Bottle first opened August 2007, current review based on December 2008 sample. [edit: bottle actually purchased 2007, not 2008 as originally noted.]

At first pour of the Pernod AEDPDA, the color is so impressively green that confirms the artificial augmentation. It's beautifully clear, however, and presents well. The nose is single-note anise, with a hot alcohol blast that burns the nostrils.

Loucheing at a medium drip (unsugared) produces a beautiful cascade of oil trails, with clouds that build from the bottom of the reservoir and keep a strong dividing line until almost 3:1. The green tinge remains in the fully-louched drink. The aroma is present, if not "room-filling". At least at this point the alcohol heat is tempered.

The first sip presents the anise again, with a touch of wormwood. It's not very tongue-numbing, nor particularly long-finished. It's simply a quick taste and then... little or nothing. Others have noted a touch of lemon on the finish, but I didn't notice it in my sample. Perhaps bottle age or a tweak of the recipe can explain this.

This is, overall, an unimpressive beverage, not one I'd share with a friend or a newbie. Compared with other absinthes currently available on American shelves, it comes up short. Too hot, too one-dimensional, too expensive for what you get.