Day 977: Van Gogh & Wilde Nothing More Than Raging Drunks

LiveScience: Absinthe’s Mind-Altering Mystery Solved

The culprit seems plain and simple: The century-old absinthe contained about 70 percent alcohol, giving it a 140-proof kick. In comparison, most gins, vodkas and whiskeys are just 80- to 100-proof.

… The modern scientific consensus is that absinthe’s reputation could simply be traced back to alcoholism, or perhaps toxic compounds that leaked in during faulty distillation.

… After uncorking the bottles, they found relatively small concentrations of thujone in that absinthe, about the same as those in modern varieties.  Laboratory tests found no other compound that could explain absinthe’s effects.  “All things considered, nothing besides ethanol was found in the absinthes that was able to explain the syndrome of absinthism.”

Despite this research, the absinthe back on American shelves is thujone-free.  Fret not, New Orleanians, we have Lucid.