There are various ingredients which make up the absinthe drink. Some of them are more potent and important than others. Some absinthe may use a different recipe and there is obviously no recipe which will ever compare to the original Pernod Fils absinthe recipe. Pre-ban absinthe will always be the tastiest absinthe ever made. Let’s take a look at what’s in absinthe though.
Probably the most important and potent ingredient in absinthe is wormwood. The main ingredient in wormwood is thujone which makes it so potent. The negative effect which drinking absinthe had (which was believed to make people crazy) was thought to be caused by thujone. While thujone is naturally a part of various plants and flowers, there is a much larger amount of it in wormwood. Since wormwood is the main ingredient of absinthe, there is a lot of thujone in absinthe.
Thujone holds a lot of common characteristics with THC (tetrahydracannaboid – the potent ingredient in marijuana and hashish) so people believe that thujone works the same as THC with your brain. Therefore, it is believed that absinth can mess with your head because of the thujone and alcohol contents.
Recent studies have shown that thujone is not really that dangerous. It causes GABA-A receptors located in your brain to get blocked. This will cause your brain cells to fire and when the receptors get blocked your brain is pretty much cleared. This is why so many people say that absinthe makes them feel clear headed when they get a buzz on. However, the high alcohol level is probably to blame for the majority of the buzz.
Now, regulations have made in various countries that thujone is limited in absinthe to keep people safe. There is still enough thujone in absinthe now to be potent but not as much as there once was for most drinks. |
