How To Do Just About Everything
From absinthe's heyday in the cafes of Belle-period Paris to its recent resurgence in popularity, preparing the drink properly has been one of the lures of this emerald elixir. Contrary to popular belief, its preparation can take minimal time and be thoroughly enjoyable.
A Pontarlier absinthe glass. Note the reservoir right above the stem.
Pour approximately 1-1.5 oz. of absinthe into your absinthe glass. Most "true" absinthe glasses will have a reservoir or "fill line" to denote the 3 oz. capacity of the individual glass.
A classic absinthe spoon
Place the absinthe spoon over the glass. Although absinthe spoons come in many different shapes and sizes they have two things in common; they are slotted to allow the water to flow through the spoon, and they have grooves in them to keep them level and steady atop the glass.
After this step your concoction should look like this.
Set a sugar cube atop the absinthe spoon. Absinthe is bitter by nature. The sugar cube allows the imbiber to sweeten it to taste. One cube should be sufficient for most commercial absinthes.
The beginning of the absinthe louche.
Take your decanter of chilled water and slowly drizzle it over the sugar cube. Allow the sugar to melt as you drizzle the water over it. As the sugar-water flows into the absinthe the herbs in the liquor will become saturated and turn the liquid from an emerald green to a cloudy opalescent hue. This action is called an absinthe's "louche", pronounced "loosh"
Novice 
