The Prague Post
May 9th, 2008
Reader's Survey     Endowment Fund     Book of Lists ONLINE      Reservations      Classifieds    Subscriptions
Hotel Prague Centre

Home » Archives » Night & Day

Absinthe makes hearts grow fonder

Going over the Hill's in Prague and other culinary excursions

By Dave Faries
Staff Writer, The Prague Post
June 20th, 2007 issue

Jan Přerovský/THE PRAGUE POST
Call it what you will: Absinthe Time stocks a better selection than most.
enlarge
There are many who disparage “Bohemian-style” absinthe, the kind produced in the Czech Republic.
And that’s not just because they tried a swig of Hill’s.
No, aficionados of the infamous spirit refer to Czech absinthe as a bitter spirit.
Sure it’s green, sometimes alarmingly so, which is usually an indication of artificial coloring in some form or other. But local brands tend to use anise sparingly, if at all.
While traditional French absinthe does have a sharp, bitter jab from wormwood, the herbal notes and strong licorice flavor of anise, fennel and the like add pleasant warmth. Anise not only cools the sting of alcohol, it also causes the drink to louche, or turn milky when mixed with water. Hence, these same aficionados complain about Czech brands’ refusal to change hues.
Fortunately, louching (or the lack thereof) doesn’t affect taste.
During the 19th-century heyday of absinthe, when Parisians referred to that lengthy stop at the pub after work as “the green hour,” fans of “the green fairy” would drip water through a sugar cube — flaming, absinthe-soaked sugar is a trendy but unnecessary affectation — to sweeten its bitter edges and cut the alcohol content, generally to around 70 percent. The transition from pale green to off-white was just a magical extra.
Unfortunately, shoddy distilling and disreputable dealers allowed bottles containing harmful levels of methanol and other chemicals onto the market. Resulting cases of convulsions, illness and other side effects — along with turn-of-the-century temperance ire — led most nations to ban absinthe. The blacklisting lasted until the 1990s across much of Europe, and continues in the United States.
Thujone, a chemical substance found in wormwood, took the blame for the erratic behavior of absinthe drinkers. The EU now limits absinthe to 10 milligrams of thujone content per liter. Bitter liqueurs are allowed much higher levels.
I mention all of this because summer brings waves of tourists who expect some kind of clandestine pleasure from the wicked green fairy. Perhaps not realizing that the very good brands are to be found on shelves in France, Spain, Germany and England, they point with cautious anticipation at that nasty Scope substitute called Hill’s.
Here’s a tip: When the tour bus drops you off at U Fleků, slip away from the crowd and step into Absinthe Time, a few meters down Křemencova. Order one of the better Czech bitter liqueurs — Absinthe 35 or b for example — and settle in for a soothing night.
Oh, and then tell the trendy amateurs to put away their matches.
 
The more things change
Last year it was a surprising find: simple fare, well-prepared. But home-style Armenian cuisine failed to attract the foodie masses, so Achtamar is in the louching process. No word yet on whether they plan to go all-out Bhutanese.
Bukowski’s, the great unopened pub in Žižkov, is — ready for it? — still unopened. But Sushi Point managed to open another branch, this time in Flora.
Buzz continues about The Globe’s near-remarkable recovery. Six months ago, new owners Michael Sito and Michael Cella were stuck serving barely edible courses. Recently, however, they pumped new life into the kitchen: decent spaghetti and meatballs, good lasagna and now, just in time for summer, a version of gazpacho better than you find at many Prague venues.
 
More visitors
The big hotel chains like to show off their global physique once in a while, bringing in star chefs from cities where words like “dumpling” imply something more than a white bread mop. So, June 20–29, Essensia (in the Mandarin Oriental) hosts chef Vichit Mukura from Bangkok. He will prepare a three-course Thai menu, available in addition to the restaurant’s regular listings. The affair costs 960 Kč ($44.60) per person. Call 233 088 777 for more information.
Final (slurred) words
Enjoy good bourbon? Have a stack of bankovky on hand? Appreciate the sterile ambience of chain hotel bars? Check out the one at the Marriot Courtyard (across from Flora). There’s a full line of upmarket Jim Beam labels from Knob Creek to Booker’s. They sit on the shelf next to a bottle of Woodford Reserve.

Dave Faries can be reached at dfaries@praguepost.com


Help us improve The Prague Post - fill out our Reader's Survey.

Other articles in Night & Day (20/06/2007):

Browse the Current Issue

If you enjoyed this article, why don't you subscribe to the print version!
We accept secure online transactions provided by PayPal and Moneybookers

Be the first to add a comment!


Full Name: *
City: *
E-mail: **
This comment can be published in the print version of The Prague Post
Enter the text on the right:
 visual captcha
Comment: *
* Required field. In order to be approved for display, comments must have a first and last name and a city.
** E-mails are required and will only be used for internal purposes.

Most visited in Book of Lists

Provokator
Hotel booking
The Prague Post Online contains a selection of articles that have been printed in
The Prague Post, a weekly newspaper published in the Czech Republic.
To subscribe to the print paper, click here.
Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.