One Of The Oldest Cocktails To Exist Was An Anthony Bourdain Favorite

It wasn't only food items that Anthony Bourdain voiced strong opinions about. Whether sipping on a caipirinha shaken in Brazil or ordering coffee from a cart in New York City, Bourdain was also known for his favorite drinks. A Negroni held a special place in the man's heart, but Bourdain also appreciated the Sazerac, a classic cocktail with major history.

Hailing from New Orleans, the Sazerac can be traced to the mid-19th century when sugar cubes were muddled with Peychaud's Bitters and water before cognac was stirred into the mix. If it weren't for an ambitious French company sending its cognac to bars (then called coffee houses) in New Orleans, the Sazerac may have never existed. It turned out that the creator of Peychaud's Bitters, who operated a pharmacy in the French Quarter, liked to use his bitters in cocktails and combined it with Sazerac cognac. A local bar owner started offering the drink in his bar, and it was so successful that he changed the name of his bar to The Sazerac House, per Blacklane. 

Though the recipe for the original drink has been modified over the years — for a time, cognac was made difficult to come by and rye whiskey was used instead — the Sazerac has persisted. Bourdain was clear that he wasn't usually a fan of mixing good whisky, with this one exception. 

The Sazerac has since become known as New Orleans' official cocktail. Classically, glasses were rinsed with absinthe before the alcohol was poured in, and the cocktail has been crowned with a lemon twist since its conception. Washing out glasses with absinthe is no longer a step in the drink making-process, but the cocktail is still powerful, both as a beverage and as a symbol. 

Bourdain frequently visited The Pelican State. In 2011, Bourdain filmed in New Orleans' business district during his show "The Layover" and proceeded to the Sazerac Bar. Bourdain also recorded in New Orleans for "A Cook's Tour" and "No Reservations". 

When journalist and food writer Alan Richman wrote a less-than-complimentary story about the city in 2006, Bourdain enacted revenge by writing Richman into a storyline of "Treme," a series about New Orleans. In the scene, Richman gets a Sazerac thrown into his face by a New Orleans chef. Clearly, the Sazerac was loved by Bourdain in more ways than one.