page_title: Absinthe
section_title: Modern revival
hierarchical_section_title: Absinthe / History / Modern revival
caption_attribution_description: A group of modern Absinthe. Left vertes, right blanches with a prepared glass of each. Crop from Modern absinthe bottles
context_page_description: Absinthe is historically described as a distilled, highly alcoholic beverage. It is an anise-flavoured spirit derived from botanicals, including the flowers and leaves of Artemisia absinthium, together with green anise, sweet fennel, and other medicinal and culinary herbs.
  Absinthe traditionally has a natural green color but may also be colorless. It is commonly referred to in historical literature as la fée verte. It is sometimes mistakenly referred to as a liqueur, but is not traditionally bottled with added sugar and, therefore, classified as a spirit. Absinthe is traditionally bottled at a high level of alcohol by volume, but it is normally diluted with water before being consumed.
  Absinthe originated in the canton of Neuchâtel in Switzerland in the late 18th century. It rose to great popularity as an alcoholic drink in late 19th- and early 20th-century France, particularly among Parisian artists and writers. The consumption of absinthe was opposed by social conservatives and prohibitionists, partly due to its association with bohemian culture.
context_section_description: British importer BBH Spirits began to import Hill's Absinth from the Czech Republic in the 1990s, as the UK had never formally banned it, and this sparked a modern resurgence in its popularity. It began to reappear during a revival in the 1990s in countries where it was never banned. Forms of absinthe available during that time consisted almost exclusively of Czech, Spanish, and Portuguese brands that were of recent origin, typically consisting of Bohemian-style products. Connoisseurs considered these of inferior quality and not representative of the 19th century spirit. In 2000, La Fée Absinthe became the first commercial absinthe distilled and bottled in France since the 1914 ban, but it is now one of dozens of brands that are produced and sold within France.
  In the Netherlands, the restrictions were challenged by Amsterdam wineseller Menno Boorsma in July 2004, thus confirming the legality of absinthe once again. Similarly, Belgium lifted its long-standing ban on January 1, 2005, citing a conflict with the adopted food and beverage regulations of the Single European Market. In Switzerland, the constitutional ban was repealed in 2000 during an overhaul of the national constitution, although the prohibition was written into ordinary law instead. That law was later repealed and it was made legal on March 1, 2005.
  The drink was never officially banned in Spain, although it began to fall out of favour in the 1940s and almost vanished into obscurity. Catalonia has seen significant resurgence since 2007 when one producer established operations there. Absinthe has never been illegal to import or manufacture in Australia, although importation requires a permit under the Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulation 1956 due to a restriction on importing any product containing "oil of wormwood". In 2000, an amendment made all wormwood species prohibited herbs for food purposes under Food Standard 1.4.4. Prohibited and Restricted Plants and Fungi. However, this amendment was found inconsistent with other parts of the preexisting Food Code, and it was withdrawn in 2002 during the transition between the two codes, thereby continuing to allow absinthe manufacture and importation through the existing permit-based system. These events were erroneously reported by the media as it being reclassified from a prohibited product to a restricted product.
  In 2007, the French brand Lucid became the first genuine absinthe to receive a Certificate of Label Approval (COLA) for import into the United States since 1912, following independent efforts by representatives from Lucid and Kübler to overturn the long-standing US ban. In December 2007, St. George Absinthe Verte produced by St. George Spirits of Alameda, California became the first brand of American-made absinthe produced in the United States since the ban. Since that time, other micro-distilleries have started producing small batches in the US.
  The 21st century has seen new types of absinthe, including various frozen preparations which have become increasingly popular. The French Absinthe Ban of 1915 was repealed in May 2011 following petitions by the Fédération Française des Spiritueux which represents French distillers.
caption: Modern absinthes. Vertes at left; blanches at right. A prepared glass is in front of each.
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