The Glade 4.0

Where can I get some real Absinthe?

The prevailing consensus of interpretation of United States law and regulations among American absinthe connoisseurs is that, with the revision of thujone levels by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), it is now legal to purchase such a product for personal use in the U.S. According to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) food and beverages that contain Artemisia species must be thujone free.[91] Thujone free is defined as containing less than 10ppm thujone.[92] There is no corresponding US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) regulation. Regarding importation of absinthe, U.S. Customs and Border Protection allows importation of absinthe products subject to the following restrictions:

* The product must be thujone-free as described above,
* The name "absinthe" can neither be the brand name nor stand alone on the label, and
* The packaging cannot "project images of hallucinogenic, psychotropic or mind-altering effects."

Absinthe imported in violation of these regulations can be seized.[93][94] Absinthe can be and occasionally is seized by United States Customs if it appears to be for human consumption.[95][96]

A faux-absinthe liquor called Absente, made with southern wormwood (Artemisia abrotanum) instead of grande wormwood (Artemisia absinthium), is sold legally in the United States. This was the first US approval referring to "absinthe" on the front label; the front label says "Absinthe Refined" but the TTB classified the product as liqueur. In 2007, TTB relaxed the US absinthe ban, and has now approved over 50 brands for sale.[97] These brands must pass TTB testing, which is conducted using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry.[98] The TTB considers a product to be thujone-free if the FDA’s test measures less than 10ppm (equal to 10 mg/kg) thujone.[99] St. George Spirits, a California distillery, also began producing and selling absinthe in 2007, the first US company to do so since 1912.

Absinthe is now legal in the United States!
Almost, well not exactly

I seem to be getting the following question a lot lately.

I just saw a bottle of absinthe in the liquor store, I thought it was illegal to sell absinthe in the US?

This subject is getting complicated but yes traditional absinthe is illegal to sell. But given the thirst of Americans desire for absinthe the industry is finding a way to get it to the people.

There is a chemical in traditional absinthe called Thujone, this chemical is banned in food products by the FDA. This one chemical is what makes absinthe illegal to sell. Generally Thujone comes from an herb called wormwood that is used in the production process of absinthe.

Companies and the liquor industry have found that by filtering out this chemical they can legally sell their brand of absinthe in the USA.

Seeing dollar signs many distillers and companies are now on a public relations campaign to downplay the role of Thujone and gain acceptance of this form of absinthe by the American public. Many are writing articles or launching sites that promote this new view of absinthe in an effort to gain acceptance. Some make statements such as that of Lucid one of the leading brands to enter the us market states "Prohibition is finally over" giving consumers the perception that laws have changed. They are eager to promote the fact they use Grand Wormwood but downplay the removal of Thujone. It all makes for good marketing and others like Kubler and Absinte seem to be following.

Others are even trying to state that their absinthe may contain Thujone or subvertly imply this. The truth is that any absinthe sold in the USA will be determined by the FDA to be "Thujone Free" but some distillers are noting that the test used by the FDA for detecting Thujone has some level of error, or tolerance, some have put it at 10ppm Thujone but my understanding of this is there is no defined level and the test by the FDA is subject to subjective influences such as the use of the sense of sight and smell to detect Thujone.

In the end whatever absinthe you find on the shelf will be "Thujone Free" according to the FDA

Where can I get some real Absinthe?