Pubdate: Sun, 09 Sep 2001 Source: State, The (SC) Copyright: 2001 The State Contact: http://www.thestate.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/426 Author: Elizabeth Barchas, The Boston Globe INTOXICATING, 'MESMERIZING' AND ILLEGAL -- FOR NOW -- ABSINTHE LIQUOR HAS FERVENT DEVOTEES It's no surprise that Boston filmmaker and artist Thomas Pascale finds inspiration in Pablo Picasso, Edgar Degas and Vincent Van Gogh. But it's not just their art that awakens his creative muse, it's what they drank -- absinthe, and a lot of it. When Pascale, 42, prepares to begin a new painting, he pulls out his absinthe, the green-colored, anise-flavored liquor that was popular among turn-of-the-century artists and writers. But unlike many of them, who drank absinthe as if it were water, Pascale indulges in moderation. The drink has been illegal in the United States since 1912, but that doesn't stop him from ordering it on the Internet, buying from "underground" vendors, or picking up a bottle or two when he travels to Europe. He mixes the liquor with ice-cold water and imported sugar, creating a milky cloud that swirls inside the glass and is, he says, "mesmerizing." Several sips later, he's ready to paint. "It gives me a beginning point, to get everything going in a creative direction," he says. "Different kinds of perspectives and ideas come up -- a new outlook." Absinthe ("AB-synth") is a bitter liquor distilled with wormwood, which contains the neurotoxin thujone, a close relative of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, which is the active agent in marijuana. Undiluted, Absinthe's alcohol content ranges from 60 to 85 percent. In the 19th century, absinthe gained a reputation for inducing wild hallucinations and delirium; Van Gogh is rumored to have cut off his ear after an absinthe overdose, and the drink was blamed for murders, diseases and general societal ills, eventually leading to an almost worldwide ban. But things are about to change. For Americans, absinthe now beckons -- from the back door. In June, Ontario legalized the liquor, and Quebec will follow suit in September. There has long been a small underground group of absinthe fans in Boston, Pascale says, but the drink is enjoying a modern-day revival there, thanks to increased accessibility and its recent presence in pop culture. Baz Luhrmann's summer movie musical "Moulin Rouge" featured several scenes with absinthe, including a sequence where a green fairy sprinkles magic dust on indulgers. Artists ranging from singer Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails to author and vampire maven Anne Rice have paid homage to it. There's even a Boston band named after the drink. "There's such a history behind absinthe and so much creativity hovering around this liquor," says Michael Durwin, bass player for Absinthe, which formed in 1991. "We looked at our music and thought we were a cutting-edge band, so that name was perfect for us." Band members make it a tradition to take a shot of absinthe before going onstage -- ("It's like naming your band Whiskey and never touching hard liquor. You have to try it," Durwin says) --and it has influenced their song lyrics and their attitude. "Because of all the artists and authors who had done absinthe, it made us think we had something to live up to," Durwin says. "We had the freedom to be creative, to do something spontaneous and unplanned." Durwin has attended absinthe parties in Boston and has even hosted a few. He says that the mystique surrounding absinthe is almost as intoxicating as the liquor itself. "It's the drink," he says, "but the idea of it, too." More Than A Fad Oscar Wilde once said that, with absinthe, "you see the things that you want to see, wonderful curious things." Perhaps that's why absinthe has survived attacks from temperance zealots, doctors, and politicians, as well as bans across the world, to emerge once again as a popular drink. "When I first discovered absinthe, I thought it was a fad and that it would come and go," says Betina Wittels, who has sold absinthe antiques and collectibles from her home in the Southwest for the past five years. "But I don't believe that anymore. I think it's going to be the next Absolut Vodka. It's not just an interest in a drink, it's an interest in a way of life that we've forgotten." Indeed, part of the allure of absinthe is the ritual involved in drinking it. Wittels says that absinthe is meant to be sipped slowly. "To me, it's reminiscent of that era where people took the time to relish the moment," she says. Pascale says it takes several minutes to drip ice water over the sugar when preparing a glass of absinthe, creating a heightened sense of anticipation. "It's really an occasion," he says. It can be a spectacle, too. Some absinthe drinkers dip the spoon filled with sugar into the absinthe to soak it with the liquor, then light it on fire. The flame stretches as the sugar caramelizes. Extensive lore and a colorful history surround the drink, which was at one point hailed as a tonic for creativity and the path to genius by such writers and artists as Ernest Hemingway and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, and at another was blamed for the downfall of society. Pascale remembers the first time he tried the drink, about five years ago. "From what I had read, I was expecting it to hit me over the head, but it's very subtle," he says. "There's a certain clarity that comes with it that's so unlike alcohol, which is a dulling of the senses. After the first bottle, I never went back to liquor." Some Younger Fans Although Pascale expects absinthe drinkers to be older because of the expense -- quality absinthe can cost between $100 and $250 a liter -- and because, he says, "I'm not sure younger people would really be able to appreciate it," the drink also has a following among 20-somethings. Erik Flynn, 21, a student at Boston College, discovered absinthe while studying in Prague. He tried it initially because of the novelty, he says. "Part of the effect of it comes from the actual absinthe, and the other part from the fact that you're drinking absinthe and you have this mentality about it and you get revved up because of it," he says. When Ben Keidan, 22, goes abroad, friends beg him to bring some home with him. "It's a fun novelty drink," says the Boston native and recent graduate of American University. "I think it tastes something like Jager(meister, a strong liquor), but more brutal, like if you added 100 proof to it. It feels like your lungs are on fire." According to a spokesman for the Food and Drug Administration, thujone was declared a banned additive in 1972 because it was considered to be poisonous. If you try to bring it into the United States, absinthe can be confiscated and destroyed. Criminal prosecution could follow, although there has not yet been a court case to test this. The law is unlikely to change, says the spokesman. "There's been no new information presented to this agency about it, so we haven't changed our policy," he says. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake