The company was founded after the purchase of a bar known as the Sazerac Coffee House in 1869 by Thomas H. Handy. The Sazerac Coffee House had been named after a cocktail called the Sazerac that was created in the mid-1800s by the Creole immigrant Antoine Amédée Peychaud, who operated a pharmacy on Royal Street in the French Quarter of New Orleans in 1838.
In 2009, the company's principal office was moved to Louisville, Kentucky, reflecting an increased company focus on bourbon whiskey production. However, the Sazerac Company still maintains an active presence in the New Orleans area, and it also has operations in numerous other US cities as well as a presence in France.
