Absinthe Without Malice

Want to see what Vinnie Van Gogh saw after a couple drinks of Bohemian marching elixir? Or write poetry like Rimbaud?

You could jumpstart that moribund career as a dissolute artist by swigging a couple of judicious jiggers of the green stuff, absinthe.

Joining the craze that is sweeping America is easy enough: I wrote to one of Europe's most reliable exporters, Alandia, and promptly received three bottles of the anise-flavored liqueur, each one stronger than the last. To benefit from the reputed psychedelic effects depends on the percentage of alpha-thujone, a poison derived from the wormwood plant. Concentrations vary from bottle to bottle, and most will get you well-soused before you start painting technicolor sunflowers and spouting free-form verse.

In a recent book about Van Gogh, it was claimed that the liqueur could induce "forms of bizarre and psychotic behavior, hallucinations, sudden delirium, convulsions, and even suicide and death." Gulp. I myself have not had such strong reactions to visitations from the "green fairy," the muse incarnate pictured above. But even if you're not planning to fingerpaint portraits of Satan, crank up the Edith Piaf and call up a few adventurous pals for a belle epoque party. Your hip factor will go up fivefold overnight. Sacre vert, baby!