absinthe_lineup_marteau_pernod_mata hari_tourment_kubler_lucid

After the infamy and fall-out from my last absinthe post vitriolic screed, I’ve taken a bit of a hiatus. I’ve been preparing to attend the American Distilling Institute’s Brandy Conference in early April (which I will be covering here), getting the Cocktail and Spirits Online Writers Guild’s Group’s web site set up and preparing for its conference in July, and generally preparing for Mixoloseum awesomeness such as this week’s Beefeater-sponsored Thursday Drink Night. And, my oldest daughter’s birthday is this month, so, I’ve been a busy monkey. As you can see above, I’ve collected a few absinthes and have been putting them through their paces the past few months. My evaluation process is outlined in the original post in the series, but suffice it to say that I’m allowing the absinthe to express its character in a very specific way – by mixing it with sugar and water in various forms1 . This, to me, is slightly more reliable than drinking it neat (though I’ve been known to do that) and a better measure of it’s quality than dousing it in something like a Corpse Reviver or Monkey Gland.

This line-up includes Kübler, St. George, and Marteau; three very different absinthes that unapologetically commit themselves to the flavor profile and style in which they are made.

Kübler Absinthe:

kubler absinthe

Kübler is a traditional swiss absinthe that comes in a very untraditionally-sized 1L bottle. The swiss “blanche” style deviates from the more common verte style in two ways: 1. there is no additional infusion of herbs after the initial distillation2 and 2: it usually features a lower alcohol content. A lack of herbal infusion in the finishing stage doesn’t necessarily mean an absinthe blanche will be less complex than a verte, but in Kubler’s case, it tends that direction. However, we’ll see that that isn’t completely unwelcome.

Drip: Kübler louches quickly with a beautiful pearlescent blue-tinged colour3 that isn’t found in the verte styles. As an absinthe drip, Kubler is solidly two-note. There is a prevalent high note in the Star Anise area, with some fennel tones, and a low note squarely reminiscent of cocoa. In other words, there’s not much going on here except those two things and there’s far less herbaceous quality to it than just about any other absinthe on my shelf. Kübler recommends using a 5:1 water-to-absinthe ratio in a drip and I have to disagree. A 3:1 ratio is the highest you should reach for to get the intensity to make Kübler properly sing.

Frappe: I enjoy Kübler in a frappe as it is simple, laid-back, and friendly. Unlike absinthes that try to do too much, Kübler kicks back and asks only that you keep your feet off its furniture and the music turned to a nice playful jazz station. Again, it’s not the most complex absinthe by a damned sight but, sometimes, that’s a deficit – as we’ll see with St. George. Kübler is an absinthe I turn to in a frappe when I want to introduce someone else to absinthe and its general charms or I don’t feel like being challenged and want to enjoy the sparest of them all.

Kübler is a wonderful product with which to introduce yourself to absinthe’s core characteristics and work your way outwards to more challenging and complex products. And, at $50/L, it’s one of the best buys available on the store shelf. I also find Kübler my absinthe-of-choice when developing mixed drinks. It represents the base nature of absinthe very clearly and others might muddle the profiles of other ingredients in my experiments. Plus, if when my drink ends up sucking, I haven’t wasted $1-3 in the .5oz I’ve used. Kübler has been, and will remain, a staple on my shelf for its dependability, simplicity, and sheer enjoyability.

St. George Absinthe:

st_george_absinthe

St. George was one of the first U.S. absinthes on the market and I’d been wanting to try it since its release. Thanks to a good samaritan who knew of this series, and happened to live in San Francisco, I received a bottle. An arresting bottle and label, a gorgeous olive-green hue, and an appreciation of Hangar One and, by proxy, St. George Spirits, I was anxious to open and get to know this distinctive green fellow. Distinctive turned out to be the operative word.

Drip: This is the first absinthe I’ve encountered where I would highly recommend using a 4:1 or 5:1 ratio in a drip. St. George absinthe presents an anise flavor in the front, subduing you with an, “Oh!, this is tasty,” lull of satisfaction, and everything that comes after is an assault of the senses and your better nature. From rosemary, to pepper, to camphor, St. George never settles and blends into anything coalescent…or completely pleasant in a Drip. There’s a lot going on, which I appreciate, but I prefer it have a central and consistent anchor around which everything else can orbit.

Frappe: St. George performs much better in a frappe but still suffers from the lack of focus and a general busyness that fatigues the palate. The half-teaspoon of anisette serves to balance the frappe out a bit and, seemingly, help the absinthe stretch-out and relax without being so earnest in delivering its multitudes of flavors. It almost reads as an attempt to do Absinthe PLUS! and it just falls short of something glorious. The finish is still long, but not as excruciatingly so as in the drip.

St. George famously slew the dragon and, in that vein, this absinthe is aptly-named. It is not for the weak, the timid, nor those for whom this would be their first absinthe. This is also the only absinthe I’ve seen, in my collection, to undergo the “feuille mort” transformation where it takes on the brownish hues of fallen leaves, likely indicating the quality and volume natural elements in the product, which should be applauded.

Marteau Absinthe de la Belle Epoque:

marteau_absinthe
Marteau absinthe is produced by Gwydion Stone, a founder of the The Wormwood Society whose mission it is to provide consumer advocacy and, perhaps more important, historically accurate information and education regarding absinthe. Marteau de la Belle Epoque attempts to recreate a historically accurate portrayal of the absinthes tasted by our forebears. And, if this is what it was, it’s no wonder it became as popular as it did.

Drip: Firstly, I’ve tried all of my absinthes neat. Marteau is the first I’ve come back to time-and-time again to do so. Sometimes it seems almost a shame to pollute it with other lesser elements, but only almost. Marteau louches almost instantly in a drip and I found a 3:1 ratio to be just about perfect and the sugar, in this one, is completely optional. The first thing I noticed about Marteau is its heavy committment to fennel for its anise character. This allows the anisette character to come through without the cheap candy-like tackiness that can sometimes occur when star anise is leaned on too heavily to provide the base flavor profile. Its emphasis on fennel and use of a Spanish aniseed allows an herbal quality to join in that isn’t harsh but still balances against the more bitter wormwood elements. There was also a relatively unusual floral character contrubiting to the balance that I later discovered to be Iris4 .

Frappe: The frappe using Marteau was the best I’ve had. Joana, after being handed Kubler (“Nice, fun!”) and St. George (“Gods in Hell, I can’t feel my mouth!”) upon being handed the Marteau version said simply, “Oh, that’s delicious,” and then refused to give it back. This presents with a clean and clearly-focused front of licorice and then finishes with a disinct bitter and herbal quality that still carries the initial sweet anise-character along for the ride. It is nearly perfectly balanced throughout and, at the traditional 136-proof, is simply dangerous in how pleasing it is.

While I’m certainly not qualified to judge Marteau against the classic and lost styles from the 19th century, I can confidently say it’s the best in class of those I have at my disposal. My only complaints with Marteau are its availability5 and its price point. And not because the price point seems out-of-whack with the quality of the product or artificially inflated for marketing purposes (hello there, vodka) but because it will keep people from experiencing a genuine absinthe that presents exactly what a buyer deserves: no gimmicks, no artificiality, and no short-cuts that I can see. This is what a person should be confronted with when experiencing absinthe for the first time, and it’s a shame so many won’t.
Kubler Absinthe Rating: ★★★½☆

St. George Absinthe Rating: ★★☆☆☆

Marteau Absinthe Rating: ★★★★½

Absinthe Event Announcement

Please join us on April 17th at 7:00pm in the Mixoloseum Bar for a chat with eminent cocktail writer and absinthe enthusiast Paul Clarke, Wormwood Society Founder and absinthe producer Gwydion Stone, and Wormwood Society Editor and Media Contact Brian Robinson will join us to discuss the history and tradition of absinthe and answer questions about present day absinthe production, tastes, and challenges.
Place and Time:

  • When: April 14th, 7:00pm6
  • Where: The Mixoloseum Bar
  • Bring: Questions, insights, and an open and inquisitive mind. And, hell, bring a bottle of absinthe along with you.
StumbleUpon It!
  1. in other words, an absinthe drip and an absinthe frappe [↩]
  2. hence its blanche vs. verte color quality [↩]
  3. that’s for you, jay [↩]
  4. which I disdain in Magellan Gin but its touch is lovely here [↩]
  5. an issue I know takes time and Gwydion is working on [↩]
  6. this is corrected, the post originally referred to April 7th, which is wrong…dead wrong. [↩]