Batch 9-15, Bottle 47

Color: This bottle is about a year old, so the color has faded a bit, but it's still a very nice golden green, almost like olive oil. Some Fuille Morte has obviously occured, but the bottle has been stored in a cool dark cabinet since I got it, so it's from aging, not improper storage.

Louche: Very nice layering that ends with a wonderful green opalescence.

Aroma: Clean and crisp with a nice balance of herbs. Anise is well balanced with wormwood. Inviting.

Flavor: I see why Peridot mentions this as an almost savory absinthe. While the sweetness from the anise is there, there is also an earty and marine like quality that is intriguing and enjoyable. The herbs are well balanced, with nothing being too dominant.

Finish: A nice, well rounded finish as well. Not a lot of numbing, which I find to be a good thing. Too much numbing and you can't enjoy it anymore. My only complaint with the finish is that I'd like to have it hang around a bit more.

Overall: An obviously well made absinthe. It's going to be hard to find anyone that won't enjoy it.

6/10/11 Revisit

Over the couple of years since I was so generously gifted this bottle I have noticed some changes in it so I think it deserves a revisiting.

The serpentine colour has dulled to a slightly more olive colour with a couple of years' sitting, but it is still completely appropriate, particularly for its age.

The aroma has opened up to a tremendous degree. It's floral and honeyed, with surprising and delightful tobacco notes. The thick louche is a very attractive, opalescent olivine as before. Water makes the aroma positively room filling with a fruity character. In the glass it's a little anise-forward with a bit of saltiness, but otherwise very balanced. Powdery.

Very big flavour, all traditional absinthe herbs in excellent balance, saltiness on the palate has faded some. The juxtaposition of marine and earthiness has tilted more toward the latter. Citrus is still there but more subdued. More smooth and blended than before. Crisp and refreshing.

The finish is long and dominated by the excellent wormwood. The bitterness has mellowed substantially. Fruity and spicy notes, very nice.

Walton Waters has definitely improved with age.

Original review:

Colour before louche is serpentine, a deep green. Aroma is balanced anise and wormwood. Smells a little salty, but otherwise very classic absinthe aroma. Louche kind of builds everywhere at once instead of bottom-up. It becomes hazy quickly, stays that way for a while, and then is suddenly full. Colour after louche is olivine, not too opaque, not too thin. With water the aroma has become more anise-intensive, with a hint of spice. Smells delicious.

Flavour is both sweet and salty, with a big anise and wormwood punch right off, followed by a fennel earthiness that seems an odd but fitting marriage with its otherwise very oceanic character. The wormwood is excellent and surrounded by fleeting, citrus notes. This is a savoury absinthe, like an herbal entree. Finish is bitter and completely dominated by wormwood. In the end it reminds me briefly of an Imperial Pale Ale's hoppiness. The mouth feel is smooth but not quite the creaminess of the Meadow of Love.

This brings back good memories of many great artisanal absinthes I've tried. And I remember conversations about how there would never be commercial absinthes like them for one reason or another. It just makes me laugh now. I'm excited about American absinthe producers.

Color
Unlouched, a good level of medium green with slight amber highlights. Crystal clarity in the dose, the bottles have the slightest "silty" sediment on the bottom.

The amber was not present 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 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. Maybe that's an opportunity for Cheryl's next business. They say a girl has got to know how to accessorize. A zip-up neoprene bottle cover?, maybe that lace-up Gaultier bustier look?, I'm thinking something tie-dye is probably the right vibe for these.

Louched, Quite creamy looking golden green with bluish white at the edges and meniscus, and a nice rosy amber glow at the bottom. Excellent vibrancy to the colors. Very pretty.

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 by 1/1. While it's building, there's a lovely amber/rose glow to it. Nice! At 1/1, 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
Nice base of anise and fennel with an almost "confectionery" tinge, probably the impressions from the hyssop. Extremely clean base, no alcohol heat. Smell hard and the lemon thyme is evident. Great nuance, details, constant interplay of all the herbs. All nose impressions are so fresh and immediate, that it seems like this stuff was just pulled out of the ground and put in the bottle. Way high quality, very balanced.

Flavor
Good anise/fennel attack when cold (what's new?), and a more herbal/floral attack as it warms. Lots of intensity, but not from being "over-packed", more from the quality level. 4/1, or a little better is where this really comes into its own. It really goes all "meadow" at that point. Yum! Lesser dilutions are spicy, and I don't think that is what was intended. Like the nose, lots of undulating details to find if you look for them.

Finish
A little spicy "bump" of anise focuses all the nose and palate impressions. Very clean. At 4/1 or a little greater a nice airy, herbal finish. At less than 4/1, a buildup of powdery sensation on the palate, along with significant spice. I prefer the higher dilution. Finish has decent duration, but not amongst the longest I've seen.

Overall
Don't be afraid to push the water on this one. It can take it. And when you do, talk about "meadow"! Some recurring themes; Very fresh, very high quality ingredients, very balanced, very precise, very impressive. The thing that really blows my mind is that Cheryl apparently tasted her first absinthe in 2006. She saw her first still in 2007. Amazing learning curve! Does she wear a cape?

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

Walton Waters 5/13/09, 5/16/09, 5/17/09.
All evaluations had consistent notes.