Friday The 13th A Toast To Poe
Happy Friday the 13th! Or is it Unhappy …
Either way, it’s a Friday and it’s a day of note so there must be festivities and there must be a toast. And who better to guide us than our literary authority on all things doom, gloom, and fright?
Edgar Allan Poe had a great affection for absinthe. Sixty-eight percent alcohol mixed with a toxic herb called wormwood, absinthe was the drink of choice for poets and artists of the mid- to late nineteenth century. Until banned in 1912, absinthe was a key ingredient of the Sazerac. One of the first cocktails created in America, the Sazerac originated in New Orleans in the early 1800s. We have replaced the absinthe with Pernod. We hope Poe will forgive us.
SAZERAC
3 dashes of Pernod
2 oz. rye whiskey
1/4 oz. simple syrup
3 dashes of Peychaud bitters
Lemon twist
Pour Pernod into a chilled Old-Fashioned glass. Swirl until entire inside of glass is coated, then discard excess. Pour rye, simple syrup, and bitters into a mixing glass filled with ice cubes. Stir well. Strain into the Old-Fashioned glass (no ice). Garnish with lemon twist.
—From Hemin
gway & Bailey’s Bartending Guide to Great American Writers
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Actually, absinthe is legal in the U.S. now. My favorite absinthe cocktail happens to be Hemingway’s preferred drink: Death in the Afternoon — equal measures of absinthe and champagne served in a champagne flute.
Just to be fair to poor old Edgar, he may have had many troubles, but absinthe wasn’t among them. The idea that he drank the stuff is pure myth. If you’re interested, you can read about it here:
http://www.eapoe.org/geninfo/poealchl.htm
Shawn, I noticed that. I think this book was published just before absinthe became legal again. I foresee Death in the Afternoon in my very near future …
Undine, Wow, didn’t know that. Thanks for letting us know! Perhaps we’ll have to rechristen this Hemingway’s favorite drink.