B.C.
The Celts are dominating the region on the territory of Slovenia. Did you know that absinthe is used as a ritual celtic drink?



1769
In a newspaper ad Henriod sisters from Neuchatel, Switzerland, advertised their remedy "Bon Extrait d'Absinthe".



1792
This recipe was later upgraded by Dr. Pierre Ordinaire – one of the first to promote the virtues of the strong wormwood drink as a cure for all diseases. Others start to distil it also and the success story of “La Fée Verte” (the "Green Fairy") was born.



1797
Henri-Louis Pernod opens his first absinthe distillery in Switzerland.



1805
Henri-Louis Pernod opens larger absinthe distillery in Pontarlier, France.



1809
Absinthe was introduced to Slovenian people. The Illyrian Provinces (French: Provinces illyriennes) were formed on the territories lying north and east of the Adriatic Sea. The Illyrian Provinces were technically a part of France, the capital of which was established in the city of Ljubljana - capital of modern Slovenia. At that time French regime played a positive role in a rise of national self-confidence and some positive reform measures were undertaken by the French government. Slovenia and France experienced rich cultural and social exchange, at that time the first Slovenian absinthe was distilled. See the map of Europe and French Empire in 1811.



1840
During the Algier War French government provided soldiers with regular rations of the absinthe as a preventative against malaria and other diseases - absinthe distilleries started to spread all over France like mushrooms.



1859
Manet paints The Absinthe Drinker and meets Baudelaire.














1871
Verlaine and Rimbaud form inseparable relationship.



1876
Degas paints L'Absinthe.













1888
After an evening drinking Absinthe and an argument with his artist friend Gauguin, Vincent Van Gogh cut off a part of his left ear.







1870
The vineyards in France were devastated by a Phylloxera bug - the start of thirty years of very expensive wine which led to booming sales of absinthe.



1878
8 million liters of Absinthe imported in the United States.



1891
Rimbaud dies in France.



1887
Van Gogh paints 'Still Life with Absinthe'.













1890
From Montmartre, the Parisian red-light district, hedonism spreads across all France and absinthe becomes an emblem of Belle Epoque.









1895
Maignan paints "The Green Muse".
















1901
Picasso paints The Absinthe Drinker.











1908
Absinthe officially banned in Switzerland.



1910
Sales of absinthe in France reaches 36 000 000 liters annually.



1911
Picasso creates Glass of Absinthe.



1912
Absinthe banned in the United States, 220 000 000 litres of absinthe sold in France. Picasso paints Bottle of Pernod and Glass.











1914
Picasso creates a sculpture Glass of Absinthe.






1915
Under extreme pressure from the French wine industry absinthe was officially banned in France at the height of its popularity.



1981-1998
After being banned in several European countries for over half a century, European Community has returned to legalizing the production and distribution of absinthe in the European Union.



Present
Renaissance of absinthe culture - stars like Johnny Depp, Leonardo Di Caprio, Marilyn Manson, Eminem, Tommy Lee and others… begun to enjoy and endorse absinthe.