The Absinthe fairy was used on Absinthe label and posters. In the film Moulin Rouge Absinthe, the Green Fairy, was the favorite drink of artists and writers.
Absinthe Fairy Followers
Famous devotees of La Fee Verte, the Green Fairy, were Vincent Van Gogh, Pablo Picasso, Charles Baudelaire, Paul Gauguin, Oscar Wilde and Ernest Hemingway who created his own Absinthe cocktail “Death in the Afternoon” – a mix of Absinthe and champagne. Many pieces of art of the time feature Absinthe or Absinthe drinkers and writers and artists also said that Absinthe gave them their genius and their inspiration. The Belle Epoque period of history is famous as the hey day for Absinthe.
Absinthe, also famous as Absynthe, is a strong liquor manufatured from herbs and essential oils. Absinthe is prepared from the herb wormwood. Wormwood gives Absinthe its characteristic bitter taste whereas herbs such as aniseed, anise and fennel give the spirit it’s anise flavor.
Thujone, a chemical found in wormwood oil, was thought to be psychoactive and to give psychedelic effects, cause hallucinations and eventually insanity. In 1915 the loose morals of the drinkers in Montmartre gave prohibition campaigners ammunition to restrict Absinthe in France. Buying or selling Absinthe was outlawed. It was banned in many other countries also. The Green Fairy was not banned in Spain, Portugal, the UK and the Czech Republic.
Absinthe Fairy and Prohibition
During the prohibition period, distilleries, such as the Pernod Fils distillery, started producing Absinthe substitutes such as Pernod Pastis to market to the people who were missing the anise flavor of Absinthe. The another substitute of Absinthe was Ricard.
Bootleg absinthe was still distilled and sold in many countries which meant that the distilling of Absinthe has never been lost.
Although Absinthe was made legal in many countries in the 1990s but in Switzerland it was legalized in 2005. You can now buy Absinthe and Absinthe essence kits online along with Absinthiana such as glasses, spoons and fountains. Drinking Absinthe out of a special antique or replica glass with a proper spoon really adds to the Absinthe preparation ritual.
As per studies the thujone content in Absinthe is very less so it was not restricted in many countries. Absinthe was never designed to drink neat though having high alcohol content. An individual can feel the enjoyment of La Louche after mixing it with iced water.
You can order real wormwood Absinthe from many websites and essences to make your own bottled Absinthe are available from AbsintheKit.com.