As a confirmed Single Malt Scotch kind of guy, it was almost unthinkable for me to try anything new. Well...the mystique and charm of the absinthe ritual finally got the best of me and I picked up my first bottle last Friday. Wild Card Absinthe. It's very nice, a very lucid drink (ie. you can tell when you've had too much and you slur your words, but you can still play video games and think clearly). I like it.
I'm not sure... I get so absinthe minded these days. OK... I tried it a good while ago when some brand had some launch function. I tried it more out of mystique and curiosity than anything else. I was "into" it briefly for that reason, but then realized that (to me) it tastes really no different than Ouzo or Sambuca. Both of which I have to be in the mood for. So, absinthe was a brief, passing fad for me. I know, I'm a pagan. lol.
I wonder if you had fakesinthe, real absinthe tastes nothing like Ouzo or Sambuca (aside from the anise flavor they all share).
As far as I know, I had the real thing. But, then again, I can't remember which one it was. But, back to your original post, I'd much rather a wee dram of Lagavulin or Jura Prophecy.
I have some from Pacific (http://www.pacificdistillery.com/), rarely drink it. To me it's still more novelty than anything i'd drink on a regular basis.
We've got a bottle at home with the sugar cubes and sifting spoon. It turns a little cloudy and has a slight anised taste. I will have to look at what brand it is. I am by no means a professional, just a fun drink to have every now and then. Right now my drink of choice is 200 proof and taste like applie pie...yessah!
At 200 proof, any "taste" it might have is all in your head. Besides 200 proof is 100% pure ethanol, so any flavoring would dilute it and it wouldn't be 200 proof anymore.
I just checked the Lucid site, it looks like their absinthe is 62% alcohol, or 124 proof. http://www.drinklucid.com/#/About/FAQ
I had some when I was in Europe for my high school trip. I don't remember how I acted, but I found out I'm a really good artist when I'm on that stuff.
Most absinthe is between 60-75% alcohol, then it's watered down, usually at a ratio of 1 to 2-3.5 which brings it down to 12-14% alcohol (or higher) or about that of a glass of wine. It was not made to be drunk straight. Water must be added to release the botanicals from the alcohol suspension.
Lucid says they are the first Absinthe legally available in the US in 95 years, but this could just be marketing BS.
True Absinthe was illegal in the US until very recently and it is still illegal in several countries. The only time I have had the real thing was in Bosnia. I like it, but I am a bigger fan of Ouzo.
Absinthe production never completely stopped in Switzerland, and some of the distillers would ship it to the US. I never understood what all the fuss is about over absinthe. It's not like drinking it make you hallucinate, as seems to be commonly believed. Like any other alcoholic drink, it simply gets you completely trashed if you drink too much of it. Ridge Distillery in Montana makes some fine absinthe, as does Delaware Phoenix.
I have a great book about the history of absinthe that talks about the massive PR campaign that got it banned in so many countries. The major issue was that it was the drink of choice for violent heavy drinkers. Absinthe ended up becoming the scapegoat for a lot of serious social and economic problems in Europe. The US just sort of followed suit.