For our next interview, we are talking with Alan Moss, a frequent contributor to the various absinthe forums, and a liquor business insider. Currently working with Claude-Alain Bugnon of La Clandestine fame, he is the author of the very fine Real Absinthe blog.

In Absinthia: When did you first become interested in absinthe?

AM: Probably when studying French at university! Reading the works of great authors and poets such as Zola, Balzac, Rimbaud, Verlaine and Baudelaire [ed note - a virtual who's who of mid-19th century Parisian absinthe culture] gave me a basic understanding of Paris in the 19th century, and absinthe was clearly a major part of Paris life.

Fast forward to 2004. By that time, I had been in the liquor business for nearly 15 years and had worked on some great brands, including Remy Martin, Absolut, Jim Beam, The Macallan, Krug champagne etc. in Europe and Asia. I was interested in the possibility of taking on a more entrepreneurial position and found an interesting opportunity with La Fée Absinthe in 2004. Through the work I did there (the re-launch of eAbsinthe and the development of La Fée X.S.), I encountered La Clandestine for the first time and met Claude-Alain Bugnon, and that really heightened my interest.

In Absinthia: What is your current connection with the absinthe market?

AM: When my other commitments allow, I work on the global sales and marketing of La Clandestine with Claude-Alain. La Clandestine is now available in several countries outside Switzerland.

[more after the jump]