Tenneyson Absinthe Where to capture our new local Green Fairy

Because there's more than one way to skin a cat -- but not really any particular reason why you'd want to do so -- check out an Austin-born, unusual take on absinthe: Tenneyson.

Conceived by a local engineer who actually tracked down the author of the Absinthe Encyclopedia and brought him in as his distiller, Tenneyson dashes 'sinthe misconceptions (that it must be green, ultra-high proof, and lit on fire) and rolls with a traditional-yet-obscure 100-proof Swiss-style that's lighter and more floral due to the addition of juniper to the traditional anise and wormwood, also what early birds sport after a nice dream. ATX bars are already experimenting with the stuff, with these being just a few of the newly minted concoctions:

Absinthe Suissesse: 6th Street newcomers Haddingtons shake Tenney with orgeat, half and half, two drops of orange flower water, and egg white, which is terrible at dancing, as it can't even stand up on one end.

Root Beer Barrel: The Tigress on North Loop pours it over ice in a rocks glass topped with Maine Root, but not Maine Roots, a tribute band everyone wrongly assumes is from Oregon.

Absinthe Mojito: Wormwood specialists Peche muddle it with a dozen mint leaves, fresh lime juice, and simple syrup, then top it off with Brut -- hopefully Andre, because that would be a Giant hit with your Squad.

Tenneyson's also fresh on the shelves of Twins Liquors and Specs, so this underground spirit's cat is just about to be out of the bag -- what you do with it after that is up to you, just don't tell anyone about it.