Absinth

We went to a new restaurant a few weeks back, before our friend Amy went home to Florida. The restaurant, according to one of our guidebooks, has a good absinth drink. Absinth, of course, was banned in many countries for many years. Perhaps as a consequence of this, there is some controversy as to what exactly constitutes absinth, unlike, say, wine or champagne, which is regulated. So I'm not sure if what I had was traditional absinth or not - but it was green, and that's the important part, right?
Anyways, the absinth I had tasted a little like ouzo or Turkish raki, with its anise flavour. Absinth was definitely better than the other two, however. (This does not mean I liked it -- the picture was taken just after I took a sip). For one thing, the licorice was a little bit tastier. For another, a sip of absinth made my whole mouth tingle, as if all the nerves in my mouth had been disoriented and were trying to figure out what was gong on. The licorice taste didn't even register for a couple of seconds, until my taste buds came to their senses. The tingling sensation was not unpleasant, although it is a little strange if you drink absinth with food. Taking a bite while your mouth is still tingling will dull the taste of the food, and even the feeling of food on the tongue was a bit much for my over-excited sensors.
-Jason