Thread: Absinthe- The perfect drink for Straight Razor users

Man, i must have really missed the boat on this one! Bought a bottle of the stuff with the blurry looking van Gogh type face on it, wouldn't strip old furniture with the stuff! Tried the 'pour it over' sugar bit, couldn't get enough sugar in the mix to make it palatable! A lot of people complain that Jaeger tastes too much like cough syrup, this make Jaeger taste like koolaid! In fact I tested it against some old Robitussim I had laying around in the closet, and the real cough syrup tasted better and gave a better buzz! So if the 'real' or the 'good' absynthe tastes anything like the stuff that came in the bottle I bought, I'll never be able to drink enough to see any fairies or get even close to the third stage.

just sayin...

Originally Posted by deadrift

Man, i must have really missed the boat on this one! Bought a bottle of the stuff with the blurry looking van Gogh type face on it, wouldn't strip old furniture with the stuff! Tried the 'pour it over' sugar bit, couldn't get enough sugar in the mix to make it palatable! A lot of people complain that Jaeger tastes too much like cough syrup, this make Jaeger taste like koolaid! In fact I tested it against some old Robitussim I had laying around in the closet, and the real cough syrup tasted better and gave a better buzz! So if the 'real' or the 'good' absynthe tastes anything like the stuff that came in the bottle I bought, I'll never be able to drink enough to see any fairies or get even close to the third stage.

just sayin...

I love absinthe! Living in North Carolina, however, all the liquor stores are owend by the state, so our selection is limited to 2--Absente and one other from Provence, the name of which escapes me. But my daughter spent 2 months in Provence this summer, and toured one of the absinthe distilleries there. She brought me back a sample bottle of versinthe, which is golden, rather than green, and has lovely caramel notes alongside the licorice. It louches white.

Deadrift, what you have is a bottle of Absente. From your description of your experience, I think you might have missed a step. The classic way to drink absinthe is to pour ice water over a sugar cube suspended over the absinthe on the absinthe spoon. I use 2 oz absinthe to 5 oz ice water. However, the trick is to not pour all the water at once. Just pour enough on the sugar to wet it, and let it slowly dissolve. In a few seconds, the sugar cube will start to crumble, and then you can pour the rest of the water over it. Give it a gentle stir with the spoon and enjoy. Give it another shot and see what you think (although, if you don't like licorice, you're not going to like absinthe).

Originally Posted by Durhampiper

Deadrift, what you have is a bottle of Absente. From your description of your experience, I think you might have missed a step. The classic way to drink absinthe is to pour ice water over a sugar cube suspended over the absinthe on the absinthe spoon. I use 2 oz absinthe to 5 oz ice water....

Thanks Durhampiper, that makes a lot of sense. I'm going to give it another shot now, there may still be hope (not for me but for the drink).

Originally Posted by Jimbo

Isn't Absinthe crazy juice? You are messing with fire there Glen! Fire, I tells ya!



James.

Actually, the stories of absinthe driving people insane are just that, stories, and the French wine industry may have had a hand in ginning them up. By the end of the 19th century, grape phylloxera had destroyed 2/3 of the vineyards in Europe, and the price of wine went through the roof. Folks without a lot of money (i.e., most people) turned in large numbers to absinthe instead. In 1905, a Swiss farmer named Jean Lanfray, who was a known absinthe drinker, shot his entire family to death. The newspapers around the continent claimed that he had done this under the influence of absinthe, ignoring the fact that he had also drunk several bottles of wine and other spirits during the course of the day before murdering his family. Absinthe was subsequently banned in many countries in Europe and in the U. S.

This is one of the better vids out there... Has some good info too..

How to Serve Absinthe Properly Video

Originally Posted by deadrift

Man, i must have really missed the boat on this one! Bought a bottle of the stuff with the blurry looking van Gogh type face on it, wouldn't strip old furniture with the stuff! Tried the 'pour it over' sugar bit, couldn't get enough sugar in the mix to make it palatable! A lot of people complain that Jaeger tastes too much like cough syrup, this make Jaeger taste like koolaid! In fact I tested it against some old Robitussim I had laying around in the closet, and the real cough syrup tasted better and gave a better buzz! So if the 'real' or the 'good' absynthe tastes anything like the stuff that came in the bottle I bought, I'll never be able to drink enough to see any fairies or get even close to the third stage.

just sayin...

Sounds like a bottle of the stuff (not absinthe at all actually) that touts a high thujone concentration. Not the real thing by a longshot. THat stuff would be very harsh. Real absinthe is very nice, often quite herbal & even floral tasting/smelling. The real thing gets its color from an infusion of herbs after distillation, whereas the fake stuff is often just colored w/ food dye.

Thujone is actually a convulsant (in rats) at high levels (much higher than anything you'd find in real absinthe) & in fact is mostly left behind after distillation. In actual fact, you'd be dead several times over from alcohol poisoning long before you had drunk enough absinthe to bring about any convulsant activity from the stuff.

Don't even get me started on setting it on fire... THat is NOT part of the real absinthe ritual. It's dangerous (absinthe is 60-70% alcohol)--burns, broken glassware & would ruin the taste--some of the flavors are very delicate.

The video posted above is very good for showing the real thing.

I love the real stuff & actually got a bottle of Pacifique for Christmas along w/ a balancier!

Originally Posted by Voidmonster

...I am really fond of the St. George absinthe out of San Francisco, but it's intentionally weird, and I don't like it quite enough to buy a $70 bottle...

... For blanche, it's hard to beat the value of Kubler... which doesn't cost an arm and a leg.

+1

I have a Combier Blanchette I really like--pre ban-lift buy. Fragrant, balanced, "only" 60% though. I also have a Verte de Fougerolleres from France that's equally liked, great louche. tasty. 72 percent. Kubler is easy and available as stated above. I do try to avoid coloring and/or preservatives in my Absinthe--you'd be surprised. Lucid? Eh. Doesn't really work for me. There's many I've yet to try...

And Absinthe in Costco? Who'd have imagined!

Originally Posted by kingping

+1

I have a Combier Blanchette I really like--pre ban-lift buy. Fragrant, balanced, "only" 60% though. I also have a Verte de Fougerolleres from France that's equally liked, great louche. tasty. 72 percent. Kubler is easy and available as stated above. I do try to avoid coloring and/or preservatives in my Absinthe--you'd be surprised. Lucid? Eh. Doesn't really work for me. There's many I've yet to try...

And Absinthe in Costco? Who'd have imagined!

Whoa nelly! COSTCO!? My Costco never has it!

But they did have my beloved Lagavulin 16 for $50, so I can't be too upset.

Am I correctly remembering that LDF had the Verte de Fougerolleres in the little sampler bottles? I could swear I've had it and liked it pretty good.

There's a local guy I know who makes his own. When told this before going to a party at his place, I kind of mentally rolled my eyes and imagined one of those folks who by a bottle of wormwood oil online, some green dye and a big bottle of Safeway vodka.

And then I noticed the A. absinthum growing in his front yard. He showed me around his equipment, the barn where he dries the botanicals, the piles of herbs he'd grown besides the Artemesia. I was then very happy to try his absinthe. It was very good. I wish he'd make it in quantities larger than 'here, try this'.

If you can, track down a bottle of Lemercier 72%. That is my absinthe (or abisinthe, as it is French and they still have to get through legal loopholes with spelling variations) of choice.

Nice amber (not green) colour, good louche, good mouth feel, and not so much anise that it over powers the other botanicals.

One of the things at the top of my bucket list to indulge in. I have been reading and researching this magical and romantic drink for awhile. Below is a good link. Perhaps the time has come this new year. I think I found a place locally where I can pick some up.

Absinthe at la Fée Verte's Absinthe House: Established 1997