September starts out big in New Orleans (with Southern Decadence the first weekend) and then there’s a major festival gap until Deutsches Haus’ Oktoberfest, now in Metairie until a new facility is built along Bayou St. John, which begins toward the end of the month.
For the most part, September is just a bit of a mess. We anxiously await cooler weather. Yet while the average high temperature in August is 91 degrees, it only drops to 87 degrees in September. September is our wettest month, probably due to the fact that we’re still in hurricane season, and historically September is the busiest month for those dreaded storms.
Football is here at all levels, but it hasn’t yet reached a fevered pace, as there’s still a lot of season after September.
(Even the name of the month is cockeyed; “sept” means seven, but September is the ninth month.)
At least the wee ones are back in school, the universities are going full-force and there seems to be more order to life in September than there was “way” back in August.
Maybe settling down with a fine beverage in an excellent dining establishment and pondering the meaning of it all makes some sense. Coquette Bistro, located at the corner of Magazine Street and Washington Avenue in the Garden District, is just the spot for such reverie and reflection. The recommended beverage is the creation of head bartender, Ali Mills, who may be able to help you work through the mysteries of September.
Higher Education
1 1/2 ounces Plymouth Gin
1 ounce Cocchi Americano
1/4 ounce Branca Menta
1/4 ounce fresh lemon juice
Mix all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled martini glass and garnish with a single blade of sage.
