Absinthe FAQs
What is absinthe?
What is Wormwood?
Wormwood (Artemisia absinthium) is a bitter, aromatic herb of the genus Artemisia of the family Asteraceae, distributed through many parts of the world and is the essential ingredient to real absinthe. To read more click here.
What does absinthe taste like?
Absinthe delivers an unparalleled sensory journey, starting with its intoxicating aroma of anise, wormwood, fennel, and herbs. Diluting it with water transforms its flavor and appearance, creating the magical louche effect. The taste combines the sweetness of anise with the bitterness of wormwood, enriched by refreshing notes of mint, lemon balm, and coriander. Smooth and complex, it’s a spirit of bold discovery and historical charm.
Absinthe taste is discussed further on our what is absinthe page.
Is absinthe illegal?
No.
In the late 19th and early 20th century, France was the largest producer of absinthe, but decided to place a ban on domestic sales in 1915. Our company discovered that at the time of the ban distillers were allowed to continue selling absinthe on a strictly export basis only. As the domestic market collapsed all production ceased and export dried up. La Fée Absinthe is distilled by a Paris based distiller, and was the first traditional French absinthe to be produced since the ban.
Why was absinthe banned?
The Netherlands followed suit in 1909, followed by the United States in 1912 and France in 1915 (where in its final year, a massive 220,000,000 liters of absinthe was consumed).
Why is absinthe back?
In 1998 George Rowley (owner of La Fée) secured the UK government’s authorization on the landmark document allowing absinthe to be legally sold in the European Union thus sparking a world wide modern revival. He then worked closely with Marie-Claude Delahaye, world-expert and absinthe historian, and together they recreated, for the first time since the bans of 1915, the first traditional absinthe to be distilled in France. In May 2011 the French government finally repealed their absinthe ban, allowing the spirit to be labelled simply as ‘absinthe’ for the first time in 96 years.
Is absinthe dangerous?
No. Alcohol abuse was historically, and continues to be, very dangerous and it is often said that the impurities in the alcohol production process of the era (especially cheap brands) that was responsible for the reputed negative health effects of absinthe.
Once absinthes reputation spread it was self-perpetuating; if a married man died of syphilis, it might be kinder to his widow to name “Absinthism” on the death certificate.
Absinthe is sometimes spelt absinth?
This is quite simply a language difference. Although ‘absinthe’ is the generic spelling as coined by the Swiss and French, who were the original absinthe producing nations, you will find that around the world there are many different spellings for the word absinthe. In the Czech Republic “e” is dropped, and thus, absinth. The Spanish say absenta and the Italians say assenzio, but they all mean absinthe.
It is worth noting that the spelling absinth (without an “e”) usually denotes that the brand comes from Eastern Europe and is likely to be “Bohemian style”, which means that it is unlikely to louche when water is added, due to the little to no anise content compared to traditional Swiss/French style.
Famous for drinking absinthe?
What is an absinthe spoon?
Do you burn absinthe?
Traditional absinthe was never burnt.
Is absinthe an aphrodisiac?
We’ll let you decide if this is true!
What is the correct serving method?
For the correct serve for style, click on the links below
What are the ingredients of absinthe?
What is thujone?
How do you make absinthe?
Traditionally all of the herbs and spices are distilled with the base alcohol in the same stil, before being coloured by the maceration of natural herbs in the distillate. This method is used to distil the Extra Supérieure La Fée X•S range.
Since their first distillations, La Fée Absinthe Parisienne [July 2000] and La Fée Absinthe Blanche [April 2012] have been made using a slightly different method: Based on an authentic 19th century recipe, our distiller distils each herb and spice separately. The individual distillates are then blended and Parisienne is coloured naturally from herbs macerated in spirit. This process allows us to achieve great consistency from batch-to-batch, which is we consider crucial for consistency of serve in cocktail bars around the world. These Absinthe Supérieures are each personally approved by Marie-Claude Delahaye of the Musée de l’Absinthe before bottling.
Different cocktails can be made using absinthe, follow the different styles below