My Wonderful Experience at the Palette Absinthe Event
My Wonderful Experience at the
Palette Absinthe Event
Absinthia at Palette absinthe event
For the second time, I was invited to the Palette SF to host an evening of absinthe tastings. I was thrilled to return and excited that the event was sold out.
Palette SF is one of my favorite places to enjoy a glass of absinthe and good company. Located in the SoMa neighborhood in San Francisco, Palette SF is also an art gallery. They show a wide range of artists with rotating group and solo exhibitions.
Thanks to the perceptive eye of the Gallery Coordinator, Lena Conley, the exhibit titled "POLLAN-ators" filled the room with stunning artwork against a beautiful black wall. Adding to the atmosphere were floral sculptures that brought a touch of decadence to the event.
The Absinthe tasting was designed by Trevin Hutch, the Palette bar manager. Trevin brings a certain amount of style and wit to cocktail events. And I admire Trevin's approach to classic cocktails with a modern, post-prohibition approach.
Trevin Hutch & glass art by Sam Schumacher
I was delighted with the hand-blown art used that evening. Every glass in the restaurant was created by glass artist Sam Schumacher, including gorgeous absinthe fountains and glassware. These details of beautifully designed glassware emphasized the slow method ritual of pouring absinthe. A technique that I helped attendees understand is that the absinthe fountain is truly a water fountain, as it would never hold absinthe. It is used to slowly drip water into the absinthe glass.
For this event, I made an Absinthe Louche with my Blanche and the Toulouse Lautrec cocktails with my Verte.
My Absinthe Blanche is soft and elegant. Once distilled, absinthe is aromatic, brilliantly clear, and colorless. The anise causes the louche effect that turns the absinthe a milky white with a slight blue haze when water is added.
My Absinthe Verte has an earthy, grassy flavor with a natural sweetness, and it is free of sugar. I choose to use this style absinthe for the Toulouse Lautrec recipe. Similar to Tremblement de Terre, or the Earthquake, recipe, Toulouse Lautrec cocktails include cognac and absinthe.
All of my absinthe styles are made from Biodynamic grapes and certified organic grande wormwood, anise, fennel, and coriander. Grab a bottle of your favorite style in my absinthe shop.
"Absinthe Robette" by paukrus is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
Not one to shy away from bringing the Green Fairy to the party, the best part of the evening for me was sharing about absinthe with people. From the actual drink to the history of absinthe, I love all the fascinating stories and historical relevance of this stunning cocktail spirit. I explained absinthe's history from the 1700s to the modern-day. Attendees learned all about absinthe's lore, the anti-absinthe propaganda that began in the early 1900s, and why absinthe is legal today. I even discussed the differences between US and EU absinthe. We dove into some absinthe art history, and I spent time answering questions.
It was during this conversation that I was asked the best question about my absinthe process. I'll tell you all about that in another blog post. But that question reminded me of how entertaining it is to reveal the history of absinthe to others and why I'm drawn to absinthe for more than its spectacular taste.
It was such a fun night teaming up with Palette SF for a party featuring absinthe in their art gallery! I'm looking forward to more of their stylish events.
To find out more about Palette and artist Sam Schumacher please visit their websites.
http://www.rocketglassworks.com/
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