Absinthe

Question 1

origin

Answer 1

french speaking switzerland

Question 2

what?

Answer 2

-highly alcoholic ( recently legalized)

GNS - base for botanical macerate ( flavoured via 2nd dist with wormwood macerate, which means wormwoof , anise and fennel)

then further flavoured and coloured tthrough addition of more wormwood and other herbs ( roman wormwood, hyssop and lemon balm)

GI protected - switzerland

Question 3

ABV

Answer 3

distillate diluted to potable spirit of 74%

Question 4

More…

Answer 4

Absinthism ( disease for who drank this )

hallucinations, sleeplessness and convulsions

Thujone in wormwood - believed to be responsible , research proves otherwise.

Question 5

Thujone content

Answer 5

no more than 35 mg/kg

Question 6

Wormwood

Answer 6

artemisia absinthum

grows throughout central europe and asia

40-90 % of wormwood oil is made of thujone which contrubutes to the bitter qualities

oil in wormwood comprises of 0.2-1.5% of plants mass ( bitter and astringent taste) - Quality believed to be due to thujone

ANOTHER COMPOUND: Terpene lactone absinthin ( contrubutes to organoleptic characteristic)

LOOSHING?
tyndal effect?

Question 7

process

Answer 7

above-ground portions of the plant collected and harvested

dried

used in production of absinthe

Question 8

Thujone

Answer 8

1. alpha form
2. beta form

( differentiated by the position of methyl group)

beta form more prevalent in wormwood than the alpha isomer

Question 9

Production

Answer 9

2 stages

Question 10

First stage

Answer 10

-maceration of wormwood, anise and fennel with alc for approx 12 hours : this produced a green-brown substance with strong bitter taste

Add water –> Distilled to give light aromatic spirit ( distillation can apparently be omitted as this produces spirit of inferior quality)

Although, the bitterness of macerate is largely removed by distillation. This is because the compounds that provide bitter taste are largely non-volatile and hence do not vapourize and condense during distillation.

first fraction ( 80-60) contains aromatic wormwood comp 
middle fractions are more cinnamon and clove like aorma

Question 11

Second Stage

Answer 11

Addition of roman wormwood, hyssop and lemon balm to colourless distillate

confers green colour and mildly bitter taste to the spirit

resulting green spirit diluted with water to potable spirit of approx 74%