Absinthe Thujone

The traditional way of serving Absinthe is to use a method called The Ritual and to dilute it with water. Some people are bored of drinking Absinthe in this way and want to know what to mix Absinthe with. I hope that this information will help you to enjoy Absinthe even more.

Absinthe is a strong liquor which is flavored with natural herbs including grande wormwood (artemisia absinthium), aniseed and fennel. It also sometimes contains petite wormwood (artemisia pontica). The aniseed gives the drink its wonderful anise taste and the wormwood gives the Absinthe its characteristic bitter or slightly sour taste.

Grande wormwood contains thujone, named 3 thujamone or 3 sabinone by the book The IUPAC Nomenclature of Organic Chemistry. Thujone is a ketone and a monoterpene like the other terpenes, menthol and camphor. Other names that thujone extracted from wormwood has been referred to as are Absinthol, salvinol and tanacetone.

Thujone is the reason why Absinthe was banned in many countries in the early 1900s. It was the thujone that was blamed for the insanity and suicide of Van Gogh and many artists and writers claimed that drinking Absinthe gave them their genius and inspiration through dreams and hallucinations. The famous Absinthe drinker Oscar Wilde said of Absinthe:
“After the first glass of Absinthe you see things as you wish they were. After the second you see them as they are not. Finally you see things as they really are, and that is the most horrible thing in the world.” Who knows what would happen after a whole bottle?!

We now know that Absinthe is no more dangerous than any other strong spirit like vodka and whisky, although it is twice the strength. Research has shown that Absinthe only contains traces of thujone and that it is not possible to consume enough Absinthe for thujone to have any negative or harmful effects. It will not cause you to hallucinate or go insane and is now legal in most countries. It is still illegal in Ireland but the Irish can order it from abroad and get it shipped for personal consumption.

You can make your very own bottled Absinthe by using Absinthe essences from AbsintheKit.com. These essences are made by distilling traditional Absinthe herbs and all you have to do is to mix them with vodka or Everclear – an easy and economical way to make Absinthe.

What to Mix Absinthe With

Now that Absinthe is legal in most countries, we can experiment with using it in cocktails or make classic Absinthe cocktails such as the New Orleans Sazerac or Death in the Afternoon.

Sazerac Recipe

1 teaspoon of a good quality Absinthe
Ice cubes
A sugar cube or 1 teaspoon of sugar.
1 ½ ounces of Rye whisky (not bourbon)
3 dashes of angostura bitters
1 Lemon peel twist

Freeze a glass in your freezer.
Swirl the Absinthe around the glass to coat the sides and bottom of the glass. Discard (or drink!) the excess.
Put the other ingredients in a cocktail shaker or mixer and shake for about ½ a minute.
Pour into the glass, adding the lemon peel.

Death in the Afternoon

5 ounces of chilled champagne mixed with 1 ounce of Absinthe – delicious!

Some people like to use mixers such as lemonade, 7UP and cherryade with their Absinthe and I have even heard of Red Bull being mixed with Absinthe! Be inventive when deciding what to mix Absinthe with, use recipes off the Internet but give them your own twist or make up your own. Have fun.

Absinthe, the mysterious Green Fairy, is making a big comeback at the moment because various brands of Absinthe were legalized for sale in the United States in 2007. During this time of Absinthe Revival, we really need to know how to prepare the perfect Absinthe drink and what to dilute Absinthe with.

Absinthe is a strong liquor which is high proof but is usually diluted with water in a method known as La Louche or The Ritual. Henri-Louise Pernod used a wine alcohol base to make his exclusive Absinthe and flavored it with natural herbs such as wormwood, aniseed, fennel, hyssop and lemon balm.

The wormwood used in Absinthe production is grande wormwood, or Artemisia Absinthium, and this wormwood contains chemicals called thujones. It was the thujone content of Absinthe that was the cause of Absinthe’s ban in many countries around the world in the early 1900s. Thujone was thought to be similar to THC in cannabis and to be psychoactive and to cause psychedelic effects. We now know that Absinthe only contains very small amounts of thujone and does not cause hallucinations. Absinthe is now legal in most countries.

What to Dilute Absinthe With

The traditional way to dilute Absinthe is with iced water. Here are instructions on how to prepare the perfect Absinthe using The Ritual:-

You will need:-
– Absinthe – Use a quality Absinthe containing essential oils like wormwood and anise. You could even make your own by using essences from AbsintheKit.com. A quality Absinthe will ensure that the drink louches and tastes good.
– An Absinthe glass or large glass.
– A slotted Absinthe spoon.
– A sugar lump or sugar cube.
– A carafe or Absinthe fountain of iced water.

Pour a shot of Absinthe into the glass.
Place the sugar on the spoon and rest the spoon over the rim of the glass.
Slowly drip the iced water over the sugar and into the Absinthe.
As the water mixes with the Absinthe, the oils in the alcohol will cause the drink to louche, or become cloudy or milky, because the oils are not water soluble.
Stir your Absinthe drink and enjoy.

The ratio of water to Absinthe is usually between 3:1 and 5:1.

The modern Czech or Bohemian Method is similar to the Ritual but the sugar cube is first soaked in the Absinthe before being set alight on the spoon with a match. The sugar caramelizes and melts into the drink. Water is then added.

Absinthe can also be used in cocktails. Famous Absinthe cocktails include the New Orleans Sazerac and Ernest Hemingway’s Death in the Afternoon. Death in the Afternoon is made by mixing 1 part Absinthe to 5 parts champagne.

New Orleans Sazerac

1 teaspoon of a good quality Absinthe
Ice cubes
A sugar cube or 1 teaspoon of sugar.
1 ½ ounces of Rye whisky (not bourbon)
3 dashes of angostura bitters
1 Lemon peel twist
Freeze a glass in your freezer.
Swirl the Absinthe around the glass to coat the sides and bottom of the glass. Discard (or drink!) the excess.
Put the other ingredients in a cocktail shaker or mixer and shake for about ½ a minute.
Pour into the glass, adding the lemon peel.

Absinthe can also be diluted or mixed with mixers like lemonade or cherryade. Experiment with what to dilute Absinthe with and you could come up with your very own Absinthe cocktail.

Many people have heard that the drink Absinthe will make them trip and hallucinate but is this true – Whats Absinthe effect on the body?

Absinthe, otherwise known as La Fee Verte or the Green Fairy, is the drink that was blamed for the madness and suicide of Van Gogh as well as being the muse of many famous artists and writers. Would the works of Van Gogh and Pablo Picasso be the way they are if they hadn’t consumed Absinthe while working? Would Oscar Wilde have written his famous “The Picture of Dorian Gray” without the help of Absinthe? Writers and artists were convinced that Absinthe gave them inspiration and even their genius. Absinthe even featured in many works of art – The Woman Drinking Absinthe by Picasso and L’Absinthe by Degas. It is claimed that the predominance of yellow in Van Gogh’s works was a result of Absinthe poisoning and that Picasso’s cubsim was inspired by Absinthe.

Wormwood (artemisia absinthium) is a key ingredient in Absinthe and is the reason for all the controversy surrounding the drink. The herb has been used in medicine since ancient times:-

– to treat labor pains.
– as an antiseptic.
– as a cardiac stimulant in heart medication.
– to stimulate digestion.
– to reduce fevers.
– as an anthelmintic – to expel intestinal worms.
– to counteract poisoning from toadstools and hemlock.

However, wormwood is also known as a neurotoxin and convulsant because wormwood oil contains the chemical thujone which acts on the GABA receptors in the brain.

A 1960s article from “Sweat” Magazine tells of how the French medical profession, at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, were concerned about “Absinthism”, a condition caused by prolonged Absinthe drinking. Doctors were convinced that Absinthe was far worse than any other alcohol and that it was more like a drug. Doctors listed symptoms of Absinthism as:-

– Convulsions and frothing at the mouth.
– Delirium.
– Hypersensitivity to pain.
– Loss of libido.
– Sensitivity to hot and cold.
– Insanity.
– Paralysis.
– Death.

They claimed that even occasional Absinthe drinking could cause:-

– Hallucinations.
– A feeling of exhilaration.
– Restless nights and nightmares.
– Trembling.
– Dizziness.

We now know that these claims are false and part of the mass hysteria of the time. Prohibitionists were desperate to get alcohol banned, wine producers were putting pressure on the government to ban Absinthe because it was becoming more popular than wine, and doctors were concerned about growing alcoholism in France. Absinthe was banned in 1915 in France but has since become legal in many countries around the world from the 1980s onwards.

Research and studies have shown that Absinthe is no more dangerous than any of the other strong spirits and that the drink only contains very small amounts of thujone. It would be impossible to drink enough Absinthe for thujone to have any negative effects on the body.

Even though it has been proved that Absinthe does not cause hallucinations or convulsions, Absinthe buyers and drinkers still need to be aware that it is a high proof liquor and so can intoxicate very quickly, especially if it is mixed with other strong spirits in cocktails. So, whats Absinthe effect on the body? A “clear headed” or “lucid” drunkenness is how getting intoxicated on Absinthe has been described by those who drink bottled Absinthe or who make Absinthe from essences like those from AbsintheKit.com. It can also cause a pleasant tingling of the tongue but no hallucinations!

Absinthe is a strong anise flavor liquor which is made by distilling alcohol with herbs such as wormwood, aniseed and fennel. We know it is strong and can get you drunk easily, but what percentage is Absinthe and what is its proof?

Let’s look at the alcohol by volume levels of popular brands of Absinthe:-

La Fee XS Absinthe Francaise 68% abv (136 proof)
Doubs Mystique Carte D’Or 65% abv (130 proof)
La Clandestine Absinthe 53% abv (106 proof)
Jade Edouard 72% abv (144 proof)
Sebor 55% abv (110 proof)
Jade Nouvelle Orleans 68% abv (136 proof)
Mari Mayans Collectors 70 70% abv (140 proof)
La Fee Parisian 68% abv (136 proof)
Lucid Absinthe 62% abv (124 proof)
Jade Verte Suisse 65% abv (130 proof)
Pernod Absinthe 68% abv (136 proof)
Kubler 53 53% abv (106 proof)
Pere Kermanns 60% abv (120 proof)
Jade PF 1901 68% abv (136 proof)
La Fee XS Absinthe Suisse 53% abv (106 proof)
Roquette 1797 75% abv (150 proof)
La Fee Bohemian 70% abv (140 proof)

Let’s now compare Absinthe to other beverages:-

Whisky – Johnnie Walker Black Label Scotch 40% alcohol by volume (80 proof)
Absinthe can be up to 75% alcohol by volume (150 proof)
Table Wine 9-12% alcohol by volume (18-24 proof)
Beer tends to be 4 or 5% alcohol by volume (8-10 proof)

Now, the alcohol-information.com website has worked out that if you have one shot of 190 proof Everclear is equivalent to drinking 2.85 bottles of beer and about 3 brandies. With this information we can establish that one shot of Absinthe is equivalent to 2.25 bottles of beer. So, the 22 shots Absinthe is equivalent to 49.5 bottles of beer!

As you can see, Absinthe is much stronger than types of fermented drinks such as wine and beer and even stronger than whisky. We therefore need to be careful when consuming Absinthe, not because it will make us have hallucinations, or any other psychedelic effects, but because it is so strong and will intoxicate quickly. We need to take particular care when mixing Absinthe with other alcoholic drinks in cocktails.

Care should also be taken when making your own homemade Absinthe drink. If you buy an Absinthe kit from someone like Green Devil then you are simply steeping herbs in a neutral alcohol such as Everclear or vodka. Now, Everclear has an abv of 95% and a proof of 190 so it is much stronger than commercial Absinthe. Absinthe essences from AbsintheKit.com also have to be mixed with a neutral alcohol such as Everclear or vodka. Your finished Absinthe will be whatever the proof or abv of the neutral alcohol you have used.

What percentage is in Absinthe? For commercial Absinthe just look on the bottle label or, if you are ordering online, look at the product details for abv or proof. If you are making your own Absinthe from a kit, you need to look at the bottle of Everclear or vodka that you are using.

There are different types of wormwood and it is important, when making or buying Absinthe, to know what kind of wormwood should be used for Absinthe making.

Wormwoods are in a group of plants called the artemisias which, in turn, are members of the Aster (Asteraceae) family of plants. Artemisias include:-
– Tarragon (artemisia drancunculus)
– Sagebrush (artemisia tridentata tridentata)
– Sweet wormwood (artemisia annua)
– Levant wormwood (artemisia cina)
– Silver king artemisia (artemisia ludoviciana albula)
– Roman wormwood (artemsia pontica) or petite wormwood.
– Southernwood (artemisia abrotanum)
– Common wormwood ((artemisia absinthium) or grande wormwood.

What kind of wormwood should be used for Absinthe distillation?

Although substitute Absinthes are often flavored with southernwood and roman wormwood is often added to Absinthe as an extra flavoring, the traditional wormwood used in the distillation of real Absinthe is common wormwood.

The common wormwood plant has tiny yellow flowers and silver gray leaves which have oil producing glands on them. The plant can grow up to 1.5m tall and typically grows in North Africa, Asia and the Mediterranean, in rocky areas or arid ground. The leaves and flowers are collected and dried for use as a natural herb or essential oil.

Common wormwood has been used in medicine since ancient times as an antiseptic, to treat intestinal worms, as a digestive tonic and to reduce fevers. It contains a chemical called thujone which was thought to be psychoactive and to cause psychedelic effects in Absinthe drinkers. Claims that Absinthe was dangerous due to its large amounts of thujone, caused the drink to be banned in the early 1900s. Research and studies have since shown that Absinthe is just as safe to consume as any other strong liquor. It is now legal in most countries.

Although thujone is a neurotoxin and can cause convulsions when consumed in large amounts, Absinthe actually only contains small amounts of thujone and you would die of alcohol poisoning before being able to consume enough Absinthe for thujone to have any effect on you.

It is the wormwood that gives Absinthe its name and its characteristic bitter taste. You need to buy an original Absinthe which contains wormwood to be able to experience the true Absinthe taste. You can even make your own wormwood Absinthe by using top-quality essences from AbsintheKit.com. These essences are distilled with traditional Absinthe herbs, including Wormwood, aniseed and fennel. Simply mix with vodka or Everclear to make a real Absinthe.

Once you have bought or made your Absinthe you will want to prepare the perfect drink using the traditional “Ritual” of dripping iced water over a cube of sugar and into the Absinthe to cause it to louche. To get yourself in the Absinthe mood, you could use real antique Absinthiana (Absinthe equipment) or replicas to take yourself back to the 19th century! Collectible Absinthiana includes:-
– Absinthe glasses – An Absinthe glass is quite large to accommodate the Absinthe and water.
– Cuilleres – A cuillere is an Absinthe spoon. Absinthe spoons are slotted and made to rest over the rim of an Absinthe glass.
– An Absinthe pyrogene – A pyrogene is a porcelain match striker which was put on the table for people to use while smoking and enjoying their Absinthe. They often advertised a particular brand of Absinthe.
You can also buy Absinthe fountains and drippers.
AbsintheKit.com sell replica Absinthe glasses such as a Pontarlier style glass, and spoons such as the lovely Eiffel Tower spoon. Touches like these really add to the Absinthe experience.

To enjoy the real flavor of Absinthe, remember to buy Absinthe containing wormwood. What kind of wormwood should be used for Absinthe? Common wormwood (grande wormwood or artemisia absinthium).

There is much interest in Absinthe, the drink known as the Green Fairy or La Fee Verte. People want to know how to buy it, what type to buy, how to prepare it and what is the recommended amount of Absinthe to use when preparing a drink.

First you need to buy a quality Absinthe which is rich in essential oils and that contains wormwood. There are many Absinthe substitutes and fake Absinthes on sale which contain southernwood or roman wormwood instead of common wormwood (artemisia absinthium). Make sure you buy a proper real Absinthe. If you live in a country where it is hard to find a good quality Absinthe then you could make your own Absinthe using essences from AbsintheKit.com.

Once you have got your Absinthe, you will need to learn The Ritual, or La Louche. This is the traditional French or Swiss way of preparing Absinthe and it uses one shot of Absinthe. Here are the instructions:-

To perform the Ritual, you will need an Absinthe glass, a slotted Absinthe spoon, a lump of sugar and iced water.

– Pour 25-50ml of Absinthe into the glass.
– Rest the Absinthe spoon over the rim of the glass and place a cube of sugar on it.
– Slowly drip iced water over the sugar either by dripping from the tap of the fountain or by using a steady hand to pour from a carafe. Dripping it slowly will give the sugar chance to dissolve and drip through the slots of the spoon. You should see a lovely “louche” effect as the water mixes into the alcohol. The Absinthe louches because the essential oils of the herbs are soluble in alcohol but not in water and so make the mixture cloudy or milky when water is added.
– Sit back and enjoy your Absinthe drink.

The Bohemian or Czech Method is very similar to the Ritual but is a modern way of preparing cheap Czech Absinthes. The Bohemian method is scorned by many Absinthe followers.

Instructions and tips for using the Bohemian method:-

– Pour 25-50ml of Absinthe into the glass and dip the sugar cube into it to soak the sugar.
– Place sugar cube on the Absinthe spoon and rest on the rim of the glass.
– Set the sugar cube alight for one minute to allow the sugar to caramelize and melt. The sugar should drip through the slots of the spoon and into the Absinthe.
– Put the spoon into the Absinthe and pour the iced water into the Absinthe to put out any flames and to cause the Absinthe to louche.
– Enjoy your Absinthe drink.

If you want to enjoy your Absinthe properly the you will want some Absinthiana – Absinthe glasses, spoons and perhaps even an Absinthe fountain to control the flow of the water. Replicas of antique spoons and glasses can be purchased from AbsintheKit.com.

So, what is the recommended amount of Absinthe to use when preparing an Absinthe drink? About 45ml or a US shot. Obviously, you can use Absinthe in cocktails too – search for recipes online.

There are so many discussion threads on forums about Absinthe and how to hallucinate by drinking Absinthe. Lots of people want to know what the best Absinthe to buy for hallucinating is and what is the Absinthe high like.

Unfortunately, these people are believing the propaganda from the late 19th century and early 20th century and also books like Doris Lanier’s “Asbinthe The Cocaine of the 19th Century: A History of the Hallucinogenic Drug and its Effect on Artists and Writers in Europe and the United States”. In this book Lanier talks about Absinthe being like opium and cocaine in its effects and that it caused a rapid loss of both physical and mental faculties. Is there any truth in this?

Absinthe was popular in a time known by some as “The Great Binge”, a time when heroin and cocaine were used in children’s medicines and in beverages. The medical profession realized that these chemicals weren’t as safe as they thought and they thought the same about Absinthe. They claimed that thujone, a chemical found in the wormwood in the drink Absinthe, was psychoactive and could cause psychedelic effects just like THC in cannabis. They alleged that Absinthe wasn’t just a drink that intoxicated people, it was also a harmful drug that gave you hallucinations and could drive you insane. Doctors even came up with a name for prolonged Absinthe drinking – “Absinthism”, which they said caused:-

– Convulsions
– Delirium
– Insanity
– Brain damge
– Paralysis
– Death

Really, “Absinthism” was just alcoholism, it was nothing special.

Many people blame Absinthe for Van Gogh cutting off his own ear and for his later suicide. But, can we blame a drink for Van Gogh’s madness when he had suffered from mental illness and depression since he was a child and when we consider that he mixed Absinthe with turpentine? I don’t think so. Absinthe cannot be blamed for the so-called “Absinthe Murder” either. A Swiss man murdered his pregnant wife and children after consuming two glasses of Absinthe BUT he had also consumed five liters of wine, six glasses of cognac and many other alcoholic beverages!

What is the Absinthe High Like?

The Absinthe “high” just doesn’t exist. We now know definitively from tests, that Absinthe is not an hallucinogen. Even pre ban Absinthe only contained very small amounts of thujone, nowhere near enough to cause any effect whatsoever. Yes, you will get intoxicated quickly drinking Absinthe, after all it tends to be about 70% alcohol by volume (140 proof) which is stronger than other spirits like vodka but you will not trip or get high.

Absinthe is called the Green Fairy but it will not make you see any fairies!. It does give you a different kind of drunkenness though. The blend of the high alcohol content, which acts as a sedative, and the herbs, which are stimulants, can give you a very strange “clear headed” or “lucid” drunkenness – an alcohol high. Perhaps this is what artists and writers were talking about when they described Absinthe as their muse, saying that it gave them inspiration and even their genius.

Make sure when you buy your first Absinthe that you buy a quality Absinthe or that you make your own from a kit from a reputable company. Some company’s herbal steeping kits claim to make an Absinthe which contains very large amounts of thujone, much larger than vintage Absinthe. Take a look at the essences from AbsintheKit.com which are also used by the Absinthe industry.

Although the answer to the question “What is the Absinthe high like?” might disappoint some people, Absinthe is a great tasting drink which should be enjoyed.

Everyone has heard of the magical mythical drink, Absinthe – the drink thought to be hallucinogenic, the Green Fairy that may make you see fairies, the anise flavored herbal spirit popular in Bohemian Montmartre. But, not many people can answer the question “What is Absinthe made of?”. They may say wormwood but not many will be able to expand on that!

So, what is Absinthe made of?

Well, Absinthe was created by the legendary Dr Pierre Ordinaire in Switzerland in the late 18th century as an elixir for his patients. Henri-Louis Pernod started selling Absinthe commercially at the turn of the 19th century and used a wine base and macerated herbs including common wormwood (artemisia absinthium), fennel, green aniseed, hyssop, angelica root, lemon balm, dittany, star anise, nutmeg, veronica and juniper to flavor and color the alcohol.

Other herbs used in Absinthe production include: calamus root, mint, cloves, sweet flag, licorice, caraway seeds, coriander seeds and roman wormwood (artemisia pontica) also known as petite wormwood. Claude-Alain Bugnon, the famous bootlegger who now distills Absinthe in Switzerland, also flavors his La Clandestine Absinthe with local Alpine herbs which give his Absinthe a taste of honey and a bouquet of Alpine meadows.

It is the essential oils of the herbs in Absinthe which cause the Absinthe to louche when water is added. The oils are soluble in alcohol but not in water and so precipitate when the water is added making the drink turn cloudy or milky. If your Absinthe does not louche then it may not be a real Absinthe or a quality Absinthe rich in essential oils.

AbsintheKit.com, who make distilled Absinthe essences for people to make real Absinthe at home, use classic Absinthe herbs to flavor their essences. This means that Absinthe made from their essences will taste just right and will also louche beautifully.

Some Czech Absinth does not contain anise or aniseed and is really just a type of wormwood bitters. Make sure that you buy real anise and wormwood Absinthe to experience the true classic flavor.

The common wormwood plant is the most famous Absinthe ingredient, the ingredient which gives Absinthe its slightly bitter taste and the ingredient which caused Absinthe to be banned in many countries in the early 1900s. Originally used since ancient times as a medicine, it became labeled as a psychoactive neurotoxin which cause psychedelic effects such as hallucinations, convulsion and spasms. Wormwood oil contains a chemical called thujon or thujone which was compared to THC in cannabis. Absinthe was thought to contain vast amounts of thujone and to be responsible for driving people to insanity and even to death.

However, recent studies and tests have shown that vintage Absinthe actually only contained small amounts of thujone, nowhere near enough to be at all harmful. EU and US laws only allow Absinthe with small amounts of thujone to be bought and sold so Absinthe is perfectly safe to consume and enjoy.

Absinthe is a spirit or liquor not a liqueur as it does not have added sugar. It is a high proof alcoholic beverage but is usually served diluted with iced water and sugar. Although it is safe to consume, you must remember that it a very strong spirit and will quickly get you drunk especially if you mix it with other spirits in cocktails!

So, the answer to the question “What is Absinthe made of?” is easily answered – alcohol and a blend of herbs.

Many people are asking “What is Absinthe?” because there has been an Absinthe revival since the 1990s when the liquor Absinthe was made legal to buy in many countries after having been outlawed since the early 1900s.

Absinthe is a strong spirit, not a liqueur which is high proof and has approximately twice the alcohol content of other alcoholic beverages such as whisky and vodka. Although high proof when bought in the bottle, it is served diluted with iced water to taste, normally at a ratio of between 3:1 and 5:1 water to Absinthe.

Absinthe has an interesting history. It is claimed that it was created in the 18th century by a French doctor living in Couvet, Switzerland, Dr Pierre Ordinaire. He created it as an elixir to treat his patients and it apparently had miraculous effects. This story is legend but what is known is that a pair of sisters living in the same town as the doctor used the recipe commercially to sell the elixir to pharmacies and then sold the recipe to a French major, Major Dubied whose daughter married into the Pernod family. Henri-Louis Pernod, Major Dubied and his son, opened an Absinthe distillery in Couvet, distilling Absinthe under the name of “Dubied Pere et Fils” (Dubied and Son). A few years later, in 1805, Pernod opened a distillery in Pontarlier, France and started trading under the name of “Maison Pernod Fils”. The Pernod family opened another new distillery in France a few years later. Commercial Absinthe production began and by the middle of the 19th century Pernod were producing over 30,000 liters of Absinthe every day!

Pernod became known, and is still known, for the quality of their Absinthe which is distilled from wine and contains the essential herbal ingredient wormwood (Artimisia Absinthium), fennel and the herb melissa.

Absinthe may also be flavored with many other herbs including green aniseed, star anise, hyssop, angelica root, licorice, lemon balm, coriander and sweet flag. It is the essential oils in these herbs which make Absinthe “louche” when mixed with water. The oils are not water soluble and so cause the drink to go cloudy or milky – this is meant to happen and is great to watch.

The main ingredient, wormwood, has been used since ancient times as medicine for treating:-
– fevers
– parasitic intestinal worms
– the poisoning effects of hemlock and toadstools
It has also been used to stimulate digestion and as a tonic.
Wormwood contains a chemical called thujone which was believed to be psychoactive and cause psychedelic effects and to be an hallucinogen. This chemical ingredient, and the fact that Absinthe was such a strong drink, was the reason for Absinthe being banned and made illegal in the early 1900s in many countries.
Later studies showed that drinking Absinthe was no more dangerous than drinking any other strong alcohol and that it only contained small amounts of thujone.

There are strict guidelines for the sale of Absinthe in the EU and United States. Bottled Absinthe in the EU can only contain a maximum of 10mg/kg of thujone and US laws mean that bottles shipped to or sold in the United States can only contain trace amounts of thujone as it is an illegal food additive in the US.

Absinthe is available for sale online from many different suppliers but if you want real Absinthe you need to make sure that it contains wormwood. Absinthe essences are available online at AbsintheKit.com and these enable you to make your own bottled Absinthe by mixing the essence, containing real wormwood, with vodka or Everclear.

So, what is Absinthe? It is a wonderful drink which is a joy to prepare and drink and the perfect aperitif.

Absinthe was created by Dr Pierre Ordinaire in the late 18th century as a medicinal elixir or tonic. The vital herbal ingredient, wormwood (artemisia absinthium) has been used since ancient times as a digestive tonic and to stimulate the appetite. Absinthe should therefore be served as an aperitif before a meal, an appetizer served with some hors d’oeuvres and finger food.

Absinthe has a strong anise flavor and a slight bitterness so it is best not to serve it with a meal. However, Absinthe can be used in cooking, just like wine. When cooking, the alcohol will be burned off and you will be left with the anise or licorice taste which is great in marinades. Here is a recipe for a tasty marinade for chicken or fish.

Ingredients:-
2 tbsp dried tarragon or a handful of fresh tarragon
2 tbsp dried chervil or a handful of fresh chervil
1 cup of Absinthe
1 cup of dry white wine
2 tbsp sugar
A dash of salt and a grind of pepper

Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl and leave for a few hours, preferably overnight. Marinade chicken or fish in the mixture for a couple of hours in the fridge and then grill, barbecue or bake to burn off the alcohol.

You can also use Absinthe in stir fries and when basting meats, but make sure that you always mix it with sugar or fruit juice to compensate for the bitterness of the wormwood.

Even the sexy French chef Jean-Christophe Novelli has been known to use it in his recipes – risottos, Absinthe ice cream and marinades and infusions for vegetables and fish. Absinthe ice cream -yum!

There are also many recipes online for Absinthe cookies and Absinthe cupcakes with Absinthe frosting. Absinthe has so many uses!

Absinthe is also great in cocktails. Ernest Hemingway created a cocktail called “Death in the Afternoon” in which he famously mixed Absinthe with champagne, very decadent. The Sazerac is a popular Absinthe cocktail typically served in New Orleans:-

Sazerac
1 teaspoon of Absinthe
1 teaspoon of sugar
1 ½ ounces of rye whisky
3 dashes of Angostura bitters
Ice cubes

Freeze a cocktail glass in the freezer then pour the Absinthe into it, swilling it around to let it coat the inside of the glass.
Put the remaining ingredients into a cocktail shaker, shake and pour into the glass. Garnish with a twist of lemon and drink.

You must remember, when you are mixing Absinthe with other alcoholic drinks, that Absinthe is a very strong liquor – up to 150 proof, 75% alcohol by volume, so don’t get carried away!

So, what food to serve with Absinthe? Serve Absinthe as an aperitif before any meal, use it in cocktails, marinades, ice cream and cakes. Enjoy the Green Fairy.