Even thinking about the name - The Obituary Cocktail - carries a touch of romance and a touch of the macabre. That is a tantalizing combination. We speak to Sue Strachan, the author of The Obituary Cocktail, for her authoritative take on the cocktail and other things tinged with absinthe.

Sue is also the author of another drinks book, Café Brûlot, about that legendary flaming drink.

We discuss the fine points of the Obituary Cocktail, vermouth and its fragile nature, what kind of gin is best in the drink, and how much absinthe is just right. I put in my plug for Death in the Afternoon. Listen. It’s on Tip of the Tongue.

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