Absinthe: The World’s Most Dangerous Drink?

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To painters and poets in late-1800s France, absinthe was "the green muse" or the "green fairy," an almost magical potion that promised vivid dreams, wild ideas, and artistic inspiration with every sip. By the 1910s, this once incredibly popular herbal liquor was banned—not only in France, but in countries around the world. Condemned as the cause of both individual ruin and social decline, absinthe consumption was said to lead to seizures, memory gaps, hallucinations, and even murderous rage. So what's the deal: is absinthe just a drink, or is it actually deadly? This episode, we've got the story behind the myths, from witchy distillers to women on bicycles, and military rations to pre-ban bottles. Join us for the trip!

Left, a modern French woman enjoys a glass of absinthe during l'heure verte, the "green hour"; right, a poet gives in to the "green muse" in Albert Maignan's 1895 painting. (Left image, Personal Collection Nina S. Studer; right image, Albert Maignan/Musée de Picardie)

Episode Notes

Nina Studer

Nina Studer studies the history of drinking, colonialism, North Africa, and women's rights, and is the author of The Hour of Absinthe: the Cultural History of France's Most Notorious Drink. She is an associate researcher at the Institut Éthique Histoire Humanités at the University of Geneva.

Left, an antique absinthe fountain at a museum in France; right, absinthe before and after the addition of water, which dilutes its intensity and creates the cloudy white "louche." (Left photo by Rama/Wikimedia Commons; right photo by Glacier Distilling Co.)

Evan Rail

Journalist Evan Rail is the author of The Absinthe Forger: A True Story of Deception, Betrayal, and the World’s Most Dangerous Spirit.

Transcript

Click here for a transcript of the show. Please note that the transcript is provided as a courtesy and may contain errors.