Absinthe Un-Banned in France
At long last, absinthe (la fée verte/the green fairy) is once again fully legal in France. Up until now, absinthe was legal as long as it wasn't called absinthe. Absinthe derivatives such as Pastis, Pernod and ouzo, have long been enjoyed in the Mediterranean and beyond, usually mixed with water.
Absinthe contains a high percentage of alcohol: between 45% and 75%. It also contains thujone, a chemical derived from wormwood, which is believed to be hallucinogenic. Absinthe is not hallucinogenic- this is a myth. However, the amount of thujone in absinthe has been greatly exaggerated over the years though. In truth, the danger from absinthe comes from its alcohol content and not any psychoactive effects.
Is Absinthe Hallucinogenic?
The idea of absinthe as a drink that drives you insane is based on a rumor started by French winemakers at the turn of the 20th Century, who felt threatened by absinthe's popularity with women, a market which winemakers had been ignoring.
Absinthe was associated with several high-profile crimes, though these connections were not exactly forensic. It didn't help that artists such as Paul Verlaine, Vincent Van Gough and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec were huge proponents of absinthe.
Is Absinthe Legal in the USA, UK and Canada?
Absinthe is legal in Canada and the United Kingdom, and sort-of legal in the USA. American-sold absinthe cannot contain any thujone, which effectively makes it a drink other than absinthe. Note that Absente uses a distillate of southernwood, and not wormwood.
Absinthe is legal throughout the EU (now including France, which had its own weird little ban), though overall thujone content is roughly half what it was in absinthe's heyday.
At long last, absinthe (la fée verte/the green fairy) is once again fully legal in France. Up until now, absinthe was legal as long as it wasn't called absinthe. Absinthe derivatives such as Pastis, Pernod and ouzo, have long been enjoyed in the Mediterranean and beyond, usually mixed with water.
Absinthe contains a high percentage of alcohol: between 45% and 75%. It also contains thujone, a chemical derived from wormwood, which is believed to be hallucinogenic. Absinthe is not hallucinogenic- this is a myth. However, the amount of thujone in absinthe has been greatly exaggerated over the years though. In truth, the danger from absinthe comes from its alcohol content and not any psychoactive effects.
Is Absinthe Hallucinogenic?
The idea of absinthe as a drink that drives you insane is based on a rumor started by French winemakers at the turn of the 20th Century, who felt threatened by absinthe's popularity with women, a market which winemakers had been ignoring.
Absinthe was associated with several high-profile crimes, though these connections were not exactly forensic. It didn't help that artists such as Paul Verlaine, Vincent Van Gough and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec were huge proponents of absinthe.
Is Absinthe Legal in the USA, UK and Canada?
Absinthe is legal in Canada and the United Kingdom, and sort-of legal in the USA. American-sold absinthe cannot contain any thujone, which effectively makes it a drink other than absinthe. Note that Absente uses a distillate of southernwood, and not wormwood.
