Absinthe in America

Topic created by MsJekYll
on Sat, 17 May 2008 at 17:24

MsJekYll said on Sat, 17 May 2008 at 17:24...

Absinthe in the USA - the prohibition isn't over yet I have been overwhelmed by email responses to my article about absinthe in the USA.

I welcome all your emails, but I thought a public forum might be a better platform to vent your our frustrations about USA "safe" versions of absinthe. Yes, I am as disappointed as you are.

Anonymous said on Tue, 20 May 2008 at 20:39...

Watered down licorice flavored hooch! What did you expect? You think the Fed Govt would actually allow us to get f***ed up on wormwood. It is OK in Europe and I tried some real absinthe inAmestrdam...

MsJekYll said on Sat, 24 May 2008 at 19:09...

Well, I guess I wouldn't have put it as bluntly as you, Anonymous ;-) but you are right of course. I guess I wanted to believe it... But sure, I know what they say: if it's too good to be true...

I read a very interesting expose about absinthe in America recently. I can't remember exactly where it was (some paper in California I recall). The journalist did a thorough investigation and concluded it was all a premeditated marketing strategy designed to insinuate that the American public were suddenly gonna get their hands on something forbidden, even illicit... while researchers and historians agreed it was just imitations with "absinthe" on the bottle label.

Oh well. At least I spoke my mind, so don't get too harsh with me Anonymous, alright? (By the way, why do you people do this? Is it too difficult to make up some funny nickname if you don't want to use your real one?)

dragonfly said on Fri, 30 May 2008 at 15:37...

It's like everything else. The Federal Government insists on treating all of its citizens as if we were children, incapable of making decisions on our own, without the Great & Glorious Feds to protect us from ourselves. Why anyone would believe anything the Federal Government says is way beyond my understanding.

So when the Government says, this is absinthe, it just has less thujone. It's like saying this is MGD, its just watered down, a lot, and it tastes kind of weird, and there's less alcohol, but really it is just the same as the other MGD. Yeah, go ahead.

Trust the Feds to be honest with you. Because they've been so honest over the years. I, on the other hand, will continue to question everything my Government says and does. Especially while that wacko Texas cowboy is still in office.

Alice in Wonderland said on Tue, 3 Jun 2008 at 13:55...

Well said Dragonfly. Keep up the good work MsJekyll, cool site.

MsJekYll said on Fri, 6 Jun 2008 at 21:37...

Thanks Alice :-)

Dragonfly: I agree with Alice - well said!

Kieren said on Wed, 11 Jun 2008 at 19:31...

The same old, same old. The feds trying to save us from ourselves. Big Brother knows best. ?? yeah, right. No, Big Brother just wants to tell you what you can and cannot do or have or be. It's a control issue.

Have you seen how much it costs for us Americans to buy European Absinthe and import it into the US?

if it's something one might enjoh, they either ban it, or in this case change it so its nothing like the real product.

MsJekYll said on Wed, 11 Jun 2008 at 23:55...

Spot on, Kieren. I like to think I can make my own mind up about what I put in my body. I've drunk (real) absinthe for the past 12+ years and I'm still very much live and kicking. The modern world offers far greater dangers than a little absinthe.

MsJekYll said on Wed, 11 Jun 2008 at 23:58...

I just thought I'd mention that there is a related discussion in progress in the Is absinthe legal? thread as well. Having said that, I'm not trying to chase anyone off here -- quite the opposite. But this forum software will not let me merge related threads, so I just want to point the casual visitor in the direction of additional info/discussion.

Patricia in Dallas, TX said on Tue, 8 Jul 2008 at 22:57...

absinthe in the u.s.? no thanks, no way. overcharged cat's pee, not real absinthe :-(

absynthe newbie said on Wed, 9 Jul 2008 at 01:58...

which absynthe do u recommend patricia? i want to try, but i'm confused. which is real, which is not? thanks

Patricia said on Sat, 12 Jul 2008 at 01:16...

in order of preference:

1. la valdetre. very good swiss stuff. fresh and raw, full of power. that's what i like...character. some people say the colour is too deep but that's no problem for me. too deep compared to what? the watered-down nonsense they try to pass on as 'absinthe' in the u.s. ?

2. armand guy. this one's french and is pretty much the real deal as well, IMHO

3. absinthium 1792. pretty good everyday absinthe. give it a try if you don't want to spend much. i never thought i'd say this until i tasted it. not bad, not bad at all! its for the mass market, for sure, but still 10x better than the lucid crap, for rougly half the price

i'm curious about this century stuff you reviewed msjekyll, by the way. sounds a bit like la valdetre to me. being the absinthe addict i am, i love to learn of these hard to find gems. have you drunk valdetre and how does it compare to century?

MsJekYll said on Sat, 12 Jul 2008 at 20:45...

Hi Patricia

I know of La Valdetre but have never actually tried it. From what I've heard, it does have character as you say and that's good. I know it's difficult to get (there's nowhere to buy online as far as I know... or is there??) Where do you get it?

Patricia said on Sun, 13 Jul 2008 at 15:51...

my husband goes to Switzerland a few times and year and buys it there. not sure if it's sold online. i have two unopened bottles and could trade one if you like. you have any century around? ;-) i was just going to order it but I'll hang on in case you are interested......

MsJekYll said on Sun, 13 Jul 2008 at 23:57...

Yeah, sure, great idea. Email me! You're in Texas, right?

Julz said on Mon, 21 Jul 2008 at 19:23...

Soo, I have some questions..... 1st- Is it illegal to purchase a kit to make it yourself?? And if not, does it ever come out right? I too, was stoked to hear that a legal version (lucid) was available here in the u.s.I have never tried any form of absinithe before, but I am super-curious! Lead me in the right direction for my first time!!?

dan8 said on Sat, 9 Aug 2008 at 00:10...

homemade absinthe kits are legal. they can make really good absinthe, but i think this depends on the skill of the herbalist who picks the herbs that go in them and on the quality of the herbs as well.

Curious1 said on Fri, 29 Aug 2008 at 23:45...

I have been reading info off the Web for awhile and I must be missing something. A lot of sources deny that large amounts of thujone are not present in absinthes, Euro and US. The last bit I read was at:

http://www.absinthe.se/default.asp?load=http://www.absinthe.se/thujone/index.html.

It also appears that thujone is not responsible for any mind bending effects. (Possibly that is the result of some other as-of-yet undetected compound).

Who is scamming who is what I want to know!? BTW, I like to rely on independent scientific evidence to make decisions and am not generally interested in personal experiences (i.e., studies based on a population of one).

Has anyone done any blind evaluations of this?

LucidWhore said on Thu, 13 Nov 2008 at 16:44...

I hate to admit it, but I like Lucid...
Not like the hot chick next door,
more like the cheap, kinda nasty easy girl down the street...

Anonymous said on Sat, 15 Nov 2008 at 15:27...

cheap and nasty....... lol

Anonymous said on Mon, 1 Dec 2008 at 03:11...

I finally bought my first bottle of Absinthe last week and chose Lucid. On the label it says it's made "with a full measure of wormwood" and it also indicates 62% alcohol (124 proof). I don't think they can legally put it on the bottle if it doesn't contain wormwood. I'm wondering what "proof" you have that it doesn't contain wormwood?
It did seem to taste better in Prague, but I think anything would taste better there.

Toocurious said on Mon, 5 Jan 2009 at 01:05...

I live in south florida, I'm interested in trying lucid... Because absinthe is not legal in Florida. I want the whole hallucination feeling. Does is work?