"After the first glass you see things as you wish they were.
After the second you see things as they are not.
Finally you see things as they really are
and that is the most horrible thing in the world..."

Oscar Wilde

Absinth

Absinth (also Absinthe, Absynthe, Absenta) is a bitter based on anise, fennel, a number of herbs and infusion of Absint Alsem (artemisia absinthium). The Alsem Absinthium is a one meter high bush that can be found in Swiss.
Thujon is the effective element in this alsem plant and has the same pharmacological effect as THC. Alcohol extracts the etheric oil and with it the Thujon. The plant also contains absinthine. This gives Absinth it’s bitter mark. Absinth has a (yellow) green tint but can also be found in clear bottled form.

A remarkable journey

Absinth was first produced commercially in 1805 by Henri-Louis Pernod.
He obtained the recipe from the french physician Ordinaire. The drink started off as a very modest succes and was mainly marketed as medicin.

In 1830 french soldiers in Algeria found themselves in need of purified drinking water to fight malaria and dysentheria. Absinth was - literally - the solution: it cleanses polluted water. This purification was highly appreciated by the soldiers that they took their taste for Absinth back home.
Especially in Paris the soldiers gave a huge lift in absint sales in the popular boulevard café’s. The bourgeoisy was contaminated and the Green Hour had struck: from 5 till 7 pm the bouvelards were converted in catwalks for the Green Fairies.

But Absinth really took off amoung artists. The Green Fairy was alledgely a rich source of artistic inspiration. This has certainly contributed to the myth of the psycho active effects of Absinth. Famous Absinth drinkers were Charles Baudelaire, Vincent Van Gogh, Pablo Picasso, Guy De Maupassant, Édouard Manet, Oscar Wilde and Paul Verlaine.

In the same period vineyards were struck by grape leaf louse. Absinth turned out to be a very affordable alternative for wine that
became in very short supply. Almoust every French provence town got his own Absinth distillery.

For decades Absinth is associated with the alledged bad effects. Thanks to modern technology and current insights in the chemical background and function, today one can enjoy the Green Mysterie of the Muse to the fullest.