Mixology at Home - Sazerac

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KEVN) - We continue to keep things simple on Mixology at Home with another one-two-three recipe, the Sazerac cocktail. This is an old New Orleans classic.

A Sazerac cocktail can be made with either whiskey or cognac but I stick to my one of my favorite liquors, rye whiskey. The original Sazerac does use cognac.

In a mixing glass with ice, you muddle a sugar cube (which is three quarters of a teaspoon) with three dashes of Peychaud’s bitters (lighter and sweeter than aromatic, with notes of candied cherry, clove and orange). Add a shot (one and a half ounces) of rye whiskey and stir. Use good whiskey.

Now for the absinthe. You can put a quarter ounce of absinthe into an old fashioned glass and swirl it around to coat the glass. Then discard the remaining absinthe. But why waste it? Get a small mister and spritz the inside of the glass. I use a martini mister. You can get one for about five bucks.

Strain your drink into your glass. It is served straight up, no ice.

If you don’t have absinthe, you can substitute Herbsaint, an anise-flavored liqueur.

Our tip:

Develop a relationship with the staff at your neighborhood liquor store, like our sponsor Grant Street Liquor in Spearfish.

I’m always pleasantly surprised when I go into a small, neighborhood liquor store and find that bottle I’ve had on a shopping list for a couple of months. I popped into a small liquor store on a whim one day and they had ... only one bottle of elderflower liqueur but hey, that’s all I needed.

And if the store doesn’t have what you want, the staff might order it for you.

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