Absinthe
Absinthe is a strong liquor which is generally between 45 and 75% ABV (alcohol by volume), about twice as strong as other types of alcoholic beverages such as whisky and vodka.
Often known as “The Green Fairy” or “La Fee Verte”, Absinthe was the drink associated with La Belle Epoque and Bohemian Paris. It was given to French soldiers in the 1840s to treat malaria and they brought the drink home with them. Special Absinthe bars began opening all over Paris and special Absinthe hours or “L’heure verte” took place daily. By the middle of the 19th century, distiller Pernod, who were the distillers of Absinthe, were making over 30,000 liters of Absinthe everyday for the French people to buy!
Absinthe Drink The History of Absinthe
Legend says that Dr Pierre Ordinaire created Absinthe in the town of Couvet in the 18th century as a tonic for his patients. The Absinthe recipe got into the hands of Henri-Louis Pernod who first distilled the drink in Couvet and later in Pontarlier, France un the name of Pernod Fils.
Pernod began with a wine base and various 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, and Ernest Hemingway.
When Absinthe became more popular than wine, in France, the prohibition movement campaigned to get Absinthe banned because:-
– Thujone, in wormwood, was thought to be very similar to THC in cannabis and thought to be psychoactive.
– Absinthe was linked with artistic types and courtesans of Montmartre and their loose morals.
– Absinthe was thought to have psychedelic effects, to cause 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 consumption, buying and selling of Absinthe in France was made illegal in France in 1915 and in many other countries around this same time.
Many studies done by different researchers have shown that Absinthe, including vintage Absinthe, only contains very small amounts of thujone and is perfectly safe to drink. Absinthe has been legalized in many countries since the 1990s and here has been an Absinthe revival in many countries, including the USA who have only recently allowed a few brands to go on sale.
The Drink 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 herbs such as aniseed, wormwood and fennal. Simply mix with either Everclear or vodka to make your very own Absinthe. Essence has four different types available.
The preparing of Absinthe
The proper way to prepare Absinthe is to follow a ritural:-
– Pour between 25 – to ml of Absinthe into an Absinthe glass.
– Rest the unqiue Absinthe’s slotted spoon on the top of the glass.
– Place a sugar cube on the spoon.
– Drip iced water over the sugar using an Absinthe fountain or pour very slowly from a carafe.
– Watch for the louche from the Absinthe.
– Now drink your wonderful Absinthe drink.
I hope you have now learned all about Absinthe, the mysterious drink with a very interesting past and a great taste.