The Brand-new Absinthe Thujone

Absinthe thujone is the chemical found in Absinthe’s vital ingredient, the plant identified as Common Wormwood, or Artemisia Absinthium to give it its botanical name. The chemical thujone was partly responsible for Absinthe being banned in early 1900s in many countries across the globe and thujone remains tightly regulated today www.absinthesupreme.com, particularly in the United States (or states united).

Thujone was considered to be much like THC seen in cannabis and Absinthe was purported to be psychoactive and have psychedelic effects creating hallucinations and insanity. Absinthe was favored by the Bohemian set in Montmartre in Paris and several artists and writers believed that Absinthe, the Green Fairy, gave them inspiration in addition to their genius. Famous Absinthe drinkers include Oscar Wilde, Ernest Hemingway, Van Gogh, Gauguin, Degas, Baudelaire and Verlaine. Some say that Van Gogh’s madness was brought on by Absinthe and that he cut off his ear under its effect . Absinthe was even held responsible for a man murdering his family, although he had consumed a great many other strong alcoholic drinks after the Absinthe.

Prohibition campaigners used news of the murder to campaign for the banning of Absinthe and blamed France’s growing problems of alcohol dependency on the emerald liquor.

Is Absinthe Thujone Harmful?

Today’s studies suggest that it was in fact the alcohol (ethanol) content of Absinthe that’s dangerous rather than the thujone. Absinthe is two times as strong as spirits like whisky and vodka and can be 75% alcohol. Care should therefore be used when ingesting Absinthe. Thujone is just present in minute quantities and must therefore cause no major negative effects or health conditions. The EU stipulates that alcoholic beverages with an ABV (alcohol by volume) level over 25% may only contain a maximum of 10mg/kg of thujone, beverages classed as “bitters” can contain approximately 35mg/kg, it isn’t completely clear which class Absinthe suits but many brands of Absinthe have much less than 35mg with many being under 10mg/kg. In the US it is just legal to buy or sell Absinthes with trace amounts of thujone.

High doses of thujone can be dangerous causing convulsions however you would have to drink a large amount of Absinthe to consume that quantity of thujone and it might be impossible to drink that amount, you would be comatosed from alcohol until then!

Absinthe Formula

It is said that Henri-Louis Pernod, who owned the first Absinthe distillery, used the herbs wormwood, aniseed, fennel, lemon balm, hyssop, angelica root, dittany, star anise, nutmeg, juniper and veronica to produce his famous Pernod Absinthe. The essential oil from all of these herbs is mainly responsible for La Louche, the clouding which happens when water is put into Absinthe. These herbs particularly the aniseed and anise are responsible for the distinctive aniseed or licorice taste of Absinthe and wormwood is mainly responsible for the bitter flavor. Absinthe is oftentimes used as bitters in cocktails.

There are many brands of Absinthe or Absinthe substitutes that have been developed in the ban and therefore contain no Absinthe thujone or wormwood, however, many would say that Absinthe is not Absinthe without Absinthe thujone and the bitter taste of wormwood. If you wish real Absinthe search for brands containing wormwood or Absinthe thujone.