Absinthe Frappé History

Travel Distilled takes a look at the history of the Absinthe Frappe cocktail, and the history behind the banning of absinthe.

At the first cool sip on your fevered lip
You determine to live through the day
Life’s again worthwhile as with a dawning smile
You imbibe your Absinthe frappé!

Not many cocktails have a song written about them but this one does. It was in a 1905 Broadway musical called It Happened in Nordland, an operetta written by a lyricist named Glen MacDonough. MacDonough had previously worked writing lyrics for the first stage production of The Wizard of Oz, so he was no slouch. Nordland, by the way, is a county in Norway, although what happened there I have no idea.

The Historic Old Absinthe House in New Orleans — The Historic Old Absinthe House

Absinthe Frappé History

We do know about the Absinthe Frappé, however. It was created in 1874 by Cayetano Ferrer in what was then called Aleix’s Coffee House in New Orleans. Apparently some of the customers who liked it were Mark Twain, Oscar Wilde, and General Robert E. Lee. The cocktail was so successful that the café changed its name to The Absinthe Room and, as time passed, to The Old Absinthe House, which is still there on Bourbon Street. The Absinthe Frappé was drunk at any time of the day, and was an especially popular breakfast drink! But then, this was New Orleans.

The Banning of Absinthe

In 1912 absinthe was banned in the USA as it was wrongly believed to cause hallucinations, to send you mad, and to sometimes cause death. The reason for that went back to a murder in Switzerland in 1905 when a farmer, Jean Lanfray, slaughtered his entire family and then tried to commit suicide.

This awful act was put down to the fact that Lanfray had been drinking absinthe. The fact that he had only drunk two ounces of absinthe but had also downed huge amounts of wine and brandy as well, and was already a known alcoholic, was ignored and absinthe took the rap. Lanfray was found guilty and sentenced to thirty years in prison, as his drunkenness meant he could avoid the death sentence. However, the day after the verdict he hanged himself in his cell.

The Lifting of the Ban

In the USA the ban wasn’t lifted until 2007, and as a result there are lots of recipes around for the Absinthe Frappé which don’t contain absinthe. Pernod or Herbsaint, both anise-based spirits, were used as a substitute. Some people say that the Absinthe Frappé was very popular during Prohibition, but as absinthe was banned in 1912 and Prohibition didn’t start till 1920, they couldn’t have been the real thing. Absinthe is still prohibited, by the way, in Vanuatu in the South Pacific.

Absinthe Frappé Recipe

There’s no standard recipe for an Absinthe Frappé so I’ll go with the one from some people who should know – the official tourist people from New Orleans.

1.5 oz. absinthe
0.5 oz. simple syrup
2 oz. soda water
6–8 mint leaves
crushed ice

Gently mix all ingredients in a cocktail shaker and pour.

I’d recommend a rocks or Collins glass. Instead of putting the mint leaves into the cocktail shaker and muddling them, you can also use them as a garnish. Some recipes skip the soda water, though as absinthe is usually a high-alcohol drink (anything from 45-74% ABV), it helps to have something to water it down a little. You can even use water.