Always on the cutting edge of a trend, The New York Times looks at the effect absinthe is having on the NYC booze world. The resulting article is pretty silly and yet more evidence of the paper's cluelessness when it comes to popular trends - down to the decidedly un-glamorous "ptooey" in the article's title.
The author is Eric Konigsberg, apparently best known for his revealing insights into such topics as cloned pets and the need for supernannies. His take is basically that absinthe is a scam, something with silly rituals and dubious marketing, not to mention a pretty vile tasting liquor.
At the outset of the piece, he visits Chinatown hotspot Apotheke - one of only two spots serving absinthe mentioned in a piece purportedly about an uber hot NYC trend - and makes little effort to temper his derision of the owner, the atmosphere and the crowd. Then he heads uptown to L'Absinthe, a "polished and perfectly highly-regarded French restaurant" run by "a perfectly charming fellow," where he was lured by the restaurant's PR materials and a PR girl named Alice, then proceeds to partake in four different absinthes and talk to a few fans. What follows is "perfectly" predictable...
The author is Eric Konigsberg, apparently best known for his revealing insights into such topics as cloned pets and the need for supernannies. His take is basically that absinthe is a scam, something with silly rituals and dubious marketing, not to mention a pretty vile tasting liquor.
At the outset of the piece, he visits Chinatown hotspot Apotheke - one of only two spots serving absinthe mentioned in a piece purportedly about an uber hot NYC trend - and makes little effort to temper his derision of the owner, the atmosphere and the crowd. Then he heads uptown to L'Absinthe, a "polished and perfectly highly-regarded French restaurant" run by "a perfectly charming fellow," where he was lured by the restaurant's PR materials and a PR girl named Alice, then proceeds to partake in four different absinthes and talk to a few fans. What follows is "perfectly" predictable...
... He dislikes the three he tastes and doesn't even mention the fourth. The entire point of the article seems to be that people have been taken in by the scam of absinthe, which is neither dangerous nor particularly good, according to the author. That the Times would publish a piece oozing with so much contempt for bartenders and customers who happen to like absinthe is puzzling.
But even stranger is that the writer basically bashes his own reasons for doing the piece - or his editor's. Konigsberg writes, "modern-day absinthe has given newspaper editors the opportunity to assign articles on the drink's mysterious, romantic history." Really? Like the piece you got assigned? Or was it pitched? We can't tell. Maybe the writer should stick to more important pieces of reporting like his coverage of why Damon Dash hates Mondays.
Or was the origin of the piece due in part to that aforementioned PR company's press release, as he seems to imply when he writes, "happy-hour promotions, like 'l'heure verte,' which the P.R. firm representing Mr. Bergougnoux's restaurant calls a "resurrecting" of "a daily ritual in Montmartre?" Pretty successful since L'Absinthe is front and center in the piece - though more negatively than they were likely expecting.
The entire exercise is futile - people want a good stiff drink these days. If it is made with an exotic ingredient, it still needs to be good. Would it hurt The New York Times to actually show some respect for its readers, not to mention bartenders who are excited about a new ingredient? Or at the very least, might it endeavor in the future to assign a writer who actually has some booze credentials to his name?
But even stranger is that the writer basically bashes his own reasons for doing the piece - or his editor's. Konigsberg writes, "modern-day absinthe has given newspaper editors the opportunity to assign articles on the drink's mysterious, romantic history." Really? Like the piece you got assigned? Or was it pitched? We can't tell. Maybe the writer should stick to more important pieces of reporting like his coverage of why Damon Dash hates Mondays.
Or was the origin of the piece due in part to that aforementioned PR company's press release, as he seems to imply when he writes, "happy-hour promotions, like 'l'heure verte,' which the P.R. firm representing Mr. Bergougnoux's restaurant calls a "resurrecting" of "a daily ritual in Montmartre?" Pretty successful since L'Absinthe is front and center in the piece - though more negatively than they were likely expecting.
The entire exercise is futile - people want a good stiff drink these days. If it is made with an exotic ingredient, it still needs to be good. Would it hurt The New York Times to actually show some respect for its readers, not to mention bartenders who are excited about a new ingredient? Or at the very least, might it endeavor in the future to assign a writer who actually has some booze credentials to his name?
The Times wasn't even the first! Last week Adam Platt listed absinthe as one of his "Trends We're Tired Of", despite naming Death in the Afternoon one of the best cocktails he had this year. Can't writers make up their minds?
http://nymag.com/restaurants/wheretoeat/2009/53183/
http://nymag.com/restaurants/wheretoeat/2009/53182/
We can think of no good reason that a food critic is commenting on cocktails at bars. What would Platt be doing at Apotheke anyway? It's not a restaurant.
H.B.