Mardi Gras Punch

(Serves 24)

1 bottle White Rum

1 bottle Medium-Bodied Red Wine

2 oz Overproof Jamaican Rum

1 cup Lemon Juice

1 cup Lemon-Orange Oleo Syrup

7 dashes Angostura Bitters

32 oz Filtered Water, Sparkling Water, or Sparkling Wine

Combine all ingredients in a punch bowl. Place a large block of ice and stir to chill. Garnish individual servings with a dehydrated lemon.

Recommended Ingredients

• White Rum: Denizen 5Yr Aged White Rum, Flor de Cana 4Yr White Rum, Planteray 3 Star White Rum

• Medium-Bodied Red Wine: GSM Blend, Grenache, Merlot, Sangiovese

• Overproof Jamaican Rum: Wray & Nephew, Rum Fire

Lemon-Orange Oleo Syrup Recipe: Combine peels from one orange and one lemon with one cup white sugar. Cover and allow to rest 8 to 48 hours. Add 1 cup hot water to dissolve the sugar. Cool and strain mixture into a container.

Brandy Crusta

In a shaker tin with ice, add the following ingredients:

• 1 ¾ oz VSOP Cognac

• ¾ oz Lemon Juice

• ½ oz Dry Curaçao

• ¼ oz Maraschino Liqueur

• 2 dashes Angostura Bitters

Shake 10-15 seconds. Strain into a sugar-rimmed coupe. Garnish with an expressed lemon peel.

Recommended Ingredients

• Cognac: Hine VSOP, Brandy Sainte Louise, Hennessy VS, Pierre Ferrand 1840

• Dry Curaçao: Pierre Ferrand

• Maraschino: Luxardo, Maraska

La Louisiane

In a mixing glass with ice, add the following ingredients:

• 1 ½ oz Rye Whiskey

• ¾ oz Sweet Vermouth

• ¾ oz Benedictine

• 3 dashes Peychaud’s Bitters

• 3 dashes Absinthe

Stir 30-45 seconds until chilled. Strain into a chilled coupe. Garnish with an amarena cherry.

Recommended Ingredients

• Rye Whiskey: Rittenhouse Bottled-in-Bond, Sazerac Rye, Wild Turkey 101 Rye, Old Overholt Bottled-in-Bond

• Sweet Vermouth: Cocchi Vermouth di Torino, Dolin Rouge, Carpano Antica Formula

• Absinthe: St. George, Pernod, Lucid

Chicory Espresso Martini

In a shaker tin with ice, add the following ingredients:

• 1 oz Vodka

• 1 oz Hoodoo Chicory Liqueur

• 1 oz Cold Brew Concentrate

• ½ oz Chicory Syrup

Shake 10-15 seconds. Strain into liquid into opposite tin and discard ice. Dry shake another 10-15 seconds. Pour into a chilled coupe. Garnish with 3 coffee beans.

Recommended Ingredients

• Vodka: Belvedere, Chopin, Heroes, Ketel One

Chicory Syrup: In a saucepan over medium heat, add 1 cup water, 1 cup sugar, and 1/4 cup chicory root. Whisk until sugar is dissolved. Strain through a coffee filter, let cool, and bottle the syrup.

Other Items of Interest

Tools: Here are some items we have used in our class and in our own home bars that might be useful for you to make these drinks at home.

• Barfly Boston Shaker

• Barfly Hawthorne Strainer

• Barfly Fine Mesh Strainer

• Jupiter Fortessa Mixing Glass

• Barfly Japanese Jigger

• Barfly Japanese Bar Spoon

• Barfly Julep Strainer

• Barfly Bitters Bottles

• Clear Ice Large Cube Mold

• Crafthouse Smoking Box

• Foghat Cocktail Smoker Kit

• Viski Cocktail Smoker

• Microplane Spice Mill (Nutmeg Grater)

• Microplane Spice Grater

Books: Here are some great books about New Orleans cocktail culture, history, and recipes that informed our research for this class.

• Neal Bodenheimer & Emily Timberlake, Cure: New Orleans Drinks and How to Mix 'Em (2022)

• Sarah Baird, New Orleans Cocktails: An Elegant Collection of Over 100 Recipes Inspired by the Big Easy (2017)

• Elizabeth Williams & Chris McMillan, Lift Your Spirits: A Celebratory History of Cocktail Culture in New Orleans (2016)

• Stanley Clisby Arthur, Famous New Orleans Drinks & How to Mix 'Em (1937)