This bottle of Absinthe is a highly sought-after relic from bygone times among collectors. After absinthe was banned in France (1914), the Pernod company decided to establish an absinthe distillery in Tarragona, Spain. Because absinthe was never banned in Spain, Pernod was able to produce it in this city, very close to Barcelona, until the late 1960s. The ban in France (and almost everywhere else in the world) was thus elegantly circumvented. The recipes were only slightly modified so that Tarragona absinthe is very similar to the pre-ban absinthes (before 1915).
The bottle we are offering for sale is still sealed and in perfect condition. It dates from the early production years and can be dated to 1950-1960. A clue is the label – it lists the distiller J.M. Banus, who was responsible for production between 1930 and 1960. Well-preserved bottles like this one are highly sought after by collectors. This means that the investment is sure to increase in value, as genuine absinthe is a very rare commodity. Only a few people in the world can claim to own such a collector's item.
The story of Pernod Fils Absinthe
Pernod Fils was the most popular absinthe brand in the 19th century until the Green Fairy was banned in France in 1915. In the late 19th century, the name Pernod Fils became synonymous with absinthe. The brand represented the standard of quality by which all other brands were measured. The origins of this very special brand can be traced back to the 1790s. At that time, Dr. Pierre Ordinaire in Neuchâtel, Switzerland, created a distilled patent medicine that would represent the first origins of the Green Fairy.
The recipe then came into the hands of Henri Louis Pernod through a business deal, and in 1797, together with Daniel Henri Dubied, he opened the first absinthe distillery in Couvet, Switzerland. They then began to commercialize Dr. Ordinaire's medicine into a world-famous spirit. Later, in 1805, Pernod built a larger distillery in Pontarlier, France. This laid the foundation for the sleepy town of Pontarlier to eventually become home to twenty-eight commercial absinthe distilleries and the global center of absinthe production.
