Absinthe is a very well known European beverage. We’re talking a distilled, highly alcoholic beverage that has a slight sting to it. 45% to 82% alcohol is what I hear.The drink is derived from herbs including the flowers and leaves of the Artemisia absinthium. It is often called the Green Fairy for its bright green color though it can be colorless as well. A drink that is of bright green color already has the look of danger to it. Who doesn’t like danger though? It’s fun to play with danger.
Another reason for the name Green Fairy is because it has long been believed to be a hallucinogenic. Thus why a lot of artists and writers seem to enjoy the beverage quite a bit. It acts as a muse to those types of minds. It has been known that Oscar Wilde described the feeling as having tulips rubbing all over his legs after a night of indulging. Other famous drinkers have been Toulouse Lautrec, Vincent van Gogh, Pablo Picasso, and Ernest Hemingway. To my disappointment absinthe as a hallucinogenic has since been disproven. The supposed active chemical in absinthe is a GABA antagonist. In large doses it has been known to cause muscle spasms within the body but no clear evidence to hallucinations. A possible secondary effect may be caused by the fact that some of the herbal compounds in the drink can act as a stimulant while others may act as a sedative. Still not evidence to hallucinations.
Overall, that means you will not see a Green Fairy when drinking this European liquor. It means you may just get really drunk and have a weird vibe throughout your body. But I guess there’s only one way to know for sure what the effects may be. That’s to drink some Absinthe.
