other additional bitters and gomme syrup in place of sugar.
Variations continued especially in the United States where Absinthe was eventually outlawed.
