Posts Tagged ‘absinthe’

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Understanding How To Use Absinthe

Sunday, August 30th, 2009

Due to the legalization of a few brands of Absinthe in 2007 in the United States one can feel an Absinthe revival. Yet, some people don't really know how to use Absinthe correctly or even what Absinthe is.

What is Absinthe

Absinthe is not a hallucinogen or a drug. It is a strong alcoholic beverage with an alcohol by volume of up to 75% and an anise flavor.

Dr Pierre Ordinaire in Couvet, Switzerland in the 18th century prepared Absinthe as an elixir for his patients. By the turn of the 19th century Henri-Louis Pernod was distilling Absinthe and selling it commercially. Pernod used a wine alcohol base distilled with various types of natural herbs comprising wormwood (Artemisia Absinthium), fennel, aniseed, star anise, hyssop, lemon balm, angelica, juniper, dittany, nutmeg and melissa.

People of France prefer Absinthe to wine. Absinthe bars became popular and gave rise to the “Ritual” or traditional procedure of using and preparing Absinthe.

After presuming that Absinthe contained psychoactive chemicals and causes hallucinations, convulsions, insanity and death, the drink was banned in France. It is now known that these claims were false. Absinthe is not responsible for such effects. Absinthe was given right in many countries during 1990s.

How to Use Absinthe the Traditional Way

To prepare Absinthe in the traditional way is to use the “Ritual”.
One will require :-
- Take a large glass or Absinthe glass.
- Absinthe
- An Absinthe spoon– replica glasses and spoons can be purchased online at AbsintheKit.The top-quality Absinthe essences are available on the site which can be used to make own Absinthe. Get top-quality Absinthe essences to make your own Absinthe.
- One has to use a sugar cube.
- Chilled carafe iced water.

A shot of Absinthe is needed to flow into the glass.
The spoon should be kept motionless on the rim of the glass before putting the sugar cube on it.
Slowly drip the iced water over the sugar to dissolve it.
One can see the Absinthe louche as the water mixes into the Absinthe. The essential oils in the Absinthe are not soluble in water so cause the mixture to louche or go cloudy.
The taste of the Green Fairy can be enjoyed by the stirring the Absinthe.

Absinthe is a strong drink and one can easily drink it. Absinthe is made from naturally sedative and stimulants herbs. The drunkness caused by this blend of herbs are different than that caused by other drinks. It is also known as a “clear headed” drunkenness.

The Czech or Bohemian Method

With this method, once you have poured the shot of Absinthe into the glass you dip the sugar cube into the alcohol and then set it alight on the spoon with a match. A person can add the iced water after the sugar has caramelized and melted from the spoon into the Absinthe.

The Bohemian method is a modern method that is a bit of fun in comparison to a serious method of drinking Absinthe. There can be chances of catching fire in the glass of Absinthe due to a waste of Absinthe! Take care.

Away from the Ritual method one can also search on the Internet for using Absinthe in cocktail recipes.

 

 

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Suggestions About Absinthe Fairy

Monday, August 24th, 2009

The Absinthe fairy was used on Absinthe label and posters. The film Moulin Rouge was focused on the french Bohemian culture of Montmartre in Paris where the Green Fairy Absinthe was the favorite drink of artists and writers. 

Absinthe Fairy Followers

Famous devotees of La Fee Verte, the Green Fairy, were Vincent Van Gogh, Pablo Picasso, Charles Baudelaire, Paul Gauguin, Oscar Wilde and Ernest Hemingway who created his own Absinthe cocktail “Death in the Afternoon” - a mix of Absinthe and champagne. Writers and artists claimed that they developed their inspiration with the help of Absinthe and several pieces of art of the time feature Absinthe or Absinthe drinkers. The Belle Epoque period of history is known as the hey day for Absinthe.

The herbs and essential oils are used in the preparation of Absinthe. The basic ingredient of it is the herb wormwood, an extract from the plant wormwood or artemisia absinthium. Absinthe gets it characteristic bitter taste from wormwood and it's anise flavor from herbs.

Thujone, a chemical found in wormwood oil, was thought to be psychoactive and to give psychedelic effects, cause hallucinations and eventually insanity. Absinthe was banned by prohibition campaigners ammunition in France because of the loose characters of the drinkers in Montmartre. The buying or selling of Absinthe was banned. It was banned in many other countries also. The Green Fairy was always sold in Spain, Portugal, the UK and the Czech Republic.

Absinthe Fairy and Prohibition

During the prohibition period, distilleries, such as the Pernod Fils distillery, started producing Absinthe substitutes such as Pernod Pastis to market to the people who were missing the anise flavor of Absinthe. The another substitute of Absinthe was Ricard.

In many countries bootleg absinthe was still distilled and sold which proves that the knowledge with respect to distillation of Absinthe has never been lost.

Although Absinthe was made legal in many countries in the 1990s but in Switzerland it was legalized in 2005. You can now buy Absinthe and Absinthe essence kits online along with Absinthiana such as glasses, spoons and fountains. The Absinthe preparation ritual is enhanced if it is drunk in a special antique or replica glass with a proper spoon.

According to the researches Absinthe only contained small amounts of thujone that was just as safe as drinking other strong spirits. Absinthe was never designed to drink neat though having high alcohol content. It should be mixed with iced water which allows you to enjoy La Louche – the clouding that happens when the water mixes with the alcohol.

Numerous websites are there from which one can get real wormwood Absinthe and essences to make his own bottled Absinthe.com.

 

 

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Know About Absinthe Green Fairy

Friday, August 21st, 2009

Absinthe Green Fairyis an alcoholic drink with an interesting history. Being developed as an elixir or tonic in the 18th century it is now among the most controversial and popular drinks of all time.

The strongness of Absinthe lies between 45 and 75% Alcohol by volume. The name “Green Fairy” was kept because of it's emerald green color. It is a distilled liquor prepared from herbs. The three main herbs tend to be wormwood (Artemisia Absinthium), green aniseed and fennel (fennell). Henri-Louis Pernod used other herbs like hyssop, lemon balm, nutmeg, juniper, veronica, star anise and dittany to produce his famous original Pernod Absinthe recipe. The herbs like calamus were used by some manufacturers which was thought to be psychoactive. Because of the essential oil extract Absinthe louche when iced water is poured over the sugar on the Absinthe spoon. As the oils cannot mix with water so they cause the Absinthe to cloud.

Absinthe Green Fairy and the Art World

Absinthe is famous for inspiring many artists and writers associated with the Bohemian culture of the Montmartre area of Paris. Some of the famous Absinthe drinkers are Vincent Van Gough, Pablo Picasso, Paul Gauguin, Charles Baudelaire, Edgar Degas, Ernest Hemingway and Oscar Wilde. A lot of writers and artists were impressed with Absinthe believing that it gave them inspiration and their genius. Painters like Van Gogh and Picasso gave emphasis on Absinthe and Absinthe drinkers in their paintings.

Absinthe's association with old Montmartre, the Moulin Rouge and the Bohemian sect, was simply the explanation that prohibition campaigners required. Absinthe was linked with the murder of a family and the growing problem of alcohol addiction in France so the campaigners raised their hands against the legalization of Absinthe in France. It was restricted in most of the countries.

Wormwood contains the chemical thujone which was blamed for the psychedelic effects of consuming the Green Fairy. According to the belief thujone and THC in cannabis were similar. The main contents of Absinthe are alcohol, ethanol and minute quantities of thujone. According to the research Absinthe is just as safe as any other strong liquor and the alcohol content in it can harm anyone not the thujone. A number of studies and articles have been written on the subject. It should be drunk in appropriate quantity because it is approximately twice as strong as vodka or whisky.

During the time of prohibition many people enjoyed buying and drinking vintage style Absinthe in Absinthe bars in the Czech Republic, served in the classic Absinthe large glassesand in surroundings decorated with vintage Absinthe posters. At present Absinthe is legal in several countries although thujone levels are controlled in the EU and the United States only allows Absinthe with trace amounts of thujone.

One can purchase Absinthe online by the bottle or order Absinthe essences.One can visit AbsintheKit.com to make his own Absinthe Green Fairy to bottle at home. Thujone is not used in a few new Absinthes that are prepared for the US market.

One can also use Absinthe Green Fairy in cocktails – mix with champagne for a truly decadent drink!

 

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Effects Of Absinthe

Thursday, August 20th, 2009

Absinthe effects are ill-famed among the people. People know the colorful history and the secret myths of Absinthe.

Absinthe was made in Switzerland in the 18th century as an elixir or tonic. It's main ingredient has been used in medicine from ancient times in the following ways:-
-It can be used as a tonic
- Methods to prevent poisoning caused by hemlock and toadstools
- To improve digestion
- To deal with parasitic intestinal worms.

After being distilled and sold by Pernod Absinthe became famous in La Belle Epoque period and linked with the Bohemian culture of the Montmartre area of Paris which is home to many artists and writers. Lots of famous artists and writers believed that Absinthe freed their minds and inspired them. Van Gogh cut off his ear due to influence of the Green Fairy, Absinthe.

According to the belief of most of the people Absinthe has psychedelic and intoxicating effects and it can be responsible for violence and insanity. According to a description a French man had murdered his whole family after drinking Absinthe. After drinking the Absinthe an individual must had consumed sufficient quantity of other alcoholic beverages.

The Absinthe effects were blamed on the wormwood extract in the drink which contained a chemical called thujone. Similarities are there between thujone and TCH which is found in the drug cannabis. During 1915 Absinthe was banned and made illegal in France and many other countries. It was never restricted in Spain, Portugal, the UK or the Czech Republic.

Many people researched thujone and Absinthe and it was found that drinking Absinthe was just as safe as drinking any strong spirits, and liquor with a high alcohol by volume, and that Absinthe contained only very minute quantities of thujone. Absinthe was, therefore, made legal again in many countries in the 1990s. The bottled Absinthe which contains 10mg/kg or less of thujone can be sold as per EU legislation.

New Absinthe-like products had been created to replace Absinthe for satisfying people's appetite for an anise flavored alcoholic beverage. A person can easily buy these beverages along with artificial Absinthes which have been made for the US market. A real Absinthe is that which contains the vital ingredient, wormwood for giving Absinthe it's characteristic bitter flavor. Absinthes which contain real wormwood or Absinthe essences which contain wormwood and can be mixed with vodka or Everclear is appropriate to produce own bottled Absinthe. These essences are used by the Absinthe industry and can be bought online through sites like AbsintheKit.com. They come with instructions of using them and should be used with Absinthe spoon and glass.

Before drinking a significant amount of Absinthe one must worry about it's effects. One should not forget that Absinthe is twice as strong as whisky and should drink it in moderation!

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How Much Absinthe is Recommended?

Thursday, May 28th, 2009

There is much renewed interest in Absinthe, which is also known as the Greeny Fairy or La Fee Verte. People ask questions about how to buy Absinthe, what type to buy, how to prepare it and what is the amount to use when preparing a drink.

First be certain to buy a quality Absinthe which is rich in oils and that contains worm wood. There are Absinthe substitute and fake Absinthes on sale that contain southernwood or roman wormwood instead of common wormwood (artemisia absinthium). Be sure you buy a real Absinthe. If you live in a country where it is hard to find a good quality Absinthe then you could make your own Absinthe using essences from AbsintheKit.com.

After you have your Absinthe, you will need to learn the Ritual called La Louche. This traditional way of preparing Absinthe using one shot of Absinthe. Instructions:-

You need the following to perform the Ritural, lump of suger, a slotted Absinthe spoon, iced water and and Absinthe glass.

- Pour between 25 to 50 ml of Absinthe into a glass.
- Rest the special spoon over the rim of the glass and place a cube of sugar on it.
- By either pouring from a carafe or dripping from the tap of the fountain, slowly drip iced water over the sugar. After giving the sugar a chance to dissolve and drip it slowly through the slots of the spoon. You will see a "louche" effect as the water mixes into the alcohol. The Absinthe louches because the oils of the herbs are soluble in alcohol but not water and make the mixture cloudy or milky when water is added.
- Sit down, relax and enjoy your Absinthe.

The Czech or Bohemian Method is very similar to the Ritual but is a modern way of preparing cheap Czech Absinthes. The Bohemian method is scorned by many Absinthe followers.

Tips and instructions for using the Bohemian method:-

- Pour 25 to 50 ml of Absinthe into the glass then dip the sugar cube into it to soak the sugar.
- Place the sugar cube on the spoon and rest the spoon on the rim of the glass.
- Set the sugar cube on fire for one minute to allow the sugar to melt and caramelize. The sugar will drip through the slots of the spoon and into the Absinthe.
- Place the spoon into the glass and pour the iced water into the Absinthe to put out the flames and to cause the Absinthe to louche.
- Enjoy the Absinthe drink.

For real enjoyment of your Absinthe then you will want some Absinthiana - Absinthe glasses, spoons and perhaps even an Absinthe fountain to control the flow of the water. Online you can find replicas of antique spoons and glasses for purchased from AbsintheKit.com.

When preparing Absinthe drink, what is the recommended amount of Absinthe to use? A US shot or about 45 ml. You can search online for recipes to use Absinthe in cocktails.

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