From just looking at a bottle of absinthe, you may not be able to tell if it is actually real. There are various things which could send signals that the bottle of absinthe you are looking at is a replica or fake absinthe though. You should look at numerous things to make sure that you are not getting stooped of your money.
Contents
Look at all of the ingredients on the bottle of absinth. If the ingredients are different than they are with real absinthe, it is a fake bottle of absinthe. Real absinthe will contain some amount of thujone. Fake absinthe will typically have none or very little so that could send a red flag. However, some countries have laws in place which require the thujone content level to be rather low.
Low Quality vs. High Quality
Even if it’s not fake absinthe, it could be cheap absinth that is a waste of money. High quality absinthe will be distilled but low quality absinthe will not be stilled. High quality absinthe will contain all of the ingredients that the original absinthe did. The recipe hasn’t really changed since a few centuries ago.
For a beginner, telling if a bottle of absinthe is real or not may be a little difficult. It may be more about trusting your resource then your eye though. If you are in the United States, buying locally will usually find you buying fake absinthe or really cheap and low quality absinthe. It could vary by country but the best solution in many cases is to buy the absinthe off of the Internet. |