Free Republic

No, it won't make your hallucinate. Yes, it is delicious.There is no spirit whose history is more steeped in misconception than absinthe. Throughout its lengthy history, the light green liquor has been blamed for a slew of bad behavior from silly drunkenness to murder — yes, murder. In spite of the dangerous discourse, this potent but delicious spirit is well overdue for a serious debunking, and a spot on your home bar. What is Absinthe? Absinthe is an overproof liquor, meaning it is a spirit whose ABV (alcohol by volume) is over 50%. It is made from medicinal and culinary...

Absinthe Uncorked: The 'Green Fairy' Was Boozy -- But Not Psychedelic ScienceDaily (May 1, 2008) — A new study may end the century-old controversy over what ingredient in absinthe caused the exotic green aperitif's supposed mind-altering effects and toxic side-effects when consumed to excess. In the most comprehensive analysis of old bottles of original absinthe -- once quaffed by the likes of van Gogh, Degas, Toulouse-Lautrec and Picasso to enhance their creativity -- a team of scientists from Europe and the United States have concluded the culprit was plain and simple: A high alcohol content, rather than thujone, the compound...

Want to party like it's 1899? Well, now you can--sort of. After nearly a century-long ban on absinthe in the U.S., a federal agency has begrudgingly allowed two European distillers to sell the mysterious liquor Stateside. Renowned for its supposedly hallucinogenic effects, the anise-flavored alcohol was rumored to have caused an epidemic of psychosis in France in the late 1800s--most infamously, leading Vincent van Gogh to cut off his ear......snip.......Regardless of exactly how potent absinthe is or isn't, Lehrman says one thing is certain: "If you drink three bottles, you are going to do something stupid."

IN praise of the opaque green liqueur beloved by his creative contemporaries, Oscar Wilde once posed the rhetorical question, “What difference is there between a glass of absinthe and a sunset?” Skip to next paragraph Fred R. Conrad/The New York Times The prosaic answer, at least for Americans, has long been one of legality: sunsets can be freely enjoyed, but absinthe was forbidden because it contained thujone, a potentially toxic compound. Intrepid drinkers have worked around the ban by ordering imported bottles off the Internet or smuggling them back from Eastern Europe. Now they have a third, less dodgy option:...

A Wisconsin man is warning others about the dangers of binge drinking after he jumped over the edge of a parking garage wall and fell four stories to the pavement below. Matt Mathe survived the fall, which was caught on surveillance video. The video shows him running full speed and flipping over the wall. For a split second, he tries to catch himself, but by then it is too late. Mathe said he was so drunk that he thought he was on the first floor and could simply hop over the wall onto the street. "It was a mistake," he...

Absinthe kills drinker By LYNDSEY WEATHERALL A DAD of three died after downing nine shots of the super-strong liquor absinthe at a family party. Albie Webb, 49, was found unconscious on a sofa hours after sinking the green spirit. He was rushed to hospital but medics could not save him. Tests found his stomach held FIVE TIMES the level of alcohol needed to cause death. Albie’s absinthe was brought back from Greece by pals and given to him as a gift. The drink contains at least 70 per cent alcohol — twice as much as regular spirits. Albie, of Litherland,...