I’m not writing here to cry over past times anyway, but to make a bit of clarification on absinthe glasses: What is an absinthe glass? Who really used them? Why there were so many different designs?

Don’t worry, I don’t intend to write a book right now, just a few lines about absinthe glasses, and the ways and customs of their use.

First, you have to know that the most popular absinthe glasses used in Belle Époque bistros were the simplest ones. The Yvonne, Swirl, East, Egg and Mazagran glasses are the ones we see on almost all 19th century photos and postcards. The reason is evident: they were sturdy and multi-usage, which was very convenient for the bartender.

However, “simplest” doesn’t mean unattractive or unimportant. For example, when you start looking at the variety of Egg glasses, you realize how beautiful a simple glass can be:

So what about Cordon, Pontarlier, Bubble and Cup glasses then?

They’re all part of the “reservoir” family which came a bit later, at the end of the 19th century for most of them, and we believe they were primarily used in bourgeois cafés and restaurants where each glass had a unique use, and sophisticated glasses could afford to be broken from time to time.

Don’t forget however, that absinthe was also consumed at home, by the working class and the middle class. This explains why from time to time, we see pairs or full sets of antique absinthe glasses made of crystal for example.

We still don’t know everything about absinthe glasses. We have a lot more to discover from old documents and photographs. We are still learning, which is part of the fun in my opinion 

Yours truly,

Marc – Antiques collector and nitpicker

Absinthe was already drunk since decades when perforated absinthe spoons appeared in 1875-1880. What was commonly used by absintheurs back in 1840 or 1850 then?
The answer is shown in this sketch from Marie-Claude Delahaye’s book “L’Absinthe – Ses dessinateurs de presse”:

Before 1875-1880, absinthe was drunk using long spoons, also called “Mazagran” spoons. There was no real absinthe ritual as we know it when using perforated spoons, water was – most of the time – gently poured into the absinthe glass and then sugar was directly added and stirred using a long spoon. In other cases, sugar was directly placed on the spoon before water was poured.
Here is a 19th catalog showing an 18 centimetres absinthe spoon:

Perforated spoons appeared at the time when absinthe became highly fashionable – for both women and men – and when silversmiths thought about a way to turn the green hour into something a bit more entertaining.

Our friends at Absinthe Originals offers early absinthe spoons, a must-have for any collector of absinthe antiques who wants to own a piece of history from when the green fairy was drunk that way:

Day 1 – The maceration

A distillation naturally starts with the herbs themselves. Each dried herb has to be carefully weighed following a precise recipe, a recipe dating to 1804 in the case of Absinthe Sauvage.
No big secret here, small quantities of herbs are weighed on a precision scales using a bowl, whereas big quantities – such as green anise, wormwood and fennel – are weighed with a professional electronic scales.

Herbs storage room. Dominique Rousselet (Emile Pernot's master distiller) is using a bowl and a measure to collect small quantities of herbs.

An important ingredient in absinthe: fennel, here in both whole and powdered form.

Once all the herbs are ready, alcohol and water are added in the steam-heated Egrot still.

Sugar-beet alcohol at 96°.

The herbs are then added and mixed with the alcohol/water.

Yes, sometimes I do the dirty job too...

The alembic can now be sealed. The alcohol and herbs will macerate at room temperature all night long.

Not a small baby isn’t it?

Day 2 – The distillation

The following morning, at 7am, the alembic is heated and the distillation starts. It takes around 2 hours to heat the alembic to the required temperature.

The dual Egrot alembics. The larger alembic has a capacity of 900 liters whereas the smaller can hold 200 liters. Both are jacketed with wood and topped by a traditionally shaped “chapiteau” (copper lid), which leads the alcohol vapors via copper pipe up to a rectifying ball above the condenser. The condenser then turns the vapors into a liquid which then flows into a copper tank.

The distillation process takes the whole day, during which the temperature within the alembic is very carefully supervised. If too cold, no absinthe will come out of the pipe. If too hot, the herbs are ‘burnt’ and not only is the absinthe ruined but there is a risk of destroying the lovely century-old alembic.

One another critical step during the distillation is the supervision of “heads” and “tails”. Heads are what come out of the alembic first and tails are what come out last, both are unwanted, only the clear and clean distillate is kept. Around 4 liters of heads are discarded and around 25-30 liters of tails are collected in a tank for future re-distillations. The very last tails are discarded.

The hydrometer measures alcohol, and helps supervising the whole distillation process. When it starts to fall down to 50°, you better be ready to quickly turn off the valve as it means that the tails are coming very soon!

Day 3 – The coloration

Coloration is accomplished by maceration of a percentage of the clear distillate with the colouring herbs. They can be added loose or in “tea bags” which makes filtration afterwards easier.

Tea bags in clear distillate.

The alembic is then sealed and heated until the surface of the copper lid becomes too hot to comfortably touch (from 50-55°c). Then the mixture is allowed to cool, before being removed and filtered.

The whole coloration step lasts only 1 or 2 hours, an over-coloured absinthe can easily get unbalanced and unpleasant. The next step is the filtration which removes all sediments left by the coloration.

The multi-layer filter.

The coloured absinthe is then mixed back with the remaining clear distillate to make the final product. Only water is added right before bottling the absinthe, the alcohol percentage has to fall down to 68% for the Sauvage 1804.

And the very last step is of course the tasting, the easiest and most pleasant part of the job

The absinthe is bright emerald-green right after the colouring step but will fade slightly in the first few weeks of ageing.

Hope you enjoyed this little report on the Sauvage 1804 distillation at Emile Pernot!

We’re delighted with the praise given in this little box. Although naturally we couldn’t agree more with the sentiments expressed, it was still totally unexpected!

Zubrsinthe is an absinthe that is distilled, as you might expect, with anise and wormwood, but also a something unique. Read on!

Zubrsinthe with a European Bison Woodcut Print

This is where it gets interesting… Rather than colour and flavour Zubrsinthe with the traditional combination of hyssop and roman wormwood, Zubrsinthe is infused with an aromatic variety of grass, known as Sweetgrass, or Bison Grass. This imparts a unique flavour (imposible to pin down, nonetheless wonderful) and an impressive shade of green. Bison grass gets its name from the European bison, or wisent, which seeks this particular grass out over others, and I can understand why!
The most famous use of bison grass is in the vodka Zubrówka – where a blade of the grass is left in the bottle. Bizarrely, the original version of this vodka is not available in the US! We can of course get Zubrsinthe absinthe to you almost anywhere you are in the world.

…and if you wondered where the name came from: Żubr is the Polish word for the European bison, and the ‘sinthe’ comes from, well… from our favourite spirit.

For more information, visit the Zubrsinthe page at Absinthes.com

Bonne santé! Na zdrowie! Your health!

Andrew.

Markus – our verdict: beautiful.

We’re proud to present a short film, for all those wondering how to prepare an absinthe the right way.

Note how you can get a fine stream of water from the carafe or tiny drops, perfect for dripping onto and dissolving a sugar cube!

The absinthe is Absinthe Roquette 1797.

Not sure what to get someone? – we have an answer for that: our very own gift vouchers, valid for anything on Absinthes.com, so if you know someone really into absinthe and think it’s better to let them choose, here’s the solution.

All year we’ve been working hard to perfect two new absinthe accessories. Having been through rounds of prototypes, we’re in love with the final results. We’re very proud to present the following nifty bits of kit, exclusively available from us…

Copied from an original vintage piece, this carafe was designed solely with absinthe in mind. Using a carafe is the most common way of dripping water over a sugar cube and into a glass of absinthe, but however careful or experienced you are, there’s always a moment when water sloshes out or an ice cube suddenly drops into the glass. With this carafe, the top is at an angle to make sure no such thing happens. The little spout, or ‘bec’, meaning beak in the original French, ensures a steady stream of small drips, just like you’d get with an absinthe fountain. There is nothing else out there like it.

The Bubble Glass has to be one of the most fascinating bits of absinthe paraphenalia out there. Closely inspired by a glass in the collection of David Nathan Maister, the respected absinthe expert, the bubble gives an exact measure of absinthe with ease. These glasses are beautifully hand-made by artisan glass-blowers in Europe.

When you get a sample of Pernod Fils Tarragona, and a vintage repro absinthe carafe and bubble reservoir glass to drink it with, we’ll give you 10% off!

The run up to the winter holiday season can be a stressful time, so remember to take a moment for yourself, have a relax and unwind.  Give yourself a well-earned reward to celebrate the end of the year. Go on, you deserve it!

All the best, and have an excellent time!

Andrew.

Everyone here at Absinthes.com wishes you a superb time as we head towards Christmas and the new year!

Either there’s not enough absinthe going there, or I’m listening to the wrong music! So here’s Drinkify, Absinthes.com style:

David Bowie – Let’s Dance: Dance away your troubles with a stylish friend and a delicious glass of Absinthe La Grenouille

J.S. Bach: The master of counterpoint’s finest compositions are the perfect accompaniment to the complex notes of  Jade VS 1898

Example – Skies Don’t Lie:  Get shaken up with an Absinthe Frappé*, made with Nouvelle Orléans from Jade Liqueurs.

Barry Manilow – Copacabana: Tequila Sunrise with a dash of Absinthe DuVallon. Ok, maybe that is listening to the wrong music!

• 4 oz Hendrick’s gin
• 1 oz St-Germain
  
• 1 oz falernum syrup
  
• 14 drops rose water
• 2 teaspoons absinthe – we’d recommend Absinthe  St. Antoine
  
• 2 lemon twists

Combine ingredients in an ice-filled shaker and stir gently. Strain into 2 short-stemmed glasses and garnish with the twists.