Cocktail Culture: Savoring the Daiquiri in New Orleans

There is nothing like a daiquiri to quench your thirst during New Orleans' hot, sultry summer. No matter if it's the frozen, slushy sweet concoction or a deceptively simple three-ingredient shaken cocktail, the daiquiri strikes the perfect balance. Its history begins far from New Orleans, but is deeply seeded in NOLA as much as Bourbon Street or the Sazerac.

The daiquiri was named for the Cuban city of the same name known for its ore mines. It is in Daiquiri where the cocktail is believed to have been invented by an American engineer, Jennings Cox, who was there as part of an iron exploration in the late 1800s. He negotiated rations of tobacco and local rum (Bacardi, no surprise) for the workers, then utilized other items readily on hand: limes and sugar.

Uncomplicated and delicious, the libation eventually made it to New Orleans via Florida and Washington DC where it was introduced in the Army-Navy club. The Daiquiri worked its way west and took on a life of its own when the recipe was integrated into the frozen cocktail craze spearheaded by Mariano Martinez's 1971 invention of the frozen margarita machine. The frozen daiquiri emerged in the early 80s from founder David Briggs, Jr.'s New Orleans Original Daiquiris opened in Hammond, Louisiana. And the rest, they say, is a blur.

We headed to New Orleans to do our own research and are happy to report that the Daiquiri continues to thrive as locals pay homage to the classic and reinvent the cocktail for a new generation:

Root Squared is the casual counterpart to Square Root, a 12-course chef's tasting menu offered in an industrial setting on the historic Magazine Street, where you'll find local artisans and retailers. Root Squared's menu offers an array of housemade charcuterie, cheeses, and small plates, but it's the cocktail list that hits it out of the park. A recent visit featured a Thai basil daiquiri that utilized molecular gastronomy to freeze the herb with liquid nitrogen before incorporating into the cocktail for an aromatic pop of flavor.

Booty's Street Food is a go-to dining and drinking destination in the hip Bywater neighborhood. Booty's signature cocktail is the frozen rose water daiquiri, named the Bywater Bomber. This is the epitome of fresh without being overly sweet but you'll definitely get those floral notes. Be sure to check out the ever-changing, art installation bathrooms.

The oldest tiki bar in New Orleans, Tiki Tolteca is in the heart of the French Quarter and located above Felipes Taqueria. As you ascend the stairs you'll find yourself at the bamboo canopy bar where bartenders serve all of the classic island tiki concoctions, including the frozen Hemingway daiquiri, said to be created in Florida specifically for Ernest Hemingway and showcasing grapefruit instead of lime as the citrus element. Not for the faint of heart, the rum shines through and the sugar content is minimal. And everything tastes better in a Tiki god green ceramic mug.

Gene's Curbside Daiquiris, located on Elysian Fields Avenue, serves up the frozen kind, with a plethora of flavors such as "What the F-K," "Ha Sizzle," and the "Knees Dirty." This pink fa�ade neighborhood shop may not have the bells and whistles of culinary institutions like Commander's Palace or Arnaud's, but it's the quintessential NOLA destination for cool, refreshing (and strong) slushy deliciousness.

The French Quarter's Cane and Table brings a thoughtful, elevated cocktail program with time honored recipes alongside a modern take on classic . Try the Daisy de Santiago from their proto-tiki cocktail list. This is classically made with rum and fresh lime but also adds yellow chartreuse for herbal notes. This recipe is from the "Bar La Floridita Cocktail Book," the bar guide for Floridita, which brought the daiquiri to the mainstream.

If you want more information about the daiquiri's impact on New Orleans or any of the drinks and food that make the city an epicurean destination, make a visit to the Southern Food and Beverage Museum (SoFAB).

"Whether you drink the elegant version in a coupe poured from a silver shaker or a giant frozen daiquiri from a drive-thru, New Orleans is the best place to drink a daiquiri," says SoFAB president and director Liz Williams. "They are refreshing and tasty. No one at SoFAB is a cocktail snob. The choice you make about what to drink is based on your mood and your location. It all has a place here."