In the Land of Cocktails

While we were in NOLA, we enjoyed sampling the brilliant,spirited concoctions of the city's legendary bartenders. The cocktail was, after all, invented in New Orleans. How can visit a place and not try its signature foods or drink? I suppose it's possible;but,then, why leave home?

While we were in heaven at the Commander's Palace, our waiter suggested that we might like the book that Ti Adelaide Martin and Lally Brennan had co-authored, In the Land of Cocktails. He convinced me when he said that Lally, who was standing two tables away, would sign it. There was no resisting this temptation.

Since we've been home, we've added the cocktail hour to our weekend evenings and we have loved trying a variety of different drinks. With each sip we remember how much we loved our last trip and how we look forward to returning to the Big Easy. One of our favorites from this book is the "Whoa, Nellie!" This drink was invented during the first Mardi Gras after Katrina. Many false starts were made in the creation of this drink, but finally Lally, Arlene Nesser and Doc Cocktail Ted Haigh came up with this contemporary classic. "After his first sip, he said: 'Whoa, Nellie!' Nellie Valentine being our grandmother's name, it stuck--both the drink and the name!"

WHOA,NELLIE

(makes 1 cocktail)

• 1 1/4 ounces rye
  
• 3/4 ounce dark rum
  
• 3/4 ounce Cointreau*
  
• 4 dashes Angostura biters
  
• 1/2 ounce fresh lemon juice
  
• 1/2 ounce grapefruit juice
  
• 1/2 ounce Simple Syrup
  

Fill a martini glass with ice and set aside to chill. Combine all the ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake vigorously. Discard the ice from the glass. Strain the drink into the glass and serve immediately.

Comments

[Magic of Spice]

Sounds wonderful...I have never tried this, but I will:)

[Anne Ritchings]

This is a great drink,but you must be wary of gulping. It tastes so good that you might be tempted to drink it too fast. It packs a wallop.:)