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Lucid Absinthe Supérieure is a traditional, French-made absinthe verte (green absinthe), whose formula was first approved in 2006 after being developed by Ted (T.A.) Breaux. It was granted a COLA (Certificate of Label Approval) in the United States on March 5, 2007, making it the first genuine absinthe to gain approval for legal distribution in the U.S. since 1912.[1][2]
Lucid is produced in France for the Viridian Spirits company of New York.[3] It is distilled using traditional French methods. Lucid contains less than 10 ppm thujone[4] because the U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau mandates that any finished food or beverage tests less than 10ppm (equal to 10mg/kg) thujone in order to be considered legal (i.e. "thujone-free") pursuant to 21 CFR 172.510.[5] Speculation about the extent to which thujone is important persisted for more than a century,[6] but any lingering notions that thujone was an 'active ingredient' of absinthe has been conclusively debunked by modern science.[7] The Lucid brand revived the antique term "Absinthe Supérieure" to differentiate itself from the negative connotations of absinthe that persisted in the TTB.[8] The recipe includes Grande Wormwood (Artemisia absinthium), along with green anise, sweet fennel, and other herbs, and was developed by T.A. Breaux, an absinthe expert and historian.[9][10] By early 2008, Lucid became available through most distributors in many states.
- ^ Tax and Trade Bureau (2007). "Certificate of Label Approval, Lucid Absinthe Supérieure". U.S. Alcohol & Tobacco Tax & Trade Bureau (TTB). https://www.ttbonline.gov/colasonline/viewColaDetails.do?action=publicDisplaySearchBasic&ttbid=07064000000076.
- ^ The Spirit World - » Lucid Absinthe
- ^ http://www.drinklucid.com/pdf/nytimes_04-29-07.pdf
- ^ Confirmed by e-mail correspondence
- ^ Alcohol Tax and Trade Bureau Industry Circular Number 2007-5. Retrieved 05 March 2008.
- ^ Turner, Jack (2006). "Green Gold". New Yorker Magazine. http://www.oxygenee.com/New-Yorker-Feb-2006.pdf. Retrieved on 2007-09-26.
- ^ Chemical Composition of Vintage Preban Absinthe with Special Reference to Thujone, Fenchone, Pinocamphone, Methanol, Copper, and Antimony Concentrations Dirk W. Lachenmeier, David Nathan-Maister, Theodore A. Breaux, Eva-Maria Sohnius, Kerstin Schoeberl, and Thomas Kuballa (2008). Retrieved 18 APR 2008.
- ^ LaMotta, Lisa (2007). "Wrestling With Regulators". Forbes Magazine. http://www.forbes.com/entrepreneurs/entrelaw/2007/08/29/absinthe-small-business-ent-law-cx_ll_0829lucid.html. Retrieved on 2007-09-25.
- ^ Absinthe Feels So Good When It Hits the U.S. Market - Grub Street - New York Magazine
- ^ Wired 13.11: The Mystery of the Green Menace
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