This infuriates me. The word absinthe has no place on this attractive bottle full of bad mouthwash.

The color may as well come out of a bottle of scope, which by the way tastes better than this, and claims in no way to be absinthe.

As far as aroma, it is a portent of things to come. Things I didn't want. I had no sense that this would resemble absinthe in any way. It smelled like another concoction, and one that some might enjoy, just not me.

Flavor. Yikes. alcohol, bad mint-like touches, after-shave, chemicals and confusion.
It in fact might pass as a different drink, and rate better. As an absinthe however, a 1 is fair.

Louche was thin, but it almost happened. A weak cloud formed.

Finish. Yes, it almost finished me. I simply can't think of anything to say here.

Overall, this is an insult to absinthe. Call it anything else for the love of God, but not absinthe. I can actually imagine people drinking this and enjoying it. Sad, but true. What was it P. T. Barnum said? Not one person in the room was able to drink more than a sip or two. They were being generous.

I received a sample of LTV from a friend. It was sent in an amber bottle, so I couldn't see the color. I poured out a 20 ml dose, and watered 4:1.

I actually laughed out loud at the color when I poured it into the glass. It's completely artificial. On that basis perhaps I should have rated it a "2", however the color wasn't green, but some kind of blue green, a turquoise color. After some thought, I'll keep it at a 1 simply because I actually laughed.

LTV louches, but ends up being kind of transparent in some ways, but in others it seems opaque. Like I can't actually see through it. If I hold an absinthe spoon in the middle of the glass of louched absinthe it is hazy, and on the far side of the glass I only see the spoon a little. There is no opaline character to the louche, but there was a nice band separating the louched from unlouched drink that went on for a while.

The aroma begins to tell you that something isn't right. Room filling but with a minty mouthwash aroma. There's no detectable alcohol aroma, just this head cleaning mint (eucalyptus I believe).

The taste. Laughing again. The flavors are very thin. Like a lightly flavored vodka perhaps. That mint aroma is very strongly there in the flavor of course. There are at least two other flavors that I notice, but they aren't familiar to me. A strong citrus note, lemony comes to mind. I can't give this a "1" as the taste isn't unpleasant per se. It really seems more like a mouthwash. There isn't any harsh alcohol burn, so that's good. Now it's effecting my nasal passages. Yes it's eucalyptus. I can see I'm not going to finish this glass of "absinthe". I am going to rate this a "1" as I drink a bit more the flavors become more unpleasant.

The finish recedes quickly (thankfully) but not quickly enough, so I had to rate this a "1" because it's so wrong. It's not like a finish of absinthe. There ends up being some bitter notes on the tongue. Not AA like bitterness, but more like you bit on a lemon peel. After a while there's some numbing on the outer gums which is definitely not normal. The mintiness of the eucalyptus gets on the tongue and into the nose. Now I hope the finish will go away because it's just not what it's supposed to be.

I don't detect any wormwood. Not much anise, or the eucalyptus so overpowers everything else in this drink that it's really eucalypte not absinthe. This beverage could be fixed. If the other qualities had been more absinthe-like, I could forgive the funny color. I kept wanting to give a "2" in a rating, but as I drank it, it became more and more unpleasant. This was true with the aroma, taste and finish. If the finish didn't linger so long (over the course of drinking it) it would be more tolerable.

I'd say overall it doesn't qualify as absinthe. As an absinthe it's unacceptable = "1". As an unusual beverage there may be people who will find the eucalyptus/mint flavor pleasant I presume. I did not. In the end I poured my drink out. I doubt I drank even 1/3rd of it. If you're looking for absinthe, you'll have to try another brand.

I gave this a 2 for color because even though it looks totally fake, it's kind of intriguing/different. There is a debate out there (not on this site) on whether this is absinthe or not. It is definitely not. Don't believe any bartender or liquor store clerk tell you otherwise. It has none of the characteristics of even a good synthetic (fake) absinthe. As everyone says, it smells and tastes more like mouth wash. It allegedly contains wormwood, but I couldn't taste it. One reviewer thought this product was all-around pretty comical; he obviously didn't pay for it. I wish I could've tried it first.



If you want an absinthe substitute, go with Absente or Pernod; both are considerably better tasting and at least a little bit like absinthe. I was unable to finish this drink.

This was my third venture into the world of absinthe and I'm still somewhat of a newcomer. I lucked up and got a bottle of this for $35 on sale at my local liquor store. Although its not technically an absinthe I think its getting a bit of a bad rap.

The color you will definitely notice is very altered (it even includes a sticker on the bottle identifying the food colorings added). I was a little taken aback by this initially. Its a beautiful color, but not the color of absinthe

The louche, as some have mentioned, is not very impressive. Just a slow turn to slightly cloudy. Its still retains the bright blue color even afterwards.

The pre-louche aroma is nice. Anise with some mintyness.

The post-louche aroma is mingled with all sorts of herbal goodness. The anise is light, but still detectable.

The taste is an easy, sweet, and an herbally complex flavor. I really enjoy it. It has a lasting mint flavor and is quite refreshing. Its very different from any other absinthe that I've had.

The finish fades quickly. Like I said, its very easy to drink, but no real lasting tastes, except maybe mint. I feel the alcohol is balanced well compared to some that have a harsh alcohol taste after.

Overall I feel its a decent absinthe like product. It may not be "real" absinthe, but its still a nice tasting, refreshing drink. I recommend trying it if you can get a bottle for under $45.

(edit)
I've changed some of my scores having a little more experience with some nice traditional absinthes. This is still a tasty beverage, but it really is a sad excuse for absinthe. Enjoyable in its own right, but terrible as an absinthe.

Thanks once again for the generous(?) contribution of a sample.

The Color is blue. What gives?

The Louche is thin and neither here nor there.

The Aroma is like Aqua Velva. Or old Spice, whatever.

The Flavor is nothing like any real Absinthe I have tasted,straight-up Wrong. I don't even know where to begin.

The Finish is characterized by a quick receding, but it should be much more quick.

Overall, this drink should be avoided by anyone seeking a pleasant drinking experience. I couldn't even get a quarter of the way through this drink. I simply see no reason to subject myself or anyone else to this.