Pacifique Absinthe Verte Superieure
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4.4 |
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4.5 (11) |
Product Details
| Available in the US? | Yes |
| Style | Verte |
| Degrees ABV (% alcohol) | 62.00 |
| Year of Make (if known) | 2008 |
| Country of Origin | United States |
| Distiller/Manufacturer | Pacific Distillery |
| Web site | http://pacificdistillery.com/ |
| Comments from the Maker/Distributor | Absinthe Pacifique has been made in exact accordance with an 1855 French recipe, using only organically-grown botanicals. Much of the Grande wormwood and Roman wormwood used was grown in our own herb garden. |
Editor review
Another great artisinal offering
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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Color: Nice Peridot green with hints of yellow.
Louche: Nice trails and a decent build, but a tad light for me when finished. I might have received one of the earlier batches though. Apparently later batches have a thicker louche.
Aroma: Crisp, alpine freshness. Extremely clean and inviting.
Flavor: a great representation of the style. Not too overexertive in any certain area. A great balance.
Finish: well balanced and mild
Overall: A wonderfully light, feminine absinthe. Great for a hot day. But I'd drink it anytime.
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| Overall rating: |
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4.4 |
| Color: |
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4.0 |
| Louche: |
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4.0 |
| Aroma: |
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5.0 |
| Flavor: |
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5.0 |
| Finish: |
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4.0 |
| Overall: |
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4.0 |
Was this review helpful to you?
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User reviews
Average user rating from: 11 user(s)
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To write a review please register or login.
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| Overall rating: |
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4.5 |
| Color: |
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4.1 |
| Louche: |
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4.2 |
| Aroma: |
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4.8 |
| Flavor: |
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4.8 |
| Finish: |
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4.8 |
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4.5 |
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The True 'French'-Style Absinthe I Was Waiting For
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Color: Pacifique Absinthe Verte Superieure has a nice clear green color with yellow hints pre-louche; nice greenish opalescent color when louched, some pepper (?) sediment on top. Looks perfectly like a glass of fine, classic French absinthe.
Louche: Very nice oil trails take their time for a fine show. Once clouds start to form it louches quickly, but there's still some complexity there. Classic layer of clear green liquor on top of louche. Quite nice.
Aroma: Once you get passed the alcohol odor the "trinity" has a fresh fragrance. Other herbs are noticeable, too. Some pepper, light vanilla notes, add to a quality fragrance. Pacifique Absinthe Verte Superieure also contains angelica, coriander, hyssop, melissa and petite wormwood imparting a well-rounded herbal flavor.
Flavor: Nice grain spirit imparts no bad taste or aftertaste. "Trinity" is good and balanced, what most reasonable people would want from a French-style absinthe. Perfectly good, herbs taste fresh ... but could the "trinity" benefit from being be slightly stronger? I haven't tasted a better French-style verte, so I stand by my rating here.
Finish: Very fine, wormwood coats the tongue nicely but is not overwhelming. Other ingredients come together nicely. No ill aftereffects. Another good, clean grain spirit base that does not interfere with the stars of the show, the fresh herbs, some of which are allegedly organically grown at the distiller's estate.
Overall: Pacifique has earned a fan. I would like to have some of this on hand at all times. It is THE absinthe now commercially available in the USA that is closest to the true 19th century French style — and the herb complex is most fresh. "Il est sans parallèle." Once again, with this absinthe there is no hangover after drinking reasonable quantities because of "clean" quality of the grain alchohol base. Thank you Pacifique for a superior experience.
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| Overall rating: |
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4.5 |
| Color: |
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4.0 |
| Louche: |
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4.0 |
| Aroma: |
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4.0 |
| Flavor: |
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5.0 |
| Finish: |
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5.0 |
| Overall: |
|
5.0 |
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Pacifique Is Wonderful Stuff
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3 of 5 people found the following review helpful
I love this absinthe.
The color is that of natural lime juice. Natural and clear.
The aroma is inviting. Somebody worked hard on this one. The word elegant comes to mind. A warm rich anise, alpine florals and light spice. During the louche, it opens up, and the wormwood becomes more clear. Very nice.
The louche develops evenly and slowly, creamy greens and whites are lovely to watch. Modest trails give way to smoky clouds and billows in a slow dramatic display.
The flavor profile is well balanced and gentle, there is a lot going on in this absinthe. Nothing overpowers, all elements working together for a delicious experience. Soft quality wormwood, anise and fennel in harmony, with a light spice, and pepper on the edges.
Finish is very nice. Gentle floral and herbal elements, lingering fennel...Soft and sophisticated. It stays with you just right, with the gentlest of bitter, ending in a nice light powder that makes you want more.
I love that they use organic herbs, and grow much of their own. This is one of my favorites.
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| Overall rating: |
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4.5 |
| Color: |
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4.0 |
| Louche: |
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4.0 |
| Aroma: |
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5.0 |
| Flavor: |
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5.0 |
| Finish: |
|
5.0 |
| Overall: |
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4.0 |
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Surprising Pacifique
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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Color is a medium peridot. It's radiant refractive and appealing. The louche is an excellent gradual development with lots of delicate snowy cloud action, and ending up with a delightful thickness, with lovely opalescence. Color after water is peridot with white shades, with excellent reflection of a creamy gradient green. The aroma neat is of an alpine meadow and louched it opens up with a balanced scent of anise, fennel and wormwood. It is extremely balanced with a fresh clean nose. Mouth feel is creamy soft and full. The taste is balanced with soft delicious herbal notes. Slight spiciness with a sweet fruity tinge..a nice balanced wormwood finish. An excellent, delightful, fresh absinthe. The alpine herbal, sweet tinged flavor with the excellent wormwood finish is superb.
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| Overall rating: |
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4.5 |
| Color: |
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4.0 |
| Louche: |
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4.0 |
| Aroma: |
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5.0 |
| Flavor: |
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5.0 |
| Finish: |
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5.0 |
| Overall: |
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4.0 |
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Beautiful Pacifique
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
very cold water drip to 3.5:1 and then additional water to probably 4:1, no sugar
color: beautiful clear green, slightest hint of yellow/gold. Not the deepest color I've seen but by no means pale. Very attractive, natural, and appropriate.
nose (neat): soft and clean, nothing sharp or funky. You wouldn't guess this is 62% alc. it's so pleasant and easy to smell. Nicely herbal, you can find the anise in there and maybe I'm getting a notion of citrus. I'll get into the aroma more after the louche.
louche: not a super thick louche, but use very cold water and take your time and you will be rewarded. Nice swirling, slow building cloudiness with good layering. At 3:1 or so appears fairly thin and more translucent than most, but color is very nice and the glass is attractive. Hints of blue, I'm still trying to get a handle on "opalescence" and this may be it.
aroma: my (in)experience is letting me down here. The aroma is wonderful and inviting. Maybe I picked up some mint and citrus, thought once there was a hint of cut celery, but really, just an extremely pleasant anise and herbal aroma. It's the kind of thing where rather than trying to critically analyze the aroma, you just want to smell it and smile. I'm unable to pick out any individual aromas beyond the familiar anise/fennel.
flavor: wonderful. This is an anise drink, as absinthe should be, but by no means one-dimensional; there's very nice herbal character supporting the anise, and a good balancing wormwood bitterness. Very nice mouthfeel, feels richer than the post-louche appearance led me to believe.
finish: long and well balanced. Mildy pleasant tongue clinging and numbing. Leaves a refreshed feeling in the mouth. Cool, sweet, and clean.
overall: Pacifique is incredible, nothing more needs to be said. To my taste it leans towards the delicate/feminine side, and seems to be an amazing feat of balancing complexity and restraint. This is easily up there in the top tier of absinthes I've tasted.
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| Overall rating: |
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4.5 |
| Color: |
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4.0 |
| Louche: |
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4.0 |
| Aroma: |
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5.0 |
| Flavor: |
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5.0 |
| Finish: |
|
5.0 |
| Overall: |
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4.0 |
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High Quality US Absinthe
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Color- Very nice green. Not a true peridot but closer to a more pale ‘green amethyst’ like color. There are a few sprinkles of sediment at the bottom of the glass.
Louche- Oil trail action starts at about 1/1. Nothing too crazy in terms of cascading explosions. A little weak but I’m really nitpicking. There are pretty gold and blue refractions under natural light.
Aroma- I get a sweet, candy-like vanilla scent. Very refined and not cheap smelling at all. Deeper aromas of anise, fennel and melissa invite you to start drinking this stuff.
Flavor- Anise, fennel and a mid-palate wormwood bite are all in harmony here. Different depths of melissa are present depending on the sip. Some mint and hyssop round out the flavors and linger on to the finish. This absinthe is both savory and fresh at the same time. Very pleasant and extremely complex- I’m having trouble picking out all of the flavors and describing them.
Finish- I primarily get anise and melissa with some quality wormwood bite. One of the longest finishes I’ve experienced.
Overall- This is a top-tier absinthe. A few improvements in the color or louche would put this in the elite category. This is a great value, at least in the ‘absinthe world.’ Pick it up.
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| Overall rating: |
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4.5 |
| Color: |
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4.0 |
| Louche: |
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4.0 |
| Aroma: |
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5.0 |
| Flavor: |
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5.0 |
| Finish: |
|
5.0 |
| Overall: |
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4.0 |
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Pacifique is nearly perfect
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Color: Pacifique has a natural-looking peridot color that is a little bit lighter than what I believe could be considered 'perfect' for a verte. Nevertheless, it is very appealing, with no visible sediment nor much in the way of haziness. The green edges toward a golden straw color as it is louched.
Louche: Oily curls evolve into bell-shaped cascades about the time that the water-to-absinthe ratio reaches 1:1. After that, the bells thicken and blossom briefly into opalescent clouds which beatifully refract blue and green hues, remaining active until nearly 3:1. The entire process is engaging, but not easily seen without good lighting.
Aroma: The green anise in Pacifique is most notable for its restraint, with herbs such as fennel and coriander being more prominent. The overall aroma is complex but unified, with no simple scent of alcohol to distract from it.
Flavor: Pacifique has an excellent, well-balanced flavor. The bitterness of the wormwood and (to a lesser extent) the hyssop blends wonderfully with the comparitively subdued anise and fennel, with hints of melissa. There is a slight mintiness that I would also attribute to the hyssop, with coriander acting as the fulcrum over which the entirety hinges.
Finish: The mouthfeel leaves a pleasant aftertaste of coriander that lingers just long enough to make you want another sip.
Overall: Pacifique is a marvelous absinthe full of subtle complexity that I would heartily recommend to anyone. The fact that it is produced using organic botanicals is a testimony to the dedication to quality that is apparent in every sip. I've sampled this on three separate occasions over the past three days, and am still working on the full flavor profile, but that's partly because I'm new at tasting absinthe. To date, though, this is the best absinthe I've had, being noticeably better than Lucid and Obsello.
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| Overall rating: |
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4.6 |
| Color: |
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4.0 |
| Louche: |
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4.0 |
| Aroma: |
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5.0 |
| Flavor: |
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5.0 |
| Finish: |
|
4.0 |
| Overall: |
|
5.0 |
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A good, delicate flavor.
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3 of 7 people found the following review helpful
I found the Pacifique to be well done, but it probably will never be a favorite of mine. It begins a pale shade of peridot. The color before water is attractive but not as intense as some other absinthes. With the addition of water, a pleasant louche forms. The final color is a very slightly greenish white, not very different from a typical blanche. The louche is a bit on the thin side.
The aroma of the Pacifique is its best feature. There is a nice, clean and delicate spice which is very pleasing. One detects a hint of pepper in the aroma, but nothing too intense or distracting. In the flavor and finish, the pepper comes through even more, and I was reminded a bit of Lucid, though Pacifique's flavor is more subtle and refined. The finish is very similar to the overall taste, with pepper being the predominant note.
Overall, I like this absinthe fairly well, and its certainly a good value for the money. However, it falls a bit short of the standard set by the top-tier absinthes available in the US.
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| Overall rating: |
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3.9 |
| Color: |
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3.0 |
| Louche: |
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3.0 |
| Aroma: |
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5.0 |
| Flavor: |
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4.0 |
| Finish: |
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4.0 |
| Overall: |
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4.0 |
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Magnifique Pacifique!
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
-Color-
Before Water: Pale, amber with just a hint of green. Perhaps on the side of too pale, but still vibrant. Most doses are perfectly clear, but some do have tiny specks of particulate.
After Water: The green comes out a bit more in a light lime straw hue. To me this is a perfect balance between opaque and translucent- truly opalescent, has a way of glowing with whatever light is in the room.
-Louche-
Trails are not thick, but finely detailed, forming mini layers of clear jellies. A slow forming, but well defined fog-bank displays a nice bit of bounce and grows at a perfect measured pace. With good light, I can actually see the louche action roiling away UNDERNEATH the fog at the bottom of the glass. From start to finish, the louche is on the delicate side- but in a complex and pleasing way.
-Aroma-
Before Water: A brisk sweetness with earthy, vaguely cinnamon notes.
After Water: The alpine briskness is here, but there are also fruity herbal notes and a big background of powdery floral sweetness that I believe comes from the hyssop. It’s clean, refreshing and rich all at the same time.
-Flavor-
Not knowing what Pacifique or what the Montpelier style tasted like before this release, I was expecting a wormwood bomb. However I was also surprised by the initially powerful and strident, yet paradoxically transparent anethole section of the trio.
With only a short period of breathing, the supporting herbal hymns and baby powder hyssop come forth. It is amazing how well balanced the ingredients are, yet I am constantly getting glints of nuances from each of the flavors. This is also one of the freshest, most “alpine” tasting absinthes I’ve had.
Not the creamiest mouthfeel, but very smooth and refined, it has more of a satin character. Seamlessly transitions into the softly dry finish.
-Finish-
The wonderful lingering finish caries the alpine and floral notes for a long time. Here the excellent wormwood blend is showcased not only as minty on the high end with a savory bitterness in the back, but also a tasty herbaceous quality right before the bitter kicks in.
-Overall-
A learned colleague of mine described this absinthe as elegant. I could not agree more- alpine elegance in a glass. With the possible exception of pre-ban vintage, it doesn’t getter better than this folks.
Notes: Various ratios from 3:1 to 4:1. Multiple glasses louched with fountain and brouille drips, as well as poors via sports bottle, carafe and pitcher; no sugar.
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| Overall rating: |
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4.8 |
| Color: |
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4.0 |
| Louche: |
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5.0 |
| Aroma: |
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5.0 |
| Flavor: |
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5.0 |
| Finish: |
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5.0 |
| Overall: |
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5.0 |
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A New Member Of The Top Echelon
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8 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Color
Neat, the color is a light medium yellow/gold tinged green. Sparkling, flawless clarity and unquestionably natural looking. Louched, the overall tone is that of creamy light celadon with gold/amber highlights. Ample translucence lights it up nicely, and there is a subtle opalescence of whitish blue at the edges and meniscus, and some interior fire under good light.
Louche
Good thick cascades (rather than trails) with pretty refractions. Clouding on the bottom sets up at about .5/1, top layer shortly thereafter. The layering here is not as defined as the most impressive louches I’ve seen, but lovely nonetheless. Make sure your water is very cold for this.
Aroma
Neat, very, very clean anise/fennel with herbal background. Louched, WOW!… start by paying a lot of attention. The balance here is such that one must really dig to find the individual components. They are present and detectable. The fruity, round combination of the anise and fennel lays down a solid foundation for the wormwood, pontica, and hyssop to come up front slightly and really sing. A little citrus, flowers, and spice on backing vocals.
Flavor
Like the nose, an attack of very round anise and fennel. Slightly minty wormwood then takes the lead augmented by some spice and citrus. If you want to get that “baby powder” thing from hyssop, try this. Nice creamy mouthfeel, but not overdone… just right. Again, following the nose, very balanced, very clean.
Finish
At first the anise/ fennel combo increases just a little to a nice spicy prickle, and then the “baby powder” creeps. The finish is very long, and as it persists, there is a subtle growing tension between the anise/fennel and the wormwood. There is absolutely no drying and “pull” that is so prevalent in other absinthes. The “juiciness” of this finish could have me drinking this all night.
Overall
So clean, so balanced. Such a well integrated personality. Seamless nose, palate, finish. Not the most wildly complex I have had, but sometimes more is just more. Everything this does, it does so well. Recently, I tasted this first at the DUNY tasting in NYC where there were several top-notch absinthes being shown. It was equaled, perhaps, by a couple in differing styles but, in my opinion, it was exceeded by none.
1/30/10 Revisit – Yeah, it’s a tough job, but someone has to taste this from time to time. I sit here shaking my head, smiling, and awestruck. I just never get over how good this stuff is. As I do these “revisits”, I always form impressions of each review category, in order, and then read my original comments to see how it all squares. I changed one word and I moved one coma, for grammatical correctness. In the categories that didn’t score 5 (Color and Louche), I consider both to be more than adequate, given the style. In the categories that really count with me, for any beverage, (Aroma, Flavor, Finish), the 5s are so strong as to be without reservation. Therefore, I am changing my previous rating of 4 for “Overall” to a 5. There are other absinthes where I considered changing the “Overall” to a 5, but upon revisit, I did not. This is one where my first instinct, back on 5/09/09, was to award that 5, but I did not, at the time, to keep it consistent with the fact that I had never done so in any review. This is only the second 5 in that category I have ever awarded in 23 reviews. And from what I read and hear about recent production, I can’t wait to revisit this again. Congrats Marc… a true masterpiece.
Done with a 1 ounce dose, diluted 3/1, 3.5/1, and 4/1 and no sugar.
Pacifique 5/06/09, 5/08/09, 5/09/09, 1/30/10
All evaluations had consistent notes.
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| Overall rating: |
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4.7 |
| Color: |
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4.0 |
| Louche: |
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4.0 |
| Aroma: |
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5.0 |
| Flavor: |
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5.0 |
| Finish: |
|
5.0 |
| Overall: |
|
5.0 |
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Pacific breeze
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Pacifique
Color: limey green, assuming its low strength its initial beauty has survived the dilution.
Louche: really spectacular, haven’t seen such a beautiful louche for ages.
Aroma: very crisp and inviting, fennely.
Flavor: robust and bold, the herbs themselves present in a staccato sequence that finishes as
a soft balance.
Finish: long-lingering, not to too heavy, spicy-dry-bitter in that order.
Overall impression:
Perfect representation of Montpellier. Has a character and very strong, concentrated personality. Reasonably-priced it should become an absinthe chosen over others on the American market.
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| Overall rating: |
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4.6 |
| Color: |
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5.0 |
| Louche: |
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5.0 |
| Aroma: |
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4.0 |
| Flavor: |
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4.0 |
| Finish: |
|
5.0 |
| Overall: |
|
5.0 |
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Perfection
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12 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Where to begin?
Although just a wee bit on the pale side, the color is a vibrant, refractive peridot green that I find immensely appealing.
The louche is a beauteous unfolding thing with lots of delicate snow globe action, which eventually clouds over to a fairly thick luminescent opalescence, although it could be a bit thicker.
The aroma neat is like an alpine meadow with relatively soft alcohol showing through. As the louche commences, this fragrance opens up wonderfully, revealing an incredibly balanced, and rounded herbal perfume (not a literal perfume, as in L'Italienne), and one can discern beautiful Andalusian (and somewhat fruity) anise, fruity fennel, a good hint of angelica, and an absolutely amazing soft talc-like hyssop. These aromatics carry over into the flavor almost seamlessly, and while each herb can be savored on its own, one has to taste "hard" because the flavors quickly blend back into a (at the risk of repeating myself) seamless whole. The finish is long, but could have a bit more duration and intensity. The mouth feel is not the creamiest I've ever experienced, but it is perfect for the flavors that it supports, and there's an exquisite "softness"to the Pacifique that I find adds even more to its appeal.
This would be my idea of the perfect absinthe, if it were only a bit less delicate. It is like sipping, and savoring a bright, happy, alpine meadow in May, and every time I louche a glass, it awakens my senses teasingly, and leaves me quite happy, but for the slight desire that it was a tad fuller, and richer.
Thank you, Marc, for bringing this beautiful rendition of the Montpelier style to fabulous fruition!
Edit...Having recently tried the latest run of Pacifique, I must upgrade my score to a perfect 5.0. The color has become a more vibrant peridot, the louche is fuller (not thick, but perfect for the style), and the flavor is livelier, and richer.
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| Overall rating: |
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5.0 |
| Color: |
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5.0 |
| Louche: |
|
5.0 |
| Aroma: |
|
5.0 |
| Flavor: |
|
5.0 |
| Finish: |
|
5.0 |
| Overall: |
|
5.0 |
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