I am legal drinking age and I gotta say eather cherry whiskey and coke or a Malibu Paralyzer

Originally Posted by Knerd

Have you had the chance to drink real absinthe? Because I've got to tell you - If it's bought from anywhere other than the Czech Republic or Spain, it's not real. Even an expert would have a hell of a time smuggling it over.

since 2007 absinthe has been legal in the US, wormwood and all. just this year i've been to two promotional parties for lucid (the first american brand of absinthe) and pernod (centuries-old parisian brand that picasso drank!).

Originally Posted by ms wolcott

since 2007 absinthe has been legal in the US, wormwood and all. just this year i've been to two promotional parties for lucid (the first american brand of absinthe) and pernod (centuries-old parisian brand that picasso drank!).

Well, not really.

Traditional absinthe, the real Green Fairy stuff, is made with a chemical called Thujone that comes from wormwood. Thujone is 100% banned by the FDA. The only way you can legally sell "absinthe" in the US is if you filter the hell out of it and remove all possible traces of this chemical. If you see a product that claims to include wormwood, then it's probably Absente, which is a different drink altogether. That stuff is made with southernwood, or "Southern Wormwood".

The legal drinking age in New Zealand is 18, I'm turning 19 this year so i'm legal.

I usually drink Red wine, if I'm just having a quiet night at home (Which I always do). But If I wanted to drink vodka, I would have Midori. I really hate the taste of White wine, and beer.

I really like Mike's Hard Lemonade because of it's fruity taste.
It gave me a horrible headache though, but maybe it was because that was the only time that I drank a more than 1 drink.

Originally Posted by Knerd

Well, not really.

Traditional absinthe, the real Green Fairy stuff, is made with a chemical called Thujone that comes from wormwood. Thujone is 100% banned by the FDA. The only way you can legally sell "absinthe" in the US is if you filter the hell out of it and remove all possible traces of this chemical. If you see a product that claims to include wormwood, then it's probably Absente, which is a different drink altogether. That stuff is made with southernwood, or "Southern Wormwood".

right. and ABSINTHE (not absente) is NOW LEGAL. the new york times, which i think we can all agree is a reputable source:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/13/di...ws/13wine.html

to quote:

Since absinthe was legalized in the United States in 2007, it has gone from forbidden fruit to virulent weed. Once smuggled from Eastern Europe or procured from back-alley producers, absinthe is now just another bottle on the bar. Yet mystique continues as marketing.

To give absinthe its moment in the harsh light of day, the tasting panel sampled 20 bottles. Florence Fabricant and I were joined by Audrey Saunders, an owner of the Pegu Club on West Houston Street, and Pete Wells, editor of the Dining section, who writes about drinks.

So what makes absinthe absinthe? Essentially it is a neutral spirit infused with myriad herbs and botanicals, centering around anise, fennel and a specific type of wormwood, Artemisia absinthium, from which absinthe takes its name. This wormwood contains small amounts of thujone, a compound once thought to affect the mind. It’s understood now that hallucinations and other health issues attributed to overindulging in absinthe were more a result of alcohol poisoning due to the high alcohol content, typically 50 to 70 percent.

I don't think I'd ever try absinthe as it would probably burn like crazy and to me would probably taste disgusting. Hmm I've been becoming a fan of beer, but in particular MGD, also a fan of Guinness yum yum.

I'm not a big drinker, but I do like to try drinks. I like fruity tasty drinks in which I can hardly taste the alcohol. Haha. I don't like beer, I don't even like the smell. I would love to enjoy wine, but currently I don't have the taste for it.

For absinthe, since it's close in this topic, I like the Mint Muse.

Originally Posted by ms wolcott

right. and ABSINTHE (not absente) is NOW LEGAL. the new york times, which i think we can all agree is a reputable source:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/13/di...ws/13wine.html

to quote:

Yes, and none of the drinks listed in that article contain thujone (or only contain trace amounts allowed by the FDA). Those are all Western European/French style drinks. They are not made the same way that traditional absinthe is: They contain less (or no) wormwood, they do not contain thujone, and all products are under 70% alcohol. The authors even drink it differently, by dripping water instead of melting sugar.

So yes - In the United States, it is legal to buy and sell a product called Absinthe that is made in the French style. However, this is not ye Absinth of 'Ole. The original absinthe is made in Bohemia style and is only legally produced in the Czech Republic and Spain.

If you like the product, don't let me talk you out of it. The origin doesn't matter as long as you enjoy what you're drinking. :yes:
I only originally asked you about this because I've met so few people who have tried "real" absinthe. Because once you taste that, the difference between the two drinks is very apparent.

Sorry for the late replies on here! =O

Originally Posted by Kole_Locke

@Rylynne ~ I think a lot of people have drank underage. I believe that seventy-five percent of people have had at least one drink under age. I did when I was in England, Italy, and other parts of Europe. My father did mind it since I was with him when I did, it never has really been that big of a deal to me really. Like I said about Vodka, has to be good quality unless I use just a little with another kind of alcohol or just really mix it down. Beer, I have to have high quality just like vodka. I like Boddington and Bass. Sometimes I like Newcastle as well.

I must admit that it's true. I can't say about other countries, but over here, a good number of teenagers living in the city will have at least experienced drinking once. Not to say that there aren't teenagers who abstain from alcohol till they're legal or anything, but underage drinking is not uncommon here. But, those living in the provinces (aka not the main urban cities) are very much more traditional in their way of living, and therefore don't get exposed to much alcohol. In my experience, people who come to the city from the provinces are a lot more innocent. ^^;;

Also, my dad is not the conventional dad. ^^;; He used to own a bar when my brother and I were still kids (like, less than 10 years old xDD). So, if you wanna be really technical, I wouldn't be surprised if I've sipped some alcoholic beverage by accident back then. Can't recall. xDD;;

And yeah, good quality Vodka is always the best~ :3 <3<3 I must agree on that. :'D

Originally Posted by Bella_Cullen

I didn't mean 'fit in' the way it sounded but I couldn't find another phrase. Like she was curious and wanted to be with her friends and that what they were doing.

Ohh, I see. =O Sorry for misunderstanding then. ^^;; If it's more about the curiosity, then that's natural, isn't it? Deals a little bit with peer pressure, but it's common amongst any group of people. XP

Originally Posted by Syraannabelle

I'm underage, but my family spent a summer vacation in Alberta where I was legal. Also I drink at home with my mom and sister... and when I go over to friends places ^.^

I love vodka coolers. Smirnoff and me are tight.
hmm... I don't have fancy drink names, but I love anything with Whiskey or Rum in it.
But I do know I like Daiquiris, and Vodka Sunrises.

But try and give me wine or beer, and I'm afraid my dear, I'm going to walk away. Nasty stuff.

I used to love wine colors and Smirnoffs myself. I kind of graduated from those a long time ago. I can see how they are still popular for most people. I like heavier drinks I guess or just plain margaritas. I love fine wines too and good ales, dark ales as well. I love Canadian law!! Legal at eighteen! So wonderful!! :)

@Pumpkins ~ Where do you live at? I like all the drinks you just listed by the way. LOL!!

@AkihitoKage ~ England is wonderful, I can't wait to move over and be able to hang out at pubs again. Sex on the Beach is pure awesomeness to me. You like Jack and Coke? Jack Daniels is a simple whiskey from Tennessee. Oh well, can't say that's my favorite.

@Knerd ~ I can respect someone who abstains from drinking, but while you were in Poland you said you had a beer called Okocim? With raspberry syrup? I'm really curious as to how that would taste. I remember at the bar I work at we had a beer "American Microbrew" called Purple Haze. Is it similar to that? How was Poland by the way and how long did you stay? Red wines are always good ;)

@Cherish ~ I like my tonic and Gin now! Now that other drink with rum you mentioned, how exactly is that made? Now the white wine you mentioned in Paris called Monbazillac, I wonder if we can get that here in the States? The Heather Scottish ale you mentioned sounds really good, I would love to try that.

Originally Posted by Knerd

Yes, and none of the drinks listed in that article contain thujone (or only contain trace amounts allowed by the FDA). Those are all Western European/French style drinks. They are not made the same way that traditional absinthe is: They contain less (or no) wormwood, they do not contain thujone, and all products are under 70% alcohol. The authors even drink it differently, by dripping water instead of melting sugar.

So yes - In the United States, it is legal to buy and sell a product called Absinthe that is made in the French style. However, this is not ye Absinth of 'Ole. The original absinthe is made in Bohemia style and is only legally produced in the Czech Republic and Spain.

If you like the product, don't let me talk you out of it. The origin doesn't matter as long as you enjoy what you're drinking. :yes:
I only originally asked you about this because I've met so few people who have tried "real" absinthe. Because once you taste that, the difference between the two drinks is very apparent.

seriously, did you read the article? it explicitly stated that the drinks contained thujone, had alcohol over 60%,, and yes... some of them were even from spain! i know you are one of the few people that want to keep the mystique of absinthe alive, but it is LEGAL.

haha there's also quite a few people who think the moonshine battery acid crap that was illegally imported during the prohibition was the "real" deal. thank god THOSE days are over. i wouldn't even trust BEER that was made in a bathtub.

Originally Posted by Isato

I don't really have a favorite alcoholic beverage quite yet. I am quite partial to Jager. OH, and Tequila, lol

d:

I think a lot of people like Jager Bombs for sure! Tequilla is popular with many people, I like either margaritas or tequilla sunrises.

@Bite ~ I think sweeter wines are fine but too sweet and they just taste like cough syrup, at least to me they do anyways.

@ms wolcott ~ It sounds like you have some pretty interesting tastes going on there for sure. Absinthe also was in the movie Total Eclipse with Leonardo Di Caprio who played a French poet named Arthur Rimbaud who wrote with Paul Verlaine (who played Professor Lupin in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.) They were actually bisexual lovers in the movie and they got their inspiration by drinking that very drink but only they called it Poet's Third Eye which made them hallucinate.

@Draciolus ~ There is definitely an appropriate time for each kind of alcohol. Beer can be drank anytime, wine can too, but it usually is reserved for more formal meetings, but not necessarily. Liquor is just awesome.

@Portia ~ I will have to give that Blue Lagoon a try. It sounds like a delicious and tasty drink!!

@Kaze-bear ~ Japanese Beers or liquors? What in particular is powerful? I drank some Japanese Beers before and they weren't any more powerful than it's European counterparts.

@Demon_of_the_Sand ~ Cherry Whiskey?! Malibu Parilyzer?! I didn't know they made cherry whiskey! Tell me how you make Malibu Parilzer?

Originally Posted by Kole_Locke

@Knerd ~ I can respect someone who abstains from drinking, but while you were in Poland you said you had a beer called Okocim? With raspberry syrup? I'm really curious as to how that would taste. I remember at the bar I work at we had a beer "American Microbrew" called Purple Haze. Is it similar to that? How was Poland by the way and how long did you stay? Red wines are always good ;)

I studied in Wroclaw, Poland for about 5 weeks this past summer. That wasn't enough to time to fully get to know the culture, but it was enough to get a taste.

Okocim z sok is like a sweeter beer. The syrup gives it a nice fruity taste which mixes really well with the darker beer. It really isn't a big difference, but it makes beer a little girlier. :lol:

Originally Posted by ms wolcott

seriously, did you read the article? it explicitly stated that the drinks contained thujone, had alcohol over 60%,, and yes... some of them were even from spain! i know you are one of the few people that want to keep the mystique of absinthe alive, but it is LEGAL.

haha there's also quite a few people who think the moonshine battery acid crap that was illegally imported during the prohibition was the "real" deal. thank god THOSE days are over. i wouldn't even trust BEER that was made in a bathtub.

Yes, I read the article. But you have to understand that it barely contains any legal information. It's basically a bunch of foodies saying "Yay, look what we can drink!" But it doesn't touch upon FDA regulations and import legalities. Yes it states that the drinks contain trace amounts of thujone. But these tiny measurements are only permissible by the FDA in amounts that don't influence your body. It barely influences the effects of the drink and still has to go through processes in order to have it removed. Yes, they have alcoholic contents over 60%, but you'll notice that I said that they're all under 70%. :yes: And just because it was shipped out of Spain does not (necessarily) mean that it was made in the original Bohemia style. It just means that Spain wants to export some goods to the US.

All in all, we're really discussing two different drinks. French style is what is currently legal in the US. This was what came about when France originally banned absinthe. Since brewers couldn't make the original drink, they edited it until it took on a different form. But for the benefit of the masses, it was still called absinthe.

Bohemia style absinthe is much closer to the original form and is still illegal. The brewers who didn't want to adjust their methods moved to eastern Europe and continued with their practices. Since absinthe has always been legal in the Czech Republic and Spain, their absinthe practices have been continuous throughout history, never changing in order to suit the government.

Originally Posted by Knerd

I studied in Wroclaw, Poland for about 5 weeks this past summer. That wasn't enough to time to fully get to know the culture, but it was enough to get a taste.

Okocim z sok is like a sweeter beer. The syrup gives it a nice fruity taste which mixes really well with the darker beer. It really isn't a big difference, but it makes beer a little girlier. :lol:



Yes, I read the article. But you have to understand that it barely contains any legal information. It's basically a bunch of foodies saying "Yay, look what we can drink!" But it doesn't touch upon FDA regulations and import legalities. Yes it states that the drinks contain trace amounts of thujone. But these tiny measurements are only permissible by the FDA in amounts that don't influence your body. It barely influences the effects of the drink and still has to go through processes in order to have it removed. Yes, they have alcoholic contents over 60%, but you'll notice that I said that they're all under 70%. :yes: And just because it was shipped out of Spain does not (necessarily) mean that it was made in the original Bohemia style. It just means that Spain wants to export some goods to the US.

All in all, we're really discussing two different drinks. French style is what is currently legal in the US. This was what came about when France originally banned absinthe. Since brewers couldn't make the original drink, they edited it until it took on a different form. But for the benefit of the masses, it was still called absinthe.

Bohemia style absinthe is much closer to the original form and is still illegal. The brewers who didn't want to adjust their methods moved to eastern Europe and continued with their practices. Since absinthe has always been legal in the Czech Republic and Spain, their absinthe practices have been continuous throughout history, never changing in order to suit the government.

ok another source, The Wormwood Society, which is a consumer advocacy group devoted to absinthe has this to say about it:

Is Absinthe legal in the United States?

[...] Prior to May 2007 it was not widely known that the tolerance for official method of thujone analysis—10ppm—is such that it effectively legalizes many European absinthes. This was a major breakthrough. It also means that a number of pre-ban era absinthes would be legal in the US by modern standards, including the definitive premium absinthe brand, Pernod Fils.

Most of the laws that impact absinthe in the US are out-dated, convoluted, un-evenly enforced and misunderstood, even by those charged with enforcing them.

Due to recent changes in the understanding of these regulatory issues, genuine absinthe is once again reappearing legally in the US market

as for the horrible horrible moonshine of the czech republic (puke!):

What's Wrong With “Czech-Style” Absinth?

We’ve all seen it: bright turquoise, neon-green, and brilliant red, even black. Whether it’s called Czech Absinth, “Bohemian” style or “modern” absinthe, most of it, contrary to marketing, bears no resemblance to absinthe. And it’s not all Czech: some come from Germany, Spain, Bulgaria and Austria as well.

Although these countries do produce a few brands of quality absinthe, the rest are produced and marketed by less-than-ethical businesses and are little more than aromatized, artificially-colored vodkas.

Since preventing consumer deception is one of the main puposes of the Wormwood Society, we expect this situation will change as more people become educated about absinthe and this type of deception is more fully exposed.

The Wormwood Society Absinthe Association

I wouldn't drink in my whole years. But that is very nice making a thread for grown ups.

@ms wolcott
Ah, you just cut out the parts of the page you didn't like, didn't you? The first part of your quote looks like this:

Originally Posted by Wormwood Society

Is Absinthe legal in the United States?

Yes, conditionally.

While there is no law that prohibits absinthe by name, any drink that contains in excess of 10ppm of thujone is prohibited from being imported into, or produced for sale and consumption in, the United States. This is the same as the European Union limit for products labeal as absinthe.

NOTE: No regulations have changed. Prior to May 2007 it was not widely known that the tolerance for official method of thujone analysis—10ppm—is such that it effectively legalizes many European absinthes. This was a major breakthrough. It also means that a number of pre-ban era absinthes would be legal in the US by modern standards, including the definitive premium absinthe brand, Pernod Fils.

This means that the US policies concerning absinthe have never been directly changed. Absinthe as it was considered in 1920 is still banned. However, companies have worked around this by creating a new definition of absinthe and marketing drinks under that name.

And it continues on:

Originally Posted by Wormwood Society

In the United States:

• Any alcoholic beverage or finished food item offered for sale must be “thujone-free,” which for regulatory purposes means below 10 parts per million.

• This does not apply to dietary supplements and whole herbs.

• Some foods apparently may contain higher levels of thujone so long as it's not from Artemisia species. Common sage and tarragon contain up to ten times the amount of thujone that A. absinthium does, but do not appear to be on the FDA's list of restricted additives and in fact appear on the GRAS list (Generally Recognized As Safe).

Importation:

Enforcing the FDA and TTB regulations is a matter for the US Customs Dept. when it comes to bringing absinthe into the country. Non-compliant, improperly imported European absinthe for individual consumption is simply “prohibited merchandise”, not smuggled drugs. If absinthe is discovered in luggage being brought into the US it will sometimes be confiscated and “destroyed”. It's in the same category with European candy, which might use non-FDA-approved colorings.

You can also find more information on this here:
Department of Homeland Security
FDA Poisonous Plant Database
aboutabsenthe.info

And just for fun, a Blog Entry by a celebrated absinthe enthusiast

And your second quote is correct - These two types of absinthe bear little resemblance to each other. :yes:

Originally Posted by Knerd

@ms wolcott




This means that the US policies concerning absinthe have never been directly changed. Absinthe as it was considered in 1920 is still banned. However, companies have worked around this by creating a new definition of absinthe and marketing drinks under that name.



:

you read it wrong. here is the relevent sentence again:

"It also means that a number of pre-ban era absinthes would be legal in the US by modern standards, including the definitive premium absinthe brand, Pernod Fils."

real absinthe has the US legal amount of wormwood. maybe the moonshine you're used to is more wormwood than absinthe, which WOULD be illegal here. Gorging on a kilo of wormwood is not FDA-approved. pre-prohibition era, authentic stuff is what is being sold today on US shelves. I realize we are debating about two separate things. you enjoy your czech moonshine, and i'll enjoy the authentic stuff.

ms wolcott, please remember that you must put anything you didn't write in quotes. I went ahead and added quote tags to the part that was not written by you.

Originally Posted by Knerd

Well, not really.

Traditional absinthe, the real Green Fairy stuff, is made with a chemical called Thujone that comes from wormwood. Thujone is 100% banned by the FDA. The only way you can legally sell "absinthe" in the US is if you filter the hell out of it and remove all possible traces of this chemical. If you see a product that claims to include wormwood, then it's probably Absente, which is a different drink altogether. That stuff is made with southernwood, or "Southern Wormwood".

Why did they ban that chemical? I think I know, but now I'm curious.

@Beetle ~ New Zealand, I don't know much about the alcohol over there but is Midori a internation vodka or is it something that is made over there? Red wines are good for sure!

@ArsenicAttitude ~ Cool name by the way, I used to drink Mike's hard lemonade until for the same reason you said, I had a dreadful hangover after drinking about four of them in two hours. One may be ok if that is all you drink.

@DJ D4RT ~ I do like Guineass, but I also like it as a black and tan.

@IkuAki ~ Wines are more for dinner or casual meetings really, but you can drink them anytime you like. Mint Muse? How is that made?

@Rylynne ~ what you say happens a whole lot more than most would care to admit.

@Knerd ~ How did you like Poland by the way? Did you learn any Polish? Is it worth going to visit? The beer you mentioned now really does sound like Purple Haze which has a splash of raspberry in it.

@lightkanna ~ I respect your choice not to drink, but a lot of people do drink so I thought it would be fun to talk about some stuff about drinking and some of the adventures of drinking.

Beer or Screwdrivers.

I never liked beer until very very recently, but it's always around as opposed to vodka or whiskey. -__-

Beer. It's cheap and I'm almost broke.

I started drinking beer when I went to the bar with my friends and the bar had a 50cent draft night. How can you resist that??

aqua and juice. ^-^

Originally Posted by Zephi

Beer. It's cheap and I'm almost broke.

I started drinking beer when I went to the bar with my friends and the bar had a 50cent draft night. How can you resist that??

50 Cent draft night? Thats crazy, the cheapest I've seen so far here is $1.50 draft night but still 50 cents is crazy cheap for draft, I am tad jealous xD

Vodka!!!! anything with vodka! Root Beer Floats are really good too though...