Jilli, look what Jill Tracy has been up to:
On to mind-melding activities of a completely different nature-- this month saw the return of the elaborate and notorious hush hush Absinthe Party hosted by Unkle Paul and Random. I love the events that you cannot promote for whatever legal reasons, so you create a whisper campaign, sell tickets online only the day of the event...and still a few hundred people turn up! Never underestimate the power of the underground. I performed two full sets during the lavish all-night affair with members of The Malcontent Orchestra: Randy Odell (drums) and Alex Nahas (Chapman Stick.) The night was an endless array of sophisticates and absinthe connoisseurs from all over the world. Just check out the menu and you'll see this is the serious deal! I was thrilled just to partake in most of these I'd never come across before. Ahhh, I must say, I did a remarkable job of "pacing myself"--after all, I had TWO full musical sets to perform... Author Barnaby Conrad III (Absinthe: History in a Bottle) is one of the leading authorities on the subject. I had not seen Barnaby since we did another absinthe event some time ago filmed for NBC. He was on hand for discussion in the finer points of preparation and the history of the elixir. My favorite by far was the German brewed Taboo! It had a distinctive chocolate tone and slight creaminess. Impresario RJ Owens prepared mine igniting a cube of turbinado sugar so it caramelized as it touched the absinthe. The great discovery of these top shelf varieties of absinthe is that sugar is not really necessary; in fact, I preferred most of the others unsweetened. The Philippe Lasala with just a little cool water was so smooth, perfect in its natural state. If you research the history, sugar was added (certainly for the sweet tooth and ritual), but sometimes merely to mask the taste of cheaper absinthe, later even being put into the bottles themselves. There is more on this fascinating and little known part of history at the Virtual Absinthe Museum. The entertainment was as entrancing as the liqueur--including Ukrainian illusionist Voronin (the fascinating star of Teatro ZinZanni), magician Paul Nathan, The Indra, and the seductive trio Kitty Kitty Bang Bang.