 Wormwood, an ingredient used to create the long-banned spirit absinthe. Pic: Robert Galbraith
August 12, 2008 11:45 PM
By Teresa Carson
PORTLAND, Oregon - The tiny Portland distillery Integrity Spirits has put its sought-after craft vodka and gin on the back burner to brew up something in high demand these days: absinthe.
Other distillers are also scrambling to fill orders as sales across the US surge for the long-banned spirit affectionately called "the green fairy."
"There are about six or seven brands of absinthe available now, and I expect 20 to 25 by year-end," said Brian Robinson, a member of the Wormwood Society, a group of absinthe aficionados.
Austrian distillery Fischer announced in July it would soon
begin exporting to the United States an absinthe called Mata
Hari. Also last month, Grande Absente from France hit US
shelves.
Sale of absinthe was prohibited for nearly 100 years in the
United States and some European countries, damned for its
now-debunked hallucinogenic and addictive properties.
Associated with famous artists such as Vincent Van Gogh,
Edgar Allen Poe and Edgar Degas, absinthe's identification with
the Bohemian artistic set in the late 19th and early 20th
centuries lent an aura of romance.
The bans on absinthe have been slowly lifted around the
world and the United States approved the first absinthe for
sale last year.
Part of absinthe's allure is the ritual serving.
Historically absinthe was served in a distinctively-shaped
glass, with sugar cube on a slotted spoon over the top of the
glass. Ice water was poured over the cube.
The water hitting the absinthe makes the delicate green go
cloudy, a phenomenon known as louche.
Distillers speak lovingly of the challenge of crafting
absinthe with its complex mix of herbs including grande
wormwood, hyssop, fennel and anise.
"It is layered, complex and beautiful when it is at its
best," said Lance Winters, master distiller at St George
Spirits, Alameda, California. "I consider it the peak of the
distiller's art form."
Enthusiasts say the traditional sugar cube is no longer
necessary because improved distilling has eliminated absinthe's
bitterness.
IN WELL-STOCKED BAR
The green fairy packs a punch. Absinthe is generally at
least 120 proof, meaning it is 60 per cent or more alcohol,
compared with about 40 per cent for vodka, for example. The
licorice-tasting spirit is most often a pretty lime green, but
also comes clear and in several colors.
And the romance of absinthe doesn't come cheaply. The cost
of a bottle of absinthe ranges from about $50 to over $100.
Now, it is showing up in cocktails at trendy bars across
the country. Daniel Shoemaker, owner and mixologist at
Portland's stylish Teardrop Lounge, is creating new absinthe
cocktails like the Ex Nihilo, which features gin and vermouth.
He is also reinventing some of the absinthe classic cocktails
such as the Monkey Gland and the Earthquake.
"It is such a hot item right now," said Rich Phillips of
small-batch distiller Integrity, which now has two of its three
stills devoted to its Trillium absinthe.
St George, the first US distiller to sell absinthe,
produces 6000 bottles per batch and is already on it's seventh
batch of its Absinthe Verte since the December roll-out. After
the first batch went on sale, "we had a line of people out
into the parking lot," Winters said.
Imports are also surging. Worldwide sales of Swiss-made
Kubler Absinthe have quadrupled in the past six months, driven
by a surge in demand from US consumers, said Joyce Sevilla, a
US spokeswoman for Kubler.
No one is predicting that absinthe will ever outsell vodka
or other mainstream spirits. But most experts think it will
have a permanent place in a well-stocked bar.
"I love absinthe," said Shoemaker, the mixologist. "I
really like the flavor in a well-mixed cocktail."
(Reuters Life!)
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