St. George Absinthe - Reviewed by Experts and Consumers at The Wormwood Society
Product Details
Available in USA?
Style/Color
Degrees ABV (% alcohol)
Year of Make (if known)
Country of Origin
Distillery
Editor reviews
Greenhousesinthe
(Updated: July 20, 2011)
Overall rating
3.2
Appearance
4.0
Louche
3.0
Aroma
3.0
Flavor / Mouthfeel
3.0
Finish
3.0
Overall
3.0
The colour is bright golden green. Far more attractive than any pictures I'd seen of it. The louche action is ugly and fast. I started the drip and looked away from the glass for 5 seconds. When I looked back it was completely opaque and hadn't risen out of the reservoir of my Pontarlier glass. As I added water I could see more clouds swirling and thickening in the already-thick absinthe. The result is an extremely thick, mustard-yellow drink.
Aroma before louche is star anise dominant with a bit of heat. Sweet and candy-like. Notes of wildflower honey and something that resembles artificial cinnamon like in Big Red gum. After louche I think I can kind of smell a little bit of wormwood, but otherwise the other flavours are simply stronger than before. No floral wormwood.
Flavour is dominated by that Big Red flavour, which seems to be a result of the combination of distilled anise, basil, and tarragon. Mostly basil. As it lingers on the palate the flavours separate so that they're more individually distinct. Star anise gives it an acrid, absenta-like attack and it's very numbing. The flavour reminds me of the aroma in my parents' greenhouse in North Carolina when I was 6. I can detect a faint wormwood camphour but it's well-hidden. The sweetness of the aroma doesn't really carry over into the taste; it's dry and slightly bitter.
The finish is dominated by basil with hints of wormwood peeking through. It's not very complex or lasting. What does last is the tongue-numbing effect.
I'm very perplexed by this absinthe. It tastes very wrong to me but I am enjoying it for what it is. All the more unusual because I'm not generally a fan of star anise. It's unlike any other absinthe I've ever had. In fact, of any I've had it strays the farthest from a traditional absinthe flavour while still being absinthe. I think it needs some tweaking; pull back the basil some (I'm a fan of basil but it's a little out of balance), bring forward the wormwood, and substitute at least half of the star anise with green anise and I think it would be quite a good product. As it is I think it's nice and interesting enough but not worth half its price tag.
Edit: As I continue my glass it seems gradually sweeter. I wouldn't go so far as to remove my comment that it's more dry, but it definitely is changing as I slowly sip it. I suppose that's not a bad thing.
Aroma before louche is star anise dominant with a bit of heat. Sweet and candy-like. Notes of wildflower honey and something that resembles artificial cinnamon like in Big Red gum. After louche I think I can kind of smell a little bit of wormwood, but otherwise the other flavours are simply stronger than before. No floral wormwood.
Flavour is dominated by that Big Red flavour, which seems to be a result of the combination of distilled anise, basil, and tarragon. Mostly basil. As it lingers on the palate the flavours separate so that they're more individually distinct. Star anise gives it an acrid, absenta-like attack and it's very numbing. The flavour reminds me of the aroma in my parents' greenhouse in North Carolina when I was 6. I can detect a faint wormwood camphour but it's well-hidden. The sweetness of the aroma doesn't really carry over into the taste; it's dry and slightly bitter.
The finish is dominated by basil with hints of wormwood peeking through. It's not very complex or lasting. What does last is the tongue-numbing effect.
I'm very perplexed by this absinthe. It tastes very wrong to me but I am enjoying it for what it is. All the more unusual because I'm not generally a fan of star anise. It's unlike any other absinthe I've ever had. In fact, of any I've had it strays the farthest from a traditional absinthe flavour while still being absinthe. I think it needs some tweaking; pull back the basil some (I'm a fan of basil but it's a little out of balance), bring forward the wormwood, and substitute at least half of the star anise with green anise and I think it would be quite a good product. As it is I think it's nice and interesting enough but not worth half its price tag.
Edit: As I continue my glass it seems gradually sweeter. I wouldn't go so far as to remove my comment that it's more dry, but it definitely is changing as I slowly sip it. I suppose that's not a bad thing.
A
A whopping flavor.
(Updated: October 03, 2009)
Overall rating
3.2
Appearance
3.0
Louche
3.0
Aroma
4.0
Flavor / Mouthfeel
3.0
Finish
3.0
Overall
3.0
Updated review 10-3-09:
Not much has changed other than the color is now a bit too dark for me and the louche is just way too thick, bringing the color and louche down a bit for me.
===========
Updated review 9-13-08:
Overall, much of my original opinions persist, however, it seems like the recent batches have been made a bit thicker. Maybe additional star anise? Either way, I'm having a hard time drinking it while properly diluted now. It's just too thick on the tongue. If I overwater it, the mouthfeel is better, but the flavor is thin. This has brought down my reviews for flavor, finish and overall from 4's to 3's. Updated overall score: 3.5
============
Original review: This is a very intriguing absinthe. A highly respectable first absinthe from the US in ages.
Color is a deep peridot green. Quite appealing.
The addition of ice cold water via dripper brought about a quick forming louche. The trails were quite nice. The color after louche is a milky greenish white. Very appealing.
The aroma is one of the nicest things about this absinthe. Extremely crisp and clean. Lots of floral notes. The lemon balm comes through quite clearly. The basil adds a nice depth as well.
The flavor is extremely spicy. It's going to be a dividing factor I think. Those who enjoy unique flavored absinthes like Montmartre will really like this. Others may think its a bit overpowering, but sugaring will help even it out. There's a nice wormwood bitterness that's enhanced by the nettles and tarragon. It's quite intriguing. Although I don't add sugar to my absinthe, I do believe that this one will highly benefit from it.
The finish is a combination of light sweetness from the basil and just a touch of astringence from the wormwood. It's really a great aftertaste, although I'd like it to last a bit longer.
Overall, this is a great start for US absinthes. It's certainly setting the bar high for other US based producers. I think the strength of flavors might drive a small few away, but I think it will garner a lot of attention from those with sophisticated palates. OVERALL RATING 4.2
Not much has changed other than the color is now a bit too dark for me and the louche is just way too thick, bringing the color and louche down a bit for me.
===========
Updated review 9-13-08:
Overall, much of my original opinions persist, however, it seems like the recent batches have been made a bit thicker. Maybe additional star anise? Either way, I'm having a hard time drinking it while properly diluted now. It's just too thick on the tongue. If I overwater it, the mouthfeel is better, but the flavor is thin. This has brought down my reviews for flavor, finish and overall from 4's to 3's. Updated overall score: 3.5
============
Original review: This is a very intriguing absinthe. A highly respectable first absinthe from the US in ages.
Color is a deep peridot green. Quite appealing.
The addition of ice cold water via dripper brought about a quick forming louche. The trails were quite nice. The color after louche is a milky greenish white. Very appealing.
The aroma is one of the nicest things about this absinthe. Extremely crisp and clean. Lots of floral notes. The lemon balm comes through quite clearly. The basil adds a nice depth as well.
The flavor is extremely spicy. It's going to be a dividing factor I think. Those who enjoy unique flavored absinthes like Montmartre will really like this. Others may think its a bit overpowering, but sugaring will help even it out. There's a nice wormwood bitterness that's enhanced by the nettles and tarragon. It's quite intriguing. Although I don't add sugar to my absinthe, I do believe that this one will highly benefit from it.
The finish is a combination of light sweetness from the basil and just a touch of astringence from the wormwood. It's really a great aftertaste, although I'd like it to last a bit longer.
Overall, this is a great start for US absinthes. It's certainly setting the bar high for other US based producers. I think the strength of flavors might drive a small few away, but I think it will garner a lot of attention from those with sophisticated palates. OVERALL RATING 4.2
User reviews
26 reviews
Overall rating
2.9
Appearance
3.0(26)
Louche
2.9(26)
Aroma
2.8(26)
Flavor / Mouthfeel
2.8(26)
Finish
3.1(26)
Overall
2.9(26)
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Appearance
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Louche
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Finish
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It reminds me too much of pinesol...
Overall rating
2.3
Appearance
2.5
Louche
3.0
Aroma
2.0
Flavor / Mouthfeel
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Finish
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Overall
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In my intro on the forum, I summed up some of my main objections to St George, and they haven't changed... to start with, appearance and louche: in its pre-louched, neat form, St George is too dark, and too brown/yellow, NOT in a "dead leaf" kind of way, but in a something else was used to color this that ain't quite right... it is natural, not artificial. It is distilled and then had a traditionally-accomplished coloring step.
It still reminds me of pictures of liquid chemical warfare agents (specifically mustard gas, in its liquid form) from WW 1.
Then, after louche-- it's one-dimensional. Chalky. Opaque, not translucent, and it's yellow-brown... like clouds of mustard agent floating across the battlefield in cool autumn weather. Sorry if those images disturb people, but I can't get them out of my head when I think about St George... The other way I can describe it is it's just like Pinesol (or other pine oil cleaner), before and after adding water (Pinesol "louches" into a chalky yellowish off-white too when it's mixed with water to form a diluted cleaning solution). It's not what proper absinthe should resemble.
And the aroma.... unfortunately, this goes right back to the chemical warfare associations (I'm an old Army veteran... too much training to forget this stuff)-- maybe it's the stinging nettles they use, but there's a peculiar sharp odor to St George that likewise has me thinking of the old manuals, that commented on the tell-tale odors that accompanied certain chemical agents. Appearance: 2 is for substandard. 3 for Louche is chalky, opaque and one-dimensional. 2 for Aroma is because (IMO) it's peculiar and unbalanced.
And it goes downhill from there-- 2 for Flavor/Mouthfeel is because it's highly flawed and I'm tempted to rate even lower, because St George is downright unpleasant tasting to me-- but I leave it with a 2 here and further, because it is distilled and traditionally made, and I can respect that-- but I guess I really question the choice of herbs distilled into this product and macerated for the coloration/additional flavoring step.
2 for Finish, because IMO it did linger quite unpleasantly. It took a lot of La Clandestine and Mansinthe to wash the nasty taste of St George out of my mouth on the one occasion that I broke it out and tasted it.
Overall: 2. I'm really not sure I should acknowledge it as barely acceptable, except that the makers took too much care in distilling and making it for me to put it rock-bottom with the crapsinthes. But I can't in good conscience rate it any higher-- I wanted to like this stuff, I usually have a high tolerance for some of the unusual and idiosyncratic drinks and desserts out there in other fields than absinthe... but St George is just plain nasty looking, smelling and tasting to me.
To each their own though-- there's a good friend o' mine, who took the rest of my bottle of St George home after we broke it out, because he likes the stuff....
It still reminds me of pictures of liquid chemical warfare agents (specifically mustard gas, in its liquid form) from WW 1.
Then, after louche-- it's one-dimensional. Chalky. Opaque, not translucent, and it's yellow-brown... like clouds of mustard agent floating across the battlefield in cool autumn weather. Sorry if those images disturb people, but I can't get them out of my head when I think about St George... The other way I can describe it is it's just like Pinesol (or other pine oil cleaner), before and after adding water (Pinesol "louches" into a chalky yellowish off-white too when it's mixed with water to form a diluted cleaning solution). It's not what proper absinthe should resemble.
And the aroma.... unfortunately, this goes right back to the chemical warfare associations (I'm an old Army veteran... too much training to forget this stuff)-- maybe it's the stinging nettles they use, but there's a peculiar sharp odor to St George that likewise has me thinking of the old manuals, that commented on the tell-tale odors that accompanied certain chemical agents. Appearance: 2 is for substandard. 3 for Louche is chalky, opaque and one-dimensional. 2 for Aroma is because (IMO) it's peculiar and unbalanced.
And it goes downhill from there-- 2 for Flavor/Mouthfeel is because it's highly flawed and I'm tempted to rate even lower, because St George is downright unpleasant tasting to me-- but I leave it with a 2 here and further, because it is distilled and traditionally made, and I can respect that-- but I guess I really question the choice of herbs distilled into this product and macerated for the coloration/additional flavoring step.
2 for Finish, because IMO it did linger quite unpleasantly. It took a lot of La Clandestine and Mansinthe to wash the nasty taste of St George out of my mouth on the one occasion that I broke it out and tasted it.
Overall: 2. I'm really not sure I should acknowledge it as barely acceptable, except that the makers took too much care in distilling and making it for me to put it rock-bottom with the crapsinthes. But I can't in good conscience rate it any higher-- I wanted to like this stuff, I usually have a high tolerance for some of the unusual and idiosyncratic drinks and desserts out there in other fields than absinthe... but St George is just plain nasty looking, smelling and tasting to me.
To each their own though-- there's a good friend o' mine, who took the rest of my bottle of St George home after we broke it out, because he likes the stuff....
M
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