Green Fairy

The Green Fairy is a sour cocktail that calls for absinthe, lemon juice, rich simple syrup, and an egg white. It was created sometime during the 1990s by bartender Dick Bradsell, in London, England.

If you've ever had an Espresso Martini or Bramble, you've already enjoyed a cocktail developed by Bradsell. A bar manager at many of London's top bars in the 1980s and '90s, such as Pharmacy, Quo Vadis, and the Atlantic Bar and Grill, it was his time at Soho Brasserie that yielded his most famous creation, originally known as Vodka Espresso. Though Bradsell died in 2016, his decades-long career yielded a deep repertoire of original cocktails, including the Green Fairy, as well as legions of modern bartenders whose own drinks were based stylistically on lessons learned from the London icon.

The Green Fairy derives its name from its iconic base spirit, absinthe, nicknamed "la fée vert" or "the green fairy" by enthusiasts in the 19th century.

What makes the Green Fairy work?

The Green Fairy follows the “golden ratio” template of two parts base spirit, one part sweet, and one part sour. The citrus element — in this case, freshly squeezed lemon juice — is a critical part of any sour cocktail, a robust category that includes classic drinks like the Margarita, Sidecar, and Mojito.

Fans of absinthe, an overproof spirit with a prominent bitter anise flavor, will find the Green Fairy especially appealing. While there's no shortage of lore around whether absinthe causes hallucinations (it doesn't), the spirit does contain wormwood, an ingredient that features a chemical called thujone. Thujone can act as a convulsant when consumed in large quantities, but luckily, you don't need to worry about that risk when making this cocktail.

Chilled water is used to dilute the absinthe's relatively high alcohol level, while rich simple syrup adds the necessary sweetness to balance out each sip. To achieve a perfectly frothy head on this cocktail, be sure to first employ a dry shake without ice.