Modern ouzo distillation largely took off in the beginning of the 19th century following Greek independence. The first ouzo distillery was founded in Tyrnavos in 1856 by Nikolaos Katsaros, giving birth to the famous ouzo Tyrnavou. When absinthe fell into disfavour in the early 20th century, ouzo was one of the products whose popularity rose to fill the gap; it was once called "a substitute for absinthe without the wormwood". In 1932, ouzo producers developed a method of distillation using copper stills that is now the standard method of production. One of the largest producers of ouzo today is "Varvayanis" (Βαρβαγιάννης), located in the town of Plomari in the southeast portion of the island of Lesbos, while in the same town "Pitsiladi" (Πιτσιλαδή), a variety of high-quality ouzo, is also distilled.