Growing wormwood

[SMOKEU]

I have been thinking about making my own absinthe and I have found these wormwood seeds here

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Home-living/Ou ... 377689.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

Is this the right kind of wormwood for making absinthe?

[blanikdog]

Looks like what I used, Smoke.

Which leads me into a story about Absinthe. Today I was looking for the Campari and couldn't find it anywhere. However I did find a bottle of 'absinthe' that I apparently made in 2002 according to my scrawl on the bottle. I can't remember hiding it so thought I should at least try it.

I can tell you that wormwood is VERY bitter and age helps it in no way. IT IS VILE!! It was so bitter I'm surprised that I ever kept it, but it was a long time ago and I've learnt a lot in here since.

So, if you try making absinthe, don't use too much wormwood.

blanik

[ozone39]

sugar cube helps......When I make a batch I used the Roman Wormwood. Mtnroseherbs.com carries it and it's %100 organically grown.....

[rubber duck]

Those seeds are grand wormwood they are use to bitter/ flavor the absinthe. You will also need roman/ small/ petite wormwood for the coloring phase. Roman wormwood is very hard to find, also hard to grow, and expensive to purchase.

You can't grow roman wormwood from a seed, it is propagated from root stalk so you will need to purchase the whole plant. This is going to be difficult to get in NZ.

Wish I had better news for you. If you find a plat let us all know, there are a few folks on the forum in NZ that would like one.

[SMOKEU]

Those seeds are grand wormwood they are use to bitter/ flavor the absinthe. You will also need roman/ small/ petite wormwood for the coloring phase. Roman wormwood is very hard to find, also hard to grow, and expensive to purchase.

You can't grow roman wormwood from a seed, it is propagated from root stalk so you will need to purchase the whole plant. This is going to be difficult to get in NZ.

Wish I had better news for you. If you find a plat let us all know, there are a few folks on the forum in NZ that would like one.

Do those grand wormwood seeds still give the extra effect that absinthe gives over regular spirits?

[Dnderhead]

I thank you will fiend the same in US as it is considered a noxious weed. but I do believe it can be found (as a weed)if you know what your looking for.
once started, under the right conditions you almost cant stop it.if I'm remembering right it is related to the ragweed?.importing it mite cause a epidemic
you wont want to be responsible for. if it gits into farm crops it can take over, stock will eat it (at last resort) causing spoiled milk etc.

[rubber duck]

Your correct Dunder it is related to the rag weed and tumble weed and the grand wormwood is prolific. The roman wormwood can easily be contained in a planter and, the roman is very difficult to grow.

Wormwood doesn't really give any, "extra effects" the extra effects come from the 150 proof grain alcohol.

[Cartierusm]

First off anything you've ever heard about absinthe is false, I've been drinking it for a better part of 20 years. Most of what most people hear about is was the slur campaign done by the french wine industry in the late 1800s. Anyway, it has no deleterious effect other than super high percentage of alcohol. Anyway that's a history lesson for another time.

The base of absinthe is grand wormwood, Artemisia absinthium, this is added to the base alcohol while in the still and allowed to macerate for 12-48 hours. Other herbs and such are added as well. Then it is distilled slowly, too fast and it becomes horribly bitter. Then after it is distilled it is colored with Roman Wormwood, Artemisia pontica, and other herbs too. The coloring phase adds some essential oils and coloring components, it doesn't add too much in the flavor department.

Making absinthe is quite an art, not that other alcohol isn't but this one is especially hard.

As far as obtaining the herbs, Grand Wormwood is easy to find as it is used in holistic medicinal purposes as a digestive aid and it can be found for very cheap prices, cut and sifted. Roman Wormwood is almost impossible to find already grown. There are some places out there but it will take a lot of research and will cost a lot of money. I wouldn't grow Grand Wormwood as it's cheap, Roman wormwood is not hard to grow, in my opinion, I bought a six pack from http://www.richters.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow about 6 years ago and I DO NOT have a green thumb and it grew fine. It's still out there growing. It didn't seem to spread very much, I actually would have like it if it did.

Do not think you can make an absinthe that's palatable right off the bat, it will take some time and experimentation. Make sure when you're distilling that you taste it when it's coming out, alot at first to make sure you make the right cuts, then later on in the run.

Ozone, that link doesn't work, can you post a link to the actual product as I figure you meant mount rose herbs and I couldn't find the product. Thanks.

[blanikdog]

First off anything you've ever heard about absinthe is false, I've been drinking it for a better part of 20 years. Most of what most people hear about is was the slur campaign done by the french wine industry in the late 1800s. Anyway, it has no deleterious effect other than super high percentage of alcohol. Anyway that's a history lesson for another time. ...

Yup, I agree with this. Don't expect to see coloured lights and paint pictures, or remove an ear, smoke. It just isn't true.

blanik

[rubber duck]

It doesn't surprise me that I failed at growing roman wormwood twice. I'm better at killing things I guess. If Cartierusm says it can be done easily I figure he knows more about it then me.

[Dnderhead]

if you do plant some- check out the growing conditions, from what I understand they like the "dry road bank" type of conditions.

[Cartierusm]

Rubber duck, I hightly doubt that, I do not have a green, thumb, maybe I just got lucky, I just stuck it in the ground added some box vegetable fertilizer and let it go. I do have automatic sprinklers so maybe it was that.

Also from what I understand it's kind of a weed, in the regard shouldn't it flourish without trying?

When I bought the plants, although they are hard to find, they weren't expensive so give it a shot. When I replant I will do so in a conatiner and keep it off the ground as after a few years I start to realize this is going to be consumed, in a way, and I don't want dogs peeing on it.

[blanikdog]

if you do plant some- check out the growing conditions, from what I understand they like the "dry road bank" type of conditions.

Interesting dunder. The stuff grows wild everywhere here in abandoned farm house gardens and our climate is as dry as a lime burners boot. It's bloody tough stuff.

blanik

[glassman]

i'll see shortly if i have a year 3 in my roman wormwood bed. it was a snowy cold winter here in the blue ridge. it spreads fast and seems to like my crappy soil bed i made for it. sent all i harvested to a member on the west coast but never heard from him on how it worked. gman

[Seth]

God Damn!!! Artemisia pontica and Hyssopus officinalis are impossible to find in Brazil...

[rednose]

Here are two links on this topic, good reads:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absinthe" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

http://wormwoodsociety.org/forums/index ... d&pid=5768" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

[rednose]

Two weeks ago arrived my seeds from Australia.

I keep them under a plastic cover while small, the sun burns very hard here.

In some days my licorice seeds should arrive, also seeded Cardomom.

That are my new buddies:

Young Absinthe plants

[Cartierusm]

What strains are you growing?

[rednose]

What I seeded is Artemisia absinthium (absinthium, absinthe wormwood, wormwood, common wormwood, or grand wormwood)

Petite wormwood I have to bring on my next USA trip, it's very difficult to get seeds and folks say most don't spread.

What strains are you growing?

[Cartierusm]

I hope you're going to grow Roman Wormwood, that is the one that is impossible to find already grown. That one is essential to the coloring phase after distillation.

[rednose]

Roman and Petite is the same thang, Artemisia pontica.

That's the one that I have to bring in plants or root sticks, it's some kind of illegal in EC to do so, but....

http://www.oxygenee.com/absintheFAQ1.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

[Cartierusm]

Opps, sorry didn't see your last line on the post above about having to bring it in. I got it from Richters, I think there in Canada. I've been growing it for about 6 years.