The Green Fairy

What do Ernest Hemingway, James Joyce, Lewis Carroll, Paul Verlaine, and Herni de Toulouse- Lautrec have in common? Besides each of them standing out in their own categories of artistic genius, self destruction, social awkwardness and suicidal tendencies? If they were somehow able to all be assembled in the same room at the same time, there would be a bottle on a table in the room with them. The contents of the ornately blown glass bottle would be a soft, green liquid. The stopper at the top of the bottle would show signs of recently having been opened and a small portion of the liquid would appear to be missing.
Hemingway would naturally take it upon himself to be the first to take a glass from the table in one hand, unstop the bottle in the other and with the stopper in his teeth, he would poor a generous portion of the potion into his glass. Ernest would replace the stopper and place the bottle back in the center of the table. “Cheers gentlemen,” he would whisper raising his glass. However, instead of just drinking the liquid down, he would only take a sip, and walk away to the window to finish his drink in privacy. His actions would to give permission to the others to indulge, and they would. Of these five men, two would have met in life, and all today, in this room in death.
What is the power this seemingly magic elixir holds over these historical figures? To know that we need to know the history and significance of the contents of the bottle. It started as a medicine by Dr. Pierre Ordinaire, a Frenchman living in the cantor of Neuchatel in Switzerland in the late 18th century. To his surprise, his concoction fermented and became a better alcohol than a medicine. It was not without side effects. Apparently, the user of the elixir would begin having hallucinations and exhibit erratic behavior as a result of what they were seeing. It was quickly labeled a dangerous and highly addictive drug and banned in France. The poor doctor was never able to sell his magic tonic as anything but a good stiff drink, and he died never seeing its full potential. This sordid legacy around the drink made it more exotic and more desirable to the likes of our friends. Each of them was known to have a weakness for the libations of their times. Wine was a recurring theme throughout most of their lives, and rum, whiskey and vodka were often on the menu as well. But this drink was different. This was a trans fitting, transforming and transcending tantalizing spirit that was a mandatory muse for our five men. It is called, Absinthe.
In 1932, after his book, Death in the Afternoon was published, Hemingway contributed a recipe to a cocktail book. In that book he wrote a simple combination, "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." We are bringing the Green Fairy, as it was called, to light in this article. All of our giants of the arts had a longing for absinthe. Today just happens to be some obscure holiday honoring this alcoholic beverage. With a name as ancient sounding as that, one might wonder if Absinthe is even still sold. Well, it is. Despite its nasty and colorful reputation the drink is legal, safe to indulge in, and as far as it bringing hallucinations to the users, not entirely true. Recall, other alcoholic beverages have been known to conjure up strange things such as pink elephants dancing in the streets.
Be aware also that if you imbibe in a glass or five as Hemingway suggested, you will not necessarily be giving the gift of prose, paint, or rhyme. A muse is only as good as its master. Regardless, for a short while though you will after a while at the bar, feel a connection, no matter how erroneous, with our five extraordinary gentlemen, and allow yourself to fall into the hallucination of being in that room.
Apparently, beer is not the only drink that can be green on St. Patrick’s Day! Cheers!