[Mars]

I'm rather intrigued by the taboo that seems to hang over this liquor . . . could someone please enlighten me?

[Nuclear1]

To quote a great man:
http://www.tuckermax.com/archives/entries/date/the_absinthe_donuts_story.phtml#280

That devil juice is brewed from the urine of Lucifer. Now I know why Van Gogh cut off his ear and why Toulouse-Lautrec painted funny looking midgets; it wasn't mental illness, it was that goddamn absinthe.

Absinthe is a very very alcoholic liquor, but really the only reason it's "taboo" is because its banning is a relic of the prohibitionist period in the US and Europe, and then perpetuated by the false belief that absinthe was a hallucinogen. It's been legalized to some extent now, and it's making a comeback. There's a couple places you can get it from in the US, but they're fairly watered-down versions of the infamous highly-alcoholic stuff of the 1800s. 

I had some several months back, and it's nothing to joke about. If you're not used to highly-alcoholic drinks, absinthe will knock you flat on your ass. That's why it's also served in very small servings.

[captain-custard]

absinthe has a taboo because the "real" absinthe of yesteryear  (well about 90 yesteryears ago ) had a large concentration of absinthe in it ( wormwood)

the drink was linked to the bohemian society of the day and it was mainly from this that it fell under the gaze of the powers that be and from this and a quasi religous attack its demise for nealy 100 years was normal

so it has a bad reputation through rumour and misinformation




[attachment deleted by evil Tolwyn]

[Knight Templar]

I had some in Europe last Summer. I think I did at least. Wormwood ****s you. Apparently pros drink it with water and a cube of sugar.

[Darius]

I've used solutions to disinfect surgical benches with less alcohol than some of the absinthe I was drinking last year.

[Jeff Vader]

Absinthe: quite horrible but still far superior compared to Grappa. 

[Mars]

How is it different from drinking other high proof alcohols though? Does it have a distinctive flavor of anything other than ethanol?

[Splinter]

There are many brands and types of Absinthe just like vodka... I have found that all the ones I have tried (about 8 or 9 types) all tasted much like licorice very very alcoholic licorice. it differs from drinking other high proof alcohols because you can have a 100 proof bottle of vodka that is still only %40 alcohol.... The absinthe I usually find is from 75-90%.

They make some without the wormwood and they make some with less alcohol content so they are usually legal. It usually becomes hard to get or illegal if it's over 80% or if it has wormwood.

I enjoy it very much. It will burn your insides like no body's business and the first few times you try it when it hit's it blindsides you with a semi trailer but after that it's all good. Anyway try the green fairy stuff it's pretty good.

[Roanoke]

A lot of the "absinthe" nowadays is commercial crap but the proper stuff is hardcore.  I had a couple of shots on a birthday last year and for q week later it would make me feel ill just thinking about it lol

[Angelus]

To break the rather dry, but nonetheless interesting historical facts about Absinthe, i'll post a recipe for a mix drink.
Not for underaged, and not for people who never tried Absinthe!!!


This drink is called PPC ( Battletech universe), 'cause the Particle Projector Cannon is one of the most Powerful
weapons in BT.
IF you try it, you'll note that this drink packs quite a punch.
There are 5 versions of this drink, one for each faction in this Sci-Fi universe.

You need for ALL variants Strohrum ( 80% ), as alternative Absinthe ( at least 66% ).

Here we go:

4 shots Strohrum/ Absinthe

and mix with ONLY ONE of the following:

Steiner variant:

2 shots crème de menthe

Davion variant:

2 shots Whiskey or Tequila

Kurita variant:

2 shots Sake

Liao variant:

2 shots plum wine

Marik variant:

2 shots Ouzo

You can add orange juice and/ or ice, but that's a matter of your personal taste.

Grab a seat and drink fast. After a few min the feeling on your tongue will reach your brain, so BE CAREFUL!!
I'm not responsible if it blows your brain out of your head!


This will kill any bacteria or viruses in your body, ( at least the Davion variant will, haven't tested the others )

[Turambar]

Gentlemen: I present the cure for Swine Flu!

[Splinter]

We have a nasty mix that we make here don't know if it's something worldwide. To translate the name it's called "paralysis" And it's a layered shot of 1/3 aftershock 1/3 jagermeister and 1/3 absinthe (at least 80%)

[watsisname]

I bought a crap ($35) bottle of it at my local liquor store a while back just for the lulz.  It wasn't too bad, actually, assuming you like the taste of alcohol and licorice.

The 'proper' way to prepare a drink of absinthe is to pour about an ounce of the drink in a glass, place the absinthe spoon (basically a flat wedge with holes in it) over it with a sugar cube on top, and slowly pour about 2 to 3 parts ice water over the cube.  This dillutes and sweetens the drink and also causes the absinthe to change from transparent to opaque as stuff precipitates out of it.  Rather cool to watch.  If you buy absinthe and it doesn't turn cloudy upon adding water, then it's not the real thing.

Some people like to first soak the sugar cube with some absinthe and light it on fire.  It's really nothing more than modern-day bar flare, but whatever fits the occasion.  Another cool trick is to have it in a dark room with blacklights as the drink will glow intense green under UV.   

[Solatar]

Just curious; how does it relate to Greek Ouzo? That also tastes a lot like licorice, but it's not as strong as absinthe.

[Nuke]

absinthe is one of those things i always wanted to try. but its impossible to get real absinthe in the usa. but then again i think you canb get it in canada, and im not too far from canada right now.

[watsisname]

absinthe is one of those things i always wanted to try. but its impossible to get real absinthe in the usa. but then again i think you canb get it in canada, and im not too far from canada right now.

Actually, not anymore.  Absinthe, as well as the infamous wormwood ingredient, are both legal now.

[Solatar]

I thought the wormwood was still illegal? Not complaining about being wrong on that though...

[Flipside]

The thing about Wormwood is that it promotes hallucinations, there are two kinds of Absinthe, however, most exported absinthe is the 'weak' version, however, you can still get the real thing in Spain and a few other countries.

[Scooby_Doo]

Just because.... 

[Gortef]

Me and my pal bought a bottle of Absinthe some years back. Of course the brand one gets from the Liqueur store here in Fin is a bit "lame" compared to the stuff you might find in central europe, but it was strong nevertheless.

It was nothing special, didn't taste bad nor good. Of course I got drunk faster than usual, but nothing to brag about.
My friend on the other hand didn't have such a good experience. Poor bastard had to go and.. well... dispose it out of his body later in the night, when I was sleeping well and sound (ok, trying to... there was this "sound" coming from the toilet of course).

So overall, unless you get the "real" stuff it really is nothing that special. Just a strong alcoholic drink. If you happen to like the taste then good for ya.