The Hurricane was invented at Pat O'Brien's in New Orleans. Click photo for larger image.

No city in America -- or around the world for that matter -- is more synonymous with the cocktail than New Orleans, specifically its French Quarter, where for generations millions of beaded revelers have let the good times roll along Bourbon Street with not a care in the world.

Be it Mardi Gras in winter, Jazzfest in May, or just any old Monday in September, The Big Easy was ready for a party. To that end, we dedicate this week's Wine and Spirits column to the drinks that made New Orleans famous. Mix them up at home or ask your bartender to shake them up for you. Then raise a glass and propose a toast to those who live in New Orleans, those who love New Orleans and those whose strength of spirit will rebuild the city.

The history and recipes come to us from Yuri Kato of New York City, founder and publisher of cocktailtimes.com, one of the most comprehensive sites on the Web devoted to cocktails and their history.

Hurricane

The most famous of New Orleans cocktails is, by far, the Hurricane, invented during World War II at Pat O'Brien's, one of the most popular bars in the French Quarter. In those days, whiskey was in short supply, but rum wasn't. The drink got its name because it's served in a glass shaped like a hurricane lamp.

• 2 ounces light rum
  
• 2 ounces dark rum
  
• 2 ounces passion fruit juice
  
• 1 ounce orange juice
  
• 1/2 ounce fresh lime juice
  
• 1 tablespoon simple syrup
  
• 1 tablespoon grenadine

Shake all the ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and strain into a hurricane glass. Garnish with a cherry and orange slice.

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Sazerac Cocktail

	The Sazerac Cocktail is said to have been first served in an egg cup.

There are any number of stories about how the term cocktail came into the language, but in New Orleans they say it was because of the Sazerac Cocktail, a drink invented in the 18th century by pharmacist Antoine Amedee Peychaud. Legend has it that the drink was served in a tiny French egg cup called a coquetier.

• 2 ounces rye whiskey or bourbon
  
• Dash or two of bitters
  
• 1/4 ounce Pernod
  
• 1 tablespoon simple syrup or 1 sugar cube

Shake all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and strain into an old-fashioned glass. Garnish with a lemon peel.

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Ramos Gin Fizz (aka New Orleans Fizz)

Henry C. Ramos invented this drink at the Imperial Cabinet Saloon in 1888. He bought the Stag Saloon in 1907 and legend has it people there waited an hour to get served the drink. The recipe was kept secret until Prohibition. It's a popular hangover cure.

• 2 ounces gin
  
• 1/2 ounce fresh lemon juice
  
• 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
  
• 2 ounces cream or half-and-half
  
• 2 drops orange flower water*

Shake all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Strain into a collins glass.

* Orange flower water is a light, non-alcoholic derivative of the oil of orange blossoms and is used as a flavoring in drinks.

One of the newest jewels of the French Quarter was the Museum of the American Cocktail, opened six months ago inside the famous Pharmacy Museum on Chartres Street until a permanent location could be found.

The museum was designed to take visitors through the creation and evolution of the cocktail in the early 1800s, through Prohibition to modern times. Chris McMillian, one of the founders of the museum, tells us that police in the French Quarter have kept a close eye on the collections at both museums.

"To the best of our knowledge everything's intact and in good condition," McMillian said. "As soon as we can get into the Quarter and get the exhibit, we're moving it."

The temporary home for the cocktail museum will be in Commander's Palace restaurant in the Aladdin Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, one of several restaurants owned by New Orleans' Brennan family. For museum updates: www.museumoftheamericancocktail.org.