Well thank God we made it through that eclipse! Today's Cocktail of the Week is an amazing concoction. That it is also one of the first, if not the first cocktail ever invented only adds to the mystique of this New Orleans classic.

[The Sazerac Cocktail: neworleansonline.com]

Follow up:

According to cocktail lore, in 1838 Antoine Peychaud, the owner of an apothecary who produced his own 'bitters' (an alcoholic mixture of herbs and citrus) would serve his friends brandy 'toddies' by mixing French brandy with his bitters. Antoine used a double ended egg cup called a coquetier (pronounced 'coke-tiay') as a measuring cup and the first cocktail was born. According to The Sazerac Company, the original recipe was modified in 1873 to use American rye whiskey instead of brandy, and a dash of absinthe was added.

Prep is a little more involved than some simple cocktails but the end result is worth the effort. The Sazerac is unique and surprising in flavor and not what you would expect from the ingredients alone.

The Sazerac Cocktail:

Fill an old fashioned glass with ice. In a second old fashioned glass add a sugar cube, 3 dashes of Peychauds bitters and muddle. After muddling, add 1.5 oz Rye whiskey to the second glass.

Empty the ice from the first glass and pour in 1/4 oz or a tablespoon or a similar small quantity of absinthe. Swirl and turn the glass to completely coat the inside of the glass - then pour the remaining absinthe out (into a shot glass preferably, and drink. Why waste good absinthe?).

Finally pour the contents of glass number 2 into glass number 1 (the absinthe coated glass), garnish with a lemon twist and serve!

There are a few things you should know about variants. As with the Ward Eight cocktail, rye whiskey is preferred. You now know that having a bottle of rye around is good for more than one thing. You can substitute bourbon, no one will care after enjoying a few of these.

Peychauds bitters can be difficult to obtain locally. You used to be able to order it directly from the Sazerac Company but it appears that they have stopped direct sales. Your best bet is printing out something with the name properly spelled out (since no one can manage to spell it otherwise) and talking to your local purveyor of fine spirits. I do wish you luck. Should you fail in obtaining the proper bitters, you can of course substitute Angostura bitters because using a substitute is better than going home unslaked and sober.