Fresh out of the bottle, Ridge Blanche is clear as water, and very aromatic. I slowly dripped water from a partially frozen water bottle and the kitchen was graced with a subtle scent of anise and wormwood. When I finished watering at about 4.5:1.

The louche forms very nicely, and finishes just early enough to make me nervous. Upon tasting a later batch, the louche is quite nice, and thicker than what I remember. (Edit:I recently did a side by side comparison and the flavor is similar, but the louche is vastly improved.I don't know what Team Ridge changed, but it's a hell of an improvement. Thanks!).

The flavor is excellently balanced, very professional. The combination of the herbs blend harmoniously with one another in a bouquet of herbal and alpine wonder. The flavor of the wormwood is very nice, not too minty, not too bitter-but it's there. It doesn't try to dominate the palate, but it is noticeable and blends nicely with notes of anise/fennel and a number of other herbs I can't quite identify. It has elements of branch, leaf, flower and just a tiny little bit of root, so it really does taste like a French or Swiss meadow to me.

To me the finish has less of the wormwood and other alpine flavors, mostly leaving flavors of anise, fennel and melissa.


Overall- I'd recommend this absinthe to anyone interested in absinthe. I think it'd be an excellent starter for anyone who hasn't had it before and I think it would be great for experienced absinthe drinkers. I find it highly refreshing and not lacking at all. It's clear to me by the flavor alone that a lot of time and effort has gone into getting this blanche to where it is today and I really dig that.