In 28 Minutes You Will Learn How To Drink Absinthe While Avoiding Death
Absinthe, dear Green Genie. How we've seen you mature over the last few years. Once considered a novelty spirit, smuggled back from that post-college backpacking trip around Europe and brought out for late-night shots, absinthe now plays a fundamental role in the world of mixology. Only technically legal since July 17, 2007, the first time the spirit was available in the United States since its ban during Prohibition, absinthe is now produced in the U.S. (we're fond of the product from California's St. George Spirits) and found on cocktail menus from Monterey to Massapequa. It's also served straight, with great pageantry.
According to our resident spirits expert Simon Ford, absinthe should always be drunk diluted. "There is no more lavish and beautiful way to dilute the drink than with an absinthe fountain," he wrote in the story the Ultimate Guide To Drinking Absinthe And Avoiding Death. If you check out eBay, you can find vintage Belle Époque designs and modern fountains alike. For the service you will need: a glass of fine absinthe for each person, one absinthe fountain filled with chilled water, absinthe spoons and sugar cubes. The service is simple: place the spoon over a filled glass of absinthe with the sugar cube on it and sit it underneath one of the taps on the fountain. Slowly drip water over the sugar until it has dissolved. You should look to have about four to six parts water per one part absinthe.
Last week on The Speakeasy, a weekly radio show on Heritage Radio hosted by popular New York City bartender and nice guy Damon Boelte, the entire program was dedicated to discussing absinthe. Boelte welcomed Anne-Louise Marquis, brand ambassador for Pernod Absinthe, to the booth at Roberta's to talk about the history, absinthe's role in bartending and why it's the perfect warm weather spirit. Really? Apparently this is true.
Here's a link to the entire broadcast (scroll to the bottom): The Speakeasy – Episode 105 – Anne-Louise Marquis, Pernod Absinthe.
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