# Absinthe **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 20, 2019, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121 "2019-12-20T02:10:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2019, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/21 "2019-12-20T20:46:11Z")
The sazerac is my wife’s favorite cocktail, and made with absinthe, Peychaud’s bitters and sugar in the raw, they are a thing of beauty. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2019, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/22 "2019-12-20T20:58:22Z")
I read a Maxim article when the magazine first came out (before it was ONLY soft ore porn) that recommended [This one](http://www.czechabsinth.com/eshop_02.htm) so I ordered it. Tastes like utter shit. I would imagine if room temperature Jagermeister was considered a sipping beverage by someone, this would appeal. Anyway, I felt no strange buzz after a few shots but did get sick and voluntarily puked in the toilet to end the experience. And this was in my mid20’s, when I was in top drinking form. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2019, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/23 "2019-12-20T21:11:33Z")
> [@Sitnam](#): > > I would imagine if room temperature Jagermeister was considered a sipping beverage by someone, this would appeal. You don’t hang out with enough Omas. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2019, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/24 "2019-12-20T21:49:53Z")
> [@Arkcon](#): > > Thank you for the reference. That would help, if someone wanted to really replicate the recipes intelligently. Likely the people linked above. > > Thanks, but I don’t really want to. According to wikipedia (sigh, I know) the psychoactive effects are mis-attributed to thujone. Thujone is a GABA antagonist, and is only going to cause spasms and convulsions. Wikipedia ref: [Thujone - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thujone#Pharmacology), with inline references. > > And if I want to taste anise, I’ll drink anisette. Or just have some anise. So what would it do to me, since I take gabapentin? though i am disinclined to try it because i hate anise … but i have always stated that i am willing to try pretty much anything that i am not actively allergic to or have already determined I dislike with the exception of mobile slime and insects [snails/slugs] as I know I am eat-phobic about certain things [want to get me to vomit? make me watch any filmed scene of squirming maggots and then try to feed me rice] ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2019, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/25 "2019-12-20T23:47:58Z")
Is it true that since the ban, its absinthe makes the heart grow fonder? ---
**Author:** ![Tatterdemalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/43a26b/32.png) [@Tatterdemalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tatterdemalion)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/26 "2019-12-21T03:04:39Z")
> [@Two\_Many\_Cats](#): > > Is it true that since the ban, its absinthe makes the heart grow fonder? It has an unfortunate effect on the digestion. It makes the fart go “honda” ---
**Author:** ![BMax](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bmax/32/4267_2.png) [@BMax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMax)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/27 "2019-12-21T14:29:32Z")
I should have read all the way through the thread before responding. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/28 "2019-12-21T14:38:24Z")
I picked up a bottle in Prague. I also had some at a bar there, with the whole “burning sugarcube on a slotted spoon” schtick that did nothing to enhance my enjoyment. It tastes like NyQuil and has the same buzz ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/29 "2019-12-21T15:09:13Z")
> [@Horatio\_Hellpop](#): > > I picked up a bottle in Prague. I also had some at a bar there, with the whole “burning sugarcube on a slotted spoon” schtick that did nothing to enhance my enjoyment. It tastes like NyQuil and has the same buzz Yeah, that’s the Czech style. The ones I tasted reminded me of mint mouthwash more than anything else. The dominant flavor in Spanish/French/Swiss absinthes should be anise/licorice. (Which, as I said before, is a turnoff anyway for a lot of people.) And the burning sugarcube schtick is also a Czech ritual, as far as I know; the French don’t serve it that way. French is served with water dripped through a sugar cube and the drink watered down significantly. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2019, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/30 "2019-12-21T15:14:25Z")
Incidentally, I found this rather fascinating thread (at least to me) while looking up Hill’s Absinthe the other day. It was on an absinthe aficionado website and one of the relatives of the Hill’s business started a thread defending his company’s Czech/Bohemian style absinthe, and the discussion gets a bit heated, but ultimately quite informative in terms of absinthe history and historical flavor profiles and the such. Maybe only a food/drink geek like me will find it interesting, but I slogged through almost all 11 pages of that thread. ETA: [I guess a link would help](http://wormwoodsociety.org/forums/topic/2493-hills-czech-style-absinth/). ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/32 "2019-12-22T12:39:54Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Yeah, that’s the Czech style. The ones I tasted reminded me of mint mouthwash more than anything else. The dominant flavor in Spanish/French/Swiss absinthes should be anise/licorice. (Which, as I said before, is a turnoff anyway for a lot of people.) And the burning sugarcube schtick is also a Czech ritual, as far as I know; the French don’t serve it that way. French is served with water dripped through a sugar cube and the drink watered down significantly. That sounds like the way I had Pernod once. ---
**Author:** ![swampspruce](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/swampspruce/32/261_2.png) [@swampspruce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/swampspruce)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2019, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/33 "2019-12-23T03:58:33Z")
When I was younger and far dumber I drank 1/2 a bottle of czech absinthe once. Started diluted with the sugar cube and drank the other 1/4 straight. Much puking and the most whacked out dreams i think I’ve ever had. Dreaming lucidly while drunk is nowhere near as much fun as you think it might be. Sazeracs on the other hand are the bee’s knees when done right. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2019, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/34 "2019-12-23T04:41:36Z")
The _idea_ of Absinthe is incredibly appealing to me - the color, the ritual, the mystique. But, of all the flavors in all the bars in all the world, the one I detest the most is licorice. I find it vile and gag-inducing\*. So, no Absinthe for me. [\* Here’s me at the bar, trying some. But, no seconds.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ok5l26Fs0LI) ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2019, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/35 "2019-12-23T15:13:27Z")
> [@Horatio\_Hellpop](#): > > That sounds like the way I had Pernod once. As for Pernod, here’s my method: 1. Fill a shot glass with Pernod. 2. Sip it until it’s gone. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2019, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/36 "2019-12-23T16:33:18Z")
> [@Horatio\_Hellpop](#): > > That sounds like the way I had Pernod once. Yes, that’s very much like it (and Pernod also sells absinthe, as Pernod Absinthe Superieure.) The idea is that you add water to release its essential oils or whatnot and bring out all the flavor and aromas. (And also to diluter the drink. I find anisette a nice, summertime drink when diluted 4:1 with water. Absinthe usually weighs in at around 140 proof so, yeah, you want to water that down.) When you add water to it, the drink “louches,” turns a milky white from the reaction with the anise oils. Many of the Czech brands do not louche, as they have low to no anise content. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2019, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/37 "2019-12-23T17:35:13Z")
> **[Anethole](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anethole)** > > Anethole (also known as anise camphor) is an organic compound that is widely used as a flavoring substance. It is a derivative of phenylpropene, a type of aromatic compound that occurs widely in nature, in essential oils. It is in the class of phenylpropanoid organic compounds. It contributes a large component of the odor and flavor of anise and fennel (both in the botanical family Apiaceae), anise myrtle (Myrtaceae), liquorice (Fabaceae), magnolia blossoms, and star anise (Schisandraceae). Cl An... Anethole is the prime chemical responsible for the clouding. It’s not a reaction; anethole just isn’t soluble above a certain water content. Often when this happens with other chemicals, the dissolved component will “oil out” and form a slick on top or a puddle on the bottom, depending on the solvent and relative densities. But in this case it forms a unusually (to me) stable emulsion. ETA anethole is also responsible for the licorice flavor. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2019, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/38 "2019-12-23T17:42:50Z")
> [@Ruken](#): > > It’s not a reaction; anethole just isn’t soluble above a certain water content. Ah, thanks for the correction! ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2019, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/39 "2019-12-23T18:41:01Z")
We’ll, it’s not a reaction in the chemical reaction sense. I’m not sure I can say the word doesn’t get used in other ways that might apply here. ---
**Author:** ![RioRico](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f04885/32.png) [@RioRico](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RioRico)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2019, 7:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/40 "2019-12-24T07:52:49Z")
Albert Camus offering a sip of the Green Fairy to Henry Fonda: “Absinthe makes the heart glow, Fonda.” Shoot me now. ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2020, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121/41 "2020-01-11T00:57:21Z")
Many years ago, Mick Jagger caught Hugh Grant having a tryst with Dennis Weaver. Mick said, “Hey Hugh, get off of McCloud!” …um, okay, um…they were all drinking absinthe at the time. Yeah, now it fits… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/absinthe/845121.md?page=1)