A green alcoholic drink is ABSINTHE, an anise-flavored spirit derived from botanicals, including the flowers and leaves of the herb Artemisia absinthium. It is historically described as a distilled, highly alcoholic beverage. It has been portrayed as a dangerously addictive psychoactive drug and hallucinogen. The chemical thujone, although present in the spirit in only trace amounts, was blamed for its alleged harmful effects.