There is no question, to me at least, that this is Ted's best effort, to date. Although the marc base that he uses is still a tad more evident than I'd like, there is certainly none of the funkiness that I had a hard time getting past in a few of his previous releases.

The color is a lovely, and vibrant peridot green (although not quite as impressive as I remember it in the Edouard), and enough of it carries over into the full blooming louche to create a bright and minty colored drink.

The aroma is excellent, but there is still a little too much of the base present for me to rate it any higher. High quality green anise, fennel, and hyssop are obviously present, although the wormwood seems a bit muted, and this is also true regarding the flavor. There is a fine marriage of flavors, and the finish is clean, rich, and long.

Overall, this is a top notch recreation of its antecedent, except for the somewhat toned down wormwood, particularly in the finish, and the alcohol base, which doesn't match the level of Pernod Fils...of course, to be fair, what absinthe's base today could?

PF 1901, 2013 Bottling

I had great expectations for the 1901 even before tasting it, but suffice to say that they were well and truly vindicated: It is truly the smoothest, most balanced modern absinthe I have ever tasted.

The louche and aroma are its strongest points, with the floral aroma filling the room and whetting the appetite. With the addition of ice cold water, the light greenish product starts to develop billowing clouds and swirls, eventually setting into a completely opaque, light greenish concoction. It seems to be just right at 1:4 to 1:4.5 dilution, with half a cube of sugar.

The PF 1901 is deceptively refreshing: it is far too easy to go through two to three glasses without feeling any alcohol heat - it is THAT smooth thanks to the superb quality of the marc base, it almost seems non-alcoholic - an incredible feat for a 68% ABV distillate. The mouthfeel is rounded, like drinking liquid silk. As for the taste, it is laced with moderate spice on the head, but rapidly mellows into anise and a particularly pronounced fennel body, segueing into slight bitterness of a distinctive wormwood finish. The perfect holy trinity, no one herb predominates; all key ingredients can be tasted in equal portion - it's nothing especially unorthodox, but goes back to the basics, albeit leaps and bounds better than any other marque today.

Although I have not yet had a sample of vintage Pernod Fils, the Jade, when judged by its own merits, is the contemporary iteration of a traditional absinthe par excellence, with everything as it should be. The paragon of refinement.

JL 1901 March 2012 bottling

Appearance neat is a beautiful golden shade of amber green.
Louched it becomes a very antique looking yellow green opaque light jade.
Aroma neat is the smooth base shining through with a hint of vanilla and spices. The addition of ice cold water brings heavy anise and hearty florals. With a minty herbal goodness and a musky scent that cannot be mistaken for anything but a Jade. Powerful and smooth. Superb.
Fully prepared the flavor is an excellent herbal bliss with nice hot pepper and powdery overtones. And something akin to butternut squash with the everdeveloping aroma surrounding it all. A very puntuated and smooth mouthfeel. This is one you can really sink your teeth into.
Couldn't be happier.

The finish is rich and smooth with a lingering 'afterglow' that is pleasant and prickly and fills your senses with a good dose of happy. Slight numbing on the tongue after a minute or so but just enough to remind you that you have more waiting in the glass.

Overall the JL 1901 is a wonderful absinthe that takes you back in time to what i believe absinthe of a hundred years ago would taste like. A very pleasant beverage that I believe most would enjoy.

kinda pale neat.

Great Louche (must be a Ted thing)

Nice, bold aroma

Delicious flavor, bold, creamy, balanced, and very tasty

Great finish, creamy and complex.

I could have sworn I had tasted this already because of of the great detailed reviews here. It more than lives up to the hype and adoration.

Edited to bump appearance to 4, since it is clear, bright and natural. wish i could give aroma a 4.5, or 4.49. Better than just good, but I've encountered enough abstinthes with a more enticing aroma to give it a 5. Still over all this absinthe is great, and among my favorites.

Gave the aroma a desreved 4.5.

Sadly my two bottles of Jade 1901, now sit bone dry on my shelf. However, the memory lingers and it's a sweet and delicious one. I know the Jades have many reviews, but as my experience is limited I thought I would try my first review here, with the Absinthe I have been, to date - the most impressed with.



Preparation



I filled my fountain with ice cold spring water and the store bought ice, one because I find the ice in my freezer picks up flavors and two, it's quite beautiful in the fountain. After getting the wax off and un corking the bottle I gave the bottle a good half hour to breathe while I set up. I used a very slow drip of about one drop every two seconds. No sugar and I stopped the drip when I had a nice demarcation line of the of the Absinthe green on top. I then sped up the drip a bit until the line was gone, stopped the water and gave a quick stir.



Color Before Water





Like a crow, I'm attracted to pretty shiny things and have to say my first impression of the 1901 was the absolutely spectacular color. Just a gorgeous, crystal clear Peridot, Anyway I digress. Both bottles which in back were labeled 2006 so maybe aging and the dark glass helped to enhance or preserve the color. But out of each bottle poured this exquisite Peridot Green. In fact, I held up an actual Peridot stone and the color was identical. It's clear of any sediment, and sparkled beautifully in the dose reservoir of the glasses.



Aroma Before Water



Not the strong bolt of Anise I find with the Lucid, and at first I was a bit disappointed as it seemed weak and a little washed out. However, given time there was a wonderfully complex perfume of Anise and Fennel. I detected what I can only describe as "flowers" in the background, faint but there ~ and oh so alluring. Inhaling the Peridot elixir, much like a fine brandy I found it made my brain a little fuzzy with delightful and soothing vapors. There's heat from the alcohol but a coolness as well, crisp and luscious with a delectable complexity I had never experienced with the Lucid or St George.



Louche





Now this was interesting, as the water splashed down I could see these wonderfully icy looking trails, at first very subtle and they seemed to spread out like an amoeba from the center out. Totally intriguing. After a few minutes, perhaps five at best, maybe six the Louche formed in a swirl of a puffy white cloud that seemed surprisingly dense and turbulent, just fabulous to watch. When I got to a 2.5 to one ratio, I added a bit more water which made the Louche take hold of any remaining green at the top of the glass. The Louche finished at a beautiful whitish Jade ~ and the texture upon first sip was silky smooth and luscious.



Aroma After Water





It seemed to encompass all the complex and lovely notes I detected prior to adding water but without any real heat at all of alcohol. Like a bouquet the fragrance is layered and subtle. Certainly different from what I've had in the past. I had thought the Aroma was too weak to really fill the room - however my neighbor stopped by and announced "My God you're place smells wonderful" My guess is I had gotten used to the fragrance and really was past the point of detecting just how impressive it was.



Flavor





Simply put gorgeous. An up front dazzle of Anise sweet but by no means candy sweet. a Bite of bitter but nothing you would call sharp or unpleasant by any means. The after taste leaves an herbal and almost floral like complexity of subtle notes and tones. It's a perfect delicate balance of faint flavors and powerful ones without any one flavor blocking out another. Just an absolutely delicious and refreshing drink.



The Finish





Crisp and wonderful. I found no funky or strange aftertaste. The Louche while it looks much thicker than it really is has a nice light body to it and ever so slight of a creamy texture. As I mentioned earlier it's silky and smooth and an absolute delight to drink.





Final Impression





The Jade 1901 was pretty close to what I imagined Absinthe to be. Wonderfully complex without being obtrusive, delicate and yet filled with defiant and so many background notes of flavors I really again, can only describe as floral that it's an absolute pleasure to both prepare and enjoy.



Peter