Absinthe Now Legal In France: Where Else Can You Buy It? (PHOTOS)

The green fairy has returned to France.

The French government voted in mid-April to lift the ban on the drink formally, allowing for sales of absinthe under its proper name for the first time in years, according to the BBC. However, though lifting the ban may change the perception of the drink in society, it really hasn't been illegal in the country for some time.

It's simply been sold under a different name.

From the BBC:

Absinthe was made legal in the rest of the European Union in 1988, provided the amount of thujone falls within the agreed limit of 10mg/kg, or 35mg/kg for absinthe bitters.

In France, a decree was passed allowing absinthe to be sold but only if it was not actually called absinthe.

"It was a bizarre situation," says George Rowley, Managing Director of La Fee Absinthe, who - though British - was one of the key people behind the resumption of absinthe production in France.

The bans and regulations around the drink have a lot to do with thujone, a compound found in absinthe that reportedly causes hallucinogenic effects. The idea was often perpetuated by the likes of Oscar Wilde and other artists and writers, though the real effects remain a subject of debate. Some believe it's really the high alcohol content, often 60 to 70 percent by volume according to the BBC, that makes the drink so potent.

Absinthe is largely regulated where it's sold, limiting the thujone content. In the U.S., for example, the drink must contain less that 10 ppm thujone, which is almost unnoticeable, and can hardly be considered absinthe.

Check out the slideshow below for more information on where absinthe is legal or regulated.

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Australia - Regulated

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Maximum 10 mg/kg in alcoholic beverages, and absinthe is available through import only.

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Maximum 10 mg/kg in alcoholic beverages, and absinthe is available through import only.

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Comments

[SBMAC]

09:05 AM on 05/20/2011

Thank you Brian, for as always, patiently citing facts. It's good to see a couple informed folks here! I encourage anyone really wanting to know the facts, to visit wormwoodsociety.org. This group of folks includes some of the most renown absinthe experts in the world.

Bottom line: Modern absinthe, when made correctly, is just as real as the absinthe from the Belle Époque. This includes fine absinthe from France, the USA, Spain, Switzerland, and yes, even a couple absinthes coming out of the Czech republic. The thujone hype is simply that, hype. As Brian has stated, it has been proven that the vintage absinthes were in the same range of thujone as the USA products. It is marketing hype, and you can bet that any absinthe advertised and promoted for its "high thujone content" is crap, not real absinthe at all, and will be painful to drink. It is not a drug, unless you consider alcohol a drug. It won't make you go into fits, cut off your ear, and see fairies.

Self-educate folks! The Wormwood Society, la Fee Verte, the virtual absinthe museum... these are all great places to start. You will learn the truth, see reviews, and your options!

[Chrystal Ji Davey]

01:08 PM on 05/17/2011

It's not legal in Italy..?

[Charles L King]

01:49 AM on 05/17/2011

My father kept a large bottle of rum soaked wormwood in his desk for years, he called it medicine! It looked and sounded so unappetizing (wormwood!) that I never even took a sip. Now I wish I'd tried it then. I'll check for it in B'town tomorrow. I don't think it was ever banned in Barbados. It's supposed to improve clarity of thought and enhance the sexual experience. Didn't know that either! Now I've got to check it out!!

[Contessa Mia]

04:35 PM on 05/15/2011

In 1975 it was available in Japan...

[33artemis88]

04:03 PM on 05/07/2011

I have a bottle of La Fee absinthe from France; bought it @ eAbsinthe; haven't drunk much of it, so I can only say it's a strong alcoholic drink that smells and tastes like licorice. It has wormwood in it, and I see they sell it on the UK Amazon. I guess I'll just have to drink some more of it :)

[mangohombre]

12:27 PM on 05/07/2011

To those that have tried it and said it tasted awfull or you'ld rather drink skunk piss, I have no doubt it was served incorectly. If you drank it straight out of the bottle, then yes. I would rather drink skunk piss too.
Drinking Absinth requiers a "ritual". Absinth absolutely needs to be "cut" with cold fresh water (4:1) and a little sugar to release the botanicals. Also absinth is around 135 proof straight!
There are certain "paraphernalia" that are needed as well... although you can get around it.
Google the absinth ritual and you'll see.

[MagicalPossibilities]

12:51 PM on 05/07/2011

My brother got a bottle once and did the whole ritual. It wasn't bad - not something I'd drink every day, but it was fun.

[Morgantheaxe]

01:56 AM on 05/07/2011

Selling absinthe without thujone is like selling whiskey with no alchohol in it. It's not absinthe. Again something Europe and the rest of the world gets that is better than what you can buy here. It's like our governement WANTS us to live second class lives.

[sus2222]

12:20 AM on 05/07/2011

You can get 5 or 6 brands of Absinthe at LEESLIQUOR in LAs VEgas.

[piperson]

11:01 PM on 05/06/2011

I drank some of that when I was stationed in Japan and found it tasted nasty and it didn't seem to have any type of buzz other than what you would expect from liquor. Whatever absinthe is supposed to do, it isn't worth that God awful taste. I would rather drink skunk p*ss than that stuff.

[Morgantheaxe]

02:01 AM on 05/07/2011

A great deal of the Absinthe on the market is garbage swill made in former Chechoslovakia. Real quality absinthe served properly has a bitter licorice taste to it. It's intoxicating and mildly hallucinogenic. Vincent Van Gogh referred to it as being akin to having pure evil in ones mouth. The proper way to drink it is slightly chilled and drizzled over a sugar cube when poured in to your glass.

[LibertarianJon]

11:13 AM on 05/07/2011

It's not Hallucinogenic.... it IS really high in Alcohol, but definitely not hallucinogenic... that's an old wives tale.

[rich misty]

06:44 PM on 05/06/2011

The effects of thujone are cumulative.  It is broken down by the liver at a much slower rate than the ethyl alcohol it is dissolved in.  You really need the "bitters" with the higher thujone content, and you need to consume it over a period of time to see thujone effects.  Once you get the effects, it takes 2-3 days to detoxify.
 
With that said, I doubt it's very good for you.

[RobinsonBrian]

07:45 PM on 05/06/2011

Citation please? I've been drinking absinthe for more than 15 years, yet have not observed a 'cumulative effect' during that time.

[Morgantheaxe]

02:03 AM on 05/07/2011

What Absinthe are you drinking?

[davesf]

06:30 PM on 05/06/2011

St. George, the only way to fly.

[Lost Rights]

05:10 PM on 05/06/2011

If people want to hallucinate, put a tab of LSD in your beer.

[Lost Rights]

05:08 PM on 05/06/2011

Everclear is legal and avail in the US at 99%. Makes a great and deadly fruit punch. If Absinthe is 60% Alcohol, it could make you so plastered you might just see things.

[filo]

03:27 PM on 05/06/2011

Does absinthe really make the heart grow fonder?

[Charles L King]

01:53 AM on 05/17/2011

or the sex go longer?

[filo]

11:17 AM on 05/17/2011

:-}

[Dead Che]

02:07 PM on 05/06/2011

Also legal in Ukraine. Interesting drink, but still makes you drunk ;-)