Wormwood Blanche - Reviewed by Experts and Consumers at The Wormwood Society

 
3.7 (3)
 
3.6 (10)
0

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Degrees ABV (% alcohol)
Year of Make (if known)
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Editor reviews

6 reviews
Overall rating
 
3.7
 
4.3(3)
 
2.3(3)
 
4.0(3)
 
4.0(3)
 
4.0(3)
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When Life Is Like A Box Of Absinthes
(Updated: October 29, 2024)
Overall rating
 
3.5
Appearance
 
4.0
Louche
 
3.0
Aroma
 
3.0
Flavor / Mouthfeel
 
3.0
Finish
 
4.0
Overall
 
4.0
Appearance
Unlouched, crystal clear and haze free. The ever so slightest golden tint, however nearly colorless. Louched, grey/blue tinted white with a golden undertone. Some glints of violet, gold, orange, and rose.

Louche
Surprisingly, more louche than I was expecting. Takes a little bit to get going (75% and limited anethole). On the very translucent end of the acceptable spectrum. Moderate opalescence with pretty pastel colors.

Aroma
Holy wormwood, Batman! There's a reason for the name. Yep, there are other herbs present, but they're just living in wormwood's world. Very fruity, floral, slightly minty wormwood with just enough other support to legitimize this as absinthe. As it really warms, it becomes very flowery and powdery.

Flavor
Big wormwood with a thin wrapper of anise, fennel, and other herbs. A slight fine chalky texture to the mouthfeel. A little minty with subtle underlying spice. This is really all about the wormwood, and it delivers.

Finish
The finish follows the palate vibe perfectly... wormwood, wormwood, and more wormwood. Slightly minty, spicy, and mentholated. Ever so slightly drying and pulling, balanced by salivary stimulation. A confectionery tinge. Good length.

Overall
Well wormwood fans, welcome to the orgy. Like going to wormwood boot camp. I wouldn't want it all the time, but I really wish I had another bottle. Due to its idiosyncrasies, the score is what it is and doesn't really reflect how much I like it. If I were to ignore the review guidelines and reflect just that, the score would be about a half-point higher. My favorite dilution is right up around 5:1, but I gotta' say that it showed nicely anywhere from about 4:1 and up. Remarkably there is no excessive heat from that point (surprising for a 75% offering). And while I don't usually comment on packaging, I must say that the wax-dipped and sealed screw-cap is an amusing touch. Just the way to add a bit of luxe to that closure.

Wormwood Blanche... tempting tipple or didactic distillation? I think maybe both. What I do know is if life is like a box of absinthes, when you pick the WW Blanche, you know exactly what you're gonna' get.

Done with .75 and 1 ounce doses, diluted 4:1, 4.3:1, 4.5:1, 5:1 and no sugar.

Wormwood Blanche 5/30/11, 7/10/11, 2/04/12.
All evaluations had consistent notes.
M
Top 10 Reviewer 45 reviews
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Very, very nice.
(Updated: October 29, 2024)
Overall rating
 
3.8
Appearance
 
5.0
Louche
 
2.0
Aroma
 
4.0
Flavor / Mouthfeel
 
4.0
Finish
 
4.0
Overall
 
4.0
Perfectly clear like water. The aroma is strong floral wormwood, a little chalky. Very light anise profile. The louche is attractive but pretty thin.

After water the wormwood aroma has transitioned from floral to more minty. As for the flavour, the wormwood is obviously completely dominating. This is a really good thing in my opinion, as not every absinthe should be perfectly balanced or attempt to clone each other. A bit on the bitter side. Lots of mintiness. The floral character of the wormwood comes through on the palate more than in most absinthes. Again, anise is very light and I'm having trouble even tasting it. It's crisp and clean with no trace of funk.

It has a very long wormwood finish, becoming fruity as it fades; I'm guess this is the anise but it's so light by that point it's hard to tell.

I'm very fond of this absinthe. I wish it were made available again.
A
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I want more
(Updated: October 29, 2024)
Overall rating
 
3.9
Appearance
 
4.0
Louche
 
2.0
Aroma
 
5.0
Flavor / Mouthfeel
 
4.0
Finish
 
4.0
Overall
 
4.0
This absinthe is all about one thing: featuring wormwood. Man, did it deliver.

Louche: Understandably, there wasn't much louche at all.

Aroma: HUGE Pontarlier Wormwood aroma. If you need an example of what Pontalier WW smells like, this is as good as you'll find.

Flavor: Rich, smooth and creamy with not much more than the wonderful wormwood bitterness in play. Very clean and crisp. Sugar will help to bring out the other flavors, but I'd rather not!

Finish: The WW taste lasts forever.

Overall: It's certainly not a balanced absinthe, but it was never intended to be. This was a celebration of the flowery, minty goodness of Pontarlier wormwood. I'm just upset there won't be any more.
B
#1 Reviewer 174 reviews
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User reviews

10 reviews
5 stars
 
0%
 
60%
 
40%
2 stars
 
0%
1 star
 
0%
Overall rating
 
3.6
Appearance
 
4.3(10)
Louche
 
3.1(10)
Aroma
 
3.9(10)
Flavor / Mouthfeel
 
3.5(10)
Finish
 
3.5(10)
Overall
 
3.5(10)
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What's in a name?
(Updated: October 29, 2024)
Overall rating
 
3.3
Appearance
 
4.0
Louche
 
3.0
Aroma
 
4.0
Flavor / Mouthfeel
 
3.0
Finish
 
2.5
Overall
 
3.0
-Color-
Before Water: Clear as a blanche should be.

After Water: Thin louche that’s more translucent than opaque. Reminds me of pre-2008sih Emile Pernot offerings.

-Louche-
Entertaining slow action but ultimately thin.

-Aroma-
Before Water: Concentrated aroma of floral fruity grande wormwood.

After Water: Less concentrated aroma of floral fruity wormwood. This is definitely some good wormwood that has enough going on to make me forget about anise and fennel or any other herbs, which are all hiding safely out of range.

-Flavor and Mouthfeel-
The flavor is that of floral fruity wormwood. There are also notes of floral fruity wormwood followed by floral fruity wormwood nuances. And I think some minty-ness as well. The body is pretty thin; seems like there’s just enough of the anethole section here to barely out hold it together and provide a louche, and that’s it.

-Finish-
Gosh that A.a. is nice but at this point the finish has become kinda cloying. A touch more minty tone makes it tolerable however. For me it seemed to fade out quickly instead of sing.

-Overall-
Well ya can’t accuse Wormwood Blanche of false advertising! It’s definitely a one trick pony, but nonetheless a pretty pony with wormwood flowers in it’s hair. If it wasn't a rare one-off product I’d recommend it as standard palate education for the great expression of distilled Pontarlier A. absinthium.

Notes: 3.5:1 water to absinthe, no sugar. 3.5 seemed like it was getting close to over watering for this one.
G
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Here's your Pontarlier wormwood
(Updated: October 29, 2024)
Overall rating
 
4.0
Appearance
 
4.0
Louche
 
3.0
Aroma
 
5.0
Flavor / Mouthfeel
 
4.0
Finish
 
4.0
Overall
 
4.0
I'm always open to an absinthe diverging from tradition if the concept is clear, and if it produces interesting and successful results. This is how I view this absinthe.

It is clearly a tribute to Pontarlier wormwood. As water is added, the wormwood literally jumps out of the glass and announces "I'm here." The louche is a tad on the thin side, but this is to be expected as anise plays a minor role here. As this is the concept, I have no problem with this point. I'd rather have it honest, than to see the maker put a star anise in just to thicken it up. It is a wonderful way to glean a clear understanding of this wormwood, and wormwood in general. Folks new to absinthe struggling to separate one element from another, will never wonder again about detecting wormwood in their absinthe. Aside from being quite good, it is a great educational tool for this reason.

The aroma and flavor are quite wonderful; clean, crisp, and vibrant. There is a slight astringency in the mouth, and the finish lingers forever, with a building citrus of epic proportions. For people who like strong spirits, it has heft, punch and power, yet there are surprisingly delicate elements as well. I tried it both with, and without sugar, and adding a touch of sugar brought out the florals without harming the intentions of this absinthe in any way.

It is a bold blanche, that makes a powerful statement, and a tasty one...if you enjoy wormwood, that is.
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that's what they call it.
(Updated: October 29, 2024)
Overall rating
 
3.5
Appearance
 
5.0
Louche
 
3.0
Aroma
 
3.0
Flavor / Mouthfeel
 
3.0
Finish
 
3.0
Overall
 
4.0
the color is perfectly crystal clear. An easy 5.

the louche is a bit weak, as is to be expected. Still, we have nice opalescence. I give it a 3.

the aroma neat is one of wormwood and alcohol and not much else. Louched, it opens up to wormwood and alcohol with a little teeny bit of anise and fennel. Not balanced, but not unpleasant. 3.

the flavor is not balanced in the traditional sense. The other herbs take a back seat like faceless sidemen in identical suits whilst the wormwood solos. And a long, loud, and brilliant solo it is. A 3 that is actually a 3.5 because of the tradition thing, but I'd give it a 4 myself.

the finish is lengthy and quite pleasant. A wonderful floral fruity dryness permeates, making the nasal exhale so nice. The sweetness comes way later, and I am sure sugar would help it along but I drink it sans sucre. A bit of astringency on the sides of the tongue as well, but not to the point of being a detriment. Technically a 3, personally a 4.

Overall, I give it a 4. A very interesting product that I would like to have a bit of for that special day when I want to be slapped across the face with some wormwood. After tasting a couple of HGs that were extremely wormwood forward I wondered just how far they could push it with the Artemisia. I'd say this is as far as I would want to go with it. Unless you want to call it something other than absinthe...
B
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W.O.W. (World Of Wormwood)
(Updated: October 29, 2024)
Overall rating
 
4.0
Appearance
 
5.0
Louche
 
3.0
Aroma
 
4.0
Flavor / Mouthfeel
 
4.0
Finish
 
4.0
Overall
 
4.0
COLOR: Absolutely crystal-clear.

LOUCHE: Actually more of a louche than I expected, considering the sparsity of the usual herb bill.

AROMA: Wormwood with a bit of mint underneath. None of the typical blanche "sweet" scent.

FLAVOR: Once again, mostly wormwood. Less bitter than you might think, with the lack of significant anise & fennel to counter the A.A.

FINISH: Warm and numbing, with a pleasant "bite".

OVERALL: This was a tricky one to score, as it is so purposely skewed toward the wormwood characteristic. My ratings, for aroma and flavor especially, take this into consideration. (What would be "unbalanced" in a more traditional formula is not necessarily so in this case.)
That being said, I enjoyed this unique sample, and I appreciate getting the chance to further "educate" my palate.
C
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So that is what good Wormwood tastes like!
(Updated: October 29, 2024)
Overall rating
 
3.7
Appearance
 
5.0
Louche
 
3.0
Aroma
 
4.0
Flavor / Mouthfeel
 
4.0
Finish
 
3.0
Overall
 
3.0
I was expecting a horrible wormwood bomb, but I quite liked it with or without sugar.

I could enjoy it on occasion on its own. A wonderful base, on which L'Artisanale builds upon.

there is a unique aroma/flavor that it shares with L'Artisanale. Not bad, but it does stand out.
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