What does one do on their first night in a strange city like San Francisco?

Taking a stroll downtown to go visit the Absinthe Brasserie & Bar should be considered a must for any absintheur. As I am swanning through this fair city for a mixture of work and pleasure, it would be remiss of me to forgo visiting this fine establishment and letting you, dear Absinthe.com.au reader, know all about it. Particularly as their website is absinthe.com (to our absinthe.com.au), we feel a little fraternal affinity from an interweb point of view.

Situated on an easily identifiable corner position between Gough and Hayes Street, this popular establishment has a rich and luxuriously laid out dining area and easily accessible bar area where food may also be purchased alongside ones imbibing. The decor and ambience reflects the French Cafe atmosphere one would desire for a night on the green.

Upon my arrival I was warmly greeted by a namesake, Jonathan (Jonny Raglin), the Principal Bartender for Absinthe. Soon our mutual love and interest in absinthe laid the foundations for comparisons of the Australian and US experiences with absinthe. Of course such conversations should be lubricated with a glass of absinthe. Perched on the bar were two four tap water fountains waiting for my decision….Lucid or the San Franciscan produced St George Absinthe. Neither of which are currently available in Australia.

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Your humble administrator and professional Libertine Robert had the honour of conducting an absinthe tasting last week (at De Nom - one of the most beautiful rooms in Sydney), for our good friends over at Absinthesalon. It was a media-only event, and as far as we can ascertain it was the first stand-alone absinthe tasting to be held in Australia).

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It has been hideously hot in Adelaide this week, pushing in the high thirties, and I have dragged my way into the city to meet up with my brother to go see the Fringe art installation CircuiTree (which I will cover in more detail in part 2).

We arrived a little early at the installation site which is a old church on Grote Street that is currently up for lease and makes for an excellent art-performance space. We manage to get a peek inside before it begins, and quickly decide that we probably need to come back later when darkness descends to fully appreciate it.

At a loose end we decide to get a drink, and being on Grote Street this gives me the opportunity to finally check out a little cafe-bar a short stroll away call La Boheme. From what I have read, the premises used to be an old tobacconist - the heavily curtained windows in the external facade highlighting the delightful 19th century architecture of the building, already promoting a sense that this is something of a discrete and intimate salon.

We enter into a cool and comfortable space, and find ourselves an empty table before the small stage where a pair of performers are belting out what my brother refers to as his ‘old busking repertoire’ - so he likes the venue already. In fact it is rare to find a place where the musicians are so close, but the volume controlled suitably for the size of the venue (which is quite small - but deliciously so) such that one can enjoy music and discussion concurrently.

As I had entered my eyes had immediately shot to the back wall to identify the absinthe bottles. My brother has not had absinthe before, and so the setting, the ‘green’ hour of the day and the opportunity was perfect for his introduction.

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The 2008 Sydney Festival is on again in January next year, and the season looks set to be a blistering one. The 2008 line-up features as it’s centrepiece the High Priestess of Art Rock, Björk, who will be vocalising as only she is able in the Opera House Forecourt, under the stars on January 23. She of the Swan will be performing songs from her new offering Volta, which is a return to a more pop-oriented sound, albeit one carried by thundering electronica and saturated in relentless, violent colour. This show is a sell-out and should set a new festival benchmark.

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There is no doubt that the ambience of surroundings when imbiding absinthe can be an important factor for many. The ease with which a proprietor can open an intimate bar varies considerably from state to state - and probably it is fair comment that Melbourne leads the nation in innovative bar trends, particularly where the incorporation of art has been a factor.

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