Appearance: The color is light. Really, really light. Clearly natural, and not cloudy, but there's a lot more that could be going on here.

Louche: Develops a nice louche, but ends up pretty thick. It does maintain a nice color.

Aroma: Ever so slight muskiness, but the aroma is fairly pleasant, reminiscent of the more "dessert-like" absinthes, with noticeable anise and melissa.

Flavor: Very sweet and full of anise, but not at all unpleasant. Tongue-numbing, but not a lot of complexity.

Finish: The finish has the mouth-watering sensation I would typically attribute to wormwood, but there isn't much wormwood flavor to be found...this sensation is decently lengthy.

Overall: I know it's pretty much the cool thing nowadays to make fun of this absinthe, especially among experienced absintheurs, but Lucid is honestly not bad. I grow a little tired of people going "I tried Lucid and it was so completely horrible, but I got a bottle of better absinthe and I'm happy now", which tends to read the same as most Czech-sinthe experiences...I don't find it to be at all like that. This was the first absinthe I ever tried, and I honestly breathed a sigh of relief that I found myself enjoying Lucid and would be willing to purchase more absinthe in the future, because initially I was worried I wouldn't like absinthe at all. I do feel that for the price, there are a number of much better absinthes on the market, but if I didn't have access to these other absinthes, I would still drink Lucid.

Appearance: Pale yellow that looks like an off color blanche. Natural though.

Louche: Nice oil trails with a smooth gradient. When finished it is a very thick louche. The color is nice and the formulation is good.

Aroma: Good anise forward smell. Not much wormwood and not much balance. No odd or exceptional aromas.

Flavor: Simple and like the smell this is very anise forward with maybe some lemon balm easily detectable as well. A very sweet absinthe on by itself, maybe overly so. It is smooth though. Nothing here that I would shun but nothing remarkable either.

Finish: The finish maintains the flavor for a decent amount of time but it doesn't do much else.

Overall: It is almost as if the producers were aiming for average. This is nothing that would go into my rotation but it is a very acceptable gatekeeper to the world of real absinthe. My only concern in marketing this towards newcomers is the pricepoint now that much stiffer competition is available for the same price. This is decent stuff but it is not really worth the pricetag that it is currently at.

What you really want to know: No, you won't go wrong buying a bottle. Very much worth it. If available, look for the gift set that includes two nice reservoir glasses and a spoon for the same price as a bottle ($57 USD). Overall, you can get better, but it's far from being a low-grade disappointment. Good basic absinthe that will stay stocked on my shelf. If I had to sum it up in a word, it would be "natural." If you're the kind of person who thinks a woman smells better with a pint of perfume and looks better with two hours of makeup than when she first steps out of the shower, this might not be the drink for you; stick to Pernod or Absente.

Color - Light olive... in fact, perhaps a bit too light, but I was very pleased to see no use of artificial dyes. I don't like my absinthe to wear makeup. Natural and correct. Almost, but not quite, a 4 rating. Had it been artificial, I never would have rated it above a 1.

Louche - Immediate, nice oily trails at first, good blossom of the louche. Like the color, though, the louche is a bit light; doesn't quite hit the opalescense that I was expecting.

Aroma - Very nice. If you're used to a pastis like Pernod, or other substitutes like Razzouk Arak, you will be very pleasantly surprised with its complexity, both before and after water. It's not the most complex, but there are some definitely interesting and correct notes. Predominately anise and fennel, of course, with a decently forward wormwood nose and something definitive about it - couldn't quite discern if it was coriander or perhaps cumin. Not much of a floral bouquet, but very interesting and spicy.

Flavor - Enough of a coriander and wormwood nose that there was a pleasant herbal taste, almost a hint of celery, but not grassy. Of course, coriander sometimes gives the illusion of saltiness, but it wasn't overly powerful, just enjoyable. A huge step up from the one-dimensional taste of Absente, Pernod, or Razzouk. Each taste was a bit of an experiment, trying to put words to exactly what was being tasted. If I had to identify room for improvement (and to be honest, I would definitely not characterize the experience as a disappointing one overall) it would be the relative lack of some of the more floral notes in both the aroma and flavor. Still, a flavor that kept me intrigued and ready for the next sip.

Finish - Spicy, herbal (think gourmet cooking spice, not floral candle shop) pleasant aftertaste that lingered just long enough. For my second glass, I added a bit more water to 4:1, the better to lighten the alcohol and try to separate the flavors.

Overall - Heads and tails above any of the pastis or other absinthe "substitutes." I like pastis and arak for what they are, but this is a very positive and uniquely absinthian experience. Also, hands down, better than anything I've gotten off the shelf in the US as of the end of 2008. I haven't yet tried the other T.A. Breaux designs (the Jade line), but if they really are quite pleasantly superior to Lucid, I suspect I'll be extremely happy with them even at a higher price. I'll be buying Lucid again soon (unfortunately, probably very soon, as it seems I'm going through it a bit quickly - a tribute to its interesting character.)

Lucid was the first absinthe I purchased, and it got me hooked. After buying several more over the next year I began trying other absinthes. Still, Lucid is one of my favorites, and a great one to start with.

Appearance:
Intriguing bottle, it is always looking at you! Very light green, just enough to note it is not clear. Much lighter than most absinthe.

Louche:
This is one of my favorite louche effects. It will certainly surprise most people when the very light, nearly clear, absinthe turns a thick and cloudy white when adding water. It is a great effect, one of the best.

Aroma:
It smells like absinthe without the completely overwhelming anise, which I do not like.

Flavor:
Very good flavor. Depending on how strong your mix is you can choose how much flavor and warmth you want from it without losing the signature absinthe taste. Also good with sugar, but definitely not necessary.

Finish:
The finish is not too strong, but does give a lingering taste. Nothing note worthy about it, other than, again, being a great choice for a first absinthe.

Overall:
It is a great bottle to pick up, and is available much more than any other I have seen. Definitely worth a try even if it is more expensive than your average liquor. One of my personal favorites.

Update to previous review-- hope this works right...

Basically, one change on the scores-- after a lot of reflection, I decided that Lucid deserves a 4 in Flavor/Mouthfeel: According to the WS Absinthe Evaluation sheet, 4 = "Correct, interesting, pleasant, enjoyable" and to me, Lucid is definitely that. The "burn" I reported earlier is more in the finish than the flavor, and it just works well. It's still the solid "proper midmarket standard" but it does well at that, and I think Mr Breaux managed to formulate an excellent absinthe for the masses here.

Also, yeah, Lucid is "Jade Light"-- but sometimes I'm not in the mood for the full complexity of a real Jade and "Jade Light" is exactly what I want. :)

Original Review:

Lucid, the basic standard

Broke out my bottle of Lucid for a night-cap and a tasting session with the WS Absinthe Score sheet last night (and posted the initial version of this in the forum, but now I can post it where it belongs… ?
The appearance is natural, correct, clear, acceptable-- but IMO too pale for the 4 or 5 ratings.
Louche: well, it's a great Louche—I’m tempted to give it a 5, except that I've seen Jade N.O. and La Clandestine after louching... Lucid’s good, but not the best
Aroma: I think it's acceptable, correct, good proper absinthe-- it's just a little undistinguished compared to the great ones, but there's nothing wrong with it. I didn’t catch any of the “funk” I’ve heard others report (admittedly my bottle is, at this point, quite well-aged though…).
Flavor/Mouthfeel: It's correct & proper-- I still like Lucid, even after trying several other varieties of Absinthe-- if it's got a flaw, it's that there's still a little more "burn" instead of "smooth" than I'd expect from a top-notch absinthe, and set next to Jade & La Clandestine-- two of the others I've tried-- it comes off as undistinguished, but only by comparison though. Still totally acceptable & nothing wrong with it – I’m tempted to give it a 4, but in the end I think 3.5 is the right spot.
Finish: The standard descriptor by the 3, "Lingers pleasantly, no outstanding characteristics." says it all-- nothing wrong, just not truly "outstanding".
Overall: It fits the 3 rating perfectly-- IMO, entirely acceptable and it's the very epitome of the proper mid-market standard.
Further comments:
As I've indicated previously-- I like Lucid, I'm going to keep drinking it occasionally, and when I finish this bottle, I'm going to buy another one. It's my standard, go-to, ordinary occasion Absinthe. It's my "I just want to enjoy sipping on a simple glass of absinthe at the end of a long day..." choice. I gave it the ratings I did because Lucid is the middle of the road standard: I'm well aware there are absinthes that are made better, are more complex, perhaps ultimately tastier-- and I plan to indulge in them when I can, whenever I want something good & complex; and definitely for special occasions. The existence of higher end absinthe doesn't change my decision that Lucid has a place in my liquor cabinet and at my table. However, since Lucid is readily available, it's also still my "baseline"-- I find Lucid fully acceptable, but any Absinthe that doesn't compare favorably with Lucid is unacceptable to me-- it is the basic standard that others must equal or exceed.

For those interested: I'm actually not quite sure of the exact water-to-absinthe ratio I use as a fractional measurement-- but I use the same glasses, I fill the reservoir with absinthe to the same line, I fill it to 1/2" from the brim with ice water every time I prepare absinthe, using a broullier or dripping over a spoon, with a sugar cube-- so I am consistent in my methods and amounts each time. And yes, I'm one of those who always takes absinthe with sugar by preference.