Your globetrotting liquor reporter vacationed in Gay Paree this year, and made sure to imbibe all the local tipples.
Speaking of tipples, the topless revue at the world-famous Moulin Rouge cabaret in the charmingly bohemian Montmartre neighbourhood of Paris was particularly tipply.
Well, perhaps slightly less tipply than you might imagine, as the dancing girls doing the famous French can-can were wearing pasties over the saucy bits, much to the dismay of the gentlemen in the audience.
Naturally, your intrepid liquor reporter immediately came to the conclusion that Pastis would be the best drink to enjoy amongst all the titillating pasties at the cabaret.
For those not familiar with Pastis, it is the national spirit of France, and a slightly more respectable cousin of the oft-demonized Absinthe spirit.
In the early days of the Moulin Rouge cabaret, around the year 1899, Absinthe was the drink of choice for the artists, dancers, and other subversive characters that frequented the neighbourhood.
However, Absinthe had been banned in most of Western Europe by 1915, vilified by the same religious temperance movement that was behind Prohibition in the USA.
Absinthe also suffered the double whammy of making an enemy of the powerful French wine lobby, who wanted the boozing public to get back onto the wine habit, so vast sums of money was spent on anti-Absinthe propaganda, with wine being touted as the healthy alternative.
As you might imagine, the boozers of the day were none too happy about their precious Absinthe being taken away, which led to a rise in popularity of other anise-based drinks.
The Mediterranean countries had a long history of licorice-flavoured drinks such as Ouza and Sambuca, but the French harboured a particular longing for their beloved Absinthe.
This eventually led to the invention of a new liqueur called Pastis, which strove to have a similar flavour, but avoid the negative connotations associated with Absinthe.
To this end, the famous Pernod Ricard drinks company came up with Pastis in 1932, using an Asian star anise herb for flavouring, rather than the European green anise used in Absinthe..
Additional licorice flavouring was obtained from Asian licorice root, which also served to distance Pastis from Absinthe.
Finally, Pastis was fortified with sugar, making it a liqueur, an entirely different category of spirits than Absinthe.
This made Pastis different enough from Absinthe to get by the government censors and religious right, but similar enough to attract the fancy of the tippling public.
Pastis is a dark transparent yellow hue in the bottle, and is traditionally consumed by mixing 1 part of Pastis with 5 parts of cold water in a highball glass.
The dilution from the water causes some of the essential oils and constituents to precipitate out of solution, turning the drink from transparent to a milky white, similar to other drinks such as Ouzo.
Ice cubes can be added after the Pastis has been mixed with water. Be sure not to add the ice cubes first, or the sugars in solution will crystallize instead of louching into a milky white mixture, ruining the flavour release for the eager drinker.
Pastis is so popular in France that it is sometimes known as the Milk of Marseilles, and is considered a refreshing cold drink during those hot and sultry summers in the south of France, and is often often served in a wine glass with ice, competing with the popular chilled glass of rosé wine on restaurant patios across the country.
Yes, gentle reader, although the French are well-known for producing the greatest wines in the world, the spirits industry is still alive and well in the City of Love & Light, with nearly 120 million litres of Pastis being consumed in France each year.
Some Pastis snobs will sip it straight as an aperitif, but you humble narrator prefers it cut in a 1:5 ratio with cold water, then swirled into a milky white glass of silky enjoyment.
In the opinion of your humble narrator, the best way to enjoy a Pastis is while watching the famous can-can dancers of Paris, high-kicking to reveal their lacy garters to the tantalized and titillated crowd.
However, for those who cannot jet-set off to Paris on a moment’s notice, take heart, for Pastis is widely available here in Alberta. Look for it at your local booze merchant, or check www.liquorconnect.com for the retail store nearest you.
