Ansinthe

...Myths, Lies and the truth by Andrew White

Infamous for its green colour, but sometimes white, absinthe is a spirit with a history like no other; when made properly absinthe is a refreshing and complex drink.

Absinthe is made using a similar method to gin, by distilling pure alcohol which has had certain herbs soaked in it.

The main three herbs used in absinthe are wormwood, fennel and green anise, which is the dominant flavour. Those who dislike anise are unlikely to enjoy absinthe.

In the bottle, good absinthe generally has an alcohol level of 55 to 72%, although it is diluted before consumption. The added water causes the absinthe to ‘louche’, a French term meaning to become cloudy.

Fixing yourself a drink

The preparation of a glass of absinthe is a sensual experience. Pour a measure of absinthe into a glass, then, if desired, place a sugar cube onto a special spoon with slots or holes and balance this on the rim of the glass, over the liquid.

Drip iced water slowly onto the sugar, which will dissolve and trickle into the glass, mixing with the absinthe. Milky white clouds will billow in the liquid, and a beautiful aroma fill the air.

Add three to six parts water depending on the original alcohol concentration and stir the mixture gently. The absinthe is ready to drink.

History

Wormwood has been used for thousands of years as an ingredient in herbal remedies, but a particular medicinal tonic created in Switzerland in the late 1700s using wormwood evolved into the drink known as absinthe.

In 1797 a small company called Pernod started commercial production. Absinthe thrived, spreading into neighbouring countries. Its popularity in France rose sharply in 1860 when a large proportion of the grapevines were destroyed by a plague of insects accidentally introduced from North America.

The shortage of wine drove people to find alternative sources of alcohol. Absinthe became the drink of choice for many throughout society; popular with workmen, artists and gentlemen alike.

Years later, having re-grown their vines, the winemakers found themselves without much of a market, the people having developed a taste for the green fairy.

Naturally, they were slightly pissed off. On top of that, the French had been exposed to cheap, strong alcohol for the first time: The result was similar to England during the 1700s when gin was untaxed and six times the volume being made as beer.

Alcoholism on this scale had never been seen before in France. By 1910, almost 40 million litres of absinthe were being drunk in France.

The winemakers joined religious prohibitionists proclaiming absinthe to be an evil drink. Dr Valentin Magnan, a specialist on excessive drinking, published a study attempting to distinguish between the supposed effects of absinthe (including seizures and insanity) and those of normal alcohol addiction.

In one of his experiments a guinea pig forced to breathe in essential oils extracted from wormwood, with a control guinea-pig inhaling alcohol fumes. The guinea pig exposed to the wormwood oil had seizures, and presumably the other only got drunk.

Raw wormwood oil is known to contain a toxic chemical which in high amounts can cause kidney failure and the seizures seen in Magnan’s guinea pig, so the results of the study are not much of a shock. Authentic absinthe does not even contain much of this chemical, called thujone, as it is left behind in the still during the process of distilling absinthe.

There was a lot of confusion in France about Magnan’s study, as the French word for both the plant called wormwood and the drink is ‘absinthe.’; the people calling for the drink to be banned now had a scientific study they could quote.

In 1905, a Swiss farmer shot hiswife and child. The absinthe he had been drinking in the morning was blamed, not the litres of wine, glasses of cognac, and crème de menthe he had been drinking during the rest of the day.

Absinthe was banned by public vote in Switzerland two years later, and prohibition followed in many other countries around the world. Absinthe was finally banned in France just before the onset of the First World War.

Renaissance

Around ten years ago—having discovered that the drink was never banned in the UK—an entrepreneur started to import something approaching undrinkable called ‘absinth’ (with no ‘e’) from the Czech Republic. With marketing playing on the mysterious reputation of absinthe, and a made up drinking ritual involving fire which would ruin any absinthe worth drinking, his business was a success.

Interest in absinthe has grown since then, and a number of companies have started to produce their own absinthe; both good and bad, though mainly the latter.

Czech absinthe doesn’t even come close to the real thing—most of them aren’t even distilled and should just be called wormwood vodka. If you’ve had absinthe in a club it was almost certainly one of these.

In recent years, absinthe has been legalised again all across Europe and most parts of the world have followed suit, apart from the US, for some reason.

The good news is that there is quite a selection of quality absinthe out there.

Several distillers around Europe are coming up with some very interesting things. After the ban was lifted in Switzerland, many clandestine distillers came out of the woodwork: in one region it turned out people had been secretly distilling absinthe ever since the ban, sharing only with their family and friends.

Apparently there were even code words which could be used in bars to order a glass of absinthe. The absinthe made by the clandestine distillers of the Val de Travers slowly altered in character over the years to reflect changing tastes and in order to avoid detection; the Swiss absinthes of today have a more pronounced anise flavour and are completely clear as the green colour of the past would have risked arousing suspicion.

Interest continues to grow, and the story of the absinthe revival is just beginning: La fée verte is far from dead.

Avoiding bad absinthe

Beware of ‘high thujone’ absinthes and unscrupulous absinthe sellers playing on the myth that absinthe is hallucinogenic.

The price of an absinthe has little do with its quality. If you are unsure of a particular brand, there is a great resource with reviews at www.feeverte.net/guide.

Getting good absinthe

Although there are a number of online retailers specialising in absinthe, sadly just two sell high-quality, authentic absinthe: Liqueurs de France who are based in the UK (www.absintheonline.com), and Lion Absinthe Distribution in Germany (www.absinthvertrieb.de/en).

If you are in Paris, visit a shop called Vert d’Absinthe (www.vertdabsinthe.com) — the owner is very nice and will let you taste before you buy.