wormwood harvesting

[chaucer]

I was wondering if there was an industry standard for the stage of development to harvest wormwood for Absinthe. Is it just leaf before flowering, or full flower, or left on the stem? The company I work for makes an extract of wormwood and we harvest when in full flower and after dried we then seperate the herb from the stem. So back to my question, if the info i'm asking for is proprietary disregard the question. I just wondered if there was a standard or is it just a matter of personal preference? By the way the Wormwood harvest starts today (about an acre) which means a whole week tasting wormwood pollen and dust trapped in my sinuses.

[BourbonbarrelTom]

IN what area of the country are you making this report of harvest?.

We have some tiny bit growing here but are unaware of which (If any diversity in the Wormwood genestock is commercially available or preferred) variatials nor really how to utilize the product.

I have given thought to just doing an extract from stems on a hobbist basis. how do you give a number to your level of extraction? advice ?

My last adventure was with extract purchased from a herbalist. Unknown product and just too little info to feel confident.

danke TG

[Andrew]

Grain of salt, this is just from a quick lookup and not experience. Looking at a couple historic references with regards to grand wormwood in absinthe, one states "only the tops are distilled" "dryed and ground" and the other calls for only "flowering tops and leaves" "lightly pounded". Elsewhere they say "chopped fine".

[chaucer]

IN what area of the country are you making this report of harvest?.

We have some tiny bit growing here but are unaware of which (If any diversity in the Wormwood genestock is commercially available or preferred) variatials nor really how to utilize the product.

I have given thought to just doing an extract from stems on a hobbist basis. how do you give a number to your level of extraction? advice ?

My last adventure was with extract purchased from a herbalist. Unknown product and just too little info to feel confident.

danke TG

Southern Oregon is the region. Its the perfect climate. We use Artemisia Absinthium which I have never heard it called Grand Wormwood until joined this forum. We just call it Wormwood. We buy our seed from a company called Horizon Herbs and propegate our own in the greenhouse in the spring. Very Easy to grow. As far as reliabilty the company I work for has been making extracts for over 25 years and are the second largest producer of liquid herbal extracts in the country. Herb Pharm is the name if you would like to look them up. Our level of extraction is what the company is founded on. No stem unless it is specifically called for, otherwise we seperate all leaf and/or flower from the stem, the result is some of the most potent extract you will ever taste. This in an industry dominated by cut and sifted herbs.

[Gwydion Stone]

I've included detailed copies of the absinthe chapters of 19th distiller's manuals on the Wormwood Society website; I recommend becoming thoroughly familiar with them if you intend to make absinthe.

My last adventure was with extract purchased from a herbalist. Unknown product and just too little info to feel confident.

Absinthe is a distilled spirit; you can't make it from wormwood extract. The wormwood must be distilled or the end product will be too bitter and will not be absinthe.

As for stage of harvest, the stuff you're doing sounds about right, maybe a tad late. According to several early sources, harvesting was done just before the flowers were mature; possibly because of the nuisance of pollen.

We use Artemisia Absinthium which I have never heard it called Grand Wormwood until joined this forum. We just call it Wormwood.

Grande absinthe (large wormwood, ) is the French common name for Artemisia absinthium and is used to distinguish from petite absinthe (small wormwood, Artemisia pontica). "Wormwood" is just a nickname for the sagebrush family. There are many species of Artemisia and dozens of wormwoods. Only one can make absinthe.