Super Bowl cocktails befit New Orleans
Bartender Timothy Worall prepares a Sazerac cocktail at the Sazerac Bar located in The Roosevelt Hotel in New Orleans. (July 23, 2009) Credit: AP
On Super Bowl weekend in New Orleans, the second sporting event pits the Sazerac against the Ramos Fizz. They both win.
These cocktails originated in the Big Easy and became staples at bars across the country.
SAZERAC
The Sazerac takes its name from a French brandy beloved by the drink's creator, Antoine Peychaud. The base spirit now is either rye whiskey or bourbon. This recipe is from Salvatore Calabrese's "Classic Cocktails" (Sterling, 1997).
1 cube white sugar
Dash Angostura or Peychaud bitters
Soda water
1 3/4 ounces bourbon whiskey
1/3 ounce Pernod
Place sugar cube in an Old Fashioned glass. Soak it with the bitters. Add a splash of soda to cover the sugar. Crush it with the back of a spoon. Add the bourbon and stir. Float the Pernod on top. Garnish with a twist of lemon.
RAMOS FIZZ
The Ramos Fizz is a gin-based drink with a frothy style. This rendition is from "Field Guide to Cocktails" (Quirk, 2005).
2 ounces gin
1/2 ounce fresh lemon juice
1/2 ounce fresh lime juice
1 egg white
1 ounce heavy cream
2 teaspoons superfine sugar
1/2 teaspoon orange-flower water
Cold club soda
Vigorously shake the gin, lemon and lime juices, egg white, cream, sugar and orange-flower water with ice. Strain into a 10-ounce highball glass without ice. Pour in club soda to fill.
Kickoff.
