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Thujone-containing absinthe to be avaliable in the U.S... legally

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A Forbidden Fairy Makes a Comeback
By Jason Wilson
Wednesday, September 5, 2007; Page F08

It's not often that the feds get involved with this column. But sometimes a duty to homeland security calls, even for the cocktail writer.

A few weeks ago, I wrote in passing that absinthe is no longer illegal in the United States. In New Orleans, at the Tales of the Cocktail conference in July, I'd tasted several "authentic" absinthes, and the excited word was that true absinthe, banned since the early 20th century, would soon be widely available. One brand, La F?e -- which imports absinthes from France, Switzerland and the Czech Republic -- offered tastings, fittingly, in the Ernest Hemingway Penthouse at the Hotel Monteleone.

The day my column ran I received an e-mail from Janice Mosher, director of the call center for U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Mosher was "curious" as to the "legal basis" of my statement on absinthe. "I have not heard that it was now legal," she wrote. "And since I run the Customs call center -- and we are often asked about absinthe -- I'd like to get more information."

That's when Mosher and I delved deeper into the legal issues. What we discovered will thrill -- and possibly deflate -- those who've waited years for a taste of the "green fairy," the infamous drink of Zola, Toulouse-Lautrec and Oscar Wilde.

Basically, it boils down to chemistry. According to the Treasury Department's Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, U.S. law prohibits absinthe that contains over 10 parts per million of thujone, the active ingredient in wormwood. Wormwood is the plant that makes absinthe absinthe -- with its mythic tales of hallucination and belle epoque debauchery.

But here's the thing: Just about all absinthe has less than 10 parts per million of thujone and perhaps always did. The ban existed mainly because there had been no way to prove otherwise. Until now. In fact, New Orleans-born chemist Ted Breaux, creator of the new Lucid absinthe, has used modern technology to test bottles from the late 19th century to show that properly made absinthe contained very little thujone.

The Tax and Trade Bureau has done similar tests. "There are currently four absinthe products that we've tested and we're allowing in the marketplace," spokesman Art Resnick says. They are Lucid, Green Moon from France, and two versions of the brand Kubler from Switzerland.

None of those is available in the Washington area, though they soon will be. But widespread availability of absinthe might be both a good and not-so-good thing. People now will be able to see what absinthe tastes like. But because all absinthe is now technically classified as "thujone free," two centuries of myths central to Western artistic tradition will immediately be exploded. For instance, how can we believe that Van Gogh cut off his ear on thujone-free absinthe?

Historians theorize that cheap, poorly made absinthe may have been responsible for the drink's unsavory reputation. "The whole thing about thujone appears to be overblown," writes Mosher, "but it still has a certain mystique, which is why no one wants to come right out and declare their product 'thujone free.' "

The label of Green Moon, for instance, will refer to itself as "Absinthe Essence" and "Anise-Flavored Vodka." Have fun imagining you're a Left Bank boulevardier with that.

Mosher's concern is that travelers would be emboldened to pick up a bottle in Barcelona or Prague and try to bring it back through Customs -- where agents would seize the souvenir. "As always, such an outcome produces tears," she says.

Sometimes, of course, there are tears of joy: I remember fondly the bottle of absinthe that was not confiscated upon my return from Barcelona. (Years ago, I swear.)

The Tax and Trade Bureau says it has no authority or jurisdiction over "personal use imports." But Mosher says, "Until we've been formally informed, we can't just decide on our own to stop enforcing it." However, she acknowledges, "It appears to me that there is no basis for not allowing it anymore."

Mosher and I agree that, as with Cuban cigars, once absinthe is widely available, there will be an inevitable letdown. I enjoy the bitter anise flavor and the hints of fennel and other herbs, but I know it is an acquired taste that many will never acquire.

"The real problem," Mosher says, "is that it tastes icky."

That reminds me of something Oscar Wilde once said of absinthe: "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."

Jason Wilson's Spirits column appears every other week. He can be reached [email protected].
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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dy...04/AR2007090400430.html?referrer=emailarticle

Well how about it!
 
I wonder if the upcoming commercial absinthe will be any different, better or worse, from the bootleg absinthe currently available. Legalization will take the fun out of going to absinthe tasting parties.
 
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As delta said, most of the absinthe in the U.S. are foreign brands already. But now, there's no legal ambigiouty. (Aside from taxes.)
 
Pretty much evewry bottle shop I've seen has it in Australia and its supposed to be outlawed? There's even a place called Absinthe Bar.
 
Ive tried to order absinthe before but it either got caught at customs or the place was a scam. I wouldn't order anything until customs says it's ok.
 
if it really is going to become readily available... I cannot wait to try it.
 
Well, hell you can get whole kilos of coca leaves...

Of course, you can always buy all the wormwood you want and make it yourself. Thujone is a mild stimulant by itself, but not very pleasant IMO, only good mixed with alcohol.
 
You can always buy your own thujone extracts and do the sugar and vodka trick to make home made vodka.
 
It depends on the brand, really. Some of the bottles I've seen (in the UK) in the likes of Tesco are roughly around 50%. You'll usually find the higher strength ones in places like John Lewis, where you can pick up the 70-80% ones. They certainly have a hell of a kick to them =D
 
Thujone is a GABAA receptor antagonist. By inhibiting GABA receptor activation neurons may fire more easily which can cause muscle spasms and convulsions.

Sounds WONDERFUL.
 
mulberryman said:
Absinthe is usually really high proof, like 70-80%, isn't it?
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I think most commercial absinthe is in the range of 52%-70%....I read that somewhere:D
 
PsyGhost said:
Whats the deal with thujone neurotoxicity? Real or not?
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Urban legend.
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. Table 1 Analysis of absinthe by GLC Sample Thujone mg/l Anethole mg/l Private distillation 25 956 Vintage Pernod fils circa. 1900 6 1400 Emile Pernot 45% 8 1053 Un Emile 68% 10 792 Samples were analysed on a BP10 capillary column with FID. Programmed from 70 C (held for 10 min) to 120 C at 5 C/min and held isothermally for a further 10 min.


Table 1 Analysis of absinthe by GLC
Sample Thujone mg/l Anethole mg/l
Private distillation + 25 956
Vintage Pernod fils circa. 1900 6 1400
Emile Pernot 45% 8 1053
Un Emile 68% 10 792
Samples were analysed on a BP10 capillary column with FID. Programmed from 70 C (held for 10 min) to 120 C at 5 C/min and held isothermally for a further 10 min.

The convulsive ED50 of thujone in rats is 35.5 mg/kg/day po, and the 'no effect' level is 12.5 mg/kg/day po (Margaria, R. (1963) Acute and sub-acute toxicity study on thujone. Unpublished report of Istito di Fisiologia, Università di Milano). No toxicity studies have been conducted in humans but the FDAs accepts a safe level for food additives as a highly conservative 100 times less than the no effect level in animals. Thus a safe (no effect) dose of thujone could be extrapolated as 8.75 mg/day for a 70 kg human and it can be seen that even at the highest concentrations found in any of the samples tested, the effects of the alcohol would far outweigh those of the thujone.
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http://www.thujone.info/thujone-absinthe-6.html
Sorry for the formatting. Original table is at this link. There are also several studies published within the past few years that look at its toxicity. They're available on Pubmed. They find that in absinthe, ethanol itself is a bigger risk than thujone toxicity. Et By the time you get close to a toxic dose, you will have already died of ethanol poisoning. To experience convulsions from thujone, you have to take something like 100 times as much thujone than is in a liter of absinthe.
 
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I've also heard it to be carcinogenic. As a GABA-a receptor antagonist, it would be like a kind of anti-benzo. I've never tried absinthe, but found wormwood to have a very mild stimulatory effect in doses of less than 2 grams, and a dysphoric, jittery effect with increased heartbeat and profuse sweating at doses above 2 grams. I imagine it would be very different mixed with alcohol, which is a GABA-a receptor agonist.
 
Bah, nothing beats 98% Proof alcohol like you can buy in Europe %)
 
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