-Color-
Before Water:
Very attractive and natural medium gem green.

After Water:
Louched glass presents a nice light green-olive color.

-Louche-
Good action, maybe on the quick side initially but the clear line stayed awhile. Final louche is on the thicker side.

-Aroma-
Before Water:
Pleasantly strong herbaceous and flowery citrus aroma. The punch of herbal notes reminds me a little of Helfrich Verte.

After Water:
More of the same with a little cinnamon and perhaps menthol.

-Flavor and Mouthfeel-
Very enjoyable and well balanced flavor, again with herbaceous and citric notes being in the forefront with a serving of sweetness. There is a bit of cinnamon spice and perhaps a little star anise- but not enough to annoy me as it usually does. Mouthfeel is neither thick nor thin, I’d it’s about right until the finish.

-Finish-
The citrus and wormwood bitterness are the primaries in the finish with the pinch of cinnamon becoming a bit spicier. The tongue numbing is a bit excessive and just slightly annoying, but thankfully the star anise seems to have been used sparingly.

-Overall-
Having heard that the Montmartre had declined in quality in recent years, I was very pleasantly surprised by this sample (ABSINTHEXPLORE sample from Absinthes.com). The only detractor was the star anise, but unless you can’t stand badiane in any amount, I don’t think it’ll spoil the drink for too many folks. If what I tasted is what’s in the full bottles currently available for purchase, I’d say it’s worth having in your absinthe stash.

Notes: 3.5:1, iced brouille.

Color- Dark peridot that is very vibrant- no sediment but there is just a hint of haze

Louche- Slow transition to a louche. Rather weak. Ends in green and gold refractions with light blue streaks.

Aroma- Wormwood & spice, some vanilla and mint. Very medicinal rather than herbaceous. I can’t detect much anise or fennel. Hints of Chinese five spice as well.

Flavor- Wormwood, flowery citrus and baking spices. Again, it appears to be missing some anise and fennel. All of these flavors come together to remind me of Angostura bitters.

Finish- Lingering wormwood, spice. At the same time the finish is soft and fruity. Very nice.

Overall- Enjoyable, even though the absinthe doesn’t take on a traditional profile. I can enjoy the idiosyncrasies and still know I’m actually drinking absinthe. I’m thinking this would be best consumed around the holidays due to the spicy attributes.

While in Switzerland I have had the opportunity of trying 1st Montmartre and 2nd Montmartre editions.

Whereas the 1st was highly idiosyncratic, 2nd one was better, yet not that good.

Colour is very pale and weak since absinthe is 65%, it is a serious flaw. Louche is very quick, thanks to badiane, yet not that tragic-not too quick.

Aroma is not bad, but not absinthe akin at all, it smells like freshly baked very spicy cake. Flavour is dull, slightly spicy with accentuated coriander and some unusual notes. The rest is not interesting. Although i liked 2nd than 1st edition, I am far from calling it a really good product. It is drinkable, interesting but owning to its idiosyncracity it is still some very unusual absinthe in the making.

Deuxieme Edition bottle opened 2/18/09, sugared sample reviewed 2/20/09, unsugared review sampled 3/11/09.

The color in the glass is a very light emerald, mildly attractive. The nose pre-louche is maple syrup and cinnamon with an alcohol backer. It louches up nicely, with good layering and "oil trails", fully louched by 1.5:1. Tasting at that point revealed that the alcohol was much too strong, so I continued watering it before consuming.

The first taste at 3.5:1 left a strong note of petroleum, both in the nose and on the tongue. It tastes strongly like Ronson brand lighter fluid smells. It's highly unpleasant. The finish is tart and oily on the sides of the tongue.

As a control, I made sure that the water and ice I'd used to louche were not compromised in any way. They tasted fine on their own, totally neutral. Can you tell I don't like this edition? The two samples were consistent tasting, both with and without sugar.

On a side note, I found that the cork was darkened by the absinthe about 0.25" (1cm) in from the bottom. Perhaps this bottle was stored on its side prior to shipping, and I am experiencing the effects of cork ruin. I will revisit this review after more exploration.

Pale olive before louche, this out-of-left-field absinthe tastes quite good neat. I could see it making for some interesting cocktails.

The louche is over quickly, without much in the way of trails, and the result is translucent and muted, almost as if the herbs have been taken from the morgue.

It smells more like a vegetable garden than a floral one, with the alcohol much more present before the louche. Afterwards, the aroma is more toned down and balanced. I don't smell much in the way of anise or wormwood, but I am getting plenty of vegetables with cinnamon.

This carries on to the flavour which makes the drink taste not very much like absinthe to this set of taste buds. There are subtle notes of anise and wormwood, but this is covered by the citrus, cinnamon and something very much like vegetable pulp (parsley mixed with celery?). The finish lingers well enough, but the citrus hangs around like an unwelcome guest, refusing to leave.

I'm a fan of cinnamon and that's what drew me to this drink, but I'm not very partial to citrus when it comes to absinthe. In fact, Montmartre reminds me of the horrible Doubs Premium from South Africa, even though it is much better crafted. I'd say Montmartre's second edition is not for everyone, but if you like citrus and cinnamon, as well as challenging your taste buds with something different, it's definitely worth a try.

Still, I have a feeling it's going to take me a long time to work through this bottle. Hopefully some cocktails will help that along nicely.

EDIT: I was under the impression that this was the second formulation but have since found that it is the Troisième edition.