simple syrup and *distilled* water

The depth of licorice taste varies from brand to brand (and can vary even within each brand).

Try other brands/styles. Try to find one that doesn't go too far into the licorice zone.

If the flavor is too strong, dilute more.

Dilute with sugar if the wormwood is too strong.

As for cocktails... the only one I've tried was Death in the Afternoon, and I thought it was a terrible thing to do to a good champagne.

I accidently mixed up two flasks we have (one for absinthe and one for blackberry brandy) one day on the way to Disneyland and the absinthe wasn't gone. I added blackberry brandy to it and it was delicious. I believe the mix was about 1/2 and 1/2?

if you look through old cocktail recipe books, there are lots of recipes that call for Absinthe. A sazerac - a **wonderful** drink, calls for you to swirls some absinthe around inside a glass and then pour it out - just the amount that coats the glass.

Most of the recipes call for a small amount of absinthe - like the "Trilby #2" calls for a dash, the "Atty" calls for a teaspoon (the other ingredients total 2.25 ounces), "corpse reviver #2" calls for one dash.

At these very low levels, less expensive ingredients like herbsaint & pernod work just fine. And if you believe (as I do) that there is a unique 'something special' about the effect of good absinthe, there is far too little in most mixed drinks to get that effect.

The taste of (good) absinthe really can make a difference in a drink with just one drop/dash.

I am of the mind that if one does not like the taste of absinthe then you should simply not drink it rather than make horrid concoctions out of it. There are plenty of other things for people to enjoy.

With that in mind..... one mix I stumbled on in creative mood is a shot of lovely silver tequila mixed with a half a teaspoon or less of fantastic absinthe, Jade works the best from the ones I have tried so far, place in a shaker with cracjed ice, shake and pour into a cocktail glass.

The perfect balance of absinthe is essential. It should be a note and nothing more. Cheap tequila ruins the mix.

I call this a Ziggy Stardust.

A few years ago, before the wife and I knew better, we ordered some of the Czechoslovakian Absinthe. The stuff tasted like bile to me! In an effort to not have totally pissed away the money we spent we looked around for some way to make that horrid stuff palatable. Ironically mixing that "absinthe" with Red Bull, another fairly vile liquid, produced an acceptable drink. The revolting flavors seem to negate each other for the most part. Since then the bottles have shoved into the back of a cabinet, never to be seen again.

I firmly believe that life is too short to drink cheap quality liquor. However, if you come across an otherwise revolting version of absinthe mixing it with Red Bull might help.

We've tried the Le tourment and it's OK (too much food coloring and chemical aftertaste). We both like Lucid, Looking forward to trying the St. George when it's time to restock the liquor cabinet.