Thread: Absinthe- The perfect drink for Straight Razor users

I mean seriously this is our perfect drink, (regardless of the spelling of it) it has a history,that is filled with myth, and conjecture...
It has all types of methods of use, and tons of cool hardware to buy and collect..
It has many different types of consumers, from the the retro aficionados to the new folks that just think it a cool old fad..

So anyone else here have a love affair with the "Green Fairy" ???



What brands do you like, and how do you prepare them???
Have you read about the history of this much maligned and mis-understood spirit???

I've only tried Absente (which I like)

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



James.

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

I tried it "the classic" way mixed with water and sugar some years back when it returned to the marked, didn't care much for it then, maybe I should try again now that I've lived a few more years.

It's definitely an acquired taste, that's for sure. Mix Jägermeister, anisette, and licorice, then add some radiator seal for body.

Seriously, I've drank it in several absinthe bars and it's as much about the presentation as it is about the taste. YMMV.

The Irish playwright, novelist, and poet Oscar Wilde, a great champion of the "green fairy" said "The first stage is like ordinary drinking, the second when you begin to see monstrous and cruel things, but if you can persevere you will enter in upon the third stage where you see things that you want to see."

Of course he could have been talking about the upcoming primaries.

I tried absinthe a few times over in Europe, and loved it. I'm not very familiar with the commercial brands that are available in the States, so I would also be intereted to hear some recommendations-- from what I hear, there's nothing worse than getting your hands on a bad absinthe.

The only problem with Absinthe here in the States is that it isn't true Absinthe due to the illegality of using wormwood which is a main ingrediant(and the semi-hallucinigen) in European Absinthe. The taste however is very much the same and tastes great poured over a sugar cube into a glass of ice.

Just did some quick fact checking and saw that it is now legal to sell Absinthe made with wormwood now in the States. Before it was only Absinthe flavored and colored drinks.

Originally Posted by Zephyr

I tried it "the classic" way mixed with water and sugar some years back when it returned to the marked, didn't care much for it then, maybe I should try again now that I've lived a few more years.

I like it, but never tried it the "classic" way. I see a Absinthe review session coming up!