[Leica] Absinthe

[deveney.marty at saugov.sa.gov.au (Deveney, Marty (PIRSA))]

>It can only be a fraction of the strength of the original product...

Only in terms of the thujone content; the original Lesala absinthe wasn't
much stronger than a cask-strength malt, which are available at many
locations in Frnace.

>AFAIK, Spain is the only place in the world where real
>absinthe -- the legendary madness-inducing
>wormwood-laced liquor -- is still made.  

Modern absinthes (and I restrict this definition to drinks that contain
wormwood and therefore thujone, the active ingredient in wormwood) are made
in many countries.  The largest volume of modern absinthe is probably made
in the Czech Republic.  http://www.feeverte.net/guide/czech.html  

Inside the EU, the maximum allowable thujone (the, um, allegedly
mind-altering component of wormwood) concentration is 35 mg/L, though most
manufacturers keep it below 10mg/L.  Good modern methods exist for
calculating the exact thujone concentration, aswell as the ratios of alpha-
and beta- isomers of the chemical in a drink:
www.emmert-analytik.de/DLR_100_9_S352-356.pdf  This ratio has some bearing
on its effect, allegedly.  Despite this, some studies have shown that the
most toxic substance in absinthe is actually ethanol:
http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/bb/neuro/neuro01/web1/Solano.html

Some Czech absinthes are made with over five times the allowable EU
concentration of thujone.

Here is a guide for buying absinthe:
http://www.absinthebuyersguide.com/guide.html

>I once shared a bottle with a friend from Madrid and it was indeed a
>somewhat twisted version of the other anise-type drinks.

Absinthe that tastes like anise or aniseed is not really authentic.  The
original absinthe, Lesala, tastes herbal and has detectable wormwood
flavours.  Bottles go on eBay for prices that would make even a Leica
collector squirm.  If anise is the dominant flavour, then it is a modern
interpretation of what the drink should taste like (and no, Pernod is not
absinthe without the wormwood).

>In other counties there are liquors with confusingly similar names and
labels, but without the
>mind-clouding psychoactive ingredient.

Thujone-containing drinks have been re-legalised in most Western countries
after a 70+ year ban and are available in the US and Canada, the EU
(including Britain) and Australia.

My favourite is Nouvelle Orleans served the traditional way, pour into a
glass over a sugar cube on a slotted spoon, light the sugar cube and
extinguish in the drink, then topped with cold water while stirring, causing
the absinthe to louche (become cloudy).  Sublime, but hard to get.

To keep this on-topic, it's really hard to focus a Leica M when you have had
a few absinthes.

Marty