zeek replied: "Yes, absinthe is legal in the U.S. now, as of May 2007 actually.
The law says that absinthe may only be manufactured and distributed as long as it is thujone-free----which, they redefined as equal to or less than 10 parts per million, or 10mg/kg. They determine the thujone content with spectro--? something tests.
Thujone is the main active ingrediant in the herb Grande Wormwood (Artemisia absthinthiam or something like that, which is where the term "absinthe" comes from)
Wormwood is one of three of the main ingredients in absinthe, the other two being anise and fennel, though a couple other herbs can be used as well, with the first three being the most common.
Thujone is a neurotoxin at high doses, so the FDA kinda dislikes it. But, with the regulated 10 ppm, you'd die from alcohol poisoning a coulpe of times over before you would die from the thujone content in US regulated absinthe.
Alot of poeple think that what we can buy now is "watered-down" absinthe. This is false. Scientists use the same tests that the government use to determine the now-legal absinthe's thujone content on vintage absinthe from the pre-ban eras from spain, france, etc etc, and found that the thujone content is very similar. In fact, most of the pre-ban absinthes will pass today's US regulations.
SO back to your question. Though absinthe is legal in the usa now, its not very prominant. you won't have many varieties, so your choices are limited to pretty much two, as far as i know.
The first, available in virginia now, near the hamptons, va beach, bristol, some other places too, im not sure, is called Kubler, correctly spelled with the two dots over the 'u.' Though its only available in 60 out of 330 ABC stores in virginia, or something like that.
The second, called Lucid, is available in many states and some restaurants and bars in those states. It is currently not available in virginia, but i'm sure it will be soon.
Both run at about $60 per 1 liter bottle, and they only offer it in 1 liter bottles right now.
The Kubler absinthe is clear, as not all absinthes are green. Im not sure as to the color of the Lucid absinthe...
Anyways, check out these sites and stuff, all you could ever need to know about absinthe is located on these sites...
A FEW NOTES:
Absente is from "southern wormwood" which is not artemisia abstinthiam or whatever... so it has no thujone, so pretty much its not traditionally genuine absinthe.
Also, i may be wrong about the price of Lucid, i forgot what it was but im not too far off, if at all.
Thirdly, stay away from online vendors who try and sell their absinthe with the pitch of higher thujone levels. Absinthe is NOT a hallucinogenic beverage. You will not hallucinate from it, jsut like you will not hallucinate from plain beer or vodka.
Absinthe really isn't that different from any schnapps or other spirit, its typically very high in alcohol content. There are many reports though, that absinthe does have some very minor secondary effects, explained to be a more clear-headed or lucid (which is where i think the makers of "lucid" got the idea of their name from..) type drunk. which could be because some of the herbs in the absinthe also have stimulant effects, as well as other sedative effects, albeit subtle.
Main point, you don't trip on absinthe, at least not psychedelically."
What brands of absinthe do your local liquor stores carry? I ask hundreds of people this question each month already, but I thought perhaps I could get a good batch of responses by asking this as a poll question.
If you could, please include your state and city for reference purposes. Thanks to all who contribute!:)
If you have any questions regarding absinthe, please feel free to e-mail me: