Dancing with the Green Fairy

The other night, John Campbell segued from Degas to Dope by talking about Absinthe - the wormwood-based liqueur which was the staple of bohemians at the fin de siecle. This reminded me of the bottle of 85% Hapsburg I had in my stockpile - and so tonight, I will be dancing with the Green Fairy.

There are lots of different ways to drink Absinthe. The standard method is to slowly dilute the absinthe with ice water by dripping it through a sugar cube on a slotted spoon (the water dilutes the alcohol and brings some of the infusion out of solution, the sugar makes it drinkable). I've also tried it the other way, where you drip the absinthe through the sugar, then set the latter on fire - but I'm informed that that is the method of barbarians (though it does look impressive). Either way, the ritual of preparing it is part of the fun, especially when done by candlelight for extra atmosphere.

I'm not at all sure about Absinthe's legenday powers of inspiration. The first time I tried it, it was indeed inspiring: I wrote half a Vampire game before I went to sleep; unfortunately, it didn't really work out and so I never finished it. Other times, it hasn't had any such effect, and it may vary by brand. Still, tonight I am hoping to get some inspiration for Delta Green - which seems mildly appropriate. Not that I'm making any promises, though...