There is interest in Absinthe, the drink known as the Green Fairy. People want to know what type to buy, how to buy it, how to prepare it and what is the recommended amount of Absinthe to use when preparing a drink.
First you need to buy quality Absinthe, rich in essential oils and which contains wormwood. There are Absinthe substitute and fake Absinthes on sale that contain southernwood or roman wormwood instead of common wormwood (artemisia absinthium). Be sure you buy a proper real Absinthe. For those who have a hard time finding good quality Absinthe then you can make your won Absinthe using essences from AbsintheKit.com.
Once you have got your Absinthe, you will need to learn The Ritual called La Louche. This is the traditional French or Swiss way of preparing Absinthe and it uses one shot of Absinthe. Here are the instructions:-
You need the following to perform the Ritural, lump of suger, a slotted Absinthe spoon, iced water and and Absinthe glass.
– Pour 25-50ml of Absinthe into the glass.
– Rest the Absinthe spoon over the rim of the glass and place a cube of sugar on it.
– Slowly drip iced water over the sugar either by dripping from the tap of the fountain or by using a steady hand to pour from a carafe. Dripping it slowly gives the sugar a chance to dissolve and drip through the slots of the spoon. You will see a “louche” effect as the water mixes into the alcohol. The drink louches because the oils of the herbs are soluble in alcohol but not in water and so make the mixture cloudy when water is added.
– Sit back and enjoy your drink.
The Czech or Bohemian Method is very similar to the Ritual but is a modern way of preparing cheap Czech Absinthes. Absinthe follwers generally scorn the Bohemian method.
The Bohemian method – tips and instructions:-
– Pour 25-50ml of Absinthe into the glass and dip the cube of sugar into the Absinthe and soak the sugar.
– Place the sugar cube on the Absinthe spoon and rest the spoon on the rim of the glass.
– To allow the sugar to melt and carmelize, set the sugar cube on fire for one minute. The sugar will drip through the slots of the Absinthe spoon and into the Absinthe.
– Put the spoon into the glass while pouring the iced water into the Absinthe to put out flames and to cause the Absinthe to louche.
– Enjoy your Absinthe drink.
To properly enjoy your Absinthe then you will want some Absinthiana – Absinthe glasses, spoons and even an Absinthe fountain to control the flow of the water. Replicas of antique spoons and glasses can be purchased from AbsintheKit.com.
So, when preparing Absinthe drink, what is the recommended amount of Absinthe to use? About 45ml or a US shot. You can search online for recipes to use Absinthe in cocktails.