Some news on the La Clandestine front. Claude-Alain Bugnon, Swiss absinthe maker, has his own website where you can buy his La Clandestine line and other fine Swiss La Bleu-style absinthes. Absinthe-Suisse.com has announce a sale, a competition and web site news:

• Anniversary Sale : you can get a great price on a three pack of La Clandestine Originale, at only US$225 including shipping. This is to celebrate the recipe's 75^th anniversary. And you can add a fourth bottle, including a version of La Clandestine Originale made with a wine base. We can also highly recommend the TA Breaux's La Blanchette.
• Birthday Photo Competition : To celebrate its second official birthday, La Clandestine is offering a nice set of gift certificates as prizes for a photo competition. Send in pictures of La Clandestine absinthes in action, and win absinthe - how can you go wrong with that?
• Reviews : You can now add customer reviews to each of the absinthe-suisse varieties, as you can see here. Log in and tell the world about these fine La Bleus.

28 Days Later... was a very good, end-of-the-word, apocalyptic, zombie flick. Megan Burns, who played Hannah, a teenage survivor, now calls herself Betty Curse and plays goth rock. She was interviewed over in the UK and was asked an absinthe question:

You're an absinthe fan. How much have you had in one go?

Half a bottle with Steven when we were writing the album. I appreciate it as a long drink when you make it properly with water and burn it with sugar in a spoon. It takes you to a different level of drunkenness when you're sensible about it. I like to drink it with cranberry juice. I invented the best cocktail in the world - absinthe, cranberry juice and Grolsch lager.

Kids these days! See what the fake Czech marketing has done to the history of absinthe? Someone needs to tell poor Betty/Megan that, in fact, burning sugar is not how to "properly" prepare absinthe. It might be the only thing to do with a bad Czech imitator, but we here at InAbsinthia would break down and cry if you tried this with a real absinthe. As for "a different level", we must admit to having the same discussion here. Some of us notice a different kind of "buzz" when drinking enough absinthe, while others don't. Whether it is physiological or psychological, you may have a similar feeling. But we're just plain happy with the taste and theater of absinthe, and do not need any promises of a legal "high" to enjoy our absinthe.

And that cocktail - Oy Vey! Again, nothing you would want to subject a real absinthe to, but it might be the only way to finish off your bottle of "Crapsinth". Tell us if you ever try it!

60 SECONDS: Betty Curse | Metro.co.uk

Charles Cros (October 1 1842 - August 9, 1888) was a French poet and inventor who came close to inventing the phonograph. But for us, he is more well known as an important part of the Paris Bohemian revolution. He was an absinthe drinker and friend of the famous imbiber Paul Verlaine (who almost killed him by pouring sulfuric acid in his drink!). Like many of his contemporaries, he lived fast, drank plenty and died young.

With Flowers, and with Women,

With Absinthe, and with this Fire,
We can divert ourselves a while,
Act out our part in some drama.
Absinthe, on a winter evening,
Lights up in green the sooty soul;

And Flowers, on the beloved,
Grow fragrant before the clear Fire.
Later, kisses lose their charm
Having lasted several seasons;
And after mutual betrayals
We part one day without a tear.

We burn letters and bouquets.
And fire takes our bower;
And if sad life is salvaged
Still there is Absinthe and its hiccups..
The portraits are eaten by flames..
Shrivelled fingers tremble..

We die from sleeping long
With Flowers, and with Women.

While on a business trip to France, a well meaning relative purchased a bottle of Absente for me as a Christmas present. We had a glass after our dinner and drinks (but before I had a chance to closely inspect the bottle). My recollection is that the taste was OK (it tasted like absinthe) but it was a little plain compared to the other absinthes I have tasted. It was only after the holiday hub-bub had died down that I became curious about name "Absente". A little research turned up the fact that Absente is made with Southern-Wormwood ("Petite Absinthe") instead of Wormwood. All the text on the bottle is in French. At the very top of the front label it reads: "Liqueur aux plantes d'absinthe". Also on the front label near the bottom, one of the ingredients is listed as "infusion et essences de plantes d'abinthe". Their web site states that Absente is legal in the U.S. because it does not contain Wormwood. I'm confused.... but I'm guessing that this stuff isn't absinthe.

A very interesting clip from the show "Modern Marvels". They did a couple of episodes on modern distillation methods and absinthe is featured in this excerpt. Mad alchemist TA Breaux and the Combier Distillery are the stars of the show and there is some great footage showing the alembics and the process. It also begins with a very nice thumbnail history of absinthe. Highly recommended!

YouTube - Jade Liqueurs absinthe at the Combier distillery

Is it possible to actually have a real absinthe come from the Czech Republic? For the most part, despite truly popularizing the absinthe "craze" in places like Britain, Czech "absinthe" is anything but. Almost universally deplored by serious absintheurs, Czech absinthe usually doesn't even get the spelling correct (calling itself 'absynth' or 'absinth'), which is a dead giveaway for a bad drink. Another hint is when the marketer insists on touting its thujone content.

But Oliva Absinthe has the patter down, with a colorful, if too neat sounding, history. The recipe looks okay and the marketing hype is muted. We'll report on any early tastings as we hear of them.

Welcome to Oliva Absinth (Oliva Absinthe) where to buy absinthe online. Yes, we make the best Czech absinth (actually, the ONLY authentic Absinthe from the Czech Republic). That's right, the best Absinthe from the Czech Republic. You can't go wrong if you buy absinthe from our online absinthe shop. We also produce the ONLY sparkling absinthe in the world, ever.

Oliva Absinth :: Buy Absinthe Online

The "flying monkeys" from the good folks at Liqueurs de France finally arrived the other day here at Chez InAbsinthia and we couldn't be happier. It took less than five days, including the weekend, from clicking the "Submit Order" button to the USPS hand delivering the package. We were a little surprised it wasn't a courier, instead a real US postman doing the delivery, but as long as it all works out well in the end, we're happy.

The box itself was rather flimsy, but each bottle was carefully wrapped in a nest of solid Styrofoam, although the Montmarte was trying to peak out the top. We ordered three bottles of absinthe - Montmartre, Eichelberger 68 Verte and La Ptite, a Swiss La Bleu. I guess we weren't paying close enough when we ordered, as we were surprised by the small 500ml bottles of Montmartre and Eichelberger, while the Ptite was 700ml. But each should be more than enough to indulge in.

And an indulgence it is, as absinthe isn't a cheap hobby! Shipping alone cost US$65, bringing the total cost of these three bottles to a staggering US$240. Thus, our cravings are only satisfied a couple of times a year. It's so much better when you are doing the ordering, as the currency used on the LdF web site is English Pounds, so it is much easier to swallow a charge of 123.50, at least until the conversion kicks in. But it was an easy and safe process, and, as mentioned, very fast, so we should have reviews on all three bottle soon.

Speaking of blanche absinthes, you too can get in on a prototype, or test brewing, blanche from the good folks at LdF (Liqueurs de France). One of the neatest things about the absinthe business is that you can try out early versions of a possible masterpiece, by purchasing test distillations. This is 'Essai 3', or third trial batch, and we've been hearing some good things about the earlier Blanche Traditionelle "Brut d'alambic" prototypes. Produced by the same distiller of the award-winning Absinthe Duplais, here's what they have to say about it:

This "essai 3" (third trial) absinthe blanche also follows the historic 'Absinthe Suisse Blanche' recipe (which does not include a final coloring step), using a single, mixed-plant alembic charge. This third batch has been modified by increasing the percentage of green anise used, while slightly reducing the fennel content. It still is being bottled without any water reduction as a full 81.3% alcohol distillate.

Kallnacher Swiss absinthe

There are two "colors" of absinthes, green and clear. While there are other disturbing colors for sale out there (red and black come to mind), these are really the only two "colors" you will see from any absinthe with a claim to authenticity. The greens range from a pale green tint, to a bright green radioactive color, while the clear ones are usually just that - perfectly clear. It all has to do with the recipe used to make the absinthe.

The famous color is, of course, green or verte, which leads to all kinds green imagery, unabashedly used even here at In Absinthia. La fee verte is the green fairy, a muse reputedly seen by many of the more bohemian authors. An important facet to any green absinthe, the shade can often be an excellent indicator to the final quality of the absinthe. Original color (ie, before louching) is an important part of the Fee Verte grading system, as a natural color is much preferable to a nuclear, artificial green. The green color comes from the last stage of making absinthe, where the final distillate is soaked once again in a mixture of green herbs like petite absinthe and hyssop. As it adds an important dimension to the taste of a good absinthe, those manufacturers that artificially color their absinthes are missing the point!

A clear absinthe comes about due using a different recipe, which generates a very clear, crystalline liquor. Most famous as the result of the Swiss process of making absinthe, it generally results in a slightly less alcoholic absinthe (around 55%, instead of the 65% or more for verte). These clear, Swiss, absinthes are often called La Bleue, for the beautiful blue-tinged louche you get from the better labels. Clear French absinthes are also known as blanche, which is more literally white.

Well, we here at inAbsinthia are assuming the recently announced PF 1901 from Jade Liqueurs will, in fact, be pure ambrosia, just like its stablemates Edouard, Verte Suisse and Nouvelle-Orleans, as we have not had a chance to get a taste of it yet. PF 1901 is a "tribute" to one of the most famous absinthes, Pernod Fils. In fact, you can still find pre-ban bottles of it for purchase, at, of course, astronomical prices. At Combier Distillery, where absintheur Ted Breaux weaves his magic, there are rebuilt original Pernod Fils alembics. Breaux has tried to recreate the taste as well in this PF1901 label.

Jade Liqueurs PF 1901 absinthe

Really nice description, with cool pictures, of an absinthe pour.  Here he is tasting the award-winning Duplais, which he really likes.  The fanciful pictures add atmosphere to the blog post. Note the lack of a burning sugar cube - yay! But he does have some very funny clown candles, which also seem to enjoy the emerald gold.

IntangibleArts: Absinthe uncorked, clowns lobotomized by fire