BATON ROUGE, La. – The Louisiana Senate on Tuesday rejected a proposal to honor the New Orleans cocktail known as the Sazerac.
The bill by Sen. Ed Murray would have made the whiskey-based beverage the official state cocktail. Murray, D-New Orleans, noted that the drink was created in his home city and has become world famous.
But Sen. Buddy Shaw and several other senators said it was inappropriate to honor an alcoholic beverage.
"Is there a possibility that we could be encouraging folks, who were not intending to drink, that it would be acceptable and they could become an alcoholic?" Shaw asked.
"No," Murray replied.
Others speaking in opposition were Sens. Jody Amedee, D-Gonzales, John Smith, D-Leesville, and Gerald Long, R-Natchitoches. All three said passing the bill would "send the wrong message" about the state.
The bill won just eight votes of support, five of them from senators who represent the New Orleans area. Twenty-seven senators voted against it.
A Sazerac contains whiskey, sugar, bitters and absinthe, or a substitute anise-flavored liquor.
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