After some experimenting during my college years in the eighties, I have completely given up on on everything save for a cocktail now and again with my wife in the evenings. She has never so much as tried a puff of pot, so between the two of us we figured that we would never be able to make absinthe a part of out evening cocktail hour.

Its too bad too, because I had heard so much about absinthe recently but with so many questions about its actual contents and what all is actually in it I fugued that she and I would just have to go without it.

Then a couple of friends at work mentioned that they had tried a bottle of Lucid absinthe that they had bought in a liquor store here in town and explained that it was a “legal" brand of absinthe that had passed U.S. Government inspection. Not only was it “certified top shelf" as far as the quality was concerned but there was nothing in it that would send me into the “ozone layer".

To make a long story short, I bought a bottle and brought it home and showed it to my wife and we got out the glasses to give it a try. The alcohol content was high, so we mixed it with some water and a t-spoon full of sugar like my friend at work instructed me to do.

The flavor was definitely dominated by black licorice and to be honest I could take it or leave it, because frankly, I don't like sweet drinks. My wife loved it though and has drank it every evening out on the deck with me since that first night and I have had to bring home another bottle since the first one ran out three days later.