Absinthe Cocktails

1/3 shot coffee liqueur
1/3 shot Bailey's Irish Cream
1/3 shot Absinthe

Directions/Comments: Layer all the ingredients in whisky glass.

1 oz Absinthe
1/2 oz Curacao
1 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp orange juice
1 orange slice

Directions/Comments: Stir ingredients together and pour over crushed ice in a deep-saucer champagne glass. Add an orange slice to garnish.

The Classic Preparation

1 1/2 oz. Absinthe
1 sugar cube
crushed or cracked ice

Use a tea strainer (unless you can find an Absinthe spoon, good luck!) over an old fashioned glass.  First pour the Absinthe into the glass then place the strainer, with sugar cube inside over the glass.  Pack a mound of your ice atop the sugar. When the ice has melted, the drip is ready. For those with no patience, cold water can be slowly poured over the strainer until the sugar is gone and the glass is full (this however makes for a weaker drink).

1/2 oz. Absinthe
1/2 OZ. Cointreau
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 small egg
1 teaspoon sugar
grated nutmeg

Shake ingredients well with ice. Strain into a pre-chilled Delmonico glass. Sprinkle nutmeg on top.

1 oz. Absinthe
1/2 oz. curacao
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons orange juice
1 thin slice orange

Stir ingredients and pour over crushed ice in a deep-saucer champagne glass. Add orange slice.

2 ozs. gin
1/2 oz. dry vermouth
1/8 teaspoon Absinthe

Stir well with ice. Strain into a pre-chilled cocktail glass. Very pleasant with an onion stuffed olive.  Some bartenders pour a soucon of Absinthe into the glass, swirl it around and then add the martini.

2 oz Red Absinthe
1 lime in wedges
syrup
fresh mint leaves

Directions/Comments: Muddle the ingredients in a rocks glass. Add crushed ice.

1 oz. Absinthe
3 dashes Benedictine
2 dashes Bitters
1 oz. Water

Shake well with cracked ice. Strain into cocktail glass.

1 1/2 oz Calvert Extra
2 dashes Absinthe or Anesone
3 dashes Anisette
1 dash bitters

Stir well with ice. Strain into glass. Serve with piece of pineapple on top.

1/3 Bailey's Irish Cream
1/3 Tia maria
1/4 Absinthe

First add the Bailey's Irish Cream, then the Tia Maria, and then carefully the Absinthe: Put the shot on fire and drink it with a straw, or you have another choice: When the shot is on fire you slap it to extinguish the fire and then you drink it.

1 1/2 oz. Pernod
2-3 Drops of Absinthe
2-3 Drops of Orange-Flower Water
1 Tsp. White Creme de Menthe
1 Egg White

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

1 oz. Gin
1 oz. Bourbon
3/4 oz. Absinthe

Shake with ice and strain into a Collins glass.

1 Egg White
1 Tsp. Sugar
1 oz. Absinthe
1 oz. Brandy

Shake with ice and strain into a wine glass.

1 1/2 oz. Gin
1/4 oz. Absinthe's Absinthe

Frappe in a highball glass.

1 1/2 oz. Absinthe
Juice of 1/2 Lemon
1 Tsp. Sugar
1 Egg White
Seltzer

Shake with ice and strain into a highball glass and fill with seltzer.

1/3 oz. Absinthe
2/3 oz. Dry Gin
1 Tsp. Grenadine

Shake with ice and strain into a highball glass.

2/5 Absinthe
2/5 Tequila
1/5 Grenadine syrup

first you put in the Absinthe, then the tequila, then the Grenadine syrup.

1 oz Absinthe
1 oz water
Juice of 1 lemon
2 tsp egg white
1 dash Angostura Bitters

Directions/Comments: Shake ingredients thoroughly with ice. Strain into a cocktail glass and serve.

1 tsp Sugar
1-1/2 oz Rye whiskey
1 Dash Herbsaint, Pernod or Absinthe
2 dashes Peychaud bitters
2 dashes Angostura bitters
1 Lemon peel twist
Crushed Ice

Chill an Old Fashioned glass by filling with crushed ice. In another glass mix the sugar with the bitters dissolving the sugar. Add some ice, stirring to chill. In the Old Fashioned glass remove the ice and pour in the Absinthe coating the entire glass. Remove the excess Absinthe.  Add the Rye Whiskey and bitters/sugar mixture. Add the Lemon Twist.

1 tsp crumbled wormwood
1 cup vodka
2 Tbsp chopped peppermint leaves
1 piece of lemon peel, 3/4" x 2"
1/3-1/2 cup sugar syrup

Steep wormwood in vodka for 48 hours. Strain out and add peppermint leaves and lemon peel. Steep for 8 days, strain and sweeten. Smells good but is more bitter than #1.

1 1/2 oz. Absinthe
1 oz. Water
1/4 Tsp. Powdered Sugar
1 Dash of Orange Bitters

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

4th Estate Cocktail

1/3 oz. French Vermouth
1/3 oz. Italian Vermouth
1/3 oz. Gin
4 Dashes Absinthe

Layer in a shot glass.

1 oz chartreuse
1 oz Absinthe
1 oz green Curacao
Milk

Directions/Comments: Build in a highball glass. Stir thoroughly and fill with ice cold milk.

1 oz tequila
2 oz Absinthe

Directions/Comments: Just pour into a shooter glass.

3 oz gin
1/2 oz Absinthe
1/2 oz Grand Mariner
dry vermouth

Directions/Comments: Properly chill 1 cocktail glass and swirl with 1/2 oz of dry vermouth. In a mixing glass with ice, shake together the gin and Absinthe. Pour into prepared glass.

1 oz. Cognac
1/2 oz. Cointreau
Dash of Bitters
1 oz. Absinthe

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

4 tsp crumbled wormwood
2 cup vodka
2 Tbsp chopped peppermint leaves
2 tsp. anise seed
1 piece of lemon peel, 3/4" x 2"
2 1/2-3 cup sugar syrup
5 tsp melissa
half a handful of liqourice root

Steep wormwood in vodka for 48 hours. Strain out and add peppermint leaves and lemon peel. crush all seeds then add.  Steep for 8 days, strain and sweeten.  Add a sugar cube before serving.

1 pint vodka
2 tsp crumbled wormwood (dried)
2 tsp anise seed
1/2 tsp fennel seed
4 cardomom pods
1 tsp majoram
1/2 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp chopped angelica root
1 2/3 cups sugar syrup

Place vodka in large jar with tight fitting lid. Add wormwood and shake well; steep 48 hrs and strain out. Crush seeds and pods in mortar. Add them and all remaining spices to vodka and steep in a warm place 1 week. Filter and sweeten. (The sugar syrup mentioned above is your standard simple syrup.)

1 ounce of wormwood
1 ounce wormwood powder
1/4 ounce crushed anise seed.
1 bottle of store bought oil of anise seed.
1/2 ounce of fennel
2 pinches of dill (for precursor oils)
2 Pinches of Parsley (for essential oils)

One 750ml bottle of Clear Spring 190 (dilute before drinking!!)

Put in medium Large French Press (for coffee usually).
Let sit for a day. Then press repeatedly. After each press, shake or stir it up so its all free floating and not pressed down.
Do this daily for 2 weeks.. It should be a dark green oil after the 2nd day.
After 2 weeks, I pressed it and poured a half ounce into a glass with 2 tsp of sugar. Then pour water equal to amount poured or until desired.

Pedra

1/6 Tequila
1/6 Vodka
1/6 Black rum
1/6 Bailey's Irish Cream
1/6 Grenadine syrup
1/6 Absinthe

First put the tequila, then the vodka, then the black rum, then the Bailey's Irish Cream, then the Granadine syrup and then mix this five elements so that the drink become pink, to finish add the Absinthe using a spoon. Light the shot on fire and drink it with a straw, or you have another choice:  When the shot is on fire you slap it to extinguish the fire and then you drink it.

All herbs are dried.

2 tsp peppermint
2 tsp dried wormwood
2 tsp thyme
2 tsp lavender
2 tsp hyssop
2 tsp majoram
2 tsp sage
2 pints port

Steep herbs one week, filter and bottle. My notes describe this as "bitter, aromatic and potent". ** Absinthe #3 ** >From Arnold's article in Scientific American: An 1855 recipe from Pontarlier, France, gives the following instructions for making Absinthe: Macerate 2.5 kilograms of dried wormwood, 5 kilograms of anise and 5 kilograms of fennel in 95 liters of 85 percent ethanol by volume. Let the mixture steep for at least 12 hours in the pot of a double boiler. Add 45 liters of water and apply heat; collect 95 liters of distillate. To 40 liters of the distillate, add 1 kilogram of Roman wormwood, 1 kilogram of hyssop and 500 grams of lemon balm, all of which have been dried and finely divided. Extract at a moderate temperature, then siphon off the liquor, filter, and reunite it with the remaining 55 liters of distillate. Dilute with water to produce approximately 100 liters of Absinthe with a final alcohol concentration of 74 percent by volume (4).

Dick's Absinthe (Distilled)

30 g wormwood
8.5 g hyssop
1.8 g calamus
6.0 g melissa
30 g anise
25 g fennel seed
10 g star anise
3.2 g coriander

Put the dry herbs in a large jar. Dampen slightly. Add 800 milliliters of 85-95 percent alcohol. Wine spirits make a better product than pure grain alcohol. Let steep for several days - a week is better -shaking occasionally. Then add 600 milliliters of water and let the whole macerate for another day.  Decant off the liquid squeezing as much from the mass of herb as possible. Wet the herbs with some vodka and squeeze again. Recipe should give a little over a liter and a half of green liquor. It must then be distilled.  Color the distillate by again adding:

4.2 g mint
1.1 g melissa
3.0 g wormwood
1.0 g citron peel
4.2 g liquorice root

Let the herbs macerate for another three or four days. Decant, filter, bottle. Concentrated sugar syrup can be added.

1 oz Absinthe
1/2 oz amaretto
Bailey's or other Irish cream liqueur
grenadine

Substituting Absinthe for 151 rum: In a shot glass, start with the amaretto. Then using the back of a spoon, dribble the Absinthe down the inside of the glass, layering it on top of the amaretto. Using the spoon again, slowly pour in the Bailey's, letting it curl into a cloud on top of the amaretto. Sprinkle a couple drops of grenadine ("blood") on top. It should look vaguely like a brain floating in formaldehyde. (Also known as a "Brain Hemorrhage"). Best tossed back in one gulp. An awesome way to serve Absinthe shots.

 2 oz Absinthe
One splash anisette
1/2 oz white creme de menthe
One raw egg white

Named in honor of a "Swiss Girl," make this one by pouring everything into your cocktail mixer with ice and shaking vigorously, then strain into a chilled cocktail glass. If you can't find white creme de menthe, use clear creme de menthe and add a splash of heavy cream (it's supposed to be white-ish). If it is still too strong, add a splash of club soda.
My personal variation: pour over white ice cubes in a glass goblet. Dust with nutmeg, and garnish with a sprig of fresh wormwood, two green straws, and a Swiss flag. Make the white ice cubes by pouring a little milk into the ice cube tray with water and freezing well ahead of time.

2 oz Absinthe
Sour mix
1/2 oz Gran Marnier or triple sec
Lime juice
wedge lime
Splash tequila

Just substitute Absinthe for tequila. Salt the rim, fill glass with ice. Pour in the Absinthe and sour mix. Splash in some tequila just to kill the odor and taste of the Absinthe. Float the triple sec. Garnish with lime. Salud!

2 oz Absinthe
Bloody Mary mix (spicy tomato juice)
Splash Tabasco sauce
Splash Worcestershire sauce
Sand and pepper
1 jumbo shrimp

My favorite bloody Mary variation made with Absinthe: Fill cocktail glass with ice. Pour in Absinthe and bloody Mary mix. Add the Worcestershire and Tabasco. Salt and pepper it. Garnish with the shrimp. For a great impression, use brown ice cubes made with Worcestershire dribbled into the water in an ice tray and frozen ahead of time.

One ounce dried chopped wormwood
One tablespoon angelica root
One teaspoon hyssop
One half teaspoon coriander seeds
One quarter teaspoon caraway seeds
One pinch cardomon pods
One tablespoon fennel or anise seeds
750 ml. 100 proof vodka

In a glass container add the wormwood to the vodka. Set aside in the dark for ten days. For extra-powerful Absinthe, use Everclear or 151 rum instead of vodka. This will give you an authentic green-colored tincture (the green comes from the chlorophyll, and does not indicate the presence of the active ingredient, thujone). 100 proof vodka works best. Then strain out the wormwood and add all the remaining herbs and spices. Wait four more days, then strain these out and serve. Best if drunk straight in short shots with water chasers. If trying Everclear (actually not recommended), dribble a little in a tall glass with ice and sour mix or cranberry juice.

Warnings: Avoid prolonged and excessive use. Not for pregnant women as it can cause miscarriage, birth defects, and abortion. Highly addictive and can cause brain damage. Illegal to sell in final form. 

Degas Absinth

Wormwood

Notes on the Psychopharmacology of Absinthe

The effects of Absinthe. It contains the same active ingredients as distilled Absinthe and has the same effects. Now, what are these effects? I describe them as a cross between pot, ecstasy, cocaine, strong coffee, and vodka.

The effects of Absinthe than thujone, namely the highly-complex synergistic effect of a psychoactive cocktail. Other ingredients in the recipe have their own reputations. Angelica root is crewed as a drug in Lapland. Anise and fennel seed both contain potentially psychoactive anethole. Caraway seeds are reputed aphrodisiacs and the basis of the German liqueur kummel. Coriander is mentioned as an aphrodisiac in the Arabic One Thousand and One Nights, and is said to conjure up the devil when used in combination with fennel in the same text. Other recipes call for hops, a sedative and hypnotic, and calamus root, which contains psychoactive asarones, used as an inebriant by Native Americans. And then there is the hyssop, a nervine. Add it all up, the sum may be greater than the whole.

Conversely, the negative effects of Absinthe may also have to do with ingredients other than thujone. Everyone has read of the old Absinthe ritual involving pouring Absinthe over sugar cubes and ending with the Absinthe turning milky as cold water is added to it. Competitors with Pernod flooded the market with imitation Absinthe made by mixing industrial alcohol with flavorings, copper sulfate for the green color, and antimony trichloride to make it turn milky when water was added. These ersatz Absinthes were neurotoxic, and the syndrome called absinthism may have actually been due to copper sulfate and antimony trichloride poisoning (as well as the 150 proof).

Black Devil: substitute Absinthe for the rum. Vermouth is white wine flavored with wormwood.

Dirty Martini: substitute Absinthe for the gin. Basically, same as above with a splash of brine from the olive jar. Makes you say, "Ugh."

Screaming Banshee: substitute Absinthe for the vodka (basically a shot of Absinthe added to a Banshee).

Frappe (Hawaiian ice): Absinthe over shaved ice with the flavoring of your choice (lime juice, pineapple juice, grenadine, etc.)