The Return of Le Fee Verte

15th Anniversary: Absinthe Goes From Banned Drug to Legal Liquor
"In the 20,000 years or so that humans have been getting piss-drunk, no spirit has earned a worse rap than absinthe. Said to turn mild-mannered imbibers into raving maniacs, it was banned in the US and much of Europe in the early 1900s."
Wired 7/21/08

Absinthe, also known as Le Fee Verte or The Green Fairy. Said to enhance the creativity for a number of notables like Oscar Wilde and Ernest Hemingway.

I've never tried it, but I'm fascinated by the mystique and ritual surrounding the drink and its association with artistic creativity. I even own a slotted Absinthe spoon. One of my favorite episodes of "Highlander" featured an immortal who'd been drinking Absinthe for centuries.

The drink has been the theme for works from a number of famous painters:

Edgar Degas - The Absinthe Drinkers
Edouard Manet - The Absinthe Drinker
Pablo Picasso - The Absinthe Drinker