Try Absynthe

I tried it yesterday. Hills brand.
I don’t know why…..but I was drinking it like I would scotch! Had for quick glasses. Goes down easy but I didn’t know you were supposed to take it small doses. I drank 500ML of a 700Ml bottle.
Then Boom! Holy…flying Monkeys is that stuff strong!
It does not get you drunk…..it makes you kookoo.
I think I’ll like it in small doses….but I’m never doing THAT again!...lol….live and learn.

I indulged while in Cesky Krumlov last September, figuring I couldn’t well leave the Czech Republic (where it’s legal) without giving it a try. No hallucinations or anything, but it’s a potent drink nonetheless. It went down very smooth and I enjoyed the taste. (The only downside was just that absinthe is notably more expensive than Czech beer, which is also quite good…)

yesterday that a coworker has tried it, and loved it. he said he had hallucinations. not too sure if that’s accurate, but he suggested some brands to try and brands to avoid that are in line with what i’ve heard elsewhere.
even better- he’s up for splitting an order for a few bottles. i found a website that doesn’t seem sketchy, but they’re in europe. he seems pretty enthusiastic about this, so maybe we’ll get this done in the very near future.

(ps-i’m skipping work right now)

i did this at the roskilde festival in 2006.
can’t remember much.
not sure if i liked it.
i was already kind of wasted, though.

so there I was in a mini-mart in Vientiane, Laos of all places and it was on the shelf. This particular brand (Pere Kermann) is from France. Always wanted to try it as did my partner. So I bought it. Not a big deal but it does have a nice taste. We’ll buy a few more bottles just in case they run out. I’ll get the correct glasses and spoons to go with it on the next trip home. New rituals are always fun. Much better than the local home brewed spirits (lao lao). And I will probably mix it with some locally grown ‘herbs’ to increase the green coloring ;-)

i’ve been reading some entries of people who’ve had absinthe, and i’ve spoken to one or two of them, and i find this motivating.
the legality of absinthe (here in canada) is not totally clear. the liquor stores in montreal sell a brand called versinthe that contains very low thujon, which is part of the appeal, (uh, the higher thujon content, that is) so it doesn’t seem like i’ll be going that route.
after some time googling various key phrases, and reading lots of interesting stuff, i’ve narrowed it down to three brands:

-strong 68
-moulin vert
-mata hari

i’ve also grown tired of searching canada customs’ impossible-to-navigate website, so i think i’ll just chance it and hope to not lose an expensive bottle of much-anticipated liquor to customs. there are several sites that sell these brands, but most do not ship to canada for that reason. this will probably be easier once i become an eccentric millionaire, but i will purchase one bottle within the next 14 days.

p.s. i’ve also learned that the correct spelling is ‘absinthe’, not ‘absynthe’.

It does taste pretty bad at first, but if you’ve gotten good quality stuff and you’ve gotten enough in you, you get a kind of euphoric feeling that isn’t just the alcohol.
We’ve done it like this; put a sugar cube on a slotted spoon and then pour the stuff over it into a small cup with ice. Let it melt a little, and then sip it.
To the best of my knowledge it is illegal in the US. If you have a friend who’s a pretty good alchemist it isn’t difficult to make.
I think it’s worth trying mostly because of the cultural aspect of the drink and it’s history. It’s not something I would recommend using on a regular basis, as it is known to cause some problems.

I found out you can order it online and have it shipped to the US from overseas. I got a bottle of a Czech variety called Absinthe Original. It tastes pretty horrible (don’t buy the crap on the bottle about it comparing with fine French cognacs), but if you mix it right it can be pretty good (the best I’ve tried so far was one shot of absinthe, one shot of rasberry/cranberry juice in a rocks glass with ice, fill to the top with ginger ale, then splash with lime juice). Research after the fact says that Spanish and French absinthes are likely superior, so I hope to try those when we visit Spain later this year. It is indeed very strong, but you don’t seem to get sloppy drunk like with regular booze. It also made me very sleepy, but pleasantly so.

it’s strong, but it’s damn good!

I have heard from multiple sources that this stuff is nasty & isn’t really worth all the hype. So, I am quitting this goal. It’s not worth pursuing & taking up space on my list. If I happen to come across it then I’ll try it, but not pursuing it.