Полин гіркий

Artemisia absinthium, otherwise known as common wormwood, is a species of Artemisia native to North Africa and temperate regions of Eurasia. It is a herbaceous perennial plant with fibrous roots. The stems are silvery-green with a strong odor, and the leaves bear minute oil-producing glands. It is grown as an ornamental plant.

Chemistry

The herb contains bitter substances from the group of sesquiterpene lactones; absinthin, at 0.20 to 0.28%, is the main component of these bitter substances. Essential oils make up 0.2 to 0.8% of the herb and contain (-)-thujone, (+)-isothujone, thujyl alcohol and its esters, chamazulene and other mono- and sesquiterpenes. A chemotype has been discovered that does not produce β-thujone but does contain terpenoids not seen elsewhere. An oil of A. absinthium from wild plants in Iran had β-pinene (23.8%) and β-thujone (18.6%) as its main components.

Thujone is a ketone and a monoterpene that occurs predominantly in two diastereomeric forms, (-)-α-thujone and (+)-β-thujone. (-)-α-Thujone is a GABA A receptor antagonist that can cause convulsions when administered in large amounts to animals and humans. Chamazulene is an aromatic chemical compound with the molecular formula C₁₄H₁₆, found in a variety of plants including chamomile and wormwood. It is a blue-violet derivative of azulene.

History

The wormwood genus bears the name of the Greek goddess of childbirth, Artemis. The specific name derives from apsínthion, the Greek term for the plant. The word wormwood itself is an alteration of Old English wermod, which is of obscure origin. The German cognate Wermut is the source of the term vermouth, used in French and English to describe a kind of wine traditionally flavoured with wormwood.

The dark green oil produced by the plant was used to kill intestinal worms. In the Book of Revelation, a star named Wormwood falls to earth and turns a third of its waters bitter.

Valentin Magnan, who studied alcoholism, found that pure wormwood oil given to animals caused seizures independent from the effects of alcohol. By 1915, absinthe had been banned in the United States and much of Europe. It has not been demonstrated to be any more dangerous than ordinary spirits. Absinthe's revival began in the 1990s, following the adoption of modern European Union food and beverage laws that removed long-standing barriers to its production and sale.

Use in drinks

Absinthe is an anise-flavoured spirit derived from several plants, including the flowers and leaves of Artemisia absinthium, together with green anise, sweet fennel and other medicinal and culinary herbs. The plant is also used as an ingredient in some other alcoholic beverages. In the European Union, the maximum level of thujone is 35 mg/kg in alcoholic beverages prepared with Artemisia species.

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