Pat O'Briens Bar: The Hurricane vs The Mint Julep
One of my first blogs was titled “Living well, Beyond My Means.” The following is one of my favorites from that time when I thought I was going to travel around and write witty reviews of places because obviously nobody had ever thought of that before. This is presented as it was with minimal editing
If you're a professional drinker, or even a serious enthusiast, then you need to take a trip to New Orleans. Nola, as it is commonly known, is part Disneyland, part Mecca for any imbiber of spirits. I've only been to New Orleans once, and it was a memorable visit for many reasons. You can find most of my trip diary on my personal blog site at www.danvado.com, but one of the things that stood out in my mind was my visit to the legendary Pat O'Brien's Bar in the French Quarter.
In 1933 Pat O'Brien turned his prohibition era speakeasy into a legitimate bar. Business was great as people flocked to the bar and Pat O's moved and expanded until it found a home in it's current location. Pat O'Brien's is actually five bars rolled into one location. There is a courtyard bar, a dueling piano bar and a bar bar. One of the things the fueled Pat O's expansion was that the bar was the place where the legendary Hurricane cocktail was born. It seems that in the mid 1940's liquors like whiskey, bourbon and scotch were in short supply and bar owners were forced (forced?) to buy large quantities of rum if they wanted to get the other stuff. As legend has it, Pat O'Brien used the rum in a new drink he called a Hurricane and placed it into the now well-known hurricane lamp-shaped glass in which the cocktail is served.
So, going to The Quarter, Pat O's was high on my list of places to visit, and I, of course, had to have a Hurricane. It was a hot and humid day (it always is in Nola) and by the time I got into Pat O's I was ready, more than ready, for a god drink. Not that I couldn't have had one before getting there, as I discovered that in the French Quarter, booze is dispensed on the street like Slurpees at a 7/11. Some stands sell Hurricanes on nearly every corner, but I waited until I got to Pat O's to try one.
Boy, was I in for a letdown. When my friends and I arrived at Pat O'Brien's, we sat in the first available bar, and I immediately asked for a Hurricane. The bartender politely turned to a refrigerator behind him and pulled out a pre-made Hurricane, plopping it in front of me (he may have added the booze, but I don't really remember). Anyway, the disappointment must have been all over my face as the bartender started offering apologies. He explained that, for the most part, only tourists ordered Hurricanes and then mostly to get the glass.
To say I was bummed would be an understatement. I was really looking forward to having a proper Hurricane in the establishment where the cocktail was born. The sickeningly sweet concoction in front of me was not the stuff that legends were made from. The bartender, whose name I have long since forgotten, took my drink from me and poured it out, giving me the souvenir glass. Then something amazing happened: he offered to make me a drink on the house. "People around here, the real drinkers, they come here for the Mint Julep, and I make the best Julep in the house." With that, he proceeded to mix what turned out to be the drink that saved my whole day (I was in New Orleans on business, and business was not going well).
The recipe goes something like this:
2 1/2 oz. Bourbon
1 Teaspoon Sugar
1 Tablespoon Water
10 to 15 MintLeaves
3 Mint Sprigs
I have seen recipes that suggest using a simple syrup or a similar substitute in place of the sugar and water mixture, but I advise against it. The process of making a Mint Julep is easy, but you need to commit to doing it right. Start by putting the mint leaves, the sugar and the water into a chilled collins glass and muddle it all together until all the mint leaves are crushed, the sugar is dissolved and everything is one nice minty sugar paste. Then you fill the glass with crushed ice and THEN you put the bourbon in and stir it all together. Use crushed ice if you can. Garnish the drink with some more mint. For the bourbon use whatever brand you like best. I am not a huge Maker's Mark fan, but I have tasted great Mint Juleps that used it. I prefer that my bourbon have a little more bite to it. I did not see what the bartender at Pat O's used, but whatever it was, it was great. I had three more that night and wound up being poured into a taxi cab. The only reason I got back to the hotel in one piece was that my traveling companion, a mountain of a man we called Monstro, threatened the cab driver with death if I did not get back to the hotel safely.
Actual death because Monstro did not play.
Use a little less mint and substitute Rum for Bourbon, and then add soda, and you've got a Mojito. Whichever, try this once using your Bourbon of choice. Give the Julep a try, though, and, as you sip it, imagine yourself as a stately Kentucky Colonel sitting at the Churchill Downs waiting for your horse to run.