Absinthe Thujone these two words have had a really ambivalent history. Absinthe on the one hand was adoringly known as The Green Fairy, The Green Muse, or even The Green Goddess had also been equally hated by its detractors and held responsible for moral degeneration and madness.
The origin of absinthe may be traced back to later years of the eighteenth century when a French doctor Dr. Pierre Ordinaire invented a intestinal tonic using herbs including wormwood (Artemisia absinthium), fennel, anise, hyssop and nutmeg. It was considered an herbal remedy during those times. In 1797 Henri-Louis Pernod absinth liquor started commercial manufacture of absinthe. In 1805 a dedicated distillery for the creation of absinthe was set up by Pernod and soon from then on absinthe became the national drink of France. It was the most common alcoholic drink in Europe and at one time absinthe rivaled wine. It is estimated that in the 19th century more than 2 million liters per year of absinthe was used in France alone. The rich and also poor both consumed absinthe.
Absinthe was considered an inspirational drink and many great artists and writers were regular consumers. Great painters like Vincent Van Gogh were so much crazy about The Green Fairy that absinthe features in five of his masterpieces. Some other notable people from the arena of art and literature such as Pablo Picasso, Oscar Wilde, and Hemmingway traced their creative genius to absinthe and its magical effects. However, by the start of twentieth century alarmed by the increasing alcoholism amongst the population and certain unfounded rumors the demand to ban absinthe started out gathering momentum. It was widely thought that thujone a terpene located in the herb wormwood was responsible for the harmful effects of absinthe. It was widely thought that absinthe contained alarming quantities of thujone. This kind of sustained campaign versus absinthe eventually resulted in absinthe being banned at the beginning of the twentieth century in most of Europe and North America.
With the ban on absinthe, curiosity about absinthe gradually declined. Nonetheless in certain parts of Europe absinthe was still distilled clandestinely and this came to be often known as clandestine absinthe. In the year 1975 in a paper published in a scientific magazine revealed that thujone’s substance structure is just like THC or Tetrahydrocannabinol that is contained in cannabis and causes withdrawal leading to convulsions and hallucinations when taken within great quantity. Nonetheless in the year 1999 further evidence proved that thujone has no effects on cannabinoid receptors. The research further proved that thujone in tiny volume generates stimulant action, as it is a GABA-A modulator. In the light of this brand new finding many European countries have now lifted the ban on absinthe and it is available these days in Europe. However, it remains banned in the US.
People in the USA can buy absinthe from non-US producers as possession and drinking of absinthe isn’t illegal in the US. With the fast expansion of the internet there are numerous online stores that sell absinthe essence as well as other absinthe products. It’s easy to acquire absinthe essence on the internet and prepare your own absinthe from home. A note of caution, given that absinthe has high alcohol content our recommendation is that you drink absinthe moderately.
Top quality absinthe contains wormwood and other essential oils, these oils obtain precipitated when ice-cold water is combined with it and the emerald green hue of absinthe turns opaque white, this is called louching and it is responsible for the fantastic anise flavor.For top quality absinthe essence along with other absinthe products and accessories visit absinthekit.com