Prepared 3:1 (water:absinthe) with one sugar cube on a slow drip.

The pre-louche color is a deep, rich jade. Well accomplished, to be certain. In examining the bottle there is a bit of visible sediment, which, for me personally, lends to the overall impression of this absinthe as a very ‘earthy’ creation.

The pre-louche aroma is fairly intense, with a fair bit of heat on the nose, but with some pleasant, readily detectable wormwood and an array of other herbs and spices. I wouldn’t describe these as ‘meadow herbs,’ per se, but the overall aroma is something more dark and earthy than woodsy. My guess is that the tarragon is a key component of this.

The louche was speedy, with some decent swirling, but a very quick dissipation – a little too quick for my taste. Nothing remarkable in this department, I’m afraid. The ending color is a decent milky green.

The aroma opens up a bit and softens, post-louche. Some of the more unusual herbs in this earthy concoction are then fairly readily distinguishable.

This absinthe has a truly unique flavor. While it is not at all traditional, it is definitely intriguing. The basil and tarragon are both definitely detectable (perhaps a little too much so), and unfortunately much of the wonderful wormwood I expected based upon the initial aroma gets lost amidst these other herbs in the tasting. Throughout the glass I kept wondering at a particularly mysterious herb flavor, which I could not place. It was almost musty, but not in a bad way. I don’t know how else to describe it other than truly unique, as I had not tasted this in any absinthe before (or in anything else, for that matter). After I finished the glass I went to the bottle to read the list of herbal ingredients – which, by the way, are conveniently printed in nice, bold font on the side of the bottle – in order to determine what this mysterious flavor was. The last herb listed there was ‘stinging nettle,’ and, since I am familiar with the flavor of all the other herbs listed save this one, I can only assume that the unique flavor of this verte comes from the inclusion of the nettle, in addition to the basil and tarragon. The overall flavor, after letting it sit on the tongue a bit, is somewhat rounded out with hyssop, lemon balm and star anise, but, again, the wormwood is buried, which to me is one of the primary faults of this absinthe.

The finish is, unfortunately, rather poor. The tongue-numbing is substantial – a little too substantial to warrant an acceptable rating in this department. The only thing I found at all pleasant about the finish was the aftertaste of that mysterious herb – presumably the stinging nettle. Personally, I found this intriguing enough for it to be enjoyable, despite the otherwise slightly over-heated and excessively numbing components of the finish.

In conclusion, though it certainly has its drawbacks, this is a truly unique absinthe, and worth trying at least once. For me the experience was enjoyable, and while I would not likely spring for a bottle, this seems like a verte that could be well enjoyed from time to time, simply for its unique – if not occasionally puzzling – attributes alone.

I received a 4 oz sample of the St George from a friend. I think it is the second batch. It was diluted 4:1.



The color out of the bottle was a nice amber feuille mort, very nice. Clear, clean, without sediment.



I'm only rating the louche a "3" as it was far too fast, and too heavy. Looking at the finished louche there are some golden highlights within it, and some blueness at the air-water interface. But I just didn't find the louche action itself very interesting. It just went very quickly to a heavy opaque cloud rising from the bottom.



I rated the aroma only "3" again as it really wasn't very strong, or floral. Definitely seems like some alcohol on the aroma and some other notes. But it wasn't something to make you say oh, that's nice, and promise something for when you drink it.



On the flavor, a "3" again. It's mostly star anise, which is much less interesting than green anise, with some brandy notes, and a bit of the other herbs. There's no wormwood to speak of that I can tell. When I took the first sip, swirled it around, chewed it, my response was "That's it?" Lots of tongue numbing from the star anise, but at least it doesn't scrape across the tongue leaving incisions in it's wake like star anise can do. There's no sense of tails, and the drink is quite smooth. So it's very drinkable.



Again a "3" for the finish. Too much star anise, some tingling, a little bit of the mouth saying "yes that's nice". But I can feel that it's fading already. In a couple minutes it may be gone.



Overall a "3". I couldn't find myself giving it a "2" as I did finish my drink. I didn't find it as terrible as my friend. It's somewhat unusual, but I really find the major flaw to be too much reliance on star anise. More AA would be good, but it really seems more like what pastis might be like. Maybe a very good one. I'm not so familiar with pastis so I can't comment further.



If I was going to buy just absinthes available on my local store shelves, I would keep this around. It's certainly well made, and a pleasant, easy to consume drink. If the flavor and finish were more like absinthe, and there were more of those qualities, I'd probably rate it a "4". Because it's so anethole dominant, it probably doesn't seem as weird as some have said. At least not to me.

Thanks to the generosity of a fellow WS member, I eagerly awaited this absinthe, but was ultimately disappointed. The aroma, while room-filling, was decidedly off-putting, reminding me of dandelions. This aroma has presented itself before in the Matter products, but not to nearly this degree. The color was beautiful though, and the louche was thick but fast and lacking in opalescence. Good wormwood bite in the finish though, perhaps the best thing about this absinthe.



Ultimately I feel that, while clearly a very well made absinthe, the ingredient choices put it beyond even quirky absinthes like the Montemarte and the Eichelberger Verte, into another realm altogether. Just not to my taste at all.

colour is right, some golden reflections, ends gray green that is helluva opaque

Louche is THICK as hell, badiane excess's evident
Aroma:

Huh? Sage, pine, nothing like absinthe

Tasting:

Ewww, cloying, not alcoholic, but very grassy and heavy. There is everything we know from kitchen, but not from absinthe.

Interesting herbal liqueur, but too weird and too sweet for a herbal liqueur even. Have no idea whjat in reality it is

The finish of this absinthe has got a heat I am not sure I care for. Almost black pepper and minty at the same time. I find this absinthe more enjoyable when sipped with sugar in an absinthe pipe and a splash of water than prepared the traditional way.





[editor's note: There is no such thing as an absinthe pipe. The tourist gimmicks being sold as absinthe pipes are actually port sippers. Absinthe should not be drunk neat. ~ Hiram]