SF World Spirits Competition: results?

The San Francisco World Spirits Competition was held on March 15 and 16, and while the results have been released to entrants, I'm curious to see the complete list after yesterday's San Francisco Chronicle blurb mentioned that ten absinthes competed, and the winner-- "Vieux Pontarlier," distilled at the Emile Pernot distillery-- is not even on the market yet. Searches for "vieux pontarlier absinthe" find an anisette produced by Emile Pernot, with a note at Liqueurs de France that the product currently available is not the absinthe which will soon be released under the same name.

Update: Results were posted by the organizers, though to see award winners for absinthe, you must click through a finicky menu-- results reposted here (click on the image to the right) for easy viewing. Surprised to see La Fée winning a gold-- that's some lousy absinthe-- looks like the kind of competition where everybody wins.

Mansinthe

There has been a lot of Mansinthe press since it became available, and I've been happy to read that it does, in fact, contain Artemisia absinthium, not just pontica, making it a proper absinthe after all! I tried a glass with Spoon and thought it was ok, though there was an artificial flavor that put me off, and the color doesn't look quite natural... but, then, Mr. Manson isn't exactly nature boy! Recent hype:

• Marilyn Manson Launches Own Brand of Absinthe Liquor at The Cleveland Leader 11/10/07,
• Whom do you hate? at The Australian 9/29/07,
• MANSON+ABSINTHE=MANSINTHE at The Worlds Best Ever 9/24/07,
• Mansinthe: Marilyn Manson Sells Own Line Of Absinthe in the 9/17/07 Huffington Post,
• Rolling Stones blurb from 9/17/07,
• Marilyn Manson Wants You To Sip On His Mansinthe on Chart Attach 9/14/07,

Absinthe on the Way!

So much happening for absinthe! Lull in posting notwithstanding, more is on the way, but I'll premention:

• Mansinthe,
• Oxy's recent publication: "Systematic Misinformation about Thujone in Pre-ban Absinthe",
• press...,

But for now, "Tree That Owns Itself" (wiki)!

"Mansinthe"? Hmmm...

Word is out that Marilyn Manson has unveiled his "Mansinthe" absinthe-like spirit, produced by Markus Lion. The drink apparently contains no (large) wormwood (Artemisia absinthium), but likely contains a good quantity of Roman wormwood (Artemisia pontica) to get around U.S. laws regarding the former herb... no matter that the latter contains that controvertial toxin as well...

Good to bet on this and other absinthe fans having to correct bloggers and journalists who will surely refer to it as an actual "absinthe"...:)

Update: Turns out they bailed on the "no large wormwood" plan and that Mansinthe is, in fact, proper absinthe. More info to come...