Absinthe

[TRIPxCORE]

Heard about it many times but never tried it. Any personal experiences--especially to our Euro members where Absinthe is still sold in particular locales?

[Axel]

Try as Pernod, basically in the major hotel-bars in BKK.

I drink it rarely, but if, than mixed with clear water to get the greyish color.

[jackr]

Yeah, in the UK. Apparently the stuff they sell now is not the same as the original 19th century (???) stuff, strength wise.

[Team Bukowski]

had it many times, quite a few different brands.

I have to say the strongest and also the best tasting is Hills, which can be bought in the UK. I've had a few french/czech brands (forget exactly which) as well, and they didn't quite stack up in terms of strength and taste.

As for experiences, from memory it's about 80% alcohol, so it gets you very drunk, that's about it. You might experience some odd dreams, but that can happen any time you're extremely pished. You can get more info at www.ebasinthe.com

[Team Bukowski]

PS - the novelty of adding the sugar and setting it all onfire as per tradition soon wears off, and you'll find its better to just drink two nips with a teaspoon of sugar stirred in and a splash of water to take the hard edge off it.

[jackr]

They are only permitted to serve you so many shots in UK bars, so I believe.

[honeyen]

Had it few times before, felt like my body was burning.

[BoomBoom]

They are only permitted to serve you so many shots in UK bars, so I believe.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Any more than a few shots, and you'll end up making a complete tw@t of yerself Been 2 a few absinthe partys back in blighty they alwayz end up messy, and things/people always get broken...

[jackr]

They are only permitted to serve you so many shots in UK bars, so I believe.

Any more than a few shots, and you'll end up making a complete tw@t of yerself Been 2 a few absinthe partys back in blighty they alwayz end up messy, and things/people always get broken...

Yeah, a mate of mine (really big bloke) did five quick shots once and was knackered shortly after. Took him days to get over it.

[sua yai]

Yes, I had it once. Years ago at university trying to chat up an American exchange student. I passed out. Not an elixir of life!!

PS. Drink more and more mescal. definitely messes with your head.

[HugoB]

I was in Estonia last year, i bought a 0,7 litres bottle of Absinthe premium Vincent Van Gogh 72%. Just have to say it was one of the best drunken state of mind and feeling i never had in my life. Something very strange in it. Most of these Absinthe products they sell in Europe dont contain enought infusion of the herds, roots and leafs and wormwood that makes the psychedelic effects.

[thaiflyer1]

Never tried Absinthe but Green Chartreuse must be on a par with it.............its another one where they will only serve you so many shots.....believe its made by monks in France (but not sure).

[Elysium]

This is Thai Visa...?

So where in Bangkok and the rest of Thailand?

In Q Bar, selection of 3 different kinds of Absinth..

Often (almost every night) they also sell Absinth yello shots. Not bad though!

Nice to see that at least one other writer actually knows how to serve it.

Cheers!

[Rinrada]

Pernod,Ricard,Anis,Arak,Absinthe,Raki,Flash.....and on all those long forgotten Greek hols...OUZO.

They used to describe it as a drink for intellectuals work that 1 out?

Anyway bit of info with q&As.......

Is Absinthe a drug ?

One of the main herbs in legitimate Absinthe is wormwood and its derivative essence thujone. Thujone is classified as a convulsant poison, NOT a drug, having a similar structure as T.H.C., the active chemical in cannabis. Both thujone and T.H.C. are terpenoids and have a similar molecular geometry and similar functional groups available for metabolism.

Despite the fact that thujone is classified as a convulsant poison, many doctors and scientists consider thujone to be a powerful drug, and psychoactive in relatively low dosages. However, little is known about whether or not it causes cumulative damage to the nervous system.

Are there any other psychoactive elements present in Absinthe ?

Anise is another one of the main herbs used in making legitimate Absinthe. It is not toxic, however a strong dose induces drunkenness, trembling, epileptic convulsions, muscle spasms, analgesia and sleep, just like opium.

Fennel, as has anise seed, fennel seed has a potentially psychoactive anethole.

Hyssop, in progressive doses, is believed to have a convulsive property.

Angelica root is grown as a drug in Lapland.

Coriander is mentioned as an aphrodisiac in the Arabic One Thousand and One Nights, and is said, in the same text, to conjure up the Devil when used in combination with fennel.

Calamis contains psychoactive asarones, used as an inebriant by Native Americans.

So we are left wondering if Absinthe, or rather wormwood and its essence thujone in Absinthe, is to blame for its effects.

Why was Absinthe associated with the House of Pernod & Sons ?

Simply because of the superior quality of their product.

What was the main contribution to the quality of their product ?

The House of Pernod & Sons were never tempted to buy cheap raw materials of lower quality. Pernod Fils Absinthe was never made from cheap alcohols from beets, grains, or potatoes.Instead, it was made from spirits distilled from wine, which formed the basis of their absinthe.

Furthermore, the exclusive use of alcohol made by distilling wine was reflected in its flavour, which distinguished Pernod Fils from other brands.

Moreover, it was considered to be a healthy drink because spirits distilled from wine don't have the nasty side-effects of poor quality alcohols.

http://www.absinth.com/links/faq.html

[ProfessorFart]

I've only seen it in one place in Thailand and that was in a small bar in Chanthaburi. The owner was an intellectual chap though who would jam with his violin group in the garden every Thursday.........

[Jockstar]

I've had a couple of times. But was already trashed before. Only reason i know was because some one told me.

[cojones]

drinkers who have too many tend to wind up dead after drinking absinthe , its a high death-rate tipple .

Actually even though it is 70% proof its not the proof that gets you

>but the wormwood neurotoxin called thujone that destroys your brain.

>In Parisian lunatic asylums in the 19th century half of the inmates

>were victims of absinthe.

>It was known as 'the Charenton Express' named after the countries most

>famous lunatic asylum.

[cojones]

Absinthe

After a long absence, the liqueur absinthe is making a comeback. A recent news report noted that the wormwood-based liqueur, long declared illegal in most countries, has become popular in underground circles in Europe and the United States. The drink was popular among artists and writers at the end of the 19th century and has been linked to convulsions, madness, and death. In response to media reports and customer inquiries, PREVLINE is including information on absinthe, its side effects, and its history.

Absinthe is an anise-flavored liqueur distilled with oil of wormwood, a leafy herb. Absinthe also contains flavorful herbs such as hyssop, lemon balm, and angelica. Wormwood is Artemisia absinthum. The active ingredient is thujone, a neurotoxin. The drink is distinguished by its blue-green clarity, due to its chlorophyll content. It was traditionally served with water and a cube of sugar; the sugar cube was placed on an "absinthe spoon" and the liquor was drizzled over the sugar into the glass of water. The sugar helped take the bitter edge from the absinthe; when poured into the water, the liquor turned milky white.

Wormwood had been used medicinally since the Middle Ages, to exterminate tapeworms in the abdomen while leaving the human host uninjured and even rejuvenated by the experience. At the end of the 18th century, the herb became recreational as people discovered they could get high from it. However, it was unacceptably bitter.

An undocumented distiller found a solution by inventing absinthe, which delivered both the herb and alcohol in a beverage with a flavor resembling licorice. The most well-known maker of absinthe was distiller Henri-Louis Pernod. Absinthe became popular among the cultural community in 1890s Paris, with Vincent Van Gogh, Paul Verlaine, and Oscar Wilde among its most ardent imbibers.

Side effects from consumption of wormwood include renal failure, convulsions, involuntary evacuations, abnormal respiration, and foaming at the mouth. Patients hospitalized in Paris for absinthe intoxication were noted to suffer from seizures, chest effusion, reddish urine, and kidney congestion.

Around the turn of the century, it was noted that heavy absinthe users had a propensity toward madness and suicide. By the 1910s absinthe became banned in the Western world, along with opiates, cocaine, and cannabis. In the United States, it became banned in 1912. Interestingly, however, the current U.S. Customs restrictions on the importation of absinthe only date to 1958. Absinthe is still available in Spain, Portugal, and the Czech Republic, where it is quite trendy among patrons of bars and coffeehouses. It is also legal in Britain and reportedly is available in Andorra and Denmark.

After absinthe was banned, imitations, containing anise and other legal herbs in place of wormwood, appeared. The most well-known is Pernod, which is very much like absinthe but without the wormwood. But the similarity is only in color and taste; Pernod is without the mind-numbing characteristics of absinthe. The practice of adding aromatic bitters to cocktails also derives from a nostalgia for contraband wormwood.

Source: WHAT IS ABSINTHE? And what does it have to do with New Orleans? by Vicki Richman and Chuck Taggart

Facts About Absinthe

The word absinthe is derived from the Greek absinthion, meaning "undrinkable."

Wormwood is mentioned in the bible a dozen times, including the Revelation of St. John: "And the third part of the waters became wormwood, and many men died of the waters because they became bitter."

The Russian word for absinthe is chernobyl.

Leaves of the absinthe plant are an effective deterrent to vermin. Thomas Tusser, in his 1577 book July's Husbandry, notes "Where chamber is sweeped, and wormwood is strown, no flea for his life dare abide to be known."

Pliny the Elder reported that the champions of Roman chariot races were given a cup of absinthe soaked in wine as a reminder that even victory has its bitter side.

The "Purl" of Tudor England was a drink composed of hot ale and wormwood. Samuel Pepys mentions drinking it in his diaries.

At the turn of the century, the Pernod Fils distillery in Pontarlier, France produced 30,000 liters of absinthe a day, and shipped it around the world.

The Pernod plant was struck by lightning in 1901, causing an alcohol fire that raged out of control for four days. Hundreds of thousands of gallons of burning absinthe were discharged into the Doubs River, flavoring it with anise for miles downstream.

Celebrated absinthe drinkers included the painters Lautrec, Gauguin, Manet, Van Gogh and Picasso, along with the writers Rimbaud, Verlaine, Oscar Wilde, Edgar Allan Poe and Jack London.

Thujone, the principal active ingredient in absinthe, is chemically similar to THC, and is thought to attach to the same receptors in the brain.

[chris_samui]

You can buy Ricard (or Pernod) in the different branches of Macro around Thailand. I bought it at the Macro in Ubon. Used to drink it when i still lived in Europe with some ice and water, the taste is almost the same as absinth.

It is not ment to drink pure.

CC

[meadish_sweetball]

You can buy Ricard (or Pernod) in the different branches of Macro around Thailand. I bought it at the Macro in Ubon. Used to drink it when i still lived in Europe  with some ice and water, the taste is almost the same as absinth.

It is not ment to drink pure.

CC

To get drunk, use beer. To get high, use a j.

Remember that Vincent Van Gogh cut off his own ear and sent it to a woman he loved.

[Gazza]

You can buy Ricard (or Pernod) in the different branches of Macro around Thailand. I bought it at the Macro in Ubon. Used to drink it when i still lived in Europe  with some ice and water, the taste is almost the same as absinth.

It is not ment to drink pure.

CC

To get drunk, use beer. To get high, use a j.

Remember that Vincent Van Gogh cut off his own ear and sent it to a woman he loved.

Because 'Absinthe makes the heart grow fonder'???? Fond enough to cut off one of your lugs????

[sua yai]

Ho, ho.

I must have been lucky all those years ago to have survived an absinthe drinking session. The american girl brought it back from Spain and told me it was illegal in the UK at that time. Suppose that just added to the thrill.

Best time ever drinking Ouzo was on Corfu years ago. French bloke got a water melon, carved a drinking hole in it and we all duly passed the booze around, drinking from the gourd.

Next day, hungover and dehydrated, my friend and I ate the water melon. The results should have been obvious to us. Oblivion. Never done it again.

[Johnny Moron]

"absinthe is the aphrodisiac of the soul".

a line from "Bram Stoker's Dracula", directed by Francis Ford Coppola.

Beautiful scene that.

[sleir]

Absinth is legal again in Switzerland ! It was decided by the parliament the same day they finally decided to keep THC officially illegal (Police still doesn't care much) The reason is that Absinth you buy nowadays is not made of Ethanol, (or Methanol.. ? ######, my last chemistry lesson is a while ago...which damages and kills your brain cells and makes you blind) anymore but of pure alc and is therefore not half as dangerous as it used to be at Van Gogh-times

The stuff we get here in Switzerland is around 75% alc, but feels/tastes like a lot less in comparison to our good old home-made Schnaps which is usually around 70-80% alc too !

The taste is mostly sweet, with a little bitter after-taste. The "flash" or effect of Absinth is a bit different (in my experience) than normal Alc :

It goes into the head really quickly and feels more like a drug flash than being drunk. We drink it out of the bottle, shot glasses or the mentioned sugar on spoon-method.

Personally i try not to drink it too often as the headache is quite bad the next morning, esp. if you drink lots of it... and you really don't know exactly how harmful it is

Oh well.... Prost, Cheers, Santé !!

[dereklev]

Had it few times before, felt like my body was burning.

Thats what it felt like for me too!!!

And the next day my head was bursting

It also has the same consequence of Pernod, that next day when you drink water you get trashed again

[DaiMai]

Absinthe makes the heart grow fonder,

even if you cannot remember the next day, or ever for that matter!!

[erasmus]

Had it few times before, felt like my body was burning

Are you sure it was the absinthe, Honey...

[Doctor John]

Never  tried  Absinthe  but  Green  Chartreuse  must  be  on  a  par  with  it.............its  another  one  where  they  will  only  serve  you  so  many  shots.....believe  its  made  by  monks  in  France (but  not  sure).

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yes Chartreuse is made by monks in Voiron, France.

I went to the place where they make it, very interesting and you can have tastings as well.

[stroll]

http://www.erowid.org/chemicals/absinthe/a...the_info2.shtml