In the czech-republic, absinthe is still legal. I know it..I tried it...here's my cautionary tale...messy, messy, messy evening!

http://www.mcdougalladventures.com/c...wn-ninja-style

Enjoy!

Are you Amy McDougall from "everybody loves Raymond"? In this case I'm not surprised your evening was messy

Love your website!
In the back of my mind (waaay back) I have always wanted to try absinthe ever since I came across the Degas painting. At the time I felt just like the lady in the photo looked!
Thanks for the website.

haha! Nope, not that McDougall...but still one practiced in messy evenings!

Thanks for visiting! SeaUrchin, I know EXACTLY what you mean!

A few years ago, we flew to Lisbon for the express purpose of drinking absinthe, and it was like drinking mouthwash -- we drank quite a bit and none of us had any hallucinations (maybe you need to drink it over several days or weeks). I was underwhelmed.

There's absinthe, and then there's absinthe. I don't think the kind of absinthe luckykat was drinking in Prague is legal in London. I know it's not in France, where they have in the past few years "reintroduced absinthe." But it's not the real thing. It may taste like absinthe, but it has little if any of the effects of absinthe.

In fact, luckykat, come to think of it you two sort of have the same expression! lol, love your story.

Hi L,

Well, a shot of 140 proof liquor mixed with sugar will jolt anyone; especially after a few beers.

Since most true absinthe is 110 to 140 proof, the alcohol will get you long before you feel any real effects from the wormwood.

That being said, I like the stuff. When sweetened and mixed with water, it's often like Pernod (or Ouzo, or other anise-based alcohol) but with more kick! Just beware of Ninjas!!

I believe that Czech and Spanish alcohols sold as absinthe are not true absinthe even though they say absinthe on the label. That is, they do not have high enough concentrations of thujone, the active ingredient in wormwood, although they have very high concentrations of alcohol. The absinthe made in France by Francois Guy is, "only" 90 proof yet it is very high in thujone. I have read that only in France and in Switzerland is it possible to buy products consdered true absinthe.

Absinthe is a drink of legend -- nearly all legend. Latest information shows that the level of thujone is same as back when, that is, too small to make difference. The proof is high. It appears that the vivid descriptions of its effects are due to vivid personalities (artists and writers) giving vivid accounts of their boozing.

Nice website and pictures. Enjoyed reading about your adventures.

Thanks to everyone for the comments! I'm delighted you enjoyed reading my stuff. I love writing it!

I figured it might also be prudent to disperse some facts amongst my poetic rantings

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absinthe for all the information you never wanted to know!

I'll try and think of some more funny stories. I live an extremely ridiculous life so I don't think it will be hard!

This is a good reason to fly out of Amsterdam. We were able to purchase the 160 proof stuff there. And believe me, I do get hallucinations on it! (But I am an artist, so maybe that explains it, but DH is a musician and it doesn't even affect him at all!)

DD took us to a place in Siena where they had what they claimed to be "the real stuff" and I believe them (but again, it didn't affect DH.) They made a big production of lighting it and all, which was part of the fun.

I have a half bottle left...maybe this is a hint to indulge. Maybe I will...not so sure I'll be back for awhile if I do (lol) >

My son and daughter both tried it in Amsterdam and were not that impressed. Neither had hallucinations, but my daughter threw up. Of course both of them are adults, but my son still teases my daughter about that!

I ordered absinthe in a Prague jazz club years ago. Having only heard about it, I had NO idea what to do with the sugar & matches that the waiter brought along with it. I figured you just pour the sugar in, and the matches were for cigs, or something! Anyway, I just chugged the drink sans sugar, and almost died on the spot. Horrible!!! From then on, I've only ordered beer when in Prague!

Ugh! Nasty. It's bad enough with the sugar!