Brewed from a concoction of natural herbs, true absinthe includes three crucial elements: anise, fennel and Artemisia absinthium (grand wormwood, used as a remedy since the time of the ancient Egyptians).
Absinthe is distilled with the leaves of the herb Artemisia absinthium, known as grande wormwood, which contains the drink's "special ingredient", thujone, which reputedly has mind-altering effects.
At issue is whether absinthe needs to contain minimum levels of two substances - anethole and the chemical thujone, a toxin extracted from wormwood, which reputedly has mind-altering effects.