Absinthe

The other day someone sent me a link to Buy Absinthe, a website that sells high quality Absinthe.

Intrigued by something I’ve never had before, plus the forbidden fruit factor (It’s not for sale in the U.S.), I read through the site, and became fascinated with the history and mystery of this alluring drink. I did some other research and thought it would be an interesting thing to write about.

Absinthe is a strong liqueur made of herbs including wormwood, and was invented in Switzerland in 1797 by Dr. Pierre Ordinaire. Bitter in taste, the chartreuse green color is derived from chlorophyll. By the 1850’s it became the most fashionable drink of its day by the upper class and was the rage of the Parisian café society. Wildly popular, Absinthe trickled down to the Bohemian set too, with artists and writers also making it their drink of choice. It inspired Degas and Manet, and one of Degas’s most famous paintings L’absinthe (pictured above), from 1876, is a portrait of actress Ellen Andree and painter Marcellin Desboutin drinking Absinthe at a Paris café. In 1905, Jean Lanfray, intoxicated by Absinthe, murdered his wife after supposedly having two glasses of it. Lawmakers and the public were outraged, and a prohibition movement was started, which culminated in the ban of Absinthe in France and the U. S. It was re-legalized if France in 1988 with new labeling guidelines but still remains illegal in the U.S.

The traditional way to drink Absinthe is to put a spoon with a cube of sugar across the edge of a tall glass and gently pour the Absinthe it over the sugar. Afterwards you slowly pour fresh water over the sugar, till it dissolves and then stir the mixture with a spoon and voila! The color will go from green to milky white.

On Buy Absinthe, there are premium brands from France, Switzerland and Spain, including Absente, Rodniks, Pere Kermanns, Versinthe, and Lemercier. Prices start at $22 for a 20cl bottle, and go up to $40 for a 70cl one. Accessories of special Absinthe glasses and silver and stainless steel spoons to put the sugar cube on are also sold on the site. The goal of the site is to put people back in touch with old-fashioned ritual of Absinthe drinking. It does a responsible job of explaining and educating people and the presentation is straightforward and entertaining.

Links
Buy Absinthe and read the blog
See here to buy Absinthe

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includes many of the places I have written about such as small museums & galleries, restaurants, cafes & food markets, secret addresses, fashion & home boutiques, parks, and much more.

I look forward to meeting you on my tours and it will be my pleasure and delight to show you my insiders Paris.

Check it out at www.eyepreferparistours.com

Comments

[zeth]

Hey, I was drinking absinthe here in LA last weekend. It's pretty tasty. But I also thought that the "absinthe" of today is completely different, lacking the hallucinogenic effect of the previous incarnation. Can you enlighten us on this disparity?

[jwiecking]

At least four varieties of absinthe have been for sale in the US since last year. Check out the article on it from the New York Times, 12/5/07. There's still a mystique around the stuff in Europe (I remember being offered some in a rather covert fashion in Budapest), but that's really just marketing.

[richard]

On todays post -2/14- there is a clarification about the absinthe that is sold in the US.

[Polly-Vous Francais]

So is anyone bringing absinthe to the shindig on Saturday? Weee-o!

[Murriel]

Absinthe is now purported to be legal in the US as long as it is THUJONE FREE! How strange as Absinthe is made from Artemisia Absinthium, the herb that gives Absinthe it’s name, and produces Thujone so what is the truth are they selling Absinthe? I don't think so. To my knowledge, there are only two absinthes in existence that contain anywhere near pre-ban levels of thujone (100+ mg): King of Spirits Gold and Century Absinthe. Neither of the two, nor any other genuine absinthe, will make it to the States anytime soon. For the real deal, you have to travel to Europe or have it shipped over. Yes, possession and importation for personal use is legal. They're both available to buy from http://www.OriginalAbsinthe.com I've been a regular customer since the first time I stumbled it on the internet.