No, not a thrash metal band from France, however I bought some of this stuff whilst holidaying in Mallorca recently. It's 80%ABV and 160 proof. The strongest spirits I've had thus far in my sheltered life are Bacardi 151 which is tea-coloured overproof rum available in the States and some bathtub stuff called 'Hammond' that I used to buy from a West Indian guy in Chapeltown which we used to cut with regular white rum.

What exactly do I do with the absinthe? Is there some ritual involving heating sugar on a teaspoon or something similar? I'm sure the decadent set out there will have some idea.

BTW I also brought back some Marques de Riscal Rioja Grand Reserva 2004 which I am drinking at this moment and it's fecking brilliant. Beer? San Miguel Especial 5.4% ABV chilled until it's almost frozen is lush with patatas bravas and little chunks of chorizo...

GeordieLes wrote:

What exactly do I do with the absinthe? Is there some ritual involving heating sugar on a teaspoon or something similar? I'm sure the decadent set out there will have some idea.

To follow the classic ritual you'd ideally have a small pierced trowel-like absinthe spoon, but a teaspoon will suffice. Place a sugar cube on the teaspoon and rest the teaspoon on top of a thick glass. Pour your measure of absinthe onto the sugar cube allowing it to spill into the glass. Set the alcohol-soaked sugar cube alight, then pour some cold water over the 'cube to dissolve it and turn the liquor cloudy. Stir. Drink. Wait for the green (black?) fairie...

The hardcore ritual removes the water and sugar: pour measure into shot glass, set it alight and either a) cover with hand to kill flame and down in one, or b) push a straw deep into the glass (so it doesn't catch alight) and suck it up pronto. My research has taught me that the average time before the straw bursts into flames is about 1.2 - 1.4 seconds, so this isn't for the faint-hearted or the extremely drunk.

A nice variant that I came across in Berlin was to delicately pour a measure of absinthe into a long-necked light beer - usually Sol - and to sup away as normal. The absinthe remains atop the beer until you drink past the neck, and flavours the beer all the way to the bottom of the bottle. When the popularity of absinthe started to spread Kronenbourg actually introduced a special "clubber's" pack with a minature absinthe vacuum wrapped to the neck of their beer bottles. I'm guessing it didn't catch on because Kronenbourg commonly creates mild psychosis on its own.

There once was a lovely Absinthe bar towards Altona which, while it looked like something from the pages of Wallpaper*, was actually a cover for a homebrew operation. For every glass of legal absinthe you purchased Trixie 'n' Udo would present you with a glass of the basement bath tub stuff. They even had three variants, dependant on taste and strength. Bless 'em. It shut down in a few months

You've done well Les. My peers and I always rated the Spanish stuff as being the most "authentic" as it contains the highest percentage of wormwood - the psychoative substance - of any of the newer european brands. If this gibberish persuades anyone else to try absinthe the best easily available brand in the UK is La Fee.

This stuff was distilled by 'Antonio Nadal' and cost about 10 euros for a 33cl bottle and 2 absinthe glasses. They also did a purple and a green version as well as the black. I bought it in a specialist liquor shop rather than a supermarket. There was also a cannabis flavoured version on sale but not the same brand.
Your mini article was informative and entertaining (which is what I've come to expect from the contributors on this board) and I intend to try the 'absinthe experience' along with a couple of pals in the next week or so.
I'll post the results!

GeordieLes wrote:

I'll post the results!

If you have feeling left in your fingertips, of course!!!

John x

GeordieLes wrote:

There was also a cannabis flavoured version on sale but not the same brand.

The cannabis flavoured version was doing the rounds in Soho a few years back. Dreadful stuff. There isn't much in the way of booze that I wouldn't give a second chance, but that stuff was vile.

If you have to drink cannabis get a Jamaican friend to seep some weed in a bottle of Ray and Nephews overproof rum for a month or so and smuggle it over to you in a Creme de Menthe bottle. Better still have 'em FEdEx it to your school

la fee verte , my favourite one , shame france banned the proper stuff ages ago , i would have like to try it , got some czech stuff as well, but doesn t taste same as fee verte

i got a mate who brought some "black death" (80%) back from iceland ( country not shop...)
does anyone know how it s like?

This one is black & 80%. You're welcome to pop round when we crack it open. Reckon we'll try the sugar cube trick and the Kronenbourg idea as well. I'll PM you, probably next week.

Decided to try the black absinthe following Udo's suggestions. Assembled the equipment first....



Then prepared the absinthe in the 'Bohemian style'....



Then finally tried the 'Berlin Nightclub style'....



Very nice. I could manage some more 'fin de siecle' action.

Dude. If you were wearing a polka-dot dressing gown and "ironically" watching Showgirls you'd be Xeroxing a christmas of mine from two years back.

Oh, BTW. You don't need the water Berlin-Style.

We didn't use the water for the 'Berlin' style, it was there from the 'Bohemian' style previously. The dressing gown was in the wash.

why is there a proper spoon on first picture , then a common fork on the second one?

A ripple in the fabric of time.

GeordieLes wrote:

A ripple in the fabric of time.

There are nipples in the fabric of time? Why wasn't I told this before?

Sod the Dressing Gown - I was expecting a Lab Coat at least!!!

Nice piccies, Les. And where was Mrs GeordieLes when all this was going on?

John x

Not putting on a green fairie outfit that's for certain!

and up, thanks to this thread:

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you get that black absinthe in Hamburg as well, I think - this has no picture but should be the same, I remember that bottle from the shop window

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I have a bottle of the red stuff

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used it for cocktails and some shots. not too bad either but will try that absinthe bar soon!