Myths still fuel absinthe’s allure

Published 6:14 pm Thursday, July 30, 2015

Were you to line up famous scapegoats, along with the biblical Eve, hapless Cubs fan Steve Bartman and Mrs. O’Leary’s arsonist cow, you’d have to give a nod to absinthe, the bitter, anise-and-fennel-flavored liquor. It’s the most excoriated alcohol in history. While gin was once known as Mother’s Ruin, only absinthe has been tried — if only in the court of public opinion — for actual murders.

The bibulous may know the story: When a laborer in Switzerland killed his wife and daughters in 1905 after drinking absinthe, the outcry was enormous. Suspicions about absinthe and its connection to an artsy, dissolute bohemian set had swirled for years. That the man in question was a notorious alcoholic who had imbibed a Sea World tank’s worth of other booze leading up to the crime made no nevermind: A petition was circulated, and absinthe was outlawed in Switzerland. Similar interdictions followed in multiple European countries; in the United States, a ban on absinthe preceded full nationwide Prohibition by eight years.

That was the history Brian Robinson of the Wormwood Society related to a group at Libertine in D.C. in June. The Wormwood Society works to debunk the tangle of misinformation about absinthe, which has been legally available in the United States since 2007, and Robinson provided some historical context for the new absinthe from Mt. Defiance Cidery and Distillery in Middleburg, Virginia.

Robinson estimates there are around 50 domestic absinthes now. Mt. Defiance’s is a classic old-French-style spirit, he says, “which is why it has such a clean flavor. It doesn’t have a bunch of stuff competing” on the palate.

Absinthe’s long-controversial ingredient (the scape-herb, if you will) is Artemisia absinthium — grand wormwood — which contains thujone, a component related to menthol. Thujone in massive quantities can cause convulsions, but legal absinthe contains less than 10 parts per million.

“You’ll get more thujone from the sage in your Thanksgiving stuffing” than from absinthe, Robinson says.

Peter Ahlf, Mt. Defiance’s distiller, had a similar story when I later visited the distillery. “I have a hard time imagining how someone could screw up the distillation process badly enough” to even come close to the legal thujone limit, he said.

The appeal of making absinthe, Ahlf says, was partly its intriguing backstory: “its popularity in the belle epoque … the long ban and then its return.” He thought that making absinthe would help Mt. Defiance stand out among the crowd of start-up distillers: Production of the drink is “a fussy process,” one not many have the patience to do right.

To experience absinthe, some don’ts: Don’t sip it straight; it’s high-proof, so although you might get some of the flavor that way, mostly you’ll get an anesthetized tongue. And please, don’t set it on fire. That’s largely a Czech Republic gimmick, one that seems to have been devised to hide the fact that many Czech absinthes aren’t true absinthes and are best when you don’t actually taste them. Try real stuff like Mt. Defiance’s in a Sazerac, the classic water-drip-through-sugar-cube preparation, or a cooling Absinthe Frappe (see below).

Sipping Mt. Defiance’s absinthe, clouded from water dripped in — the louche that’s one of the signs of a true absinthe — I think the swirl of art, myth and notoriety creates a psychosomatic effect that still has power. The liquor came off the still only recently, but I feel as if I’m sipping something very old.

Absinthe frappe

Ice, crushed and cubes

8 to 10 mint leaves, for muddling, plus a spring of mint for garnish

11/2 ounces absinthe

1/4 to 1/2 ounce simple syrup (see note)

2 ounces club soda

You can either shake this, as described here, or drop these ingredients in a blender for a slushie (see below) that would make Oscar Wilde proud.

Fill a highball glass with crushed ice.

Muddle the mint leaves (to taste) gently at the bottom of a cocktail shaker. Add the absinthe and the simple syrup (to taste), then fill with ice cubes. Shake vigorously for 10 to 20 seconds, then strain into the glass.

Top with club soda; stir gently to combine. Garnish with a sprig of mint.

Variation: For a smoother, mintier version, combine the absinthe, simple syrup and mint in a blender, then add 11/2 cups of ice; puree until smooth. Pour into a highball glass, top with the club soda, stir gently and garnish with a sprig of mint.

Note: To make the 2:1 simple syrup, combine 1 cup of sugar and 1/2 cup of water in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Bring to a slow, rolling boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 5 minutes. Transfer the syrup to a heatproof container; cool to room temperature before using.

Makes 1 serving.

Nutrition 5/8 Per serving: 170 calories, 0g protein, 21g carbohydrates, 0g fat, 0g saturated fat, 0mg cholesterol, 15mg sodium, 0g dietary fiber, 21g sugar