cocktail basics

8/8/2019 Cocktail Basics

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Cocktails - The basics

What is a Cocktail?

Drinks akin to cocktails first appeared sometime during the 16th century, but cocktails, as weknow and use the term, was first introduced by American bartenders in the 1920ies.

The reason the cocktail made it big in the happy '20ies, was the prohibition, when producing andimbibing of alcohol was made illegal. As good as all spirits available was of a rather dubiousquality and tasted accordingly. Thus, the bartenders, accommodating as always, started to mixthe spirits with various fruit juices and other flavorings to make it more palatable. Later, thecocktail lost its popularity most places, the United States being the main exception.

The last few years, however, the cocktail has reclaimed lost ground everywhere, especially in

southern Europe and other places that are full of tourists. Cocktails usually consist of threedifferent 'classes' of ingredients.

The first, the base, is most often some sort of spirit, like vodka, whiskey, or tequila. Occasionally,such as in many punches, some sort of wine is being used as a base.

The second, the main flavoring, is added to bring out the aroma of the base and to modify itstaste. The main flavoring is often such as Vermouth, various fruit juices, wine, or even eggs orcream.

The third, the special flavoring, is added to enhance the taste of the base, and often also addsthe color to the cocktail. Common special flavorings include Grenadine, Blue Curacao, andothers.

Most cocktails are also decorated in some way, usually with fruit slices, orange peel, cocktail sticks, minttwigs, etc. (see section below).

Equipment

Many different contraptions are manufactured for the making of cocktails. Some of these areuseful, some can be definitely nice to have, and still others are totally and utterly useless. It is upto you to decide exactly what your cocktail equipment should be, but some things are essential.

First out of the essentials is the cocktail shaker. There are two basic types of shakers available. A

European cocktail shaker is usually made out of metal, or glass with a metal top. It is, basically, acontainer which holds about half a liter, fitted with a top which closes tightly around the upperedges of the container. This top also has a smaller top, usually fitted with a built-in strainer,through which the shaken cocktail is poured. American shakers, however, consist of two conesabout the same size. One is often often made of glass, and the other is metallic. These cones areheld together to form a closed container, and the shaken cocktail is poured from either one. MostAmerican shakers do not have built-in strainers, so if you use an American shaker, using a


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separate strainer is a good idea.

Measures, also known as jiggers, are also essential. Jiggers are most often made of metal, butglass jiggers are common, as well. The standard measurements of a jigger can vary widely,depending on where you are. In the recipes in the following articles, I will use a standard jigger

of 30ml (appx. 1 fl oz).

In addition to the equipment mentioned above, you will find that things like these are nice tohave, as well: Ice bucket, jugs, electric blender, bowls, etc. You should also have access toordinary kitchenware, such as knives, corkscrews, chopping board, etc. You will also needstirrers (also known as swizzle sticks), straws, toothpicks, serviettes and cloths.

GlassesCocktail glasses come in four different basic types:

First, there are the glasses known as rocks glasses, also known as tumblers. These glasses are

usually short and broad glasses, with straight or slightly sloping sides. They normally hold about125ml and are used for spirits with ice, fruit juices and short drinks. Second, there is the highball glass. These glasses are usually of medium width, and are tall with

straight or slightly sloping sides. They normally hold between 200 and 300ml and are used forlong drinks with ice.

Third, the champagne glasses, are of two different kind. The most common, the champagneflute, is a tall and narrow glass with a stem. Champagne flutes have thin-glassed sides, and thelong, tapering sides can curve both inward and outward. A champagne flute holdsapproximately 150ml. The second type of champagne glass is the less-known champagnesaucer. The champagne saucer is a broad and shallow glass with a stem. The broadness andshallowness of the glass make the champagne loose its fizz quickly, and the glass is thereforeless popular than it once was. It is still, however, in use, and such cocktails as the Margarita useexclusively such glasses.

Fourth is the group known as cocktail glasses. These are the classic cocktail glasses; stemmedand with sharply sloping sides, making it Y-shaped when seen from the side. The classic cocktailglass holds about 90ml and is best suited for short, strong drinks.

In addition to these glasses, some drinks, such as the Pina Colada, have special glasses. Unlessyou are really serious about mixing your cocktails, you don't really need to buy such glasses. Useglasses you already have instead. There are also other glasses available that will work just finewith cocktails. Use your imagination, but remember that plastic glasses (or shakers, jugs, mixingglasses, or other such equipment for that matter) should NEVER be used with cocktails, as it willmake the cocktail taste of plastic. A cocktail is supposed to have a refreshing taste, not to tastelike the inside of a used plastic bag.

Mixing a CocktailNot all cocktails are made in the same manner. Just as the ingredients may vary, there are several waysin which to mix a cocktail. The most frequently used methods are the following:

Shaking: The cocktail is mixed by hand in a cocktail shaker. The shaker is first filled three


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quarters with ice, preferably cubes, as crushed ice will tend to melt and dilute the cocktail. Theingredients are then poured on top of the ice, in order of alcohol content (highest first). Whenshaking a cocktail, hold the shaker in both hands, one hand on the top and the other supportingthe base of the shaker, and shake vigorously. When water has begun condensing on the outsideof the shaker, the cocktail is sufficiently chilled, and the cocktail should immediately be strainedinto the glass. In general, shaking creates a colder cocktail than stirring does, but also a morecloudy one.

Stirring: The cocktail is stirred with a glass or metal rod in a mixing glass, before the cocktail isstrained into a glass. As with shaking, crushed ice should not be used, and water condensing onthe outside shows that the cocktail is finished.

Blending: An electric blender is used to mix fruit juices, alcohol, fruit, etc. Blending is anexcellent way of mixing ingredients which do not blend easily in any other way. Blend thecocktail till it has reached a smooth consistency. If the recipe requires ice, add crushed ice last,but be careful not to add too much, as the cocktail may be watered down. Blending is a muchdisputed method of mixing a cocktail, and in general, blending should be avoided unless therecipe demands it.

Building: When building a cocktail, the ingredients are poured into the glass in which the cocktailwill be served. Usually, the ingredients are floated on top of each other, but occasionally, aswizzle stick is put in the glass, allowing the ingredients to be mixed.

Decorating Cocktails

Almost all cocktails are decorated in one way or another, most often with some kind of fruit, butno matter the exact decoration, cocktail sticks are almost always invaluable. Cocktail sticks comein two types; Wooden and plastic. Wooden sticks are most often used, and are suited for justabout any kind of cocktail, but they cannot be reused. Plastic sticks, however, should be carefullyused, as they tend to give the cocktail a slightly artificial appearance. Unlike wooden sticks,plastic ones can be reused, but should be carefully washed and boiled first.

Cocktail sticks are, whatever the type, used for spearing slices of fruit, cherries, and just aboutanything else you care to decorate your cocktails with. Straws are also essential and go well withhighballs. Straws should not be reused. The traditional cocktail garnish is, however, the redMaraschino cherries. These are used in just about any kind of cocktail, and are now alsoavailable in green, yellow and blue. In addition to this, slices of fruit, strips of orange or lemonpeel, mint twigs, etc. can also be used.

One often used method of decorating cocktails is that which is called frosting. Frosting leaves anedge of sugar, salt, cocoa, or any other fine powder, on the rim of the glass. There are severalways to frost glasses, and one of the most frequently used of them is this: Rub the rim of theglass with a slice of orange or lemon, then submerge the rim in sugar or salt (or any otherpowder), just so that it lines the top of the rim. Other methods use egg white or other substancesfor 'gluing' the powder to the glass. For a more colorful frosting, use small drops of food coloringin the powder. With some cocktails, such as the Margarita, frosting is a 'standard' decoration.

Tips and Tricks


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1/2 oz. of liquor is equal to 1 count, assuming you are using a pourer on your bottles. Tomeasure 1 1/2 oz. of liquor, count "1001...1002...1003" as you are pouring. After a while,you should be able to do it by eye.

To make highballs, fill glass two-thirds full of ice before adding liquor. Always pour

liquor in before the mixer. Do not stir drinks containing carbonated mixers. To make cocktails, lowballs, and other shaken or stirred drinks, fill shaker half-full of ice.For lowballs, fill the glass about half-full of ice before pouring drink.

Most shaken drinks which contain light cream can also be made as blended drinks,substituting vanilla ice cream for the light cream.

To make blended drinks, first fill blender half-full of ice. If necessary, add more ice asyou are blending.

Always keep fruit juices and other mixers refrigerated. In fruit drinks, e.g. strawberry margaritas, always use fresh fruit, not frozen.

Bar terms


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Mixing

When using a cocktail shaker there is one golden rule to remember. Always put the ice in theshaker first, and the liquor last. This is to ensure that all ingredients are properly chilled by the

ice when they are poured over the ice, and by adding the liquor last you reduce the chance of dilution.

Stirring

A drink that is stirred instead of shaken will retain its clarity and be free of ice chips. Drinksbased on clear liquors, like a Martini, should always be stirred and not shaken (don't listen toJames Bond when he order his Martini "shaken, not stirred").When stirring a cocktail you should stir it enough to mix the ingredients, but not stir it too much.If you stir too much the ice will begin to dilute the liquor. A general rule is that 10-15 stirs willbe sufficient for proper mixing.

A drink containing carbonated beverage(s) should be stirred gently and briefly to retain thesparkle.

Shaking

Instead of stirring, you can shake the drink. This will mix the ingredients more than stirring, butwill also result in a less clear drink. Drinks that contain ingredients that are hard to mix, such ascream, fruit juices and eggs, should be shaken vigorously to ensure that the ingredients has beenwell mixed.

Blending

Use an electric blender to mix fresh fruit, liquor, juices and ice instead of using ashaker. Not too popular everywhere, but perfect for making frozen cocktails or toblend ingredients that are otherwise impossible to mix.

Floating

The purpose of floating is to keep each ingredients in the drink in separate layers that do not mixwith the others. This will create a drink with separate layers, and this is why floating often isreferred to as layering.

The easiest way to float one liquor on top of another is to use a demitasse spoon, holding it overor in the glass and slowly trickle the ingredient over the back of the spoon.

Muddling

Muddling is a simple mashing technique for grinding herbs, such as mint, smooth in the bottomof a glass. You can use a wooden muddler that you buy in a bar supply store or buy a bar spoonwith a muddler on the end. It crushes the herbs, much as the back of a soup spoon might, without


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scaring the glass.

Frosting

To frost a glass, first dip it in water and then put it in the freezer for half an hour or so. Also note

that metal and silver mugs and cups will frost better than glasses

Bar Measurements

tandard Bar Measurements (US)

1 part = any equal part

1 dash/splash = 1/32 ounce

1 teaspoon (tsp) = 1/8 ounce

1 tablespoon (tblsp) = 3/8 ounce

1 pony = 1 ounce

1 jigger/bar glass = 1 1/2 ounces

1 shot (*) = 1 1/2 ounces

1 snit = 3 ounces

1 wineglass = 4 ounces

1 split = 6 ounces

1 cup = 8 ounces

1 pint (pt) = 16 ounces

1 quart (qt) = 32 ounces

1 fifth = 25.6 ounces (1/5 gallon)

1 gallon (gal) = 128 ounces


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Metric Conversions

1 fluid ounce (oz) = 29.573 milliliters = appx. 3 centiliters (cl)

1 quart (qt) = 9.4635 deciliters

1 gallon (gal) = 3.7854 liters

1 milliliter (ml) = 1/30 ounce

1 centiliter (cl) = 1/3 ounce

1 deciliter (dl) = 3 1/2 ounces

1 liter (l) = 34 ounces

Other Measurements

English Metric

Fifth = 4/5 Quart = 1/5 Gal. = 25.6 oz => 750 ml = 25.5 oz

Pint (pt) = 1/2 Quart = 16.0 oz => 500 ml = 17.0 oz

Half-Pint = 8.0 oz => 200 ml = 6.8 oz

Half-Gallon = 64.0 oz => 1750 ml = 59.7 oz

Quart = 32.0 oz => 1000 ml = 34.1 oz

(*) A "shotglass" is usually 1.5 ounces, but sometimes 2 ounces with a measuring line at1.5 ounces. You can also buy (in US) "short shot" glasses or "pony shots" which are 1ounce. Pony shots are usually used with martinis, manhattans, and rob roys.

2. Equipment

Setting up a bar


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Basic set of tools

When setting up a bar, you will need quite a lot of equipment. The following is a list of basic barequipment you should have in your bar to allow you to make most drinks. You may also want to

take a look at the list of additional equipment that will make life behind the bar a bit easiertoo.

Bottle opener Corkscrew Can opener Measuring cups and spoon set Bar spoon with long handle and muddler on the end Juice squeezer Electric blender Cutting board and a sharp knife Ice bucket with an ice tong Mixing glass Shaker and strainer Bottle sealers Towels Boxes/jars to store garnishes in Glassware ( See separate page )

You will have to buy new supplies of the following equipment regularly.

Cocktail napkins and coasters Swizzle sticks

Straws, both long and short ones Cocktail picks Sugar and salt (for coating rim of glasses)

Additional equipment

In addition you may wish to buy some other equipment to make things a bit easier and to be ableto make additional drinks.

Ice crusher, preferably electric

You can crush ice manually, but an electric crusher it a whole lot easier than using ahammer.

Wooden muddler Ice pick or chipper Vegetable peeler or a twist cutter for fruit peels Ice scoop Funnel


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Nutmeg grater

Glassware

When operating a bar, whether it be in-house or a business, you need to have certain types of glasses. The right glass can enhance the drink you are serving, making you look evenbetter. You really do not want to serve wine in a coffee cup, a cocktail in a beer mug, and youdefinitely don't want to serve an Alabama Slammer in a sherry glass. Get the point?

Glass accidentsWhen you are around any bar, home or business, you need to be concerned for yourself and yourguests. Here are a few tips about accidents and what to do:

Always use an ice scoop and not the glass itself. Tiny slivers of glass always chip off when dippedinto an ice well and your glasses become unclear after a while

If you accidentally break a glass near ice, always throw away all the ice. When glass shatters,pieces go everywhere. You really don't want pieces of glass in your drink.

Never take a hot glass and add ice into it. This can cause the glass to shatter due to thermalshock. Be careful about this.

Mechanical shock occurs when you clank two glass together. One of the glasses will almostalways break.

If you carry the glasses by the stem or the base you avoid fingerprints where people drink from,and you will have more support carrying the glass.

Different glasses

Beer mug Beer pilsner Brandy snifter Champagne flute Cocktail glass Coffee mug Collins glass Cordial glass Highball glass Hurricane glass Irish coffee cup Margarita/Coupette glass Mason jar Old-fashioned glass Parfait glass Pitcher Pousse cafe glass Punch bowl Red wine glass


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Sherry glass Shot glass Whiskey sour glass White wine glass

The History of the Cocktail Shaker

Antecedents of the cocktail shaker can be traced to 7000 BC in SouthAmerica where the jar gourd was valued for its use as a closed container.Ancient Egyptians in 3500 BC knew that adding spices to their grainfermentations before serving made them more palatable. A forerunner of

the cocktail? Well, archaeologists have yet to find a hieroglyphic list of cocktailrecipes inside the Great Pyramid of Cheops. But we do know in 1520 Cortez wrote toKing Charles V of Spain from the New World of a certain drink made from cacao,served to Montezuma with much reverence, frothy and foaming from a goldencylinder.

By the late 1800s, the bartender's shaker as we know it today had become a standardtool of the trade, invented by an innkeeper when pouring a drink back and forth tomix. Finding that the smaller mouth of one container fit into another, he held the twotogether and shook "for a bit of a show."

At the turn of the century, New York City hotels were serving the English custom of 5o'clock tea and it was a short leap to the 5 o'clock cocktail hour with shakersmanufactured for home use looking very much like teapots.

In the 1920s martinis were served from sterling silver shakers by high society whilethe less affluent made do with glass or nickel-plated devices. The Great War was overand sacrifice was replaced by a euphoria marked by party-going and a frenzied questfor pleasure. The mixed drink and cocktail shaker was powered by Prohibition. Peoplewho had never tasted a cocktail before were knocking on speakeasy doors. The outlawculture had a powerful pull. Flappers with one foot on the brass rail ordered theirchoice of drinks with names like Between the Sheets, Fox Trot, and Zanzibar,liberated more by this act and smoking in public than by their new voting rights.
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The International Silver Company produced shakers in the form of theBoston Lighthouse and golf bags, as well as, traditional shapes. Therewere rooster- and penguin-shaped shakers, and from Germanyzeppelin and aeroplane shakers. Many of these shapes were notentirely capricious. The rooster, or "cock of the walk," for example,had long served as a symbol for tavern signs. The penguin with itsnatural "tuxedo" symbolized the good life. The Graf Zeppelin hadbecome the first commercial aircraft to cross the Atlantic - an 111-hour non-stop flight that captured the attention of the world.

Such ingenious designs were all the rage, cocktail shaker skills and drink rituals wereas important in the Jazz Age lifestyle as the latest dance steps. Colorful cocktails withsweet mixes stretched out the supply of illicit alcohol and helped disguise the taste of homemade hooch. While gin, easier to duplicate than rye or scotch, became the drink of choice and the martini society's favorite.

But the real popularity explosion of cocktail shakers occurred after the repeal of Prohibition in 1933. Now they were featured frequently on the silver screen, shakersand accoutrements part of every movie set. Stars were constantly sipping cocktailswhen they weren't lighting each others' cigarettes, both de rigueur symbols of sophistication. Nick and Nora Charles, the delightfully sodden couple that pouredtheir way through endless martinis in The Thin Man series, knew how to shake a drink with style, as did the tens of thousands of Americans who shook, swirled, and swilledcocktails by the shaker-full in the years following the repeal of Prohibition. Moviefans watched Fred and Ginger dance across the screen, cocktail glass in hand, andwanted their own symbol of the good life to shake themselves out of the Depressionthat gripped the country.

The Art Deco movie set aesthetic was perfect for the Depression-drivencocktail shaker. To meet popular demand, machine age factories, gearedfor mass production, began turning them out in droves. Fashioned fromthe high-tech materials of the day, chrome-plated stainless steel shakerswith Bakelite trim replaced those of sterling silver and were advertised

as "non-tarnishing, no polishing needed." The great glass companies, such asCambridge, Heisey, and Imperial, leaped into action. Stunning etched and silk-screened designs were created, often in brilliant hues of ruby or cobalt. Industrialdesign was at the height of popularity and superstar designers such as Russel Wright,Kem Weber, and Lurelle Guild created streamlined modern masterpieces, many in the
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shape of the new deity of architecture, the skyscraper. If there is a definitive classic itwould have to be the sleek 1936 chrome-plated "Manhattan Skyscraper serving set"by master industrial designer Norman Bel Geddes, sought by collectors of today as theperfect mix of form and function.

By the end of the decade, shakers had become standard household objects, affordableto all. Every family had at least one shaker on the shelf. There were now cocktailshakers in the shape of bowling pins, dumbbells, town criers bells, and even in theshape of a lady's leg. The cocktail party had influenced fashion, furniture, and interiordesign. Coffee tables were now cocktail tables, and the little black dress, designed byCoco Chanel, went from fad to fashion, and is now an institution.

At the beginning of the 1940s, the Depression ended, but not in the way most hadhoped. It ended on December 7, 1941. The golden era of the cocktail shaker was over,and America's involvement in World War II began. All metal went to the war effort.Companies that once made cocktail shakers, now made artillery shells. After the war,few thought of the shakers. We were in the atomic age, thinking of jet-propelledairplanes, a thing called television, and new cars with lots of chrome.

In the early 1950s, a brief renewal of interest in cocktail shakers occurred when newhomes featuring finished basements, called "roc rooms," were equipped with bars. Butthe push-button age had taken the fun out of mixing drinks. Shakers came withbattery-powered stirring devices. Worse yet, electric blenders became popular; drop insome ice, add the alcohol of your choice, a package of "redi-mix," flick a switchand.... Gone were the rites and rituals, the showmanship, the reward for effort. Smallwonder, then, that these elegant stars of the 1930s were forced into retirement.

And there they sat - in attics and closets nationwide - waiting to be recalled to life.Over 50 years have passed now, and one can faintly hear the clink of ice cubes asshakers are, once again, a symbol of elegance.

3. THE INGREDIENTS

Stocking your bar

You cannot make drinks out of the equipment, so you'll probably want to buy a selection of liquors and mixers too. It is impossible to make a list that "fits all" without including everypossible liquor in the World, but here are a few guidelines on what to buy.

You should always choose your bar stock to suit your guests. Young people often prefer the


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more exotic drinks, so you will need various fruit juices and flavored liqueurs instead of thedarker liquors (like whiskey) older people often prefer.

It is likely you will experience requests for drinks you cannot make, but that happen to almostevery bar now and then. You can add new liquors to your bar stock later, and should learn how

to mix what you have in the meantime.

A well stocked bar should have the following, but you should consider the number and type of guests you expect before buying.

Gin (dry) Vodka Rye (or Canadian whiskey) Bourbon Scotch whiskey Rum (light) Vermouth (dry and sweet) Tequila White and red wine (dry) Beer (lager) Cognac (or other brandy) Different liqueurs:

o Advocaat (somewhat like brandy eggnog)o Amaretto (almond)o Anisette (anise)o Aquavit (caraway)o Benedictine (herbs)o Chambord (black-raspberry)o Chartreuse (herbs)o Contreau/Triple sec (oranges)o Crme de Cacao (cacao)o Crme de Cassis (blackcurrant)o Crme de Menthe (mint)o Crme de Violette/Crme Yvette (violets)o Curaao (oranges)o Galliano (herbs and spices)o Godiva (chocolate)o Goldwasser (herbs and spices, flecked with gold leaf bits)o Grand Marnier (oranges)o Irish Cream (whiskey and cream)o Kahla (coffee)o Kmmel (caraway)o Mandarine Napolon (tangerine)o Midori (melon)o Ouzo (anise)o Peter Heering (cherry)o Prunelle (plum)o Sabra (orange and chocolate)o Sambuca (wild elderberries)o Sloe Gin (sloe berries)


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o Southern Comfort (peach)o Strega (orange and spices)o Tia Maria (coffee)

In addition to the liquors, you will need different mixers, flavorings and garnishes.

Club soda Tonic water Ginger ale 7-Up or Sprite Cola Juices:

o Tomato juiceo Orange juiceo Pineapple juiceo Cranberry juiceo Grapefruit juice

Bitters Grenadine Maraschino liqueur Worcestershire sauce Tabasco sauce Milk Coffee Heavy cream Cherries (maraschino) Green olives (small) Cocktail onions

Lemons, limes and oranges Sugar, salt and pepper.

Punch Garnish

Fruited Ice Ring

Turn your favorite punch into a sparkling delight by adding a colorful fruited ice ring. The icering is easy to prepare and makes a beautiful presentation. Use the fruit of your choice and, if you wish, substitute fruit juice for the water. Just be sure to coordinate the flavor and color of theuice with the ingredients of your punch.

Water1/2 lb red and/or green seedless grapes, cut in small clusters1/2 pint fresh strawberries1 small orange, sliced, then halved


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Non toxic leaves, such as lemon leaves or rose leaves

1. Pour water into a 5-cup ring mold (or any size ring mold that fits your punch bowl) to 1/2 inchbelow top of mold; freeze until firm, about 3 hours.

2. Arrange grapes, strawberries and orange slices decoratively on top of ice in mold. Tuck leaves

between fruit, as desired. Arrange so that some fruit and leaves stand above top of mold.3. Add enough water to fill the ring mold; freeze until firm, about 1 hour. Dip ring mold in warmwater for a few seconds to loosen ice; unmold and float fruit side up in punch.

Fruited Ice Cubes

Suggested Fruits Beverage-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lemon slices Iced tea

Strawberries, raspberries, Lemonadelemon or lime slices

Pineapple chunks; grapes; Punchstrawberries; raspberries;maraschino cherries;mandarin oranges; orange,lemon or lime slices

Lime slices, strawberries, Ginger aleraspberries

To make fruited ice cubes, fill an ice-cube tray halfway with water; freeze until firm, about 1 1/2hours. Place one or two pieces of desired fruit in each section of the tray. Fill with water; freezeuntil firm, about 1 1/2 hours. If desired, substitute lemonade or a light-colored juice for thewater.

Gravity Chart

When making layered drinks, also known as a Pousse Cafe, you'll need to know which

ingredients are heavier than the others. The technique is simple; the heaviest liquor is pouredinto the glass first, and the lighter ones are layered carefully on top with the lightest one on top.

This table list some common liquors, along with their Specific Gravity that is the weight of theliquor relative to water. Higher values indicate a heavier liquor.

Name Gravity Color


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Southern Comfort 0.97

Tuaca 0.98 Amber

Water 1.00 White

Green Chartreuse 1.01 Green

Cointreau 1.04 White

Peach liqueur 1.04 Dark amber

Sloe gin 1.04 Deep red

Kummel 1.04 White

Peppermint schnapps 1.04 White

Benedictine 1.04

Brandy 1.04 Amber

Midori melon liqueur 1.05 Green

Rock and Rye 1.05 Amber

Apricot brandy 1.06 Amber

Blackberry brandy 1.06 Dark red

Cherry brandy 1.06 Dark red

Peach brandy 1.06 Dark amber

Campari 1.06 Red

Yellow Chartreuse 1.06 Yellow

Drambuie 1.08

Frangelico 1.08

Orange Curacao 1.08 Orange


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Triple sec 1.09 White

Tia maria 1.09 Brown

Apricot liqueur 1.09 Amber

Blackberry liqueur 1.10 Dark red

Amaretto 1.10 Light brown

Blue Curacao 1.11 Blue

Cherry liqueur 1.12 Dark red

Galliano 1.11 Golden yellow

Green Crme de Menthe 1.12 Green

White Crme de Menthe 1.12 White

Strawberry liqueur 1.12 Red

Parfrait d'Amour 1.13 Violet

Coffee liqueur 1.14 Dark brown

Crme de Banane 1.14 Yellow

Dark Crme de Cacao 1.14 Brown

White Crme de Cacao 1.14 White

Kahlua 1.15 Dark brown

Crme de Almond 1.16

Crme de Noyaux 1.17 Bright red

Anisette 1.17 White

Crme de Cassis 1.18


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Beer

Serving Beer

Beer should be served at correct temperature for maximum enjoyment.

Lager beers should be kept in the refrigerator before serving at 9C/48F. The light American and Australian lagers should be server at a lower temperature of 6C/42F. Ales should never be over-chilled, or it will develop a haze and loose their fruity-flavors. 12-

13C/54-56F are recommended temperatures for serving. Very strong ales should be served at room temperature.

Never store a bottle-conditioned beer in the refrigerator, but keep them cool and standing forseveral hours before serving to allow the sediment to clear.

Beer mixed with something

Beer is sometimes mixed with other alcoholic beverages and given nicknames. Here's a list:

Black and Tan: Guinness and bitter or Guinness and mild.

Black Velvet: Guinness and champagne.

Poor Man's Black Velvet: Guinness and cider.

Black Russian: Guinness and vodka

Velvet Pussy: Guinness and port.

Black Maria: Guinness and Tia Maria

Red Velvet: Guinness, cider and blackcurrant.

Red Witch: Guinness, Pernod, cider and blackcurrant.

Mother-in-law: Old and bitter.

Granny: Old and mild.

Blacksmith: Guinness and barley wine.

Boilermaker: Brown and mild.


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Lightplater: Light ale and bitter.

Narfer narf: London slang for a half pint of mild and a half pint of bitter.

Narfer narfer narf: A half pint of Narfer narf (of course).

Dragon's blood: Barley wine and rum.

Dog's nose: Bitter and gin.

Snake bite: Lager and cider.

Beer Glossary

This is a list of terms used when describing beers:

Abbey

Commercial Belgian beers licensed by abbeys. Not to be confused with Trappist ales.

Adjuncts

Materials, like rice, corn and brewing sugar, used in place of traditional grains for cheapness orlightness of flavor.

Ale

The oldest beer style in the world. Produced by warm or top fermentation.

Alt

Dark brown top-fermenting beer from Dsseldorf.

Alpha acid

The main component of the bittering agent in the hop flower.

Attenuation

The extent to which brewing sugars turn to alcohol and carbon dioxide.

Beer

Generic term for an alcoholic drink made from grain. Includes both ale and lager.

Bitter


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British term for the pale, amber or copper-colored beers that developed from the pale ales inthe 19th century.

Bock or Bok

Strong beer style of The Netherlands and Germany.

Bottle-conditioned

Beer that undergoes a secondary fermentation in the bottle.

Brew kettle

See Copper

Cask-conditioned

Beer that undergoes a secondary fermentation in the cask. Known as "real ale", closelyidentified with British beers.

Copper

Vessel used to boil the sugary wort with hops.

Decoction mashing

A system mainly used in lager brewing in which portions of the wort are removed from thevessel, heated to a higher temperature and then returned. Improves ensymic activity and theconversion of starch to sugar in poorly modified malts.

Dry-hopping

The addition of a small amount of hops to a cask of beer to improve aroma and bitterness.

Dunkel

A dark lager beer in Germany, a Bavarian speciality that predates the first pale lagers.

Entire

The earliest form of porter, short for "entire butt".

Ester

Flavor compounds produced by the action of yeast turning sugars into alcohol and carbondioxide. Esters may be fruity or spicy.

Fining


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Substance that clarifies beer, usually made from the swim bladder of sturgeon fish; also knownas isinglass.

Framboise or Frambozen

Raspberry-flavored lambic beer.

Grist

The coarse powder derived from malt that has been milled or "cracked" in the brewery prior tomashing.

Gueuze

A blend of Belgian lambic beers.

Helles or Hell

A pale Bavarian lager beer.

Hop (Lat: Humulus Lupulus)

Herb used when brewing to add aroma and bitterness.

IBU

International Bitterness Units. An internationally-agreed scale for measuring the bitterness of beer. A "lite" American lager may have around 10 IBU's, an English mild ale around 20 units, anIndia Pale Ale 40 or higher, an Irish stout 55 to 60 and barley wine 65.

Infusion

Method of mashing used mainly in ale-brewing where the grains are left to soak with purewater while starches convert to sugar, usually carried out at a constant temperature.

Klsch

Top-fermenting golden beer from Cologne.

Krusen

The addition of partially-fermented wort during lagering to encourage a strong secondaryfermentation.

Kriek

Cherry-flavored lambic beer.

Lager


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The cold-conditioning of beer at around 0 degrees Centigrade to encourage the yeast to settleout, increase carbonation and produce a smooth, clean-tasting beer. From the German meaning"to store".

Lambic

Belgian beer made by spontaneous fermentation.

Lauter tun

Vessel used to clarify the wort after the mashing stage.

Malt

Barley or other cereals that have been partially germinated to allow starches to be convertedinto fermentable sugars.

Mash

First stage of the brewing process, when the malt is mixed with pure hot water to extract thesugars.

Mrzen

Traditional Bavarian lager brewed in March and stored until autumn for the MunichOktoberfest.

Mild

Dark brown (occasionally pale) English and Welsh beer, lightly hopped. The oldest style of beerthat once derived it color from malt cured over wood fires. One of the components of the firstporters.

Milk stout

Stout made with the addition of lactose, which is unfermentable, producing a beer low inalcohol with a creamy, slightly sweet character.

Pilsner or Pilsener or Pils

International brand name for a light-colored lager.

Porter

Dark - brown or black - beer originating in London.

Priming


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Addition of sugar to encourage a secondary fermentation in beer.

Reinheitsgebot

Bavarian beer law of 1516 (the "Purity Pledge) that lays down that only malted grain, hops,yeast and water can be used in brewing. Now covers the whole of Germany.

Shilling

Ancient method of invoicing beer in Scotland on strength. Beers are called 60, 70 or 80 shilling.

Sparging

From the French esparger, to sprinkle; Sprinkling or spraying the spent grains in the mash tun orlauter tun to flush out any remaining malt sugars.

Square

A traditional, open fermenting vessel.

Steam beer

American beer style saved by the Anchor Brewery in San Francisco.

Stout

Once an English generic term for the strongest ("stoutest") beer in a brewery. Now considered aquintessentially Irish style.

Trappist

Ales brewed by monks of the Trappist order in Belgium and The Netherlands.

Union

Method of fermentation developed in Burton-tn-Trent using large oak casks.

Ur or Urtyp

German for original.

Weizen or Weisse

German for wheat or white beer.

Wort

Liquid resulting from the mashing process, rich in malt and sugars.


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Coffee and caffeine

Coffee Introduction

Coffee should never be merely the beverage at a meal. Coffee should be the center of any sit-down, if not the ONLY thing consumed. The odd doughnut or slice of cheesecake is allowed,though not preferred.

Coffee must be drank from a porcelain mug, that must be larger than a dixie cup. The mainreason that styrofoam and plastic just don't feel right, and more importantly, your spoon (whichmust be metal) will not "clink" properly through the various stages of stirring unless porcelain isused. The mug must be large so that you do not need to refill it too frequently, and so thatstirring may properly take place without spillage.

Stirring occurs in very distinct stages. First a rotary swirling which makes the coffee form asmall whirlpool and dip slightly in the center. Over ambition at this stage will cause spillageover the side-- something to avoid and to caution beginners of. Next, the cross-stroke, withfollows a chord form one side of the mug to the other, passing roughly through the mug'sgeometric center, and which is generally made towards you so that over-ambition at this stagewill slop coffee on you and not your companion. That cross-stroke creates random eddies in thecoffee and effect proper mixing of the cream or sugar, or at least stirs up the sediments. Finallythe removal. The spoon should be tapped lightly on the rim of the mug, two or three times toknock off any large drops. DO NOT lick spoon to remove final drops. Spoon will leave a stainwhere ever you place it, so place it accordingly.

Companionship is the most overlooked part of drinking coffee. At its finest coffee is neverconsumed alone. However the proper companion is important. They should not talk too much,nor require that you talk too much. Talking limits one's ability to savor the moment and thebrew. If silences are embarrassing between you and someone, do not drink coffee with them. If looking blankly at someone, or if being looked blankly over a mug bothers either of you, do notdrink coffee together. Never drink coffee with someone drinking tea -- they are COMPLETELYINCOMPATIBLE experiences.

Coffee should be strong. Hot, brown colored water does not coffee make. But this does not meanit should taste like kerosene -- coffee should be smooth, almost like melted, unsweetenedchocolate. There is no such thing as good instant coffee. Nor will decaffeinated coffee ever hack

it. Also, sugar should always be used to sweeten -- never some artificial placebo. How much fatcan one lump of sugar slap on your thighs? -- use the real stuff, because deep down you knownothing tastes the same.

And finally where to go with the perfect companion to drink this, hopefully, not completelyrepulsive cup of something they're calling coffee. The place must exist cafe style. Lots of smalltables. Little organization. There should be a light buzz of conversation around you. Enoughindistinct noise to cover the sound of you breathing, but not enough to cover the "clinks" of the


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removal stage of stirring. Well lit. Airy. Coffee is a private experience that can only be properlyappreciated in a public place. If there aren't other people around who are screwing their coffeeexperience up completely you do not realize how wonderful yours is.

Always exhale after finishing a cup and enjoy the heat and flavor of your breath.

Lastly, if you are a man, then remember that just because your well- sized, porcelain mug has ahandle doesn't mean you have to use it. Assuming you have fairly large hands you can merelygrip the mug near the top with the tips of your thumb and fore- and middlefinger, with theringfinger draped around the handle so that you know where it is and don't bop yourself in thenose with it, and drink from the mug that way. Women must always use the handle, and puttingtwo fingers through the hole is allowed. Sexist as it may sound, women and men approach coffeeand food in general in different manners, ie, civilized versus "what's the extra fork for?".

Coffee tasting

Coffee tasting terminology ranges from easily understandable to highly technical, and some of the more esoteric terms may be a little difficult to decipher.

This short vocabulary list explains some basic phrases that will help increase your understandingof fine coffees.

The basics

Flavor, acidity, and body are the three fundamental tasting terms.

Flavor is the total impression of aroma, acidity and body. It can be used in a general sense ("thiscoffee is flavorful"), or with specific attributes in mind ("this coffee has a flavor reminiscent of chocolate").

Acidity is the sharp, lively quality of all high-grown coffees. Acid is not the same as bitter orsour, and has nothing to do with objective pH factors. Acidity is the brisk, snappy quality whichmakes coffee refreshing and palate cleansing.

Body is the tactile impression of the weight of the brewed beverage in the mouth. It may rangefrom watery and thin, through light, medium and full, to buttery or even syrupy in the case of some Indonesian varieties.

Other useful terms

Aroma is the odor or fragrance of brewed coffee. Bouquet is a less frequently used term, andrefers only to the smell of coffee grounds. Aroma is often distinctive and complex. Terms usedto describe aroma include: caramelly (candy or syrup-like), carbony (for dark roasts), chocolaty,fruity, floral, herbal, malty (cereal-like), rich (over-used), rounded, spicy.

Bitter is a basic taste perceived primarily at the back of the tongue. Dark roasts are intentionally


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bitter, but bitterness is more commonly caused by overextraction (too little coffee at too fine agrind). Bitter is not a synonym for sour.

Bland is the pale, insipid flavor often found in low-grown coffees. Underextracted coffee (madewith too little coffee or too coarse a grind) is also bland.

Briny is a salty sensation caused by application of excessive heat often brewing. You'llrecognize it as the familiar smell of "truck stop" coffee.

Earthy is often used to describe the spicy, "of the earth" taste of Indonesian coffees. Carried toan extreme, as in the case of the cheap filler coffees used in commercial blends, earthy canbecome dirty, an obviously undesirable sensation caused by poor processing techniques likedrying beans on the ground.

Exotic refers to a coffee with unusual aromatic and flavor notes, such as floral, berry, and sweetspice-like qualities. Coffees from East Africa and Indonesia often have such characteristics.

Mellow is a term for well balanced coffee of low-to-medium acidity.

Mild denotes a coffee with harmonious, delicate flavor. Fine, high- grown Latin Americancoffee is often described as mild. It is also a coffee trade term for any arabica coffee other thanthose from Brazil.

Soft describes low-acid coffees such as Indonesians, that may also be called mellow or sweet.

Sour is a primary taste perceived mainly on the posterior sides of the tongue, and ischaracteristic of light-roasted coffees.

Spicy refers to an aroma or flavor reminiscent of a particular spice. Some Indonesian arabicas,especially aged coffees, evoke an association with sweet spices like cardamom. Others, such asGuatemala Antigua, are almost peppery.

Strong technically refers to the degree of presence of various taste defects and virtues, or to therelative proportion of coffee solubles to water in a given brew. In popular use, it's often theassertive flavor of dark-roasted beans. It is also incorrectly associated with high caffeine content.In fact, caffeine is actually highest in bland canned coffees, due to the large percentage of high-caffeine robusta coffees they typically contain.

Sweet is used as a general term for smooth, palatable coffee, free from defects and harsh flavors.

Tangy is a darting sourness, almost fruit-like in nature, related to wininess. A fine high-grownCosta Rican coffee is frequently tangy.

Wild describes a coffee with extreme flavor characteristics. It can be a defect or a positiveattribute, and denotes odd, racy nuances of flavor and aroma. The textbook example is Ethiopia


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Harrar, a coffee which nearly always exhibits such flavors.

Winy is a desirable flavor reminiscent of fine red wine. The contrast between fruit-like acidityand smooth body creates flavor interest. Kenyan coffees are a classic example of winy coffeeflavor.

Coffee flavor and aroma may be classified according to geographic origin. Coffees, like winegrapes, get much of their flavor from the specific growing conditions and preparation methods of each producing region. Each region has common characteristics that you can learn to recognize.

Coffee families

Central and South American coffees are generally light-to-medium bodied, with clean livelyflavors. These are the most popular varieties Starbucks sells, and their balance and consistencymake them the foundation of good coffee blending an well. This category includes coffees likeColombia, Costa Rica Tres Rios, Guatemala Antigua and Mexico. Kona, though geographically

a product of the Pacific islands, falls within this Latin American range of taste and aroma.

East African coffees are unique and under-appreciated. They often combine the sparklingacidity of the best Central Americans with unique floral or winy notes, and typically aremedium-to-full bodied. These coffees are found in the morning cup of nearly every professionalcoffee taster. The category includes Kenya, Ethiopia Sidamo and Yergacheffe and EthiopiaHarrar.

Indonesian coffees are at the opposite end of the spectrum from Latin American coffees.Usually full-bodied and smooth, low in acidity, and often possessing earthy and exotic tasteelements. Their fullness and depth make them an important "anchor" component of choice

blends like Gold Coast and Yukon Blend. This group includes Estate Java, Sumatra Boengie,Papua New Guinea and Sulawesi.

Dark Roasts use coffees of varying geographic origins to provide a specific range of flavors,from the caramel spice of Espresso, to the smoky tang of Italian Roast, to the pungent roastinessof French Roast. The difference at Starbucks is using specific, varietal-quality coffees in eachdark roast blend.

Blends combine varietal tastes to create greater complexity and completeness. Typically, a blendmight play off Central American acidity with Indonesian smoothness, or spice up a delicatevarietal with the tang of a dark roast. Blending, at its best, is high art, offering a unity in

diversity which few straight coffees can match.

Some roasters use the opportunity to dump low-grade filler coffees into the mix, to "extend" theblend along with their profit margins. At Starbucks, we blend according to taste, using premiumquality beans to create a balanced brew, harmonious in body, acidity and aroma, seeking anoverall flavor that is greater than the sum of its parts.

Decaffeinated coffees are growing in popularity and--we are pleased to note--in quality and


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availability, as well. Some find the effects of too much caffeine unpleasant; others are lookingfor a hot cup to enjoy before bedtime. Whatever the reason, Starbucks is here to ensure that thesedeserving souls are not condemned to drink the thin, flavorless decaffeinated blends sold insupermarkets. We are proud to offer a complete selection, both in water and traditionalprocesses, in regular and dark roasts.

The coffee information is reproduced from a brochure available at Starbucks, US. Modulo typos, theinformation here is verbatim, except a long description of the >30 types of coffees you can buy fromStarbucks is left out. If you want a copy of this brochure, or one of three others they have put out for coffee education, you can call them at 1-800-445-3428 (USA).

Caffeine in various beveragesMILLIGRAMS CAFFEINE

BEVERAGE Average Range

Coffee (5-oz. cup)Brewed, drip method 115 60-180

Brewed, percolator 80 40-170Instant 65 30-120Decaffeinated, brewed 3 2-5Decaffeinated, instant 2 1-5

Tea (5-oz. cup)Brewed, major U.S. brands 40 20-90Brewed, imported brands 60 25-110Instant 30 25-50Iced (12-oz. glass) 70 67-76

Cocoa beverage (5-oz. cup) 4 2-20Chocolate milk beverage (8 oz.) 5 2-7Milk chocolate (1 oz.) 6 1-15Dark chocolate, semi sweet (1 oz.) 20 5-35Baker's chocolate (1 oz.) 26 26Chocolate-flavored syrup (1 oz.) 4 4

SOFT DRINKS

BRAND MILLIGRAMS CAFFEINE(12-oz. serving)

Sugar-Free Mr. PIBB 58.8Mountain Dew 54.0

Mello Yello 52.8TAB 46.8Coca-Cola 45.6Diet Coke 45.6Shasta Cola 44.4Shasta Cherry Cola 44.4Shasta Diet Cola 44.4Mr. PIBB 40.8Dr. Pepper 39.6


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Diet Dr. Pepper 39.6Big Red 38.4Sugar Free Big Red 38.4Pepsi-Cola 38.4Aspen 36.0Diet Pepsi 36.0Pepsi Light 36.0RC Cola 36.0Diet Rite 36.0Kick 31.2Canada Dry Jamaica Cola 30.0Canada Dry Diet Cola 1.2

Absinthe FAQ

by Matthew Baggott ([email protected])February 3, 1993

INTRODUCTIONThis FAQ file was prepared by Matthew Baggott ([email protected]) for distribution on thenewsgroup alt.drugs. It may be freely reprinted and distributed as long as it is properly credited. If you're reprinting the file in a zine (e- or otherwise), I'd like to hear about it. Some uses of the medlineabstracts might be go beyond legal 'fair use' of that intellectual property. If I determine this to be aproblem, I'll replace the abstracts with summaries written by myself. However, people reprinting thisfile may wish to leave out that section of the FAQ if this issue is of concern to them. Comments,questions, referenced information, and personally- collected anecdotes relating to absinthe andwormwood are welcome. File last updated on 3-FEB-93.

The following individuals contributed information or editorial skills to this FAQ file: MichaelGolden ([email protected]) archived the recipies which were posted to rec.food.drink by unknown parties; Laurent Hagimont ([email protected]) and Johnny Svensson([email protected]) supplied information about the current availability of absinthe; JohnnySvensson also gave information about wormwood's use as a flavoring in vodka. Myra Chachkin([email protected]) provided editorial comments on an earlier draft of this FAQfile. These individuals deserve much credit for helping to compile obscure data. Nonetheless, theperspectives, arguments, and errors of this file are mine alone.

The file contains the following sections: What is absinthe?; What is the active component inabsinthe?; What plants contain thujone?; How was/is absinthe made?; References; Recentreferences on absinthe/thujone culled from medline; and Books on absinthe culled from theUniversity of California on-line card catalog. Each of these sections is separated by a partial lineof minus characters, allowing one to easily page through the document.

WHAT IS ABSINTHE?


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Absinthe is an alcoholic drink made with an extract from wormwood ( Artemisia absinthium ). It is anemerald green drink which is very bitter (due to the presence of absinthin) and is therefore traditionallypoured over a perforated spoonful of sugar into a glass of water. The drink then turns into an opaquewhite as the essential oils precipitate out of the alcoholic solution. Absinthe was once popular amongartists and writers and was used by Van Gogh, Baudelaire, and Verlaine, to name a few. It appears tohave been believed to stimulate creativity. However, in the 1850's, there began to be concern about theresults of chronic use. Chronic use of absinthe was believed to produce a syndrome, called absinthism,which was characterized by addiction, hyperexcitability, and hallucinations. This concern over the healtheffects of absinthe was amplified by the prevailing belief in Lamarckian theories of heredity. In otherwords, it was believed that any traits acquired by absinthists would be passed on to their children (1).Absinthe's association with the bohemian lifestyle also worked to compound fears about its effects,much as has happened with marijuana in America. Absinthe was subsequently banned in manycountries in the beginning of the 1900's.

WHAT IS THE ACTIVE COMPONENT IN ABSINTHE?This issue is not entirely resolved. Alcohol is definitely one main component. However, anothercandidate is the monoterpene, thujone, which which is considered a convulsant. Thujone's mechanismof action is not known, although structural similarities between thujone and tetrahydrocannabinol (theactive component in marijuana) have led some to hypothesize that both substances have the same siteof action in the brain. Thujone makes up 40 to 90% (by weight) of the essence of wormwood, fromwhich absinthe is made (2). Thus, thujone would appear to be a good candidate for a second activecomponent in absinthe. Indeed, thujone has long been considered to be the neurotoxic cause of absinthism.

However, the direct evidence to support this idea is scant. Absinthe is 75% alcohol. Therefore,alcohol's effects will limit the amount of thujone one can ingest. Quite simply, you can onlydrink a moderate amount of absinthe before you become very drunk from the alcohol. Thujonewould have to be active at a very low dose or be present in high quantities in order to have anyappreciable effect. In the "This and That" column in Trends in the Pharmacological Sciences ,"B. Max" made the following dose calculations:

How much thujone was present in absinthe? Steam distillation of wormwood yields 0.27-0.40%of a bitter, dark-green oil (3) In a typical recipe for absinthe, 2.5 kg of wormwood were used inpreparing 100 liters of absinthe (4). Typically, 1.5 oz was consumed (diluted with water) pertipple (5). This is equivalent to 4.4 mg wormwood oil per drink, or 2-4 mg thujone. This is farbelow the level at which acute pharmacological effects are observed. Even chronicadministration of 10 mg/kg thujone to rats does not alter spontaneous activity of conditionedbehavior (6). The literature on the pharmacology of thujone is, to put it bluntly, second rate, andconclusions as to its effects have been extrapolated far beyond the experimental base (7).

Furthermore, the symptoms of absinthism do not appear to be that unlike those of alcoholism.Hallucinations, sleeplessness, tremors, paralysis, and convulsions can also be noted in cases of alcoholism. This suggests that the syndrome "absinthism" mayy well have been caused byalcohol. Because absinthe is no longer popular, little research has been done into its effects on


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health. Reports on thujone's/absinthe's toxicity seem to rely mostly on case reports from thebeginning of the century or earlier. Lacking more recent research, it seems most reasonable totake reports of absinthe's toxicity with skepticism. Essentially, there is little good data to suggestthat absinthe's active components were anything other than alcohol.

(In fairness, I should mention that several individuals who have taken home-made absinthe orwho have drunk it where it is legal have claimed to me that it produced an intoxication unlikethat of alcohol.)

In addition to alcohol and thujone, absinthe sometimes contained methanol (wood alcohol),which could have contributed to the symptoms of absinthism. Calamus ( acorus calamus ) andnutmeg ( myristica fragrans ) were also sometimes used in making absinthe. Both plants havereputations for being psychedelics, although to my best of knowledge only nutmeg's psychedelicproperties have been well established. However, it seems unlikely that either plant would havebeen added in the quanitities necessary to produce psychoactive effects.

WHAT MODERN ALCOHOLIC DRINKS ARE THERE WHICH ARE RELATED TO ABSINTHE?Pernod is basically absinthe without the wormwood. It is named after Henri-Louis Pernod, an individualwho ran an absinthe factory in France in the early 1800s. As a substitute for wormwood, the moderndrink Pernod uses increased amounts of aniseed. Ricard is the name of another modern wormwood-lessabsinthe.

Also, vermouth, chartreuse, and benedictine all contain small amounts of thujone. In fact,vermouth, which is made using the flower heads from wormwood, takes its name from thegerman "wermuth" ("wormwood").

Absinthe (made with wormwood) is still available in Spain and reportedly in Denmark andPortugal as well.

Wormwood is popular as a flavoring for vodka in Sweden.

It is also possible to buy oil of wormwood (produced by steam distillation) from companies thatsell essential oils. One such company is The Essential Oil Co., PO Box 206, Lake Oswego, OR,97034. 503-697-5992; FAX 503-697-0615; Orders 1-800-729-5912. Catalog is free, but there isa $50 minimum order (orders under $50 are accepted but charged an additional $5 servicecharge). The company also sells other oils of interest to readers of this newsgroup. Caution

should be exercised with these oils since they can contain significant amounts of pharmacologically active and/or toxic elements.

WHAT PLANTS CONTAIN THUJONE?According to W. N. Arnold's Scientific American article: Thujone occurs in a variety of plants, includingtansy ( Tanacetum vulgare ) and sage ( salvia officinalis ), as well as in all the trees of the arborvitae group,of which the thuja ( Thuja occidentalis ), or white cedar, is one. It is also characteristic of most species of


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Artemisia, a genus within the Compositae, or daisy, family. Wormwood ( Artemisia absinthium ) andRoman wormwood ( Artemisia pontica ) were the main sources of the thujone in absinthe (4).

HOW WAS/IS ABSINTHE MADE?Simon and Schulter's Guide to Herbs and Spices tells us that Henri-Louis Pernod used aniseed, fennel,

hyssop, and lemonbalm along with lesser amounts of angelica, star anise, dittany, juniper, nutmeg, andveronica. These ingredients were mascerated together with wormwood plants. After leaving themixture to sit, water was added and the mixture was distilled. Dried herbs, including more wormwood,were added to the distillate, which was then diluted with alcohol to give a concentration of about 75%alcohol by volume (8). Different absinthe manufacturers used slightly different ingredients, sometimesusing calamus, which has been purported to have psychoactive effects.

In addition to these ingredients, manufacturers sometimes added other ingredients to produce thedrink's emerald green color. Normally, this color was due to the presence of chlorophyll from theplants. However, in the event that the product was not properly colored, absinthe makers were

known to add things like copper sulfate, indigo, turmeric, and aniline green. Antimony chloridewas also used to help the drink become cloudy when added to water. Presumably modern makersof Pernod and absinthe use safer ingredients for their concoctions!

Here are some recipes for "absinthe" which were originally posted to rec.food.drink. Absinthe isplaced in quotes since only the last recipe here will produce something resembling the traditionaldrink. I have not personally tried these recipes and do not claim that they are safe or even tasty.

** Absinthe #1 **

1 pint vodka

2 tsp crumbled wormwood (dried) 2tsp anise seed 1/2 tsp fennel seed 4 cardomom pods 1 tsp majoram 1/2 tsp ground coriander 2 tsp chopped angelica root 1 2/3 cups sugar syrup

Place vodka in large jar with tight fitting lid. Add wormwood and shake well; steep 48 hrs and strain out.Crush seeds and pods in mortar. Add them and all remaining spices to vodka and steep in a warm place

1 week. Filter and sweeten. (The sugar syrup mentioned above is your standard simple syrup.)

** Absinthe #2 **

1 tsp crumbled wormwood 1 cup vodka 2 Tbsp chopped peppermint leaves 1 piece of lemon peel, 3/4"x2"


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1/3-1/2 cup sugar syrup

Steep wormwood in vodka for 48 hours. Strain out and add peppermint leaves and lemon peel.Steep for 8 days, strain and sweeten. Smells good but is more bitter than #1.

** Absinthe Wine **

All herbs are dried.

2 tsp peppermint 2tsp dried wormwood 2 tsp thyme 2 tsp lavender 2 tsp hyssop 2 tsp majoram 2 tsp sage 2 pints port

Steep herbs one week, filter and bottle. My notes describe this as "bitter, aromatic andpotent". ** Absinthe #3 ** >From Arnold's article in Scientific American : An 1855 recipe fromPontarlier, France, gives the following instructions for making absinthe: Macerate 2.5 kilogramsof dried wormwood, 5 kilograms of anise and 5 kilograms of fennel in 95 liters of 85 percentethanol by volume. Let the mixture steep for at least 12 hours in the pot of a double boiler. Add45 liters of water and apply heat; collect 95 liters of distillate. To 40 liters of the distillate, add 1kilogram of Roman wormwood, 1 kilogram of hyssop and 500 grams of lemon balm, all of which have been dried and finely divided. Extract at a moderate temperature, then siphon off theliquor, filter, and reunite it with the remaining 55 liters of distillate. Dilute with water to produceapproximately 100 liters of absinthe with a final alcohol concentration of 74 percent by volume(4).

4. RECIPES

General Drink Recipes

This is a list of the basic classic cocktail recipes. The cocktails are usually named after the liquor

base. For instance an Alexander made with brandy would be a "Brandy Alexander", and aRickey made with rum would be a "Rum Rickey".

Alexander2 oz. liquor or liqueur2 oz. white or dark creme de cacao


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2 oz. light cream

Shake, strain into highball glass.

Collins1 1/2 oz. liquor3 oz. sour mix

Shake, strain into collins glass, top with 1 oz. club soda.

Cooler1 1/2 oz. liquorfill with ginger ale

Serve in highball glass. Garnish with lemon wedge.

Fruit Daiquiri4 parts light rum1 part white creme de cacao1 part appropriate fruit liqueur

fresh fruit

Blend, serve in exotic glass with straw.

Highball1 1/2 oz. liquorfill with ginger ale

Serve in highball glass.

Rickey1 1/2 oz. liquorfill with club soda


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Serve in highball glass. Garnish with lime wedge.

Sling1 1/2 oz. liquor3 oz. sour mix

Shake, strain into collins glass, top with 1 oz. club soda. Garnish with cherry and orange slice.

Sour1 1/2 oz. liquor3 oz. sour mix

Shake, strain into lowball glass or serve straight in sour glass. Garnish with cherry and orangeslice.

Spritzer1 1/2 oz. liquor

Fill with club soda. Serve in highball glass.

A few words about making liqueurs

Fruit Liqueurs

Fruit Liqueur - Berry(Tested on raspberries, blackberries and a mix of both).

Start with fresh fruit. Place cleaned fruit into a jar.

Add very strong alcohol just so it barely covers all of the fruit. I used double distilled vodka(alcohol content probably about 55-65%). Beware though - Apparently operating a still is VERY illegal!!

Let the covered jar sit for about a week and a half (it's covered so the alcohol doesn't evaporate).Note that no fermentation takes place here- all that happens is that the fruit soaks up the alcohol,


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and releases some of its juices. Depending on the type of fruit the level of fluid may decrease.Once you've decided that the fruit has soaked in much of the alcohol gently pour off the fluid soas not to blemish the fruit (try one now for a taste experience :-). Call this (very strong) fluidrack #1.

During the following steps you probably should avoid blemishing the fruit if at all possible.

Replace the fruit in the jar, but layer it with sugar. How much sugar is a bit difficult to say here.I usually tried to do my best to cover almost all of the fruit with _some_ sugar. Cover the jaragain. What happens now is that the sugar makes the fruit give off its alcohol and shrivelslightly. In a couple of days the level of juice in the jar should reach almost the top of the fruit.This means it is time to pour it off again, call this rack #2.

Now we repeat the layering with sugar step (getting rack#3, rack#4, etc) until only a very smallamount of juice is released. I have been told that with cherries this can be kept up until only atiny little bit of cherry skin is surrounding the pit. Each rack is sweeter and sweeter.

With rasp[black]berries I got to rack #4 and then got bored waiting for really small amounts of uice. So I took the berries, threw them into a cloth and twisted the hell out them to release the

vestiges of alcohol and juice. This was rack#5. The left over pulp can be used with ice-cream.Note that this step is entirely optional, four racks were plenty enough (but why waste alcohol :-).

Now comes the fun part.Invite several friends (I used 5) and mix the different racks in various proportions and get somefeedback on how they taste (too sweet, too alcoholic, too dry, etc). Don't use too many friends orelse you won't have any left after the tasting. Now you should know what proportions to mix thefinal product in. Disposing of juice _not_ used in the final mix is left as an exercise to the reader

(I had some sweet stuff left over and use it on ice cream).

Thoughts on the final mix:In my case the final mix was very close to the ratio of rack#1: rack#2: rack#3 etc. This wasconvenient because I got the maximum of liqueur with minimal leftovers.

After a visit to a friends house in Poland and a sampling of his Cherry Liqueur (THE BESTliqueur I have EVER tasted)- I have decided to make liqueur also. Here are the directions hegave me (for cherry liqueur):

Fill a Jar with cherries.

Add alcohol to cover all the cherries.Let sit for a week or so, the cherries should have swelled and there should be less liquid in thear.

Pour off the liquid.a)Layer the cherries with sugar and let sit another week.b)Pour off resulting fluid.c)Repeat steps a) and b) until the cherries are so small that they're just basically the pit covered


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with a very thin skin.

Now mix all the batches that you poured off to suit your taste. The first is most bitter, the last isthe sweetest.

Fruit Liqueur - Citrus

Find a glass container with an opening large enough to comfortable accept a medium sizeorange. the small the container the better.

Invert a glass shot glass and center in the bottom of the container. Pour a cup of Everclear into the container without wetting the shot glass top. Place a fresh

orange on top of the shot glass. The orange should have a moderately thick skin, but notexcessive.

A ground glass top is ideal, if not, a closely fitting plate will do to cover the brue. Check daily as the orange "sweats" its oils. It will slow after three or four days (a week is OK but

not necessary). DO NOT OPEN AT ANY TIME till done. Remove orange and shot glass and pour in a cup of bar syrup. There is no magic here, find your

own sweetness level, this is just for openers. Pour into a regular bottle and stopper tightly (after you've tasted it, clear, crisp, intense, pure,

WOW, no more of those orange liqueurs again).

This stuff is fragile so plan on using it soon and don't make more than you can use, one week isfine, after two it very drinkable but the flavor is noticeably less. And, it will get cloudy with noapparent affect.

Yes any citris will work (never tried a grapefruit), we even put two dozen mint leaves on athread and hung over. The leaves turned black and crumbly, but the taste; sheer POWER.

5. THE INEVITABLE

Intoximeter

With this gadget you can calculate your blood alcohol level (roughly). Different people usedifferent time to get sober, so this is only meant as a funny gadget, not an exact measurement (infact, it may not be that exact either as it doesn't take the time between the drinks into account).

How it works: The alcohol will add to the water in your body. An adult male consists of 60-80percent water, and an adult female of 50-70 percent water. (That is why women get drunk quicker than men.) The blood alcohol level will be reduced by about 0.015 percent per hour.

And please never drink and drive , even if you only had one beer it will affect your ability to


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drive safely.

The Human Body's Reaction to Alcohol

Blood

alcohol Physical reaction

0.02% The ability to perform complex tasks is reduced. You get a little tense and hot.

0.05% You get more excited.

0.08% You really get "in the mood". Memory is weakened. You exaggerate things and speakloud.

0.10% Looses control of muscles and emotional feelings. Most people stop drinking at thislevel, so should you!

0.15% You are really drunk. Staggering, nausea and sleepyness.

0.20% You experience problems speaking. See things double.

0.30% You are dead drunk. No sense of what is happening around you.

0.35% -0.40%

Unconsciousness or coma. Reduces respiration. Risk of suffering brain damage is high,even dying.

Over 0.40% GAME OVER - You most likely will die.

Dr. I. M. Bibe's Anti-Hangover Tips

Well, having done YEARS of research (;-D) on hangover cures, here are my scientific findings:

1. There is one preventive measure that is absolutely foolproof for every person in the world: Don't ever drink. You'll be guaranteed to avoid hangovers for the rest of your life.

2. Since 99.9% of the people who are concerned with hangovers will never follow method #1,


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then the next best preventive measure is this: Never drink enough to get really drunk. That way, hangovers will be rare, if not nonexistent.

3. Methods #1 & #2 apply to ALL people. From this point on, we enter the mysterious realm of experimental preventives: The problem here is that all people are not alike in such things as size, weight, metabolism,

chemistry, etc. So, what works for me may not work for you. But I offer these as good ideas totry when you've done what 89% of us do - namely, said to hell with methods #1 & #2.You've just opened your eyes to find yourself crumbled into a collapsed mess, hopefully in abed, hopefully in somewhat familiar surroundings, but, worst of all, awake. Your mind graduallymanages to reconstruct some sort of memory of some portion of the previous night's activities.You feel like the worst part of hell (this is the cue for the proverbial "I'll-never-drink-again"declaration, one of the most pitiful demonstrations of bull$#!+ in all of human behavior). Youneed help. Quick.A little understanding of what a hangover actually IS really comes in handy here. It's acombination of a few physiological things:

1. Dehydration - the alcohol has forced evaporation of a certain vital portion of the body'swater.

2. Nervous shock - you're coming off the effects of a mild overdose of a depressant drug,so your nerves are displaying the great Newtonian natural law of action/reaction bygoing into a relatively hypersensitive state.

3. malnutrition - pumping all that alcohol and liquid through your body has effectivelyflushed away a significant supply of your storage of vitamins and nutrients, chemicalswhich would stimulate natural defense systems, but you're running seriously low onthem now.

What you need to do is take some restorative steps to begin a recovery process. This meansdoing the same things that you should've done in method #3 (it's really too late now, but itcan't hurt). It means rest and as little nervous stimulation as possible. It also means trying to eatsomething that will help to replace the nutrients you've lost. That really should be in the formsof fruits/vegetables, NOT fatty, greasy junk, not dairy foods, something that isn't too tough onthe already beat-up digestive system. Bananas are great for key vitamins. But I'll tell you whatI've found to be a real miracle medicine for me - tomatoes! Strange but true. This came to me by pure accident. I was a suffering bastard one day followinga night of revelry, and I knew I needed some food, but I found myself in a situation where Ididn't really have any choice about the lunch that I'd been served. It was a basic Italian-American dish that included a tomato sauce (something like lasagne or spaghetti). In less thanan hour after eating, I felt rejuvenated, almost back to normal! I couldn't believe how quickly Ihad gone from hangover hell to basically ok. I figured it was just a fluke. But the next time I wasin a similar situation, I deliberately tried it again, and it worked! This sort of explains half of thereason that a Bloody Mary is the standard morning-after drink. (The OTHER half, of course, isthat more alcohol - "hair-of-the-dog" - acts to relax your shattered nerves and numb the pain inthe head, but more alcohol is also a great step on the road to alcoholism, not a habit I'dsuggest.)


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So, next time, try it. Maybe a little light pasta with a meatless, greaseless, tomato sauce. Coldgazpacho or a mild salsa may work too, but your stomach will be in no mood for onions andpeppers. A glass of V8 may be just the thing. Citrus juices tend to bother the stomach too; buttomatoes are highly acidic, so I can't explain that part.

If you know you're going to be drinking a LOT of something, there are certain definite DON'Ts:

1. Don't mix a lot of different types of alcoholic drinks (liquor, then wine, then beer). LoudonWainwright wrote a song about this:

Drinks before dinner and wine with dinner and after-dinner drinksSingle-entendreHelp me, RhondaLocate my cufflinksCome with me and you all will see that it all be alright Rudolph the red-nosed wino will guide our sleigh tonight.

2. Don't overdo it with colored liquors (red wine, whiskeys, cordials, dark rum). A cheap red winehangover is absolutely THE WORST. Death without actually passing into the next world.

3. Don't overdo it with sweet blended concoctions. This is the classic mistake of high-school idiots,dumb college undergrads, and basic novice drinkers (who will probably never drink again). All of these sick sugary trendy drinks with cream of whatever, and doughnut-flavored schnapps, andlayers of nifty floating colored syrups and liquers. Oh, please. Gag. Gallons of Coca-Cola mixedwith hard liquor. Imitation raspberry-flavored margaritas and "daiquiris". (Raise your hand if

you've ever even SEEN a real daiquiri.) The combination of all of that sugar in the stomach withthe mandatory alcoholic kick in the head - the end-result is almost always the same. (I STILLremember the sight of the sidewalk outside of a cheezy teen bar in Underground Atlanta backwhen they served 18-yr.-olds.) Most kids still have to learn the hard way. Some people think it'sa rite of passage to "adulthood". Yeah, right.

6. JUST FOR FUN

cocktail basics

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