Now that we’ve whetted your appetite…

We asked Steve Livigni, General Manager and bartender for Los Angeles bar and private club The Doheny AND absinthe cocktail creator extraordinaire, a few questions about working with this versatile spirit. His tips should come in handy should you decide to try mixing your own absinthe cocktails at home – and we suggest you do!

Are there any “inside” tricks to working with the flavor profile of absinthe?
Starting with the basics, absinthe goes well with citrus, clear spirits, champagne, berries, etc. Many of those will be your building blocks. When you start getting more creative make sure you try things in advance.

What ingredients do you think really work well with absinthe?
Again, fruit, berries, citrus, gin effervescence – most of the drinks we come up with are on the sweeter side but there is so much going on aromatically with absinthe that it’s easy to make something that is complex and generally enjoyable at the same time. I really like the savory/spicy combination with absinthe, it can be a little hit and miss, mostly because people aren’t used to spice in their cocktails but for spice freaks like me it’s really good. The rum/absinthe combination was surprising at first, also apples didn’t seem like a good fit but it worked out very well.

See here for photos from the event.

You recently worked with “Top Chef” Stefan Richter to create an absinthe/food pairing menu. What foods pair well with absinthe?
There are some obvious pairings that made it easy in certain cases, salmon with fennel and lemon was pretty easy, almond based desserts too. Dishes that had ingredients that I could replicate with liqueurs and fruit were easier than say grilled meats. A few things were just done for fun, hot soup paired with a frozen lollipop seemed like a good idea and it went over well.


Steve matched Stefan’s classic beef tartar with anise mash with one of the most innovative new absinthe cocktails we’ve seen, the Red Hot and Bothered.

Here’s how it’s done:
1 oz Le Tourment Vert Absinthe
1 oz Hangar One Chipotle Vodka
3 muddled strawberries
.75 oz blood orange juice
Bar spoon of ginger agave nectar
Topped with 2 oz ginger beer
Serve on the rocks