Désirée - Reviewed by Experts and Consumers at The Wormwood Society

 
4.3 (2)
 
3.2 (2)
0

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Wormwood Society Editor Comments
Another absinthe in the Les Parisiennes line developed for the Verte d'Absinthe shop. This one has been aged for one year prior to bottling and uses a 1908 recipe and a wine alcohol base.

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Editor reviews

4 reviews
Overall rating
 
4.3
 
4.0(2)
 
4.0(2)
 
5.0(2)
 
4.0(2)
 
4.0(2)
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Nice.
(Updated: October 29, 2024)
Overall rating
 
4.4
Appearance
 
4.0
Louche
 
4.0
Aroma
 
5.0
Flavor / Mouthfeel
 
5.0
Finish
 
4.0
Overall
 
4.0
The colour is a fuille morte olive. More green around the edges and brownish in the middle. Clear with no sediment. It has a very pronounced-smelling wine base. Spicy, but with subdued absinthe herbs.

The louche is quick, thick, and full. Golden with a green sheen, but a tad too dark.
With water it smells primarily of fruity anise and floral wormwood. Cinnamon and lime notes, but foresty.

It has a very sweet and full character. The floral quality of the wormwood stands out immediately but the strongest flavour is the juicy green anise. Not terribly bitter. Complex but difficult to pick out the subtleties. Outside of the anise everything is very well blended.

It's a bit more numbing than appropriate with a very mouth-coating texture. Wormwood comes more to the front during the finish but it isn't as complex or long lasting as hoped.

There are things that can be nit-picked but taken as a whole it's really a very impressive and delightful absinthe. It's foresty and wintry, exactly what I'd want on a cold, dark day. I'm finding it very similar to L'Enjoleuse.
A
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A powerful, assertive absinthe!
(Updated: October 29, 2024)
Overall rating
 
4.2
Appearance
 
4.0
Louche
 
4.0
Aroma
 
5.0
Flavor / Mouthfeel
 
4.0
Finish
 
4.0
Overall
 
4.0
Color: Similar to other Parisiennes. Dark and mysterious.

Louche: Thick and turbulent. A real treat to watch. A pleasant green when finished.

Aroma: Sweet and almost 'cinnamony', with the wine base showing through along with anise, wormwood, and baking spices.

Flavor: Powerful and spicy at 3:1. Mouthfilling and intense. White pepper and wormwood followed up by the smoothness of anise. At 4:1, the spiciness tones down a bit and the anise comes through more. Floral and citrussy.

Finish: Spice and wormwood linger nicely with a pleasant astringency. Dense and rich, coating the tongue.

Overall: A dense and assertive absinthe. Certainly not for the faint of heart, but absolutely delicious if you're into strong, herbaceous flavors highlighted by the big flavors of the base alcohol. For me, a winter absinthe. Definitely a keeper!
B
#1 Reviewer 174 reviews
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User reviews

2 reviews
Overall rating
 
3.2
Appearance
 
3.0(2)
Louche
 
3.0(2)
Aroma
 
3.3(2)
Flavor / Mouthfeel
 
3.0(2)
Finish
 
3.5(2)
Overall
 
3.3(2)
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Licorice and candy.
(Updated: October 29, 2024)
Overall rating
 
3.3
Appearance
 
3.0
Louche
 
3.0
Aroma
 
3.5
Flavor / Mouthfeel
 
3.0
Finish
 
4.0
Overall
 
3.5
Appearance: I'm not entirely sure how old the absinthe I'm drinking is, but it's a fairly bland-looking fuille morte topaz border on a dark olive...TOO dark.

Louche: Pretty milk and dense when louched...turning an unpleasing color of scrambled eggs that have been cooked too long. There are some orange reflections, but it's not luminous enough to turn the glass into an appealing shade.

Aroma: Smells a bit more like star anise than anything else, although there's some backing musky fennel and some floral elements, along with a candied citrus essence.

Flavor/Mouthfeel: Anise-heavy, but I like the candied orange and lemon peel flavors. All the flavors that the absinthe should have are definitely present, but they're not anywhere near being as balanced as I would wish.

Finish: Not a bad finish, slightly perfumed and more citrus, and it's fresh and clean, but my tongue feels a bit abused from the anise onslaught that was so dominant in the flavor.

Overall: I like this one the best of the Paul Devoille absinthes that I have tasted, but I feel like it still could use a little more work.
A
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Thickness.
(Updated: October 29, 2024)
Overall rating
 
3.0
Appearance
 
3.0
Louche
 
3.0
Aroma
 
3.0
Flavor / Mouthfeel
 
3.0
Finish
 
3.0
Overall
 
3.0
Appearance: On the darker and heavier side of peridot. Clean, clear, and appearing dead leaf.

Louche: Way too thick. Unlike other star anise efforts that leave at least some translucence, this is straight up opaque. It looks like a monotone, thick, yellow milk.

Aroma: Star anise and coriander backed up by some wormwood. At first it doesn't seem too complex but with some searching you can find unbalanced citrus and fall spice notes digging under the repressive badine wall.

Flavor: Again, the star anise seems to block the complexity that this absinthe has. I hear soft screams of a sugary-citrus, baking spice, and a wormwood flavor behind the locked jail door.

Finish: The finish is appropriate in length but carries a slight astringency and leaves my tongue feeling like I ate too much candy. Not bad but not good.

Overall: This is drinkable but nothing I would go through any trouble to obtain. The star anise use is unbalanced and causes the drinker to put an effort into finding other flavors. The spice use seems interesting, I just wish it was more balanced.
E
Top 10 Reviewer 62 reviews
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