The Wine Fact Center

The legalization of Absinthe in the USA and other countries has made it famous once again in the world. A number of young people are trying it for the first time and knocking it back without bothering about it’s alcohol content. Understanding Absinthe proof?

The preparation of Absinthe is done from distilling alcohol with a blend of herbs including wormwood (artemisia absinthium), fennel and aniseed. Due to the characteristic emerald green coloring of classic verte styles of Absinthe it is popular as the Green Fairy, La Fee Verte.

According to the Ritual Absinthe is generally drunk diluted with iced water. One can see the louche effect after dripping the water over a sugar lump on a slotted spoon and into the Absinthe.

There was a ban on Absinthe in the early 1900s because of the wormwood in it. Dr Valentin Magnan tested worwmood on guinea pigs in 1845 and found that a guinea pig given wormwood oilhad convulsions, whereas, a guinea pig given alcohol just got drunk. Absinthe was found to be much more harmful than other spirits by the testing done by Magnan on the thujone content in it. He and others in the medical profession believed thujone to be a psychoactive element. Therefore many countries illegalled Absinthe.

Even in 1975, a nature magazine claimed that a thujone molecule was similar in structure to THC from the drug cannabis and that they therefore acted in a similar manner.

All these claims have been proved to be unreal. Thujone is not similar to THC though it acts on the GABA receptors of the brain, when taken in large amounts. After testing Absinthes it has been proved that the quantity of thujone in it is very small to be harmful. When anyone drinks heavy amount of Absinthe he dies of alcohol poisoning before getting affected from thujone!

Being a highly alcoholic drink Absinthe will get an individual drunk quite quickly so should be taken in moderation.

What is Absinthe proof?

Let’s see what the proof of well-known brands of Absinthe is:-

Jade Nouvelle Orleans 68% abv (136 proof)
One can find 65% abv (130 proof) in Jade Verte Suisse
The abv in Jade Edouard is 72%
Jade PF 1901 is available with 68% abv (136 proof)
The abv of Roquette 1797 is 75% (150 proof)
Doubs Mystique Carte D’Or is available with 65% abv (130 proof)
The abv in Kubler 53 is 53%
La Fee Parisian 68% abv (136 proof)
La Fee Bohemian is available with 70% abv (140 proof)
One can find 68% abv (136 proof) in La Fee XS Absinthe Francaise
The abv in La Fee XS Absinthe Suisse is 53% (106 proof)
Mari Mayans Collectors 70 contains 70% abv (140 proof)
Pernod Absinthe 68% abv (136 proof)
One can get 60% abv (120 proof) in Pere Kermanns
Sebor 55% abv (110 proof)
La Clandestine Absinthe is available with 53% abv (106 proof)
Lucid Absinthe 62% abv (124 proof)

If we compare that to other alcoholic beverages we can see that Absinthe is very strong:-

Everclear 95% abv (190 proof)
Johnnie Walker Black Label Scotch Whisky 40% alcohol by volume (80 proof)
Table Wine is available with 9-12% alcohol by volume (18-24 proof)
Beer is available with 4 or 5% alcohol by volume (8-10 proof)
Jose Cuervo Gold Tequila is available with 38% abv (76 proof)
Absolut Blue Vodka 40% abv (80 proof)

If you make homemade Absintheusing essences from AbsintheKit.Visit to AbsintheKit.com to know about the Absinthe’s proof.

What is Absinthe proof? One cannot give the answer!