48 Absinthe Cocktail Recipes – Talisman Spirits

Pilfered, lifted, hijacked, poached and otherwise pinched from the internets.

Absinthe Frappe

“At the first cold sip on your fevered lip, you determine to live through the day.” So went the ode, “Absinthe Frappé,” from the 1904 musical, It Happened in Nordland. This drink hails from a time when absinthe was a highly popular aperitif (pre-1912 ban) and a morning pick-me-up. Simple, icy and strong, the frappé is a less fussy alternative to the pomp and circumstance of traditional absinthe service. Bartender Cayetano Ferrer invented the Absinthe Frappé in 1874 at what would later be known as the Old Absinthe House.

1 1/2 oz absinthe
1/2 oz simple syrup
Mint, for garnish

Add absinthe and simple syrup to cocktail shaker and fill 3/4 with ice.

Shake until chilled, about 12 seconds.

Strain into a double rocks glass or julep cup filled with crushed ice.

Stir, top with more crushed ice, then garnish with a sprig of mint.

Absinthe Frappe (Anisette)

1 oz Absinthe
1/4 oz Anisette
1 Mint sprig, for garnish

In a cocktail shaker add the absinthe and anisette.
Fill with ice and shake well until chilled.
Strain into a julep cup filled with crushed ice.
Top with additional ice and garnish with the mint sprig.

Absinthe Frappe (lemon + soda water)

1½ oz. absinthe
½ oz. simple syrup
2 oz. soda water
8 mint leaves
1 lemon wedge

Gently muddle the mint and lemon wedge with the simple syrup in the bottom of a shaker. Muddling the lemon (as opposed to simply adding juice), introduces some citrus oils along with the juice. Add the absinthe and ice; shake vigorously. Strain into a Collins, highball or frappé glass. Pack with crushed ice and top with a splash of soda water. Use a bar spoon to gently incorporate the bubbles. Garnish with fresh mint and a lime or lemon wedge.

Absinthe Suissesse

A classic New Orleans breakfast drink/brunch cocktail, absinthe is paired with orgeat, an almond-flavored syrup. Remember, as with wormwood in absinthe, the danger of raw eggs in cocktails is often exaggerated.

1 1/2 oz of absinthe
1/2 oz of orgeat syrup
1 oz of half and half
egg white
1 dash orange flower water (optional)
1/2 oz. white crème de menthe (optional)
3 drops orange flower water (optional)

In a blender, combine all ingredients with 4 ounces of ice. Blend until smooth and frothy and pour into a chilled highball glass. You can also serve non-blended with or without ice.

* To make a frozen Absinthe Suissesse, combine absinthe, orgeat syrup, egg white, orange flower water, and heavy cream or half-and-half in blender. Add 6 ice cubes and blend for about 10 seconds.

Balaklava Special No. 2

Served by Caption Ferguson, shipmate around the world in 1926, & late of his Majesty’s Bengal Lancers, one time stationed in the Punjab, Northern India. “Dedicated to the spot made famous by the charge of the Light Brigade which was a spectacular, tragic and rather unnecessary military gesture.” The Gentleman’s Companion, 1946.

1 1/2 oz kümmel (Dutch liqueur flavored with caraway seed, cumin, and fennel)
3/4 oz absinthe
3/4 oz cognac
3/4 oz kirsch
1 bar spoons orgeat
2 bar spoons cream

Shake with ice. Serve into a cocktail glass.

Billionaire

Developed by Dushan Zaric of NYC watering hole Employees Only. A take on the Prohibition classic Millionaire, it was named the Billionaire “because of inflation and the fact that ours is a ‘richer’ cocktail,” the authors quipped.

2 oz. high-proof bourbon, such as Baker’s
1 oz. fresh lemon juice
¹⁄₂ oz. simple syrup
¹⁄₄ oz. absinthe
¹⁄₂ oz. grenadine syrup made from pomegranate (or Campari ala Kala Brooks)
Lemon wheel for garnish

Combine bourbon, lemon juice, absinthe bitters or absinthe, and grenadine in a shaker over ice. Shake vigorously and strain into a coupe glass. Garnish with the lemon wheel.

Bitch on Wheels

From “Absinthe, Sip of Seduction.” (NOT the Malibu and Jagermeister thing!)

2 shots gin
1/2 shot dry vermouth
1/2 shot White Creme de Menthe
1/4 shot absinthe

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

Bitch on Wheels #2

From cocktail builder.com

1 1/2 shots gin
1 1/2 shot absinthe
1/4 shot Green Creme de Menthe or mint liqueur

Coat a martini glass with a few drops of green creme de menthe.

Put six ice cubes into a cocktail shaker and add the liquor.

Shake to chill and strain into the martini glass.

Blackthorn

With roots dating back to 19th-century New Orleans, the Blackthorn cocktail is one of the few classics to highlight Irish whiskey. Savoy Cocktail Book, 1930.

6 dashes Angostura Bitters
1/4 absinthe
1 Irish whisky
1 French vermouth
Shake with ice. Strain into cocktail glass.

Bloody Brain

This should look like a brain floating in formaldehyde. From “Absinthe, Sip of Seduction.”

1/2 shot amaretto
1 shot absinthe
Grenadine
1/2 shot Bailey’s Irish cream

Pour amaretto first, the dribble absinthe down the inside edge of the glass with a spoon. Layering it on top of the amaretto, slowly pour Bailey’s with a spoon on top, letting it curl into a cloud on top of the amaretto. Sprinkle a few drops of Grenadine “blood” on top.

Brazilian Sangria

By Ben Scorah, of New York’s Beekman Bar & Books. Prepare a mix of fresh seasonal fruit such as strawberry, lime, orange, kiwi and passionfruit.

¼ oz Absinthe
1 ¼ oz cachaca
½ oz Spanish brandy
½ oz orange liquor
1 oz red wine
Mixed fruits

In a cocktail shaker, thoroughly muddle the fruit with Lucid, cachaca, brandy, and orange liquor. Pour into wine glass. Float red wine on top of cocktail. Stir and enjoy.

Choker

No sweetening in any form should be added. Drink this and you can drink anything; new-laid eggs put into it become hard-boiled. Savoy Cocktail Book, 1930

2oz whisky
1 oz absinthe
1 dash absinthe bitters

Thoroughly shake with ice.

Strain into cocktail glass.

Chrysanthemum

Camper English, a San Francisco–based writer, adapted this classic drink recipe to showcase the use of absinthe. As always, the brands of absinthe and vermouth chosen will greatly influence the drink’s flavor profile.

1 teaspoon absinthe
2 tablespoons (1 ounce) Benedictine liqueur
1/4 cup (2 ounces) dry vermouth
1 cup ice cubes
1 thin strip orange peel

In cocktail shaker, stir together absinthe, Benedictine liqueur, and vermouth.

Add ice and stir for one minute, then strain into martini glass.

Squeeze orange peel over drink, making sure oils fall into glass, then drop peel into drink and serve.

Classic French Ritual (aka. The Drip)

1 part absinthe
3-4 parts ice water
1 sugar cube

Sugar not only counters the inherent bitterness of absinthe (and the flavor of an inferior absinthe), but in well made absinthes, some think that it subtly improves the herbal flavor profile of the drink. I humbly suggest you skip the sugar the first time with a new bottle to really taste what you have. If you decide some sweetness might help rather than hinder, place a sugar cube on a flat perforated spoon, which rests on the rim of the glass containing a measure or “dose” of absinthe. Iced water is then very slowly dripped on to the sugar cube (from a fountain ideally), which gradually dissolves and drips, along with the water, into the absinthe causing the green liquor to louche (“loosh”) into an opaque opalescent white as the essential oils precipitate out of the alcoholic solution. Usually three to four parts water are added to one part of 68% absinthe. Historically, true absintheurs used to take great care in adding the water, letting it fall drop by single drop onto the sugar cube, and then watching each individual drip cut a milky swathe through the peridot-green absinthe below. Seeing the drink gradually change color was an important part of the ritual.

A la Louisiane

The “secret cocktail of New Orleans”, the A La Louisiane is the former house drink of the French Quarter hotel and restaurant La Louisiane. From “Famous New Orleans Drinks and How to Mix ‘Em” by Stanley Clisby Arthur, 1937

Ice
1 oz rye whiskey
¾ ounce Benedictine
¾ ounce sweet vermouth
1/8 teaspoon absinthe
Several dashes Peychaud’s bitters
Maraschino cherry for garnish

Fill a cocktail pitcher with ice. Pour in whiskey, Benedictine, sweet vermouth, and Pernod. Shake in bitters. Stir well and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a cherry or a twist of lemon.

Corpse Reviver #2

Ice
1 ounce gin
1 ounce Lillet Blanc
1 ounce Cointreau
1 ounce fresh lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon absinthe
Maraschino cherry

Add ice to a cocktail shaker. Pour in gin, Lillet, Cointreau, and lemon juice. Add absinthe to a separate cocktail glass and swirl to coat sides of glass. Shake cocktail, and then strain into the glass. Garnish with a cherry.

Death in the Afternoon

Death in the Afternoon is not only the name of a Hemingway book, it’s also the author’s name of a drink he contributed to a book of celebrity cocktail recipes in 1935. His instructions are: “Pour one jigger absinthe into a Champagne glass. Add iced Champagne until it attains the proper opalescent milkiness. Drink three to five of these slowly.

Pour one jigger absinthe into a Champagne glass.

Add iced Champagne until it attains the proper opalescent milkiness.

Foaming Fairy

By Greg Henry

2 ounce Hayman’s Old Tom Gin
½ ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice
½ ounce absinthe
1 small egg white
4 drop The Bitter Truth Creole Bitters

Add the gin, lemon juice, absinthe and egg white to cocktail shaker. Cover and vigorously “dry shake” the ingredients about 30 seconds to combine. Uncap the shaker and fill ⅔ full with ice and shake again vigorously until frothy, at least 30 seconds. Using a Hawthorn strainer double strain the cocktail through a wire-mesh sieve into chilled cocktail glass. Wait a moment for the foam to rise, then strategically place 4 drops bitters in a circle on top. Use a skewer to connect the dots. Makes 1.

Fourth Degree

A classic from the “golden age” of pre-prohibition cocktails. Savoy Cocktail Book, 1930

3/4 oz. dry gin
3/4 oz. dry vermouth
3/4 oz. sweet vermouth (Changing either of the vermouths will make for a substantially different drink—EXPLORE!)
1 tsp. absinthe
Lemon twist

Add all the liquid ingredients to a cocktail glass with ice and stir until well-chilled. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass or coupé. Garnish with the lemon twist. Serve.

Glad Eye

Savoy Cocktail Book, 1930

1/3 peppermint schnapps
2/3 absinthe

Shake with ice. Strain into cocktail glass.

Green Beast

1 oz Absinthe
1 oz fresh lime juice
1 oz simple syrup
4 oz water
Cucumber slices

Add all ingredients to a Collins glass with ice.

Garnish with 4 cucumber slices and stir.
(This recipe can be multiplied to fill a large punch bowl.)

Imperial Topaz No. 2

Gwydion Stone, 2008

2 oz light rhum agricole
2 oz fresh pineapple juice
1/4 oz absinthe
2 or 3 dashes of Peychaud’s Bitters
1 dash of orange flower water
simple syrup, to taste (or not)

Shake and strain into frosted cocktail glass.

Jaded Lady

1 ounce absinthe
1/2 ounce vodka
1/2 ounce Sauvignon Blanc
1 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 ounce lemon-parsley infused simple syrup (see ingredients below)
3 drops aromatic bitters
For garnishing: 1 lemon, a few sprigs of fresh mint leaves

For simple syrup:

1/2 bunch parsley, chopped
1 cup water
2 1/4 cups raw cane sugar
Zest and juice of 3 lemons

With a microplane grater or citrus zester, zest three lemons and juice them into a measuring

cup. Set aside and discard the rinds.

In a saucepan over medium heat, dissolve sugar in the water, and add parsley, lemon juice

and zest. Stir and cook until it begins to bubble. Remove from heat and allow to come to room

temperature. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

To mix the cocktail: Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker with 3/4 cup ice.

Stir to mix and allow to rest for about 30 seconds, then pour into a glass.

For garnishing: Use a zester with a channel knife to cut a curl of lemon peel. Gently twist the peel over the drink to release the citrus oil and float on top of the drink with a few mint leaves.

La Tour Eiffel

This cognac cocktail created by renowned bartender Gary Regan is France in a Champagne flute.

1/4 oz Absinthe
2 1/2 oz cognac
1/2 oz orange liqueur
1/2 oz Suze (bitter, gentian based apéritif)
lemon twist

Pour the absinthe into a chilled Champagne flute, tilting and rotating the glass to coat the interior.
Add a few ice cubes and set aside.
Add the remaining ingredients to a mixing glass and fill with fresh ice and stir.
Discard the ice and any excess absinthe from the prepared flute and strain the drink into it.
Garnish with a lemon twist.

Last Resort

A riff on the Last Word perhaps?

1/4 oz Absinthe
2 oz Massenez Poire Williams (pear brandy)
3/4 oz Fresh lime juice
3/4 oz Rich simple syrup (two parts sugar, one part water)
1 Egg white
fresh grated nutmeg
3 dashes Peychaud’s bitters

Add the absinthe to a coupe glass, swirl to coat the inside, discarding any excess, and set aside.

Add the remaining ingredients to a shaker and shake without ice.
Fill with ice and shake vigorously for 30 seconds.
Strain into the prepared glass and garnish with freshly grated nutmeg and 3 dashes of Peychaud’s Bitters.

Loftus

Named in honor of Cissie Loftus, famous Englishcomedienne and mimic, long a popular top-liner. The Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar Book.

1/3 French vermouth
1/3 Italian vermouth
1/3 absinthe

Add to iced tumbler, shake and strain into a cocktail glass:

McKinley’s Delight

We don’t know if President McKinley ever enjoyed one of his eponymous cocktails, but we do know the drink resonated with his constituency as he took office on March 4, 1897, a time when most politicians had signature drinks, and would often ply voters with them.

Ice
2 ounces rye whiskey
1 ounce sweet vermouth
1 teaspoon cherry brandy
1/4 teaspoon absinthe

Place ice in a cocktail pitcher or shaker. Pour in whiskey, sweet vermouth, cherry brandy, and absinthe. Shake or stir to mix. Strain into a chilled martini glass.

Millionaire No. 2

Savoy Cocktail Book, 1930

1 dash anisette
1 egg white
1/3 absinthe
2/3 dry gin

Shake with ice. Strain into cocktail glass.

Necromancer

Created by Mayur Subbarao for Louro Restaurant in New York’s West Village.

3/4 oz absinthe
3/4 oz Lillet Blanc
3/4 oz Elderflower Liqueur
3/4 oz Lemon juice
1 dash Gin
Garnish: 1 Lemon twist

Add all the ingredients to a shaker and fill with ice.
Shake vigorously, and strain into a coupe glass.
Garnish with a lemon twist.

Nine-Pick

Savoy Cocktail Book, 1930

2/3 absinthe
1/3 gin
1 dash Angostura Bitters
1 dash orange bitters
1 dash syrup

Shake well and strain into cocktail glass.

Reuben

Gwydion Stone, 2007

2 oz bourbon
2 oz sweet vermouth
1/2 oz absinthe
2 dashes orange bitters
1 tsp grenadine

Add to an iced Collins glass.

Top with tonic water.

Sazerac

In 1850, this recipe was made with Sazerac French brandy and became the first “branded” cocktail. In 1873, it was altered to replace the French brandy with American Rye whiskey.

1 sugar cube (3/4 teaspoon)
2 dashes Peychaud bitters
Ice
2 ounces rye whiskey (or French brandy or cognac)
1/2 ounces teaspoon absinthe
Twist of lemon peel for garnish

Place sugar in another cocktail glass. Add bitters and a splash of water. Stir to dissolve sugar. Then add ice and whiskey. Take another glass from and rinse it with the absinthe, coating the sides of the glass. (drink the excess absinthe.) Strain the contents of the whiskey glass into the absinthe glass. Garnish with a twist of lemon.

Sazerac(Carthusian)

From Spice Kitchen and Bar in Cleveland.

2 ¹⁄₂ oz. rye whiskey
¹⁄₄ oz. green Chartreuse
¹⁄₂ tsp. simple syrup
Absinthe rinse
2 dashes lemon bitters
Lemon twist, for garnish

Stir rye, Chartreuse, and syrup over ice in a cocktail mixing glass. Add a splash of absinthe into a coupe glass, and swirl to coat the inside of the glass before discarding the absinthe. Strain rye mixture into glass; top with bitters and garnish with a lemon twist.

Seapea Fizz

Supposedly named for song writer and composer Cole Porter (his initials being “C.P.”), the pale green cocktail first appears in Frank Meier’s The Artistry of Mixing Drinks from 1934 at the time of the Gambon bar and later of the Ritz in Paris. The astringent mixture is often updated by contemporary bartenders with the addition of an egg white for body and absinthe for backbone.

3/4 ounce absinthe
3/4 ounce simple syrup (1:1, sugar:water)
3/4 ounce lemon juice
1 egg white
soda water

Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker.

Shake without ice.

Add ice and shake until well-chilled.

Strain into a fizz glass or coupe.

Top with soda water.

Sherman

During the 1930’s, this was a staple at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City, possibly named after Sherman Billingsley, the owner of the Stork Club which opened in 1929.

Ice
2 ounces rye whiskey
1 ounce sweet vermouth
1/2 teaspoon absinthe
1 dash Angostura bitters
1 dash orange bitters
Twist of lemon for garnish

Stir with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a lemon twist.

Sleepy Hollow

From the Jewels of New York, “a multidisciplinary creative studio that combines the love of cooking with the beauty of everyday things.”

½ ounce absinthe
2 ounces mezcal
1 oz st. elizabeth allspice dram
2 dashes angostura bitters
rosemary sprig, for garnish

Pour absinthe into a rocks glass; swirl to coat, and discard liqueur.

Fill a cocktail shaker with ice, then add mezcal, st. elizabeth, and 2 dashes of bitters. Strain cocktail into a glass over ice. Light rosemary with a lighter or culinary torch until smoking and place it in the glass. Serve immediately.

T. N. T.

Savoy Cocktail Book, 1930

1/2 Canadian Club Whisky
1/2 absinthe

Shake with ice. Strain into cocktail glass.

The Astor Hotel Special

The Gentleman’s Companion, 1946

1 1/2 oz cognac
2 bar spoons maraschino liqueur
1/3 oz egg whites
3/4 oz absinthe
1 bar spoons lemon juice

Shake with lumps of cracked ice. Strain into a goblet. Top with chilled soda water.

The Governor’s

Gwydion Stone, 2008

1 1/2 oz gin
1 1/2 oz Pimm’s No. 1
1/2 oz fresh squeezed lime juice
1/2 oz simple syrup
1/4 oz absinthe

Shake with ice. Strain into frosted cocktail glass.

The New Black

1/4 ounce absinthe
2 ounces rye whiskey
1/2 ounce Averna Amaro
Dash orange or Angostura bitters
1 1-inch-wide strip lemon zest

Place absinthe in a chilled old-fashioned glass and swirl to coat glass. Combine rye, Averna, bitters, and 1/2 cup ice in a mixing glass or a cocktail shaker; stir until outside of shaker is frosty, about 1 minute. Strain into prepared glass. Squeeze lemon zest over drink to release oils and add to glass.

The Sahara Glowing Heart

The Gentleman’s Companion, 1946

1 oz dry gin
1 oz absinthe or Pernod
1 oz apricot eau de vie
1/2 oz grenadine

Shake with ice. Strain into a Champagne saucer.

The Sun Also Rises

Is the Death in the Afternoon not enough to satisfy your Hemingway fix? Named after the writer’s first novel, this five-ingredient cocktail marries two types of citrus, two types of spirits and absinthe to achieve a complexity that any Hemingway—or cocktail—admirer would enjoy.

2 oz Banks 5-Island rum
3/4 oz Fresh lime juice
1/2 oz Fresh grapefruit juice
1/2 oz Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur
1 tsp Vieux Pontarlier Absinthe

Add all the ingredients to a shaker and fill with ice.

Shake, and strain into a chilled coupe glass filled with crushed ice.

The Earthquake

This intense potion is adapted from one served at parties by the French artist Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec.

2 ¹⁄₂ oz. cognac
¹⁄₄ oz. absinthe

Stir cognac and absinthe in a cocktail shaker filled with ice.

Strain into a chilled cocktail glass; garnish with a lemon twist.

Victory

Savoy Cocktail Book, 1930

1/2 grenadine
1/2 absinthe

Shake with ice. Strain into medium size glass, and fill with soda water.

Waldorf

The Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar Book, 1933

1 dash of Manhattan Bitters
1/3 whiskey
1/3 absinthe
1/3 Italian vermouth

Add to iced tumbler, shake and strain into a cocktail glass:

Which Way

Savoy Cocktail Book, 1930

1/3 absinthe
1/3 anisette
1/3 brandy

Shake with ice. Strain into cocktail glass.

Wilson’s South Camp Road

The Gentleman’s Companion, 1946

3 oz dry gin
1/2 oz Grand Marnier or Curaçao
Juice of 1 lime
1 dash Angostura Bitters
1 dash orange bitters
3 oz dry vermouth
1/2 oz absinthe
1 egg white
1 bar spoons grenadine, to taste
1/3 oz sugar or gomme syrup

Shake with lumps of cracked ice. Pour into a Champagne saucer.

Yellow Parrot Cocktail

Savoy Cocktail Book, 1930

1/3 absinthe
1/3 yellow Chartreuse
1/3 apricot brandy

Shake with ice. Strain into cocktail glass.

More recipes from Difford’s Guide:

https://www.diffordsguide.com/g/1102/absinthe/cocktails

From the La Fée website:

Modern Cocktails

From the Wormwood Society:

http://www.wormwoodsociety.org/index.php/absinthe-cocktails