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PalQ Nov 4th, 2004 01:30 PM

Absinthe? Do you imbibe in the Green Fairy?
 
A New York Times article today talked about absinthe, the legendary drink of choice for artists like Van Gogh and millions of European in the late 1800s, is being re-legalized in Switzerland starting in Jan. Absinthe has never been made illegal in Spain, Portugal and Czech Republic and France, the UK, Austria, Sweden, Canada and Netherlands apparently have a legal diluted form of it. But Switzerland is making it legal in a more potent form, potent that is in the content of wormwood extract, which imports to it the chemical thujone (30-35 mg vs 10 mg in diluted)The center of production historically was in the Swiss and French Jura and today the Swiss Jura is sprouting producers who imitate production of the old days. Producers are even asking for a special appellation to be conferred on their product, making it, like Champagne, the only authentic absinthe because it's produced in the place where it historically was.
Soon perhaps, like Bordeaux wine houses, these absinthe houses will be tourist meccas? When absinthe was legal and drunk in copious amounts be folks it was associated with causing madness - Van Gogh being a poster boy for that, probably wrongly as his madness is now that to have little to do with drinking absinthe and perhaps more with the lead in his paints he used to nibble on, though experts do thing that large amounts of thujone can lead to hallucinations and brain damage. Absinthe was made illegal after a much-publicized incident when an absinthe factory worker killed his wife and children 100 years ago. Absinthe was first produced in 1797 by Henri-Louis Pernod. If you go into a cafe today and ask for a Pernod, you get the successor to absinthe that Pernod produced after absinthe was banned - today's concoction still turns a creamy color after you pour water into it but has no thujone in, just anise-liquer. Soon you may well be able to get the real thing as Absinthe is being re-legalized.
Have you ever drunk absinthe? Will you?

elaine Nov 4th, 2004 01:33 PM

doubt it, I don't like the bitter drinks that were invented as absinthe substitutes, like Pernod and Ricard

cigalechanta Nov 4th, 2004 03:11 PM

Yes, I like it very much as my pastis is my summer drink of choice.

kebanks Nov 4th, 2004 03:33 PM

I've drank it on a number of occasions, and it is quite a bit like pastis. Sadly, no hallucinations.

walkinaround Nov 4th, 2004 04:11 PM

i drink it occasionally and have a bottle in my cabinet. as it is legal where i live, there is no "forbidden fruit" effect and it is just a drink -- a strong one but just a drink.

caroline_edinburgh Nov 5th, 2004 03:19 AM

I've drunk it in the UK a couple of times and while I understood it no longer contains the dangerous ingredient, it certainly had a weird effect on me (as what you might call a seasoned drinker, if you were being polite :-) ). It had much more of an effect on me than that amount of alcohol would normally, and the top half of my head went numb after 2 glasses. Don't actually remember the taste but the main point of the excercise was really the entertaining ritual with the sugar, teaspoon, setting it on fire, etc. (Sounds like heroin, doesn't it ? Hmm... )

BlueSwimmer Nov 5th, 2004 05:26 AM

I love the flavor of anise, so like Cigalechanta, pastis and water is my summer drink. My DH and I have dubbed it "the cloud" for the cloudy way it looks, and for the delightful effect, like you are floating on a licorice-scented cloud.

Yum, I want one now and it is 9:30 in the morning in November.

For those of you still out in the dating world/bar scene, a Pernod, a Ricard or even a Sambuca in a pinch, gives you fresh breath if you meet that special someone:)

I've tried a single absinthe in Paris, and it left me grinning like an idiot, but I am a true lightweight.

I got a similar effect when I had two, yes two, herbsaints (the Louisiana "cousin" to absinthe) at Susan Spicer's restaurant, Herbsaint, in New Orleans that is named after the drink.

BTW, if you are ever in New Orleans, Herbsaint is a wonderful place for a special dinner.

Just be careful...apparently two herbsaints, a bottle of white with the appetizers and a bottle of red with the main course is a little too much for one couple to drink. But hey, at least it is a little more refined than getting drunk on Hurricanes and getting an up-close look at the French Quarter gutters.

SuzieC Nov 5th, 2004 05:43 AM

I have tried it. Although I was told the stuff I was drinking was from the old Czech republic... I think though I prefer the pastis and water...
Pernod was always in my house when I was growing up, along with Chartreuse which I can't stand! Blech.

MelissaHI Nov 5th, 2004 10:45 PM

I tried it--with the sugar and water, too, although instead of making it 4 parts water to 1 part Absinthe, I made it 1 to 1. No hallucinations, though!

weber6560 Nov 6th, 2004 06:01 PM


As a child in the late '40's, I THINK I remember going into the Old Absinthe House [NO] with my parents and being shown "dimples" in the marble bar that "were from the Absinthe". Am I hallucinating without benefit of drink?

cigalechanta Nov 6th, 2004 06:07 PM

No, that is true but....buy the book:
Absinthe-history in a bottle by Barnaby Conrad, and no they NEVER light the sugar. I was amazed to see how many forums on Absinthe one time when I googled to buy on line.

easytraveler Nov 6th, 2004 06:17 PM

Absinthe makes the heart grow fonder. :)

Sorry, never touch the stuff.

amp322 Nov 6th, 2004 07:37 PM

Tried some in Prague at a jazz club, a few years back. They served it with sugar & a match. I was confused, and just took the shot straight up. Well, I almost gagged to death, and will not touch the stuff again, unless I perfect the art of lighting hard liquor on fire!??!!! (Supposedly you warm the sugar up & put it in the drink, or something like that..) Until then .. ((b))

machin Nov 6th, 2004 08:03 PM

Drinking Absinthe

How to drink absinthe. For those of you who are new to absinthe, the traditional method for tasting absinthe is with water and sugar. The water is used to dilute the alcohol, and the sugar is used to mask the bitterness of the absinthium (wormwood) and other oils.

The traditional ritual for serving absinthe is to pour ice-cold water over a cube of sugar that is resting on a slotted spoon. The slotted spoon is suspended over a glass with a portion of absinthe. The cold water dissolves the sugar, both entering the glass to mix with the absinthe. As the cold water mixes with the absinthe, it clouds, this effect is called the "louche".

Most absinthes produced today are already sweet and adding sugar may obscure the wonderful flavors that the distiller intended for you to enjoy.

Here are a few ways to enjoy absinthe:

Traditional - This is when absinthe is served with water and sugar. Typically five portions of water to one portion of absinthe and a cube of sugar. This method of serving absinthe produces a thin-sweet mixture.

Winston's Traditional - This is when absinthe is served with water and sugar similar to the traditional method. Instead of five portions of water to one portion of absinthe and a cube of sugar, we use three portions of water with one portion of absinthe and a cube of sugar is optional. This less diluted style brings out the flavors that hardcore absinthe lovers will enjoy.

Neat - This is when absinthe is served straight at room temperature. We enjoy tasting absinthe in this manor in small amounts.

Short - This is when we use one portion water, one portion absinthe, and served with a cube of ice. The small amount of water produces the louche and brings out the aromatics. This is my personal favorite way to drink "sip" absinthe.

Winston's Van Gogh Crazy - This is a straight shot of absinthe served with a cube of sugar. For rip-roaring parties! Ear protection a must.



la Fée Verte - the Green Fairy


Giovanna Nov 6th, 2004 09:25 PM

The closest I've come to absinthe is admiring the painting "The Absinthe Drinkers." Suppose we could have tried it in Prague but didn't, but I love Pernod, Ouzo and less so Anisette.

amp322 Nov 7th, 2004 06:24 AM

Dear Green Fairy,

Thank you for sharing your expertise, but your recipies are causing me overwhelming confusion, even when I am freshly sober at 10:30 in the morning! :-) Is there some sort of diagram I can follow, with pictures of where the absinthe, sugar, water, and fire go?? I still say stick to some straight up Slivovice. Or better yet... cerny pivo.... ((b))

Tulips Nov 7th, 2004 09:17 AM

I have never tried it, but do know that silver absinthe spoons can sometimes be found in antique markets. They are very collectible; and much better as a souvenir than a mini eiffel tower!

Surfergirl Nov 7th, 2004 10:11 AM

amp -- go see Alfie. Susan Sarandon serves it up to Jude Law.

BTilke Nov 7th, 2004 11:59 AM

You can buy new slotted spoons as well. We picked up a pair in Bourges, along with a few bottles of artisanal absinth (no wormwood).
One of our favorite places to drink Absente (one of the wormwood free varieties) is in Baden-Baden, Germany, in the piano bar at the Dorint Hotel across from the casino. Very cheerful staff and they enjoy making a show of using special glasses, the slotted spoons, dipping the sugar cube in the Absente and then lighting it with a match, letting the sugar slowly melt into the drink. There are usually a few Russians in the bar who also enjoy the display and then strike up a conversation and order another round for everybody.

cigalechanta Nov 7th, 2004 02:35 PM

Sugar cubes are not lit up by regular users. If you buy the Absenthe (pastis) available here., it comes with the slotted spoon.


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