About Absinthe
Absinthe is a uniquely strong liquor which is between 45 and 75% ABV (alcohol by volume), about twice as strong as other types of alcoholic beverages such as whisky and vodka.
Otherwise known as “The Green Fairy” or “La Fee Verte”, Absinthe was the drink associated with La Belle Epoque and Bohemian Paris. It was first given to French soldiers in the 1840s to treat malaria and they bought the drink home with them. Absinthe bars opened over Paris and Absinthe hours or “L’heure verte” took place daily. In the middle of the 19th century pernod, who were the distillers of Absinthe, were making almost 30,000 liters of Absinthe every day to be sold to the French people!
All About Absinthe The History of Absinthe
History says that Dr Pierre Ordinaire created Absinthe in the Swiss town of Couvet in the 18th century as an elixir for his patients. The Absinthe recipe eventually got into the hands of Henri-Louis Pernod who first distilled Absinthe in Couvet and then later in Pontarlier, France under the name of Pernod Fils.
Pernod began with a base of wine and several herbs including common wormwood (artemisia absinthium), aniseed, fennel, lemon balm, hyssop, angelica, dittany, star anise, nutmeg and juniper.
Well known drinkers of the Green Fairy were Van Gogh, Pablo Picasso, Oscar Wilde, Ernest Hemingway, Degas, Gauguin, Verlaine and Baudelaire.
Absinthe became more popular than wine, In France, and the prohibition movement campaigned to get Absinthe banned because:-
- Thujone, in wormwood, was thought to be similar to THC in cannabis and thought to be psychoactive.
- Absinthe was linked with artists, writers and courtesans of Montmartre and their loose morals.
- Absinthe was thought to cause hallucinations, convulsions and to drive people insane.
It was claimed that an Absinthe drinker murdered his whole family – which was just the excuse that the prohibition movement were looking for to persuade the government to ban Absinthe. The buying, selling and consumption of Absinthe was made illegal in france in 1815 and in other countries around this time.
Many studies have shown that Absinthe only contains very small amounts of thujone and is perfectly safe to drink and this includes vintage Absinthe. Legalized in most all countries since the 1990s, there has been an Absinthe revival in many countries, including the USA.
All About Absinthe About Essences in Absinthe
To enjoy Absinthe, you can either order bottles of Absinthe online or you can make your own Absinthe using essences from AbsintheKit.com. These essences are used by the Absinthe industry and are made using traditional herbal ingredients such as fennel, aniseed and wormwood. Your own Absinthe can be simply be made by mxing with either Everclear. Essence is available in four different types.
Preparation of Absinthe
The proper way to prepare Absinthe is to follow the following ritural:-
- Pour 25 - 50 ml of Absinthe into an Absinthe glass.
- Slotted Absinthe spoon is rested on top of the glass.
- Place a sugar cube on the slotted spoon.
- Drip iced water over sugar using an Absinthe fountain or pour slowly from a carafe.
- Watch the louche.
- Drink your great tasting Absinthe drink.
I hope you have now learned all about Absinthe, the mysterious drink with a very interesting past and a great taste.