Hello! It has been a while since my last post. As the holidays came upon us, I not only ran out of time to blog but I also kind of needed a break. For about a week and a half, I didn’t write and I didn’t really photograph the food that I made either, even though there were some great recipes that we enjoyed with our families as we celebrated. Well, I am feeling refreshed. I’ve started taking a few more photos and here I am, writing a blog post even though it is nearly 10:30 and I am still jet lagged. It’s good to know the blog bug isn’t gone 🙂

I’m really excited about today’s cocktail post because I’m featuring my friends at Dogwood Distilling. I’ve had their gin and vodka on my shelf for a long time, and I’ve been hearing from their team that an awesome new product was in the works. Well, it’s finally here: Haint Absinthe!

As far as I know (and please tell me in the comments if I’m wrong), this is the only absinthe currently being produced in the Portland area. And my friends, it is delightful. Fresh, herby and light – it’s an absinthe that I want to use for way more than as a rinse for the occasional Sazerac. That’s why (besides sipping, of course), today I’m making Hemingway’s cocktail of choice, the Death in the Afternoon. I’ve heard he’d recommend having five or six of these. Do not do that – ever. I think with even three you’d have one heck of a hangover, and for that reason I recommend having just one. This cocktail, while delicious, is not for the faint of heart.

By the way, you may have noticed that I have the world’s greatest prop in this photoshoot, an Olympia deLuxe typewriter from 1956. My husband Dave gave it to me for Christmas in what has to be the coolest surprise ever. The first thing I did was type out a letter to my grandmother. And what I thought was really awesome when doing this post was, this typewriter is old enough to be around when Hemingway was (though, it is not his preferred model, which was a Royal Quiet deLuxe).

Here’s what you need:
1 oz. [GOOD] absinthe – recommended in Portland: Dogwood Distilling Haint Absinthe
4 oz. cold dry sparkling wine

Stir the absinthe with ice in a mixing glass, then add the sparkling wine to the glass. Strain into a coupe glass. If you are really big fan of absinthe, you may wish to add another 1/4 to 1/2 oz., but when doing so, consider that this is a very high proof spirit.