Absinthe thujone
Absinthe thujone is the chemical found in Absinthe’s essential ingredient, the plant called Common Wormwood, or Artemisia Absinthium to give it its botanical name. The chemical thujone was partly responsible for Absinthe being banned in the early 1900s in many countries around the globe and thujone is still tightly regulated nowadays, particularly in the United States (or states united).
Thujone was thought to be much like THC present in cannabis and Absinthe had been purported to be psychoactive and have psychedelic results causing hallucinations and insanity. Absinthe has been popular with the Bohemian set in Montmartre within Paris and many artists and also writers claimed that Absinthe, the Green absinthe thujone Fairy, gave them inspiration and their genius. Famous Absinthe drinkers include Oscar Wilde, Ernest Hemingway, Van Gogh, Gauguin, Degas, Baudelaire and Verlaine. Some state that Van Gogh’s madness was due to Absinthe and that he cut off his ear under its influence. Absinthe was even blamed for a man murdering his family, even though he had ingested a number of other strong alcoholic beverages right after the Absinthe.
Prohibition campaigners utilised news of the murder to campaign for the banning of Absinthe and blamed France’s growing problems of alcoholism on the emerald liquor.
Is Absinthe thujone Unsafe?
Today’s research suggests that it was actually the alcohol (ethanol) content of Absinthe that was dangerous rather than the thujone. Absinthe is doubly strong as spirits like whisky and vodka and can be 75% alcohol. Care should therefore be utilized when ingesting Absinthe. Thujone is merely present in minute quantities and should therefore result in no major side effects or perhaps health problems. The EU stipulates that alcohol based drinks with an ABV {alcohol by volume) level over 25% may only have a maximum of 10mg/kg of thujone, beverages classed as “bitters” may contain around 35mg/kg, it is not totally clear which class Absinthe fits into but most brands of Absinthe have much under 35mg with many being under 10mg/kg. In the US it is simply legal to purchase or sell Absinthes with trace amounts of thujone.
High doses of thujone may be harmful causing convulsions but you would have to drink a large amount of Absinthe to consume that quantity of thujone also it will be impossible to drink that amount, you would be comatose from alcohol before then!
Absinthe Components
It is known that Henri-Louis Pernod, who owned the very first Absinthe distillery, used the herbs wormwood, aniseed, fennel, lemon balm, hyssop, angelica root, dittany, star anise, nutmeg, juniper and also veronica to create his famous Pernod Absinthe. The essential oil from all of these herbs is in charge of La Louche, the clouding which occurs when water is combined with Absinthe. These herbs particularly the aniseed and anise are responsible for the distinctive aniseed or licorice style of Absinthe and wormwood is liable for the particular bitter flavor. Absinthe is oftentimes employed as bitters in cocktails.
There are numerous brands of Absinthe or Absinthe alternatives which were developed throughout the bar and for that reason contain no Absinthe thujone or perhaps wormwood, but a majority of people would say that Absinthe just isn’t Absinthe without Absinthe thujone and the bitter style of wormwood. If you’d like real Absinthe search for brands made up of wormwood or Absinthe thujone.