28 Oct 2005
The Mystery of the Green Menace

A fascinating bit on the history of a misunderstood drink. And a curiosity for shepherds, as well. Folklore has it that wormwood (the main ingredient of absinthe) got it's name by being a natural wormer for our ovine friends. And we have a small patch of the woody herb along the back fence - the sheep nibble at it but nobody else touchs it. And while we end up having to worm the rest of the livestock, the sheep have stayed intestinal parasite free while grazing here... so maybe the old wives knew something after all.

It's been celebrated as a muse and banned as a poison. Now an obsessed microbiologist has cracked the code for absinthe -- and distilled his own. By Brian Ashcraft of Wired magazine.

(link) [Wired News]

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