After having been drinking this absinthe for quite a long time, I just now realized that I hadn't yet posted my review!

Color: A wonderful, light peridot. Bright and attractive. Age has mellowed the color a bit, but not detrimentally so.

Louche: An absolute pleasure to watch. Wonderful layering that builds into a light green finished product with white and baby blue hues.

Aroma: Both herbal and flowery with well layered hints of the holy trinity. Extremely inviting.

Flavor: Great balance of sweet, earthy, minty and dry from the anise, fennel and wormwood. Hints of the flowery, minerally flavor of voilette plays well with a touch of citrus. Mighty tasty.

Finish: Fantastic. I just wish it would last a tad bit longer.

Overall: A top quality absinthe. You really can't get much better than this. A must for any collection.

6/10/11 Revisit

Since Walton Waters has noticeably improved after sitting in the bottle for two years I wanted to see what had happened with Meadow of Love.

The surprising thing is not much has changed and the little that has is for the better. The colour has gone from perfect peridot to an elegantly aged gold while the louche is unchanged. It even somehow still has a greenish tint not present when poured neat. The aroma is less floral and more honeyed, completely blowing VDT blanches (whose aromas I tend to really love even if they taste boring) out of the water. The flavour has always been balanced but is now very mellow and rounded. For a while about a year ago I noticed that the wormwood bitterness had gotten out of line and was a bit too strong but it's perfect again. Rather than crisp the mouth feel is creamy and mouth-coating but not oily or buttery. The finish is unchanged. I had forgotten just how amazing this absinthe is.

It's difficult to restrain myself from changing the scores to all 5's, based on the criteria. However I like to assume that no matter how good things are they can theoretically be improved upon, even if I cannot imagine how. The aroma will take the scoring hit, based on the fact that its superb balance robs it of some complexity, so it loses a point for what is essentially a positive feature. Hardly fair, but there it is.

Despite some very strong contenders this is still the best modern commercial absinthe I've had. It's simply unbelievable.

Original review:

Bright, clear, peridot green before louche. Fantastic! Aroma is incredibly floral, and reminds me of Val-de-Travers blanches. Wormwood galore, with a sweet anise layer underneath. Louche action is nothing short of magnificent. It begins at the bottom, rolling back and forth, building layer upon layer, and looking near the end like cumulus clouds with little, puffy tops before turning completely stratus. After louche the colour is nearly white, with the faintest bit of yellow and green. Pretty thick. The aroma is powdery, still with the dense wormwood presence. The other herbs are so balanced they're almost too tangled to pull apart.

Flavour is the pinnacle of balance. Nothing overwhelms. Sweet with a salival gland-activating bite. Wormwood becomes pretty dominant in the lingering finish, which transitions to fennel and then anise before it finally fades. The mouth-feel is incredibly soft, mellow, and creamy. If Walton Waters is an entree then this is dessert. It's everything an absinthe should be.

This drink in my glass is my favourite modern commerical absinthe. Man, I could drink this forever. I decided to wait until I'd had a few glasses to review it so that I could see if the passion would burn brightly and then fade. It's still quite hot.

Color
Unlouched, light medium peridot. Crystal clarity in the dose, the bottles have the slightest "silty" sediment on the bottom.

The color was an absolutely beautiful light medium green on arrival, but I made the mistake of leaving these out on my kitchen counter for one week. Even though they were not in direct sunlight, that room gets a lot of ambient light, just enough to push the DPs to a much more amber or gold coloration. They were both very organic greens when they arrived. So be careful with these. I am going to buy another pair and bag them immediately when they arrive.

Louched, lighter golden-yellow green with bluish white at the edges and meniscus. A slight glow of orange/rose at the bottom. Though light, very good vibrancy to the colors.

Louche
Nice thick rolling cascades, rather than trails, with great refractions. Cloudiness quickly begins to build in a very pretty way and takes over the drink at about 1.2/1. While it's building, there's a lovely orange/rose glow to it. Nice! At 1.2/1, there is a thick green line left, and louche really thickens up. The line gradually diminishes and disappears at 2/1, and then it takes a dilution of about 4/1 to regain some translucence.

Aroma
An initial savory, herbal, floral character driven by all the "green" and "tan" tones, as opposed to its sibling, Walton Waters, which is much more anise/fennel driven. Definitely more perceivable hyssop, and boy, does that turn me on! The anise/fennel duo is present, of course, but this time singing backup. Nothing "off" in the aroma, at all. As it warms, it's all wormwood, pontica, hyssop, flowers up front. Really clean, fresh, immediate. Just lovely.

Flavor
First and foremost, let's talk mouthfeel. Absolutely one of the most interesting I have experienced. There is definitely a nice roundness and creaminess from the anise/fennel and the fruity wormwood, but it is juxtaposed against a spice, florality, and powderiness that collectively seem to pull in the opposite direction. Not subtle, but also not ham handed, it is obvious, and combined with the myriad flavor details, comes as close to a pleasure/pain kind of sensation I have ever experienced in an absinthe. It's hot! Complex and detailed, as with its sibling W.W., ingredients all seem to be of the highest quality.

Finish
Starts with a really measured fade of all the above. There's a fine, tingly, subtle burst of spice, and that "baby powder" thing again in a refined, non-drying way. Softly bitter wormwood takes over to bring this all home. This finish makes me want to drink the whole bottle.

Overall
Wow! As with the W.W., very fresh, very high quality ingredients. Very balanced, very precise, very impressive. This really blows me away! Hip, contemporary, creative, respectful of tradition, well-executed, and very artistic. How did she get there so fast? Another thing that astounds me is how well these drink, knowing that they are practically being made one day and driven to the retailer the next. Aged "in the car"! I wonder what we're in for when these can get sufficient rest? And you guys who are currently duking it out over a definition... be careful. I'm guessing this is just the beginning of the creative output of this distillery, and I wouldn't want to quash that kind of spirit.

Done with a 1 ounce dose, diluted 3.5/1, 4/1, and 4.2/1 and no sugar.

Meadow Of Love 5/13/09, 5/16/09, 5/17/09.
All evaluations had consistent notes.