Definitely one of the highlights of the trip was our Cocktail Tour we went on. This little sassafras of a lady from N.O. named Sandy led our yankee asses around to some of the biggest tourist traps best bars in the city. Actually, they were touristy I guess, but even the tourist traps in N.O. seem way cooler and more local friendly than the same types of places elsewhere.

On the tour we got to sample Pim’s Cup, the Sazarac, and of course the Hurricane. You’d think that after Katrina, that drink would be banned, but nevertheless, the vodka/hawaiian punch stomach ache of a drink persists! I also was educated on what bitters are when Sandy ordered some bitters and club soda.  I thought bitters were some form of alcohol, so I got one as well. Turns out, there is no alcohol content, but some sort of stomach healing properties said to cure indigestion. So, I gulped it down with high hopes of it curing any existing damage to my alcohol filled innards.

This was our krewe. They were surprisingly all 50+

Legend holds a ghost comes there to drink the wine left out for him every night.  How do I get one of these ghosts in my house?

Audrey and I forcing down some corn syrup infused hurricanes.

This place was pretty cool… we wound up going back for brunch a couple of days later…

The fountain outside was frozen. Sandy said it was the first time in all her pub crawls she’s seen it frozen. I proceeded to eat an icicle, which Sandy insisted would give me a stomach ache. She turned out to be right and I listened to her for the rest of the night.

Antoine’s is bad ass. So bad ass, pretty much every president since it opened has eaten there. They have all these hidden rooms where you can eat, drink, cheat, sleep, smoke, marry, whatever in.

Hermes is the bar at Antoines… here we were introduced to the sazarac.

This is a hidden room we came into.  The photos on the wall feature the yearly kings of mardi gras from the 1840’s until today!

This is a costume the queen of mardi gras wears…

The bombay club offers a wide selection of martinis.

I opted for a dirty vodka one. The next morning, this particular beverage was determined to be the blame for my killer hangover and Audrey’s non-existent one.

This was one of the more weird things on the tour. That dude is that woman’s son, but they had only met for the first time the previous day! He was put up for adoption years ago, found his mom, and proceeded to take her on a cocktail tour! Congrats!

The Old Absinthe House was where Audrey and I headed after the tour was over and it was quite literally the end of the night mentally, physically, spiritually.

This pic is dark, but noteworthy because it was an absinthe cocktail and one of few beverages in my lifetime that I failed to finish. I even put it in a “go cup,” took it with us on our drunken march to the hotel, and wound up throwing it in the trash. Nothing makes you more regretful than absinthe I’m afraid.

More tomorrow on N.O. and the ensuing hangover recovery.