Everyone has heard about the marvelous mythical drink, Absinthe – the drink thought to be hallucinogenic, the Green Fairy that may cause you to see fairies, the anise flavoured herbal spirit popular in Bohemian Montmartre. But, only a few people can answer the question “What is Absinthe made of?”. They might say wormwood though not most will be capable of expand on that!
So, what is Absinthe made of?
Well, Absinthe was developed by the legendary Dr Pierre Ordinaire in Switzerland while in the late 18th century being an elixir for his patients. Henri-Louis Pernod started out selling Absinthe in a commercial sense at the turn of the nineteenth century and employed a wine base and macerated herbs which includes common wormwood (artemisia absinthium), fennel, green aniseed, hyssop, angelica root, lemon balm, dittany, star anise, nutmeg, veronica as well as juniper to flavor and color the alcohol.
Other herbs utilized in Absinthe manufacturing include: calamus root, mint, cloves, sweet flag, licorice, caraway seeds, coriander seeds as well as roman wormwood (artemisia pontica) also known as petite wormwood. Claude-Alain Bugnon, the renowned bootlegger who now distills Absinthe in Switzerland, also flavors his La Clandestine Absinthe with local Alpine herbs which supply his Absinthe a taste of honey plus a bouquet of Alpine meadows.
It is the essential oils of the herbs in Absinthe which result in the Absinthe to louche when water is added. The oils are soluble in alcohol yet not in water and thus precipitate once the water is added in making the drink turn cloudy or milky. If your Absinthe does not louche then it may not be a real Absinthe or a high quality Absinthe rich in essential oils.
AbsintheKit.com, who make distilled Absinthe essences for people to create real Absinthe in the home, make use of classic Absinthe herbs to flavor their essences. This implies that Absinthe created from their essences will taste beautifully and also will louche superbly.
Some Czech Absinth does not consist of anise or aniseed and it’s really merely a kind of wormwood bitters. Make certain you buy real anise and wormwood Absinthe to see the actual classic flavor.
The common wormwood plant is easily the most popular Absinthe ingredient, the ingredient which gives Absinthe its slightly bitter taste and the ingredient which caused Absinthe to be prohibited in lots of countries in the early 1900s. Initially used for thousands of years as a medicine, it became called a psychoactive neurotoxin which result in psychedelic effects just like hallucinations, convulsion and spasms. Wormwood oil has a chemical substance called thujon or thujone that was compared to THC in cannabis. Absinthe was considered to contain vast amounts of thujone and to lead to driving people to insanity and even to death.
Nevertheless, recent reports and tests have shown that vintage Absinthe actually only covered small quantities of thujone, nowhere near enough to become at all harmful. EU and US laws only allow Absinthe with small quantities of thujone to be bought and sold so Absinthe is completely safe to use and enjoy.
Absinthe is a spirit or liquor not only a liqueur as it lacks added sugar. It’s a high proof alcoholic drink but is normally served diluted with iced water and sugar. While it is safe to take, you need to know that it is a very strong spirit and definitely will quickly allow you to get drunk particularly if you blend it with other spirits in cocktails!
So, the answer to the question “What is Absinthe made of?” is readily answered – alcohol as well as a blend of herbs.