The Virtual Absinthe Museum is a huge site devoted to every aspect of absinthe, and is particularly strong on history and culture of absinthe and it’s uses. Plus a lot of great art and artifacts. Plus they claim to sell actual Belle-Epoch bottles, worm woody and all.
[… It is often stated that the absinthe produced in the 19th century had much larger amounts of thujone present than are allowed in today’s versions of the drink, which have to comply with EU limits of 10 mg/l. … when GLC analysis is applied to samples of absinthes and the results do show much lower thujone levels than expected. Analyses were performed on a sample of vintage Pernod fils circa 1900, a sample of absinthe produced by a home distiller and two modern commercial absinthes produced by traditional methods in Pontarlier, France by using 19th century protocols. The vintage Pernod absinthe is shown to have the lowest concentration of total thujone of any of the samples tested and the highest is found in the Swiss sample, but even this was lower than the EU limit of 35 mg/l for thujone in bitters. … What is more likely to have caused harm to regular absinthe drinkers is the adulterants used in the cheaper varieties. Absinthe existed in a quality pyramid much as wine does today, for each quality brand there were many more indifferent and positively harmful versions being sold cheaply to those who could not afford to buy a reputable brand. Common adulterants were cupric acetate (to provide the valued green colour) and antimony trichloride (which provided a cloudiness when water was added in imitation of the milky appearance of diluted absinthe). THE PURITY OF THE BASE ALCOHOL USED FOR THE LESSER BRANDS WOULD ALSO HAVE BEEN QUESTIONABLE, AND TOXIC LEVELS OF METHANOL FROM POOR RECTIFICATION WOULD HAVE BEEN A REAL POSSIBILITY. An additional aggravating factor is that as the cheaper brands were lower in alcohol than the quality brands, around 45% abv for ‘absinthe demi-fine’ compared to 68 or 72% for ‘absinthe superior’, someone drinking the cheaper version and seeking to obtain the same effect from the alcohol would have needed to consume more of the absinthe and hence more adulterants. On the other hand the base alcohol used in quality absinthe was rectified wine alcohol at 85% which was free from congeners, and although bottled at 68% (to preserve the natural green colour of the chlorophyll) the final strength when diluted was no more than a glass of wine. ]
I need a point of clarification here. Does this quote say that by process of faulty “rectification” (i.e., distillation), the base alcohol in the lesser brands of absinthe (apparently NOT distilled from wine alcohol like the quality product) may contain poisonous methanol (i.e., wood alcohol)? I don’t understand this. How do we get methanol by distillation from a (presumably) ethanol raw material?
(I love the term “quality pyramid.” Very Sonoma County.)
Foodstock that contain pectin, such as potatoes, some fruits and grains, used as the raw material, will produce methanol as well as ethanol. Good distillation practices prevent it from ending up in the bottle. I’m guessing that back then some of the worst cheap off brands would even buy the methanol higher fractions off the hands of the better distillers, who might be happy to get anything for something they would otherwise just toss. Possible for any of the fortified products back in a day of no regulations.
Very interesting. Thanks for the answer. The Wiki entry says: “traditional absinthes were redistilled from a white grape spirit (or eau de vie), while lesser absinthes were more commonly made from alcohol from grain, beets, or potatoes.” I seem to remember there was a methanol poisoning problem with homemade liquor during prohibition. I always assumed that was a problem of adulteration with methanol as an extender by some middleman. I had no idea you could produce methanol from a faulty distillation of anything we commonly see used to produce alcoholic drinks. Makes you wonder what the casualty count was in the historical learning curve on how to properly distill vodka and uisge beatha.
…and I’ve just printed this out to take home and read, too. Thanks for ALL of the information you provided on this.
What about my statement in 2002 was factually incorrect? You do understand that the customs people often don’t even read those forms, right? I just flew in from the UK yesterday and they grabbed my form and stuffed it onto the pile, just like they always do. You yourself aren’t certain you declared it in the first place.
There is a wealth of information here as well. I love the Wormwood Society. Enjoy.
Quotes:
Wiki: “The Bohemian Method” is an alternative that is popular primarily due to the use of fire. Like the French method, a sugar cube is placed on a slotted spoon over a glass containing one shot of absinthe. The difference is that the sugar is pre-soaked in alcohol, usually more absinthe, and then set ablaze. The flaming sugar cube is then dropped into the glass igniting the absinthe. Finally, a shot glass full of water is added to douse the flames. This method tends to produce a stronger drink than the French method. A variant of “The Bohemian Method” is to allow the fire to burn itself out. This variant, called “Cooking the Absinthe” or “Flaming Green Fairy,” removes much but not all of the alcohol."
Wormwood society site: No one who knows anything about absinthe and its history would use this method. Compare it to shaking a bottle of champagne. Given the high-proof nature of the liquor it can also be very dangerous, resulting in a cracked or broken glass, injury and accidental fire. Aside from spectacle, it has no effect whatsoever except possibly that of introducing a burnt-marshmallow taste to the absinthe thus obscuring the delicate herbal nuances and ruining its flavor.
So, a well-informed Straight Doper would never order a “flaming green fairy” in a San Francisco Absinthe bar. Good to know.