Anise, fennel, and wormwood are obligatory in absinthe. Beyond those, you’ll have some decisions to make when it comes to designing your bouquet of botanicals.
“In absinthe distillation, it’s a large amount of green aniseed, fennel seed, and star anise,” says Aaron Selya, director of operations at Philadelphia Distilling. “All contribute different levels of complexity to that anethole flavor, with the grand wormwood, as well.”
Selya also uses spearmint, hyssop, and lemon balm. At Wollersheim in Prairie du Sac, Wisconsin, distiller Tom Lenerz adds coriander, angelica, lavender, and lemongrass.
T.A. Breaux, the absinthe revivalist behind Jade Liqueurs, says the botanicals are where distillers can flex some creative muscles—by including nontraditional botanicals such as yuzu, for example. Sourcing botanicals from different regions is another way to provide subtle, distinctive character.