De La Louisiane
Stir ∙ 3 min ∙ 29.5% ABV ∙
The De La Louisiane is a New Orleans stirred cocktail of rye whiskey, Bénédictine, sweet vermouth, absinthe, and Creole-style bitters, served up in a coupe. Rye spice leads over a honeyed Bénédictine sweetness, with a faint licorice whisper of absinthe and a bitter herbal snap trailing into a long, dry finish.
Ingredients
1
Servings
Garnish
Instructions for 1 serving
- Pre-chill a glass
- Stir all ingredients with ice: Rye whiskey 50 mlBénédictine D.O.M. liqueur 20 mlRosso vermouth 20 mlAbsinthe 3 dashCreole-style bitters 3 dash
- Fine strain into the chilled glass
- Garnish with a maraschino cherry
Tips
- Stir for around 30 seconds over ice to fully chill and dilute this spirit-and-liqueur-heavy build before fine-straining.
- Pre-chill the coupe before straining so the drink doesn't lose its temperature the moment it's poured up.
- Add the absinthe and Creole-style bitters as dashes only, then taste — both are potent enough to overpower the rye if over-poured.
History
De La Louisiane takes its name from the Restaurant de la Louisiane, a French-Creole restaurant in New Orleans opened in 1881 by Louis Bezaudun on Iberville Street, where it served as the house cocktail. The drink first appeared in print in Stanley Clisby Arthur's 1937 book Famous New Orleans Drinks and How to Mix 'Em, which called it "the special cocktail served at Restaurant de la Louisiane" and listed it under the name Cocktail à la Louisiane, a name that later shortened to La Louisiane or De La Louisiane.
The same book also gave the first printed recipe for the similar Vieux Carré, and the two rye-and-vermouth drinks have long been compared and sometimes confused. Some New Orleans bartenders argue the restaurant's cocktail was created to rival the Vieux Carré, which had a home at the Hotel Monteleone's Carousel Bar, but no source dates the La Louisiane recipe itself before its joint 1937 appearance alongside the Vieux Carré — the rivalry claim is oral tradition among local bartenders, not a documented fact. The Restaurant de la Louisiane closed in 1932 and changed hands repeatedly afterward, and without a lasting home base of its own the cocktail faded from wide circulation while the Vieux Carré spread nationally.
FAQ
What is in a De La Louisiane?
Rye whiskey, Bénédictine, sweet (rosso) vermouth, absinthe, and Creole-style bitters, stirred with ice and fine-strained into a chilled glass, then garnished with a maraschino cherry.
How strong is a De La Louisiane?
About 29.5% ABV, making it a strong, spirit-forward drink close in strength to a Manhattan or Sazerac. Stirring with ice tempers this slightly through dilution, but it remains a bold, boozy sipper best taken slowly.
Is the De La Louisiane the same as a Vieux Carré?
No, they are different New Orleans cocktails that share a similar spirit-forward, herbal profile. The De La Louisiane is built on rye, Bénédictine, sweet vermouth, absinthe, and bitters, while a Vieux Carré adds cognac alongside rye, vermouth, and Bénédictine with a different bitters combination.
