‘You’ Season 4: What Is The Absinthe They Give Joe? It’s not like the Netflix series

This first part of Netflix’s ‘You’ series also presented some inconsistencies that need to be resolved when the final episodes are released.

One of the questions that may have arisen among viewers was: what was really the drink that affected its protagonist so much in the first episode?

In Season 4 of Netflix’s You, Joe Goldberg gets drunk on absinthe

In the first episode of the story starring Penn Badgley, his character opens up a place in London’s high society.

So she ends up attending a party she really didn’t want to be at. Just as he was about to leave, he is cornered by Lady Phoebe, who gives him a sip of a drink: absinthe.

Before Joe Goldberg knew it, the drink had already had a powerful effect on him, making him completely forget what happened the night before.

When she wakes up the next day, she finds Malcolm’s body in her office.

What is absinthe?

In real life, this drink exists, although it has some notable differences from the one featured in ‘You’ Season 4.

Absinthe is a herbal liqueur made by steeping plants such as wormwood, fennel and anise, explains the blog “Larousse Cocina”. Named after the Latin nomenclature of wormwood, Artemisia absinthe.

It is characterized by a green color, which comes from the same plant that gives it its name, as well as a bitter or licorice taste. For these tones, she was nicknamed “the green fairy” in France.

According to “Larousse”, it was created in Switzerland in the 18th century. Food and Wine magazine, for its part, clarifies that it was the French doctor Pierre Ordinaire who patented it in 1792, with the intention of having a cure for all kinds of ailments.

Absinthe is also distinguished by its high alcohol content, which can range from 60 to 70 percent. By comparison, beers are typically between 4 and 7 ABV, while wines are around 11 and 13.

Can absinthe liqueur cause hallucinations like in season 4 of ‘You’?

In the Netflix series starring Penn Badgley, several of his characters hallucinate after drinking this drink, making it even more difficult to figure out who the real “rich man killer” was.

The myth that absinthe liqueur causes visions in those who consume it is inherited from the 19th century, when many artists were said to have consumed it to excess.

However, the specialist website Healthline cites a 2008 study which concluded that these trances are not a direct side effect of consuming “the green fairy”, but a consequence of the amount consumed.

In this sense, any other alcohol can cause hallucinations if consumed disproportionately. Additionally, it is believed that the effects reported by several artists could actually be withdrawal symptoms.

The head of neurology at the Dávila Clinic in Chile, Mario Rivera, assured “CNN” in 2012 that the biggest risk of absinthe is poisoning and an alcoholic coma.

Differences between the absinthe we saw in season 4 of ‘You’ and the drink in real life

The truth is, this detail wasn’t the only mistake in the Netflix series.

For example, although Joe Goldberg is said to drink absinthe, the liquor he drinks does not have its characteristic green color.

In addition, this drink is not usually consumed in “shots”, since its high alcohol content and bitter taste make it difficult to drink.

The most popular way to drink absinthe is to add a sugar cube and cold water to it. It can also be found in making cocktails with other ingredients to reduce it.

Tell us, did you know about absinthe before you saw it on ‘You’ Season 4? What did you think of the way it was portrayed in the Netflix series?

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