Absinthe, the 'poet's poison,' was banned in America for nearly a century

[The Straight Story]

Absinthe, the 'poet's poison,' was banned in America for nearly a century

Devil's drink. The green fairy. Poet's poison.

Illegal in the United States for nearly a century, absinthe has made a splashy return. It was long a favored drink among bohemians; now, everyone - from students to urban sophisticates - wants a taste of absinthe, and its mystique.

The history of absinthe is as rich and storied as the famous names associated with it. Edgar Degas painted images born of absinthe. Pablo Picasso painted "The Absinthe Drinker." On his deathbed, the poet Paul Verlaine cursed it. And under its influence, Vincent van Gogh, who suffered from psychological maladies, cut off his ear.


Its magical (many claimed hallucinogenic) effects may have been derived from the botanicals used to produce absinthe. Traditional absinthe is a product of a dual infusion process. To achieve its characteristic licorice flavor, pure alcohol such as brandy is infused with fennel, star anise and wormwood, an herb commonly found wild in Europe though now cultivated in North America.

Wormwood leaves typically exude a dark green oil (though some leaves are paler and yield almost white to clear oil) with a distinctly bitter flavor. After distillation, the mixture is again infused with herbs, for seasoning.

http://www.cleveland.com/living/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/living-1/1221640237215410.xml&coll=2

[Brewman_Jax]

1. I've seen it in my package store

:toast:

[Captain Hilts]

10. 'Package store'. You've been in the military!

I was in Canada looking for a 'package' store and no one knew what the hell I was talking about.

I then went 'Virginia' on them and asked for an 'ABC store'. No luck there, either. I then just said, "I need to buy BOOZE, where do you buy that?"

[annabanana]

32. Massachusetts had "Package stores" all the while I was growing

up. It was the only place alcohol was sold.

[billyoc]

2. I hear heroin's pretty cool, too.

:shrug:

[no limit]

6. what a brilliant comparison.

:eyes:

[Mojorabbit]

16. It is hype

I bought a bottle the last time I was in Portugal. A mellow buzz just a little bit more than a regular drink and that little bit more may have been my imagination.

[no limit]

3. I'm dying to try this but $50 a bottle is a bit much.

[Lance_Boyle]

19. not worth it

I've had absinthe in Europe and various Caribbean islands, from the rot-gut to the high end, and it's all crap. It'll get you drunk, but then so will MD 20/20. There's nothing at all magical about it. Except the vomitrocious flavor. And that's decidedly bad magic.

[no limit]

24. Thanks. But is the buzz exactly the same as regular liquor?

Nothing special?

[Lance_Boyle]

26. about the same as other spirits, yes

There may be a "placebo effect" for those who anticipate something more mind-altering than alcohol, but it's just a placebo effect.

[YOY]

4. I've never been impressed with it.

Perhaps I needed to get blitzed on it...I don't like to get wasted. It's slovenly.

[Oregone]

5. I got a bottle here...

Look, its 120 proof. Thats about the only magic of the stuff. Its hardly worth dropping the dough on to be honest.

Maybe the old, cheap stuff with all the impurities, from the crappy manufacturing, was more than just alcohol. Now, its basically a gimmick.

[K Gardner]

29. I ordered 3 bottles from France a couple mos ago. I won't admit to how much I spent on

them. I opened one, tried it, corked the bottle back, and have been trying to figure out how to get rid of the stuff ever since.

Blech !!

[Romulox]

7. Absinthe sounds cool. But know what will REALLY make you hallucinate?

LSD. :hi:

[SpiralHawk]

11. "Far out. But not quite out of sight." - Jerry G.

[gateley]

8. A friend and I got some (I think from Turkey) a couple of years ago -

we spent $250 for it! The box it came in had "Medicinal Anisette" stamped on it. :)

It was a very interesting experience -- no hallucinations or dives into the depth of despair before bursting through into ecstasy (as we'd read in a few descriptions) -- but it was a fun time. We laughed a LOT and I'm glad we tried it. :hi:

By the way, I've been sober for over 20 years, and I didn't feel the least bit hungover the next day. I didn't feel as though I'd been drinking at all.

[maseman]

9. It is more myth than real

I've drank a number of different types of Absinthe. It is high alcohol content so you can get pretty smashed on it...but nothing different than any other 100 proof or higher alcohol. No hallucinations. (I did that with other substances in my youth.) If you don't like anise flavor (black jelly beans) then you won't like Absinthe. For the price it is HIGHLY overrated and exaggerated.

[beam me up scottie]

12. IT COMES FROM PLANTS!!11!! IT MUST BE BANNED NOW!!1!

Next thing you know, people will be growing fennel, star anise and wormwood in their back yards...

[eShirl]

15. lol

I am shocked, SHOCKED!

[eShirl]

13. I made wormwood (artemisia absinthum) tea

and it is the bitterest, most horrid taste you could imagine.

The vast majority of it went right down the drain.

[beam me up scottie]

17. I tried it too.

Nasty, yes, but the plants are beautiful and are a fast growing green screen and haven for wildlife.

[eShirl]

20. named for the goddess Artemis

:)
You're right, it is beautiful.

[beam me up scottie]

22. Artemis is the goddess of the wilderness, the hunt and wild animals

Artemis was very possessive. She would show her wrath on anyone who disobeyed her wishes, especially against her sacred animals. Even the great hero Agamemnon came upon the wrath of Artemis, when he killed a stag in her sacred grove. His punishment came when his ships were becalmed, while he made his way to besiege Troy. With no winds to sail his ships he was told by the seer Calchas that the only way Artemis would bring back the winds was for him to sacrifice his daughter Iphigenia.

http://www.pantheon.org/articles/a/artemis.html

I'd love to sic her on Palin.

Well, except for the sacrificing of her daughter part, Palin's already taken care of that by first kicking her pregnant child out of the house and then arranging a shotgun wedding.

[The Straight Story]

28. Those are pretty cool

and dual use as well. I think I know what I will be planting next spring...wonder how it would do indoors.

[beam me up scottie]

31. They have different varieties.

The plants I grew attracted ladybugs like you wouldn't believe, it was like having my own fleet of aphid destroyers. :)

[slackmaster]

14. A handful of bars in San Diego sell it now

I found it to be interesting and different, but it's expensive and easy to overdo.

[SidDithers]

18. If it makes Kylie Minogue fly into my room...

dressed up like a green fairy, count me in :)



Sid

[LoKnLoD]

21. I imported some from Europe

I bought two bottles from a European dealer(google Alandia), the shipping was outrageous, almost more than the booze was, but they guarantee it will not get seized by customs. I enjoyed it (but I am a fan of anisette) , but its "magical" properties are more myth than reality. I highly recommend Suisse La Bleue Clandestine, the taste and smells of flowers was divine when you made the louche. I am such an elitist! :spank:

[EmeraldCityGrl]

25. There's a new distillery opening soon in Wa. State. They're already taking orders

http://www.pacificdistillery.com/

[Javaman]

23. now that the "mystique" is gone, it has jumped the shark. on to the next one. nt

[Tutankhamun]

27. I liked the sweet licorice taste of it, but there weren't any psychedelic effects.

If you want to try the current rage in strange, legal highs, go to your local head shop and pick up some salvia divinorum.

Still legal in most states. I don't predict it will become illegal in CA anytime soon. It's so just not fun or pleasant that smoking one hit of it is punishment enough (so I've heard).

[NashVegas]

30. Someone Should Name a Bottle for Baz Luhrmann

Who brought it back almost single-handedly.

[Dukkha]

33. I served absinthe at my wedding reception last month

It was the Lucid brand. Mainly just the wedding party had it other guests sampled it and weren't fond of the bitter licorice taste. I didn't have the slotted spoon to prepare it right so we just threw in some sugar and ice.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

34. We used to drink it in Japan in the early 60's when we could afford it.

Just booze with a licorice flavor.