1. Would it be insane to try to barrel-age a sazerac, or does that really just defeat the purpose? I get the pureness of the drink and it’s process, but would be curious to know how it might taste with a few weeks in oak.

2. If that’s reasonable (or at least not a “no, you idiot”), then would these roughly be the proportions you’d use for a 2L barrel?

1780 oz Rye Whiskey
110 ml Simple Syrup (2:1)
55 ml Peychaud’s Bitter
35 ml Absinthe
20 ml Angostura bitters

But yes, a half ounce would have been way too much.

Just watched a well meaning, but terribly bad Sazerac recipe video at about.com — http://video.about.com/cocktails/Sazerac-Recipe.htm. I gave it a try, and Oh Lord, is that version awful, at least with the amount of simple syrup displayed (if not shown — he appears to squeeze much less than 1/2 oz of simple syrup). I just tried it, and 1/2 oz of simple syrup + a pernod rinse is disgustingly sweet. Like drinking alcoholic sugar water.

just wondering with your recipe, does it still require a small splash of water if one is using simple syrup?

What is the correct level of dilution for this drink? (correct being what you have found works best for peoples palates today.)

Thanks!

The truth of the matter is that while Herbsaint makes for a wonderful – and quite traditional – Sazerac (I’ve been making and drinking them with Herbsaint for years), Herbsaint can’t match the depth of flavor that a good absinthe like Lucid can provide.

Use a splash of water and a muddler to dissolve the sugar cube before adding the alcohol. Sugar doesn’t readily dissolve in cold water or alcohol, so you need to use the muddler with a little water before you add the booze.

Hope this helps!

Jeff

So on a more technical note (and maybe this should go on the Saz blog) I attempted to make a Sazerac for a young guest the other night at work and in a hurry as usual, I couldn’t get the sugar cube to dissolve and I couldn’t keep stirring it for time’s sake, which resulted in unsightly white crystals in the bottom of my cocktail. I was irritated but had to go serve food to people. I had considered using the simple syrup, but John had hidden it from me.

Anyway long story short, is there any good way to ensure the darn sugar cube disintegrates in a timely fashion without compromising the drink quality? Many times I have much less time than I’d like to craft the drink.

Okay, here it is, so what’s wrong with my sugar cube?

It tastes like it might actually be half Listerine and half Axe Body Spray. It’s garbage. Steer clear.

The only positive review came from someone who found all the other absinthe he’d tried “too strong.”