Comments on: Absinthe

Absinthe

plep — Mon, 11 Oct 2004 13:16:27 -0800

By: Gyan

Gyan — Mon, 11 Oct 2004 13:54:20 -0800

Nice. Also see la Fée verte. I'd like to try Absinthe. The various sites I've read say that the "interesting" effects attributed to Absinthe (courtesy thujone) don't really exist. Instead, it's a mental lucidity. Now, is this just to soothe the reputation in order to pave the way for broad reacceptance, or is it really true?

By: danny the boy

danny the boy — Mon, 11 Oct 2004 14:12:12 -0800

So... I bought a bottle of Un Emile 68 (guided by la Fee verte), cost with shipping ended up being more than US$100. And I don't think I would get another bottle. I mean, it's nice on a warm summer night, but... it's just liquorice flavored booze. Am I missing something?

By: jeblis

jeblis — Mon, 11 Oct 2004 14:29:42 -0800

Fascinating. I hadn't heard of this stuff until a month ago. The FAQ is excellent.

By: kenko

kenko — Mon, 11 Oct 2004 14:35:15 -0800

danny my boy, I've heard that modern-day absinthe is wholly unlike its antediluvian counterpart: people sort of know what was in it but the expertise required to make it properly, or at least make it as it used to be made, has vanished. Maybe that explains it?

By: punilux

punilux — Mon, 11 Oct 2004 14:46:16 -0800

I'm surprised that you were guided towards that, danny, as it seems more a pastis than an absinthe. The real stuff can have a shattering effect; certainly not the hallicinatory effect I've seen described, but a drunk beyond drunk, entirely detached but aware. Bog-awful hangover though.

By: muckster

muckster — Mon, 11 Oct 2004 15:05:41 -0800

I love the stuff--and it can't be that bad for you because I can still remember that we talked about it before.

By: mr_roboto

mr_roboto — Mon, 11 Oct 2004 15:52:35 -0800

punilux: Un Emile 68 is most certainly not a pastis. I'm convinced that any hallucinatory effect associated with wormwood is very minor. I haven't detected it at all in my experiences with absinthe. Of course, a liquor that tops out at 140 proof can have all sorts of "hallucinatory" effects that have nothing whatsoever to do with the pharmacology of any substance other than alcohol. Like punilux says, a drunk beyond drunk, particularly if you're drinking it like it's one of the 80-100 proof liquors that we're used to.

By: gesamtkunstwerk

gesamtkunstwerk — Mon, 11 Oct 2004 16:47:00 -0800

I think even real absinthe needs to be modified by boiling with sugar before you hallucinate. I've never hallucinated, but I've done things I sincerely regret, and had hangovers that I regretted even more.

By: obiwanwasabi

obiwanwasabi — Mon, 11 Oct 2004 17:16:37 -0800

I've heard that modern-day absinthe is wholly unlike its antediluvian counterpart: people sort of know what was in it but the expertise required to make it properly, or at least make it as it used to be made, has vanished. We know exactly what was in 'antediluvian' absinthe and how it was made from period distillation texts, including La Fabrication des Liqueurs by J. de Brevans, Nouveau Traité de la Fabrication des Liqueurs d'Apres les Procedes les Plus Récents by J. Fritsch, Traité des liqueurs et de la distillation des alcools ou le liquoriste et le distillateur moderns by P. Duplais and Traite Pratique de Fabrication des Liqueurs by A. Bedel. Gratuitous self-linkage here.

By: danny the boy

danny the boy — Mon, 11 Oct 2004 17:26:23 -0800

Emile 68 was at the time that I bought it, one of the two best commercially available absinthes. There's now one or two more, which I hear surpass it (that retailer I link, btw, is who I used, and they were very satisfactory). The real real stuff, is available in very small batches of inconsistent quality in Switzerland. Or so I'm told. But like I said, it's pleasant enough, and it would be a favorite if it was available in the states, but I probably won't pay $100 for a bottle again. Just get someone travelling abroad to bring some back for you. Also, I didn't expect it to be hallucinogenic, and I wasn't disappointed.

By: danny the boy

danny the boy — Mon, 11 Oct 2004 17:29:53 -0800

That is to say, half of the cost was shipping from the UK, and conversion from GBP -> USD. I was really underwhelmed by the cheapness of the labelling on the bottle, until I realized everyone else in Europe is paying about $40 for it.

By: Onanist

Onanist — Wed, 13 Oct 2004 08:20:04 -0800

Apparently it's now legal in Australia. Here's a good little SMH article on it.