Drinking the Green Kool-Aid

Absinthe, The Green Devil or as Ernest Hemingway described it – “that opaque, bitter, tongue-numbing, brain-warming, stomach-warming, idea-changing, liquid alchemy” – to this day has an air of mystery and danger surrounding it. Historical anecdotes, urban myths and its illegal status in a host of countries (including the US) make it all the more alluring. Tell us we can’t have something and suddenly we want it. Why is it really illegal here, we wondered? What exactly is it and what were its powers that made the likes of Van Gogh, Picasso and Wilde avid enthusiasts? And where could we get some (for research purposes, of course.)?

We started pursuing answers with the same fervor usually reserved for packing ourselves into the L train during morning rush hour. Not surprisingly, the answers came fast.

Absinthe, is a potent herbal liqueur (60 – 80% alcohol) that is distilled with wormwood and anise (along with other botanicals) – which imparts a prominent licorice flavor. It originated in Switzerland as an elixir but became popular in the late 19th century with artists, poets and writers throughout Europe. The appeal was due to the double action intoxication – the combination of the whopping alcohol content and of course its reported hallucinogenic effects. These effects, which are described as “a heightened state of mind”, “clarity” and a “clear-headed” feeling of inebriation, are said to be caused by a chemical compound in wormwood called thujone. In fact, the reason Absinthe is illegal here is the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not allow the sales of spirited beverages that contain thujone. Here’s where a little wikipedia action adds an interesting twist to the tale. It turns out, and we we’ll quote it:

“In the early 20th century thujone was blamed for the supposed dangerous and even hallucinatory effects of absinthe, however modern studies show these concerns to be unfounded. Thujone acts on the GABA receptors in the brain and does not cause hallucinations.”

What? Could the legends of Absinthe be tall tales and misinterpretation of extreme drunkenness? Do we believe our trusty pal wikipedia and its studies that discount the hallucinogenic effect? We tried it in Paris and we didn’t have any grand hallucinations. What we do believe is there is a unique effect that you experience from drinking Absinthe that you don’t get with other spirits. However the likely cause is the extremely high alcohol and a slight influence from the botanicals distilled in the spirit. Although, Van Gogh did cut off his ear after drinking it. Even we’ve never been that drunk.

What do you believe? Hallucinogenic or a great urban myth? Perhaps a visit to L'Absinthe Restaurant on the Upper East Side may be in order.

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Tamara Lover in Food on January 29, 2007 12:57 PM

Comments [rss]

Doug Funny

The Park Avenue Liquor Shop (On Madison Ave!) in NYC has Lucid & Kubler (Swiss Absinthe) and sells those perforated sugar spoons too.

Probably the nicest staff of any Liquor store I've been in.

Oh, and - rumor has it that La Fee is being released in the U.S. this January.

guest

Guys and girls, you can order true French and Czech La Fée Absinthe online at www.LaFeeAbsinthe.com The US rules are changing. Enjoy!

Hiram

Jean Lanfray.

He had two glasses of absinthe prior to the murders. He was also an habitual drunkard who drank any kind of alcohol that he could get his hands on, and would consume as much as five liters of wine a day. He had drunk the two absinthes that morning before going to work. He had also drunk a crème de menthe, a cognac, and six glasses of wine at lunch and another glass of wine before leaving work. At home, a cup of coffee with brandy, a liter of wine and then another coffee with marc in it. It was definitely the absinthe, drunk perhaps as much as eight to twelve hours earlier, that pushed him over the edge!

"mild hallucinogenic"

No. It's not any kind of hallucinogenic. See above.

Hiram

Jean Lanfray.

He had two glasses of absinthe prior to the murders. He was also an habitual drunkard who drank any kind of alcohol that he could get his hands on, and would consume as much as five liters of wine a day. He had drunk the two absinthes that morning before going to work. He had also drunk a crème de menthe, a cognac, and six glasses of wine at lunch and another glass of wine before leaving work. At home, a cup of coffee with brandy, a liter of wine and then another coffee with marc in it. It was definitely the absinthe, drunk perhaps as much as eight to twelve hours earlier, that pushed him over the edge!

Samantha

Hiram,

I was also going to point out the poisonous ingredients in many cheap brands of Absinthe, often used to attain the distinct green color which results from the proper blending of herbs. Absinthe was demonized much the way Marijuana used to be during the time of such films as "Reefer Madness." There was a particular event that contributed greatly to it finally being made entirely illegal. After drinking a glass of absinthe, a man (I forget his name) went home and ruthlessly slaughtered his wife and children. This story caused a huge uproar, with many newspapers and anti-absinthe lobbying groups citing the green beverage as the reason. What wasn't mentioned was that he had also imbibed tremendous amounts of other alcohol, including wine, beer, whiskey and brandy, and he already had a history of violent tempers. Obviously, absinthe did not cause the crime, yet it was already reviled to such a point that this sensationalist story was enough to finally get it banned.

By the way, there is so little thujone present in properly distilled absinthe that any effects it might have would be negligible. Any "secondary effects," which are debateable, are the result of the complex combination of various herbs and their sublte "upper" and "downer" effects.

ed_Extinct

mild hallucinogenic

Gabriel

Yeah, the absinthe one buys in the Czech Republic will get you completely wasted for sure, but it does not have nearly enough wormwood to make you see tiny green elves dancing on your chest and singing fa-la-la in your ear.

will

huh, i always thought absinthe was all messy because it had methanol in it.

tech bubble excess

Good grief. Absinthe is so 1999.

Hiram

P.S. That Czech stuff is not absinthe. There are a number of quality absinthes on the market which are made exactly like the old stuff.

Hiram

Not a bad piece for the most part, I do have a few things to add:
"illegal status in a host of countries'
Absinthe is now legal throughout the EU and most of the rest of the world. The US is pretty much the last holdout among countries that permit spirits.

"what were its powers that made the likes of Van Gogh, Picasso and Wilde avid enthusiasts?"
It was high-proof and it was really cheap. Being associated with self-indulgence certainly attracted the bohemian crowd (essentially the hippies and punks of the era), although it's not often mentioned that everyone else was drinking it too at the time.

"The appeal was due to the double action intoxication – the combination of the whopping alcohol content and of course its reported hallucinogenic effects."
Actually the "hallucinogenic effects" weren't necessarily thought of as a good thing at the time. In the post-'60s era, we tend to confuse hallucinogens with psychedelics. The hallucinations were part of the symptoms of severe alcoholism, possibly coupled with the toxic effects of poisonous coloring adulterants in inferior brands, like copper sulfate and antimony chloride.

When a long-term, constant drinker suddenly ceases to drink alcohol (as when hospitalised for "absinthism"), they often experience Delirium Tremens, which can be fatal. There's also the somewhat less acute syndrome of alcoholic hallucinosis. In any case, there's nothing in thujone or absinthe that renders it useful as a recreational drug, beyond that of its particular form of intoxication—much the same as gin and tequila have their own forms.

Although, Van Gogh did cut off his ear after drinking it.
There's actually no evidence that he had specifically been drinking absinthe prior to severing his earlobe. Van Gogh had been emotionally unstable for the majority of his life, he had a ton of issues besides alcoholism.

It was the rampant alcoholism and the powerful wine lobby as mentioned above, which resulted in absinthe's bad reputation.

Stop by The Wormwood Society site for lots more info. wormwoodsociety-dot-org

Cheers!

annmarie

I dont think anyone makes the hallucinogenic kind any more, but if you take a few shots (well, if you can stomach a few shots, which I barely could) you'll at least be up til 5am wasted. In Prague, that costs about $4...not a bad night.

Mr_Bumble

Quote: "What we do believe is there is a unique effect that you experience from drinking Absinthe"

Yes, that's quite correct isn't it! The question remains: Is it a placebo effect, or is the green fairy coming out of the absinthe bottle? If you think about a drink like absinthe, the ritual of drinking absinthe, the myth of the green fairy and all that history while you pour a glass. Well... you are going to get a bit "absinthe minded" aren't you?

I'm with you: the Green Fairy lives!

One question for bobo: what do you mean about French American relations?

blah

myth. drank 1/2 bottle of gnuine czech stuff in uk. got very drunk, but nothing else.

bobo_the_boozing_clown

to understand why it's illegal you have to look into the history of the wine lobby (no joke) and french american relations.

sp

you can order this stuff from liquor stores in the EU and have them ship it here. customs are pretty lax with it. I had 5 bottles shipped to me from spain, they labeled it as olive oil on the customs declaration and i got them no problem. it definitely gets you messed up, but you have to enjoy the pastis flavor.