George Washington Loved His Hooch

With the 4th of July quickly approaching, I found myself thinking about the cocktail and America and how the two have been intertwined since our great nations birth.  Up until the the American Revolutionary War (1775 to 1783),  rum had been the spirit of choice for the then American colonists. While most of the rum consumed in the colonies came from the British controlled Caribbean, smaller quantities of rum was also being produced domestically.  When the British navy blockaded the importation of Caribbean rum, sugar and molasses, resorsefull colloniests  turned to their abundant supply of corn and American whiskey quickly became the spirit of choice.

In late 1790s George Washington ran one of the country's largest rye whiskey distilleries. Washington began his venture into destilling spirits in June 1797 with the below correspondence to his Scottish plantation manager James Anderson,

Distillery. Is a business I am entirely unacquainted with; but from your knowledge of it and from the confidence you have in the profit to be derived from the establishment, I am disposed to enter upon one....

At the peak of production, Washington's destillery produced  about 11,000 gallons of rye sold at 60 cents per gallon, netting Washington a profit of $7500 in 1799 (which is $136,363.64 in 2012 dollars), sold mainly to his thirsty local community.  According to archeological dig records, Washington's Mt. Vernon destillery was only a 75-by-30-foot distillery.  Diring its time, it was  was among the largest structures of its kind in the eighteenth century.

(In researching this post I came across an fantastic event east coast burbon fans should try to attent.  The Mt. Vernon estate is featuring a whiskey tasting and dinner event on August 3, Gentleman Distiller.  This sounds like a great way to  learn more about Washington’s role as “Distiller-in-Chief.”)

Feeling patriotic, I decided to toast our great founding father by making a cocktail with great history (and one of my favorite rye based drinks) - the Sazerac.  The Sazerac is known as the oldest American cocktail and has its roots in pre–Civil War (1861 - 1865) New Orleans, Louisiana.  I am certain George would approve.

The Sazerac

2.5 oz Rittenhouse 100 proof rye whiskey 
half teaspoon brown sugar
half teaspoon simple syrup
Peychaud's bitters
Angostura bitters.
Herbsaint (substitute for Absinthe)

Season a rocks glass with Herbsaint (I use an small atomizer but you can swirll the liquid around the inside of the glass and then discgard the excess) then chil.  In a seperate mixing glass add both sugars and saturate with 3 to 4 dashes of Peychaud's bitters and 1 to 2 dashes of Angostura bitters.  Mix the sugars and bitters into a gritty paste, add the rye and then stir gently.  Add a generous portion of ice and continue stirring.  Strain into the chilled rocks glass and garnish with a lemon twist.