H T N O M E H T OF Mixed by Jill Rowe/Staff Writer
For this particular cocktail of the month, let’s head back to 1918 for a New Orleans classic, the grasshopper. This electric green cocktail is sure to help you kick those winter blues out the door and usher in the spring!
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The grasshopper is such a fun drink it only makes sense it comes from the birthplace of cocktails, New Orleans. Around 1910 Philibert Guichet’s family purchased the Tujague. The Tujague, established in 1856, is the second oldest restaurant in New Orleans, the birthplace of brunch, and home to the oldest stand-up bar in America. It is also said that liquid spirits aren’t the only ones found at the establishment. Owners, staff, and patrons have many stories featuring ghostly and unexplainable encounters. Ghosts tend to go to places they frequented when they were alive, so I’ll likely end up at Vortex Alley Brewing in my afterlife. Philibert Guichet, proprietor and bartender of the Tujague, submitted his recipe for the grasshopper into a New York cocktail competition around 1918, where he secured second place. No one knows who took first place, but it wouldn’t be a good cocktail story without some fuzzy parts. Regardless, he added the cocktail to the menu, and it has remained a winner at Tujague’s bar ever since. The traditional recipe for the grasshopper is equal parts Crème de menthe, Crème de cacao, and heavy cream. There have been many grasshopper variations in the century since it was first created. For many Midwest drinkers, the quintessential grasshopper is a blended dessert drink, swapping the heavy cream out for ice cream. You may choose to boost the alcohol content by adding a float of Brandy, giving the sweetness a slightly fruity undertone and a bit more of a kick. This beautiful green cocktail is a great after-dinner drink that doubles as dessert! It’s also great for St. Patrick’s Day with its bright green color. Although there’s nothing Irish about it, here in America, we equate anything green with being Irish, so sip, enjoy and celebrate!
44 March 2022
