Legal Absinthe for all to consume
You can get Absinthe in the US but you have to order it from Europe and get it shipped here at ridiculous prices and wait for a long time. This is widely regarded as a "pain in the ass."
Lucid Absinthe is set to begin shipping next month to locations throughout the US. They were able to pass regulatory muster by getting rid of all the thujone (the banned ingredient) in their product. However, they were able to use certain European herbs in order to make up for the taste difference.
So, you can finally bring Absinthe to the party and be the toast of the ball. One of the unintended side-effects of Absinthe coming to the US though, will be a significant reduction in posts from Liquor Snob, they can't seem to keep their hands off the stuff.
Keep an eye on their site for a liquor store selling it near you.
Lucid Absinthe - US$59.95
Edit: Erik added some comments that fleshed out the Thujone issue as well as some Absinthe background.
Comments
"They were able to pass regulatory muster by getting rid of all the
thujone (the banned ingredient) in their product. However, they were
able to use certain European herbs in order to make up for the taste
difference."
They were able to "pass regulatory muster" by getting the TTB to recognize a 10 PPM margin of error for Thujone content. That is to say, as long as an Absinthe contains less than 10 PPM of Thujone, it can be considered to have none.
Thujone doesn't have much taste, so they didn't need to do anything for that.
They did need to choose their herbs carefully and during certain seasons, so the Thujone content was lower.
But, Thujone content in Absinthe is a complete red herring.
Thujone is not an hallucinogenic drug, and was probably not responsible for any of the "problems" people may have experienced after drinking pre-ban Absinthe.
In large doses Thujone is nominally toxic; but, the levels of toxicity are lower than that of caffeine or alcohol.
Also, tests have been done on pre-ban Absinthe samples, and determined that the Thujone content in them was typically not very high.
Some people do experience some secondary effects from Absinthe consumption; but, they are more like caffeine than pot or LSD. Elevated alertness, clarity of mental function, a mild buzz.
Tests have yet to determine the
exact substances responsible for these effects.
I'll let you know...