Absinthe plant was brought to Switzerland by the Romans

As a plant, absinthe is not native to the Jura Arc. Keystone-SDA

Swiss absinthe, otherwise known as Green Fairy, is distinctive by its production method. But the wormwood plant from which it is made is not native to Switzerland, and probably arrived with the Romans.

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These are the findings of a study into the origins of absinthe’s key ingredient conducted by the Botanical Garden of Neuchâtel and Geneva’s Botanical Garden, among others.

“Uncultivated wormwood populations do not naturally thrive on a large scale in the Jura Arc,” Blaise Mulhauser, director of the Neuchâtel Botanical Garden, told Keystone-ATS on Thursday, confirming an Arcinfo article. The latter has conducted a study between 2020 and 2022 on the subject with the Haute Ecole de viticulture et oenologie de Changins.

“This study highlights a history that we haven’t yet fully understood”, added Blaise Mulhauser. Absinthe, as a plant, is well established in Switzerland, particularly in the Valais where it is perfectly acclimatised, but its origin seems to be Mediterranean.

A “deserved” PGI

The plant has been known since antiquity for its medicinal virtues. The Romans already knew of an absinthe wine, with green anise, fennel and grand wormwood, among the main ingredients of today’s Green Fairy.

For Blaise Mulhauser, a PGI (Protected Geographical Indication that links a product with a certain region) is nevertheless possible. “If the recipe for Mother Henriod’s elixir probably comes from elsewhere, the fact that distillation know-how was developed in Couvet at the very end of the 18th century places the cradle of a type of absinthe drink in the Val-de-Travers”.

“Other absinthe distillation recipes exist throughout Europe, but the most successful, following its industrialisation, is the so-called Swiss absinthe of the 19th century. The PGI is amply deserved thanks to the know-how of the Val-de-Travers distillers, practised for over two centuries without interruption.

This clearly distinguishes Val-de-Travers know-how from absinthes of other regions”, he added.

Neuchâtel typicity

As part of other ongoing studies the researchers are going to see whether the absinthe plant takes on a Neuchâtel specificity when grown in the region. Some 20 plants have been collected elsewhere in Switzerland and planted at the Neuchâtel Botanical Garden.

The researchers will analyse how these different strains of wormwood will grow and what metabolites they will develop. Blaise Mulhauser added: “If we can prove typicity, it will be very beneficial for absinthe producers.”

Translated from French by DeepL/mga

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