Folks can often get caught up with the “words” being used, and not the “meaning” those words are trying to relate. Terms such as Mixologist, Bar Chef, Master Bartender, and a variety of others have tried to be utilized with various levels of success.

At the core however is to simply think about how different bartenders “approach” their chosen careers differently, some with more creativity, enthusiasm, and artistry, than others.

The authors of “Culinary Artistry” talk about “chefs/cooks” as fitting into a few different categories: “Trade”, “Craft”, and “Art”. Where the “Tradesman” chef is just doing their job, the “Crafstman” chef is proud of their job, and the “Artist” chef is an inspiration to others. Call them what you will, but I think that it is improtant to understand that a similar explanation of the abilities and passion of bartenders can/should be recognized, even if there aren’t specific individual labels which are applied to them. I should also be clear in saying that there is nothing wrong witha “Trade” bartender, in fact I think we need far more of those then we do “Craft” or “Art” bartenders, just as in the same way we need/have far more “Craft” chefs.

-Robert

I’m so happy you’ve left these tips on buying absinthe - I’ll know what (and what not) to look for when I head to Premier for my first bottle.

Thanks!!

If you haven’t ever tasted real absinthe before, and want a bit of an idea, try ordering some “Pernod” at a bar some time, and add about three times the amount of ice cold water to it. You’ll be “close” to the flavor, although it won’t have the same complexities as real absinthe does. Pernod used to be “the” absinthe company back in the day. When absinthe was banned, they reformulated their product and created the modern day “Pernod”, which unlike absinthe is pre-sweetened (thus no need for the sugar cube ritual listed in the previous absinthe post).

When looking to purchase some absinthe, you can easily find yourself getting suckered into picking up one of what is often referred to as “faux-sinthe”. These products are often rather vile tasting since they are not only improperly made, but also promote the assumption that the more thujone in the product the better. If you ever see an absinthe mention its thujone level as part of its marketing, then put your money away and look elsewhere.

-Robert

With Absinthe making a comeback here in the US, there is a lot of work necessary to “re-educate” folks on exactly what is, and is not, absinthe, as well as what is, and is not, the proper way to prepare it.

Thanks for showing the “right” way to serve absinthe here… without a flame in sight! :->