Absinthe: How the Green Fairy became literature’s drink

[DrLeftover]

9 January 2014

Arthur Rimbaud called absinthe the “sagebrush of the glaciers” because a key ingredient, the bitter-tasting herb Artemisia absinthium or wormwood, is plentiful in the icy Val-de-Travers region of Switzerland. That is where the legendary aromatic drink that came to symbolise decadence was invented in the late 18th Century. It’s hard to overstate absinthe’s cultural impact – or imagine a contemporary equivalent.

The spirit was a muse extraordinaire from 1859, when Édouard Manet’s The Absinthe Drinker shocked the annual Salon de Paris, to 1914, when Pablo Picasso created his painted bronze sculpture, The Glass of Absinthe. During the Belle Époque, the Green Fairy – nicknamed after its distinctive colour – was the drink of choice for so many writers and artists in Paris that five o’clock was known as the Green Hour, a happy hour when cafes filled with drinkers sitting with glasses of the verdant liquor. Absinthe solidified or destroyed friendships, and created visions and dream-like states that filtered into artistic work. It shaped Symbolism, Surrealism, Modernism, Impressionism, Post-Impressionism and Cubism. Dozens of artists took as their subjects absinthe drinkers and the ritual paraphernalia: a glass, slotted spoon, sugar cubes – sugar softened the bitter bite of cheaper brands – and fountains dripping cold water to dilute the liquor.

http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20140109-absinthe-a-literary-muse

 

[Nebulous]

I've always wanted to try Absinthe

 

[DrLeftover]

I've always wanted to try Absinthe

No you don't.

 

[Nebulous]

I've always wanted to try Absinthe

No you don't.

Why not? Did you have a bad experience with it?

 

[Evil Teddy Bear of Doom]

I've always wanted to try Absinthe

No you don't.

Why not? Did you have a bad experience with it?

Absinthe is an absolutely lovely poison - well, a bit more like a drug, but... not quite.

 

[Evil Eye]

I've always wanted to try Absinthe

What's holding you back?

 

[Nebulous]

I've always wanted to try Absinthe

What's holding you back?

The price? Having something shipped from Europe is pricey. Maybe one of these days.

 

[Evil Eye]

There are American distilleries that sell the stuff, you wouldn't have to import it from Europe.

 

[Nebulous]

There are American distilleries that sell the stuff, you wouldn't have to import it from Europe.

I want the real thing though. American companies tend to water down and change ingredients.

 

[Evil Teddy Bear of Doom]

There are American distilleries that sell the stuff, you wouldn't have to import it from Europe.

American absinthe is about as authentic as American lager.

 

[DrLeftover]

There are American distilleries that sell the stuff, you wouldn't have to import it from Europe.

American absinthe is about as authentic as American lager.

Yeah.

That's means you can drink it without the risk of demonic possession.

 

[Evil Teddy Bear of Doom]

There are American distilleries that sell the stuff, you wouldn't have to import it from Europe.

American absinthe is about as authentic as American lager.

Yeah.

That's means you can drink it without the risk of demonic possession.

Where's the fun in that? You're talking about 95% of the experience being ripped out due to FDA controls!