The answer to the question “Is Absinthe available in Canada?” is reasonably simple really – yes! It might not be fully legal to buy and then sell throughout Canada however it is perfectly legal to order it and ship it in to Canada from other countries for personal consumption.
In March 2007 Canadian law established that it was up to the liquor board of each individual Canadian province to control the chemical substance called thujone. Thujone is actually a substance seen in wormwood and is the key reason why Absinthe was prohibited in many countries around the world in early 1900s. Thujone was believed to be psychoactive like THC in cannabis and Absinthe was absinthesupreme compared to drugs such as cannabis, cocaine and heroin. Health care professional of the time claimed that Absinthe covered large volumes (as much as 350mg) of thujone and that Absinthe was responsible for causing:-
– Hallucinations
– Convulsions
– Delirium
– Insanity
– Brain damage
– Death
Is Absinthe available in Canada or not?
The United States prohibited Absinthe in 1912 and eventhough it was never properly banned in Canada, liquor boards have been able to prevent it from being offered to consumers. Canadian consumers had to be content with Absinthe substitutes, like Pernod Pastis, that don’t comprise wormwood.
Since it has become established through testing that Absinthe only contains small quantities of thujone that happen to be perfectly safe and that the claims and accusations were just a part of the mass and hysteria fueled because of the Prohibition Movement, Absinthe laws around the globe happen to be relaxed so that the drink can be experienced by modern consumers.
Numerous Canadian provinces at the moment are reviewing their legislation concerning Absinthe. The provinces of Quebec and Ontario allow for Absinthe with a thujone content of up to 10ppm, much like EU and US legislation. British Columbia doesn’t have a legislation with regards to thujone levels however the smaller the better. Hills Absinth and a Canadian distilled Absinthe called “Taboo”, that is distilled in British Columbia in the Okanagan Valley, have been approved and are accessible to buy in lots of provinces.
If you’re a Canadian within a province where it’s hard to get hold of a top quality wormwood Absinthe inside a store, you should look at Absinthekits like those provided by the company AbsintheKit. This internet company develop Absinthe essences for the Absinthe industry as well as for customers. The essences consist of traditional Absinthe herbs such as wormwood, aniseed and fennel and are already distilled. Just mix 20ml of Absinthe essence with 730ml of vodka or Everclear and you have your own real Absinthe.
AbsintheKit.com do global shipping, simply just order an essence or Absinthe kit on their store. The essences either come individually in 20ml bottles or order a kit that contain 280ml to create 14 bottles of Absinthe, creative bottle labels and a handy plastic measure. The essences are available in 4 varieties – one to create a classic verte Absinthe, one to create a clear La Bleue style Absinthe, an essence to make a yellow-orange colored Absinthe flavored with organic orange oil, as well as a strong essence to make an Absinthe which has a higher content of wormwood. The strong essence makes an Absinthe having 55mg of thujone plus the other essences help make Absinthes with 35mg of thujone.
So, what we can say to “Is Absinthe available in Canada?” is it is often bought online for private intake wherever you reside in Canada nevertheless you might not be able to purchase it in your neighborhood liquor store.