Absinthe Seattle

I will be going out to an Absinthe bar this week. Depending on price and ambiance, I might make this a semi-regular thing.

Pics to follow.

Cool. Make sure to get pics of the louche fountain.

Which one? Zig Zag? Polar Bar? Liberty Bar? Either way, I think you're in for a bit of a disappointment. The stuff isn't that special.

I hear there is a local distillery now, out of Woodinville. Haven't tried their stuff yet.

Originally Posted by robin

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Which one? Zig Zag? Polar Bar? Liberty Bar? Either way, I think you're in for a bit of a disappointment. The stuff isn't that special.

I hear there is a local distillery now, out of Woodinville. Haven't tried their stuff yet.
I dunno where yet. I saw an ad. I'm gonna go look for it tomorrow. They have specials. I'm not looking for "special" I'm looking for "decent". I've actually had pretty good stuff. And I like drinking it. I went through my bottle that I got 3 years ago for $80 - went back to buy more, and its $165 a bottle. Damn you Century Absinthe. Anyways, I'm glad its finally legal now. And I'm stoked about Pacific Distillery's Absinthe. I've been reading about it and it sounds great. I'm going to buy a bottle as soon as its ready. (The first batch is still resting - so nobody's tried it except the guys making it)

Really? I thought some local bars already had their bottles.

Originally Posted by robin

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Really? I thought some local bars already had their bottles.
according to the distiller, batch no 1 isn't done yet. maybe the bars got the product of a test run or something.

I have emailed them.

When you say 'legal', do you mean it can have thujone in it? Because if not, it's been legal forever.

Originally Posted by holymadness

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When you say 'legal', do you mean it can have thujone in it? Because if not, it's been legal forever.
Yes, real absinthe. Pacific Distillery is using two kinds of wormwood. Woo woo!

Originally Posted by Tokyo Slim

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Yes, real absinthe. Pacific Distillery is using two kinds of wormwood. Woo woo!
Dubious, I order mine from Russia. Send a report quick because I am bleeding money on this ****. I made some Russian friends in Busan and they get the best I have ever found (Kamchatka Import Ltd.) but if they really are selling quality in Seattle then the Russians can ***************. I don't even tell what's her name about it (please Lord never let her check this thread!). I want updates! PM on price if that's not too tacky. Thanks! We'll compare. If mine is better for the price, well...

Wikipedia:

United States

The prevailing consensus of interpretation of United States law and regulations among American absinthe connoisseurs is that, with the revision of thujone levels by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), it is now legal to purchase such a product for personal use in the U.S.

According to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) food and beverages that contain Artemisia species must be thujone free[79]. Thujone free is defined as containing less than 10ppm thujone.[80] There is no corresponding US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) regulation.

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection is inconsistent in saying whether Absinthe may or may not be imported. The Know Before You Go booklet flatly states "The importation of Absinthe and any other liquors or liqueurs that contain Artemisia absinthium is prohibited."[81] while the CBP's Prohibited and Restricted Items web page states that the importation of absinthe is not "prohibited" but subject to FDA and Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) approval like other distilled spirits.[82] Absinthe can be and occasionally is seized by United States Customs if it appears to be for human consumption and can be seized inside the US with a warrant.[83][84]

A faux-absinthe liquor called Absente, made with southern wormwood (Artemisia abrotanum) instead of grande wormwood (Artemisia absinthium), is sold legally in the United States. This was the first US approval referring to "absinthe" on the front label; the front label says "Absinthe Refined" but the TTB classified the product as liqueur.

In 2007, TTB relaxed the US absinthe ban, and approved several brands for sale.[85] These brands must pass TTB testing, which is performed by the Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry method[86]. The TTB considers a product to be thujone-free if the FDA’s test measures less than 10ppm (equal to 10mg/kg) thujone.[87] A US distillery also began producing and selling absinthe, the first US company to do so since 1912.[88]

So, what's the thujone content of the stuff you're drinking vs. the European-made spirit?

Originally Posted by holymadness

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Wikipedia: United States The prevailing consensus of interpretation of United States law and regulations among American absinthe connoisseurs is that, with the revision of thujone levels by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), it is now legal to purchase such a product for personal use in the U.S. According to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) food and beverages that contain Artemisia species must be thujone free[79]. Thujone free is defined as containing less than 10ppm thujone.[80] There is no corresponding US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) regulation. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection is inconsistent in saying whether Absinthe may or may not be imported. The Know Before You Go booklet flatly states "The importation of Absinthe and any other liquors or liqueurs that contain Artemisia absinthium is prohibited."[81] while the CBP's Prohibited and Restricted Items web page states that the importation of absinthe is not "prohibited" but subject to FDA and Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) approval like other distilled spirits.[82] Absinthe can be and occasionally is seized by United States Customs if it appears to be for human consumption and can be seized inside the US with a warrant.[83][84] A faux-absinthe liquor called Absente, made with southern wormwood (Artemisia abrotanum) instead of grande wormwood (Artemisia absinthium), is sold legally in the United States. This was the first US approval referring to "absinthe" on the front label; the front label says "Absinthe Refined" but the TTB classified the product as liqueur. In 2007, TTB relaxed the US absinthe ban, and approved several brands for sale.[85] These brands must pass TTB testing, which is performed by the Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry method[86]. The TTB considers a product to be thujone-free if the FDA’s test measures less than 10ppm (equal to 10mg/kg) thujone.[87] A US distillery also began producing and selling absinthe, the first US company to do so since 1912.[88] So, what's the thujone content of the stuff you're drinking vs. the European-made spirit?
I don't know for sure. I do know that it contains both Grande and Roman Wormwood and that its from an 1855 French recipe. Regardless of the Thujone content, if any significant amount, I've never noticed any difference between the supposed "100mg Thujone" Century Absinthe and anything else. Except that Century was tasty. Where a lot of the Czech and Spanish stuff I've had is mostly garbage. Most traditional Absinthes are fairly low in Thujone content. Contrary to what the Czech Republic would like you to believe. Many of the high Thujone content Absinthes are horrible quality wormwood bitters, and not Absinthe at all. Lucid (one of the first Absinthes to be allowed legal import status into the US) uses nothing but Grande Wormwood, and has historically accurate levels of Thujone. Too bad their bottle looks like ******* Sex Panther. The science that claims Thujone has any "medicinal" qualities is pretty shaky too. Basically, its a marketing gimmick. Like extra caffeinated coffee. Except Caffeine actually does something.

I'm not trying to discount high thujone content absinthes. My favorite so far, as I said, has supposedly 100mg per bottle. It is a Czech made French-style Absinthe. Being Czech, and falling victim to the Thujone marketing hype - they just add way more macerated wormwood than is necessary. Some people like it, some people don't. I like the taste, but only with water. And it doesn't louche well, as people have pointed out. But even though this is the highest wormwood content "real" Absinthe sold on the market - there was no hallucinating or anything. In fact, it didn't seem to have any different effect than the Duplaix Verte (sp?) I've had which is under 10mg.

I'm just saying that "real" Absinthe has nothing to do with Thujone. Real Absinthe uses Grande Wormwood and is a fairly balanced and tolerable flavor, because its flavored by the herbs. It is not artificially colored, and it does not have wormwood extract oil mixed into what is essentially vodka like quite a few of the Absinthes out there with "high Thujone content"

I'm intrigued. I've only had absinthe once before and I doubt it was "real." I'd like to be able to try something better locally. Let us know how it goes!