According to some authorities, absinthe as a drink originated in Algeria, and French soldiers serving in the Franco-Algerian war (1830-47) introduced the green spirits to Paris upon their return from the North African country where the drink found strong favor along the boulevards. In time the spectacle of bearded men and demi-mondes dripping their ab­sinthes became one of the sights of Paris. Naturally, so fashionable a Parisian drink was not long in find­ing its way to the Little Paris of North America— New Orleans.

The drink, which was spelled absynthe in New Orleans liquor advertisements in 1837, when it was apparently first imported from France and Switzer­land, was a liquor distilled from a large number of various herbs, roots, seeds, leaves, and barks steeped in anise. It also included Artemisia absinthium, an herb known as "Wormwood" abroad, but called Herbe Sainte by the French-speaking population of Louisi­ana. In recent years wormwood has been condemned as harmful and habit-forming, and laws have been enacted forbidding its use in liquors in the United States and other countries. In addition to banning wormwood from manufactured liquor, the use of the word "absinthe" on bottles of modern concoctions which do not contain wormwood, is also banned. <\s a consequence, manufacturers of absinthe substitutes have been forced to adopt trade names.

Old Absinthe House

Of all the ancient buidings in New Orleans' famed Vieux Carre, none has been more glorified in story and picture than a square, plastered-brick building at the corner of Bourbon and Bienville streets, known as "The Old Absinthe House."

Hoary legend has long set forth that the building was erected in 1752, 1774, 1786, 1792, but as a matter of fact it was actually built in 1806 for the importing and commission firm of Juncadella & Font, Catalo-nians from Barcelona, Spain. In 1820, after Fran­cisco Juncadella died and Pedro Font returned to his native land, the place continued as a commission house for the barter of foodstuffs, tobacco, shoes, clothing, as well as liquids in bulk from Spain, and was conducted by relatives of the builders. Later it became an epicerie, or grocery shop; for several years it was a cordonnerie, or boot and shoe store, and not until 1846 did the ground floor corner room become a coffee-house, as saloons were then called.

This initial liquid-refreshment establishment was run by Jacinto Aleix, a nephew of Senora Juncadella, and was known as "Aleix's Coffee-House." In 1869,Cayetano Ferrer, a Catalan from Barcelona, who had been a bar-keeper at the French Opera House, trans­ferred his talents to the old Juncadella casa and be­came principal drink-mixer for the Aleix brothers. In 1874, Cayetano himself leased the place, calling it the "Absinthe Room" because of the potent dripped absinthe he served in the Parisian manner. His drink became so popular that it won fame not only for Cayetano, but for the balance of his family— papa, mamma, Uncle Leon, and three sons, Felix, Paul, and Jacinto, who helped to attend the wants of all and sundry who crowded the place. What the customers came for chiefly was the emerald liquor into which, tiny drop by tiny drop, fell water from the brass faucets of the pair of fountains that deco­rated the long cypress bar. These old fountains, relics of a romantic past, remained in the Casa Jun~ cadella for many years. Came prohibition when the doors of "The Old Absinthe House" were padlocked by a United States marshal, and the contents of the place went under the hammer. Pierre Cazebonne purchased the prized antiques, together with the old bar, and set them up in another liquid refreshment parlor a block farther down Bourbon street, where signs now inform the tourist that therein is to be found the original "Old Absinthe Bar" and antique fountains, and we find the marble bases pitted from the water which fell, drop by drop, from the faucets over the many years they served their glorious mission.

In these modern years the tourist yearning for an old flavor of the Old New Orleans to carry back as a memory of his visit, goes to 400 Bourbon street, not only to see the venerable fountains and bar, but to be served absinthe frapp£ by a son of Cayetano Fer­rer, the Spaniard who established "The Old Absinthe House." Jacinto Ferrer (we who know him call him "Josh") should indeed know how to prepare the drink properly for he has been at it 65 years. Josh served his apprenticeship in his father's celebrated "Absinthe Room" in 1872, and today at three-score-years-and-ten carries on with an air the profession at which he began his apprenticeship as a five-year-old boy.

Dripped Absinthe Francaise

1 lump sugar

1 jigger absinthe substitute

1 glass carcked ice

Pour the jigger of absinthe substitute into a barglass filled with cracked ice. Over it suspend a lump of sugar in a spe­cial absinthe glass which has a small hole in the bottom (use a strainer if you haven't the glass) and allow water to drip, drop by drop, slowly into the sugar. When the desired color which indicates its strength has been reached and most of the sugar dissolved, stir with a spoon to frappe. Strain into a serving glass.

This recipe is for the original dripped absinthe that made famous Cayetano Ferrer's "Old Absinthe House" when he introduced the Parisian drink to New Orleans—the drink containing oil of wormwood which instigated the banishing of the word "Ab­sinthe" from bottle labels. It is the same dripped absinthe, the "Fairy with Green eyes," described in Marie Corelli's famous book "Wormwood."

Today, the absinthe substitutes are free of the harmful extract of the herb Artemisia absinthium, and entirely safe when imbibed (in moderation) at any bar.

Absinthe Cocktail

1 jigger absinthe substitute

1 teaspon sugar sirup

1 dash anisette

2 dashes Peychaud bitters

2 ounces charged water

Pill a highball glass a little more than half full with cracked or crushed ice. Pour in the absinthe substitute, sugar sirup, anisette, and bitters, then squirt in carbonated or other live water. Jiggle with a barspoon until the mixture is well frapped. Strain into cocktail glasses which have been iced ahead of time.

Absinthe Frappe

1 jigger absinthe substitute

1 teaspoon sugar sirup

1 jigger charged water

Pill a small highball glass with cracked or shaved ice. Pour in the sugar sirup, then the absinthe substitute, and drip water (seltzer or other charged water will improve it) slowly while frappeing with the spoon. Continue jiggling the bar-spoon until the glass becomes well frosted.

This is the simple and easy way to prepare an absinthe drink, one that has many devotees in many lands. Of course, if you have a shiny coctail shaker and want to put it to work, you can use it. Shake until the shaker takes on a good coating of frost, and then pour the mixture into glasses which have been well iced before the drink is prepared.

Absinthe Anisette

1 pony anisette

1 jigger absinthe substitute

Use a small glass and fill with shaved or finely cracked ice. Pour in the anisette and absinthe. Jiggle with a barspoon until heavily frapped and serve in the same glass. A straw goes with this one.

The modern absinthe substitutes cannot be detected in taste even by those who were familiar with the original but now illegal liquor, a flood of fancy and trademarked names has resulted, and it is marketed under such names as Greenopal, Herbsaint, Pernod, Assent, Milky Way, and the like.

Green Opal Cocktail

1 jigger Greenopal, or other absinthe

substitute

½ pony dry gin.

½ pony anisette or ojen

1 dash orange bitters

2 dashes Peychaud bitters

Put the absinthe substitute and dry gin in a shaker. Add anisette or ojen (make your own choice), and the two bitters. Fill shaker with crushed ice to frappe.

This is a special cocktail featured by Solari's, manu­facturers of Greenopal, the absinthe substitute that gives this cocktail its foundation. The name green opal comes from its lovely opalescent color.

A different, highly recommended cocktail for those who want something very good as well as very dif­ferent.

Jitters Cocktail

1/3 jigger ojen

1/3 jigger gin

1/3 jigger French vermouth

Pour all ingredients into a barglass and fill with ice. Jiggle with a barspoon until well frapped, and serve in a cold cock­tail glass.

This is a Spanish cocktail featured by Fernandez & Co., famous Ojen distillers of Jerez, Spain. Bar­keepers who claim that Ojen should not be mixed with other liquors, say this one ought to give anybody the "jitters."

Old and odd names for Ojen in New Orleans were "Majorca" and "Anis del mono," Majorca for the famous Spanish island in the Mediterranean, and Anis del mono meaning "monkey anise." Why mon­key? Your guess is as good as mine. Maybe enough Ojen cocktails encourage monkeyshines!

Ojen

1 jigger ojen

1 glass crushed ice

1 ounce carbonated water

Fill a barglass with crushed ice. Add a jigger of ojen. Jiggle energetically with a barspoon for a moment or two. Add an ounce of seltzer or other charged water and jiggle again. Strain into a cocktail glass which has been thoroughly chilled.

Ojen possesses so much delicacy of flavor that it should be served neat and not mixed with other in­gredients, although there are recipes that call for mixing. While an Ojen is supposed to be frapped with a spoon, a good shaking will do no harm to the flavor and will induce a thicker coating of frost.

Ojen (which is pronounced oh-hen) is a word short­ened from the Spanish ajenjo (ah-hen'ho) meaning absinthe and wormwood in the musical tongue of Spain. It is manufactured from anise, which is also a predominent ingredient in absinthe, and despite its original Spanish name, Ojen contains no harmful wormwood.

Ojen Cocktail

1 jigger ojen

2-3 dashes Peychaud bitters seltzer water.

Stir the mixture in a barglass with ice, add a little seltzer or other charged water, and strain into a frapped cocktail glass.

The bitters give this Ojen a delicate rose-colored tinge. Therefore it masquerades under the name of "Pink Shimmy," or pinque chemise, if you prefer the language of the fifty million who can't be wrong.

Suissesse

1 teaspoon sugar

1 pony French vermouth

1 ponies absinthe substitute

1 white of egg

½ pony creme de menthe

2 ounces charged water

Mix the sugar with charged water, vermouth, and absinthe. Drop in the white of egg. Fill the glass with cracked ice and shake vigorously. Strain into a champagne glass in which there is a cherry with creme de menthe poured over it.

Suissesse, a perfectly good French word meaning a Switzerland-born female, lives up to the reputation earned by those hardy daughters dwelling among the rocks of their picturesque land. The Alps are wonderful—so is a Suissesse. If the name stumps you, pronounce it "swee-cess" and you'll make the barkeep understand what you want. If you yearn to mix one yourself, follow the directions given above and find out why some folks call a Suissesse tops in mixed drinks.

Green Opal Suissesse

The Suissesse given above is probably what origi­nated Swiss yodelling. In New Orleans we have a variation of the happy mixture that transforms yo­delling into the more American "whoopee!" Follow these directions for an adventure in excitement.

1 jigger Greenopal or other absinthe

substitute

½ pony anisette sirup white of an egg; crushed ice

All go into a metal shaker. Shake until the outside takes on a heavy frosting. Bear in mind that one egg white will take care of ten or a dozen portions. Serve in cocktail glasses.

"The Infamous Liquor, the name of which deriv'd from Juniper-Berries in Dutch, is now, by frequent use from a word of midling length shrunk into a Monosyllable, Intoxi­cating Gin." 17 U.

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