these scatter light like the fat globules in milk Vinegar Vinegar is alcohol’s fate, the natural sequel to an alcoholic fermentation Alcohol makes a liquid more resistant to spoilage because most microbes can’t tolerate it But there are a few important and ubiquitous exceptions: bacteria that can use oxygen to metabolize alcohol and extract energy from it In the process they convert it to acetic acid, which is a far more potent antimicrobial agent than alcohol, and came to be one of the most effective preservatives of ancient and modern times Alcoholic wine thus becomes pungently acidic wine: in French, vin aigre Absinthe The most notorious herbal alcohol is absinthe, a green-tinged, anise-flavored liqueur whose main ingredient is parts of the wormwood plant, Artemisia absinthium Wormwood has a harsh, bitter flavor and carries an aromatic compound, thujone, that in high doses is toxic not only to intestinal parasites and insects — hence the plant’s name — but also to the human nervous system, muscles, and kidneys Absinthe was hugely popular in late 19thcentury France, and l’heure verte, “the green hour” of the afternoon when people dripped water through a sugar cube into the absinthe and caused it to cloud up, was depicted by a number of Impressionist painters and by the young Picasso Absinthe developed a reputation for inducing convulsions and insanity, and was therefore outlawed in many countries around 1910, and replaced by simpler anise-flavored spirits Whatever toxicity wormwood had for the heavy drinker was probably exacerbated by absinthe’s high ... dripped water through a sugar cube into the absinthe and caused it to cloud up, was depicted by a number of Impressionist painters and by the young Picasso Absinthe developed a reputation for inducing convulsions and insanity, and was... to intestinal parasites and insects — hence the plant’s name — but also to the human nervous system, muscles, and kidneys Absinthe was hugely popular in late 19thcentury France, and l’heure verte, ? ?the green hour” of the afternoon when... parts of the wormwood plant, Artemisia absinthium Wormwood has a harsh, bitter flavor and carries an aromatic compound, thujone, that in high doses is toxic not only to intestinal parasites and insects — hence