Absinthe
A herbal and refreshing aperitif & bitters cocktail ∙ Shake ∙ 3 min ∙ 11.1% ABV ∙
The Absinthe cocktail is absinthe shaken with chilled water and sugar syrup, a shaken version of the classic absinthe drip, served in a coupe.
Ingredients
1
Servings
Garnish
Instructions for 1 serving
- Pre-chill a glass
- Shake all ingredients with ice: Absinthe 30 mlChilled water 75 mlSugar syrup 10 ml
- Fine strain into the chilled glass
- Garnish with a mint leaf
Tips
- Keep the 75 ml of water well chilled, so the shake gets the drink cold without watering it down further.
History
Absinthe is a high-proof anise-and-wormwood spirit generally traced to Couvet, in Switzerland's Val-de-Travers region, in the late 18th century. Popular legend credits Dr. Pierre Ordinaire, a French physician who had fled the French Revolution, with formulating the recipe around 1792 from wormwood and other botanicals macerated in grape spirit. Some accounts hold that the Henriod sisters of Couvet, his housekeepers, were already producing a similar wormwood elixir before his arrival, citing evidence that an absinthe extract was sold in Couvet as early as 1769. In 1797 Major Daniel-Henri Dubied acquired the recipe from the sisters, building a distillery with his son and son-in-law Henry-Louis Pernod. In 1805 Pernod established his own factory, Pernod Fils, across the border in Pontarlier, France, chiefly to avoid French import taxes, and that town became absinthe's commercial capital.
The drink served here borrows from the traditional French preparation, in which absinthe is diluted with iced water and a touch of sugar, but mixes it in a shaker. The water causes the spirit's oils to cloud into the characteristic milky "louche."
FAQ
What do you mix with absinthe?
Cold water and a little sugar, most often, to soften its bitterness. This recipe does exactly that: 30 ml absinthe, 75 ml chilled water and 10 ml sugar syrup, shaken and strained into a coupe. Absinthe also turns up in classics like the Sazerac, as a rinse rather than a main ingredient.
What is absinthe and why was it banned?
Absinthe is a high-proof spirit distilled with anise, wormwood and other botanicals. It was banned in much of Europe and the United States in the early 20th century over fears that thujone, a compound in wormwood, caused hallucinations and madness. Those fears are now considered largely exaggerated, and absinthe has been legal again in most countries, including the US, since the mid-2000s.
What is the proper way to drink absinthe?
The traditional way is the absinthe drip: a sugar cube is set on a slotted spoon over a glass of absinthe. Ice water is dripped through it until the drink clouds and dilutes, usually to about a 1:3 or 1:4 ratio of absinthe to water. This cocktail follows that same logic in shaken form, combining absinthe, chilled water, and sugar syrup rather than dripping it table-side.
