If performing a traditional absinthe drip seems like a fussy affair, there is an alternative: the Absinthe Frappé. Invented in 1874 by Cayetano Ferrer of New Orleans' Aleix’s Coffee House (a bar now called Old Absinthe House), it's a refreshing cocktail that cuts the bracing herbaceousness of absinthe with a touch of sugar and loads of crushed ice. And it can be made at home more quickly and without any of the special paraphernalia louching absinthe requires.
