Review: Distillerie Vinet-Ege Le Tourment Vert Absinthe
From French brandy distillery Vinet-Ege comes a new entry into the “with wormwood/thujone” absinthe market, Le Tourment Vert. “The Torment,” when it arrives on our shores (any day now) will be the fourth such absinthe to hit the market here. It joins Lucid, Kubler, and St. George, all of which are slowly, tentatively finding their ways on to U.S. liquor store shelves. (Fair warning with this review: I am not an Absinthe expert.)
Absinthe containing wormwood has been illegal here since 1912, after a notorious legal case led to it being banned in several European countries. Absinthe, it was said, was powerful enough to cause a man to see demons, murder his family, and the like. This was blamed on thujone, a hallucinogenic compound in the wormwood.
Absinthe laws have been being overturned in Europe in recent years thanks to strenuous lobbying and a little technology: Thujone is illegal, but wormwood is not. These new absinthes contain wormwood extracts but reportedly no thujone. That’s the case with Lucid and Kubler, at least. I’m not so sure about Le Tourment Vert. Regardless, I’m not here to analyze the chemical makeup of the product, just to tell you how it tastes.
Unlike most absinthes, Le Tourment Vert is a bright green liquid (some say it is artificially colored), bottled at 100 proof (less than Lucid and Kubler), and characteristic in flavor of many non-wormwood absinthe substitutes such as Absente and Herbsaint. But side by side, Tourment is clearly better. Absente has a pronounced bitterness, which is why you really must drink it in the traditional fashion: With water and sugar. Le Tourment can actually be drunk neat if you like, though I find it improved by drinking in the traditional fashion, with water and sugar.
Unlike many absinthes, Le Tourment is quite sweet, so much so that it cuts the licorice aroma when you first take a sip. The licorice returns on the finish, dissolving into herbal notes (which must be the Saveurs d’Herbes mentioned on the label). Hallucinations? Well, no, but I have had to cap myself at one glass per day…
If you’re into absinthe, at least a little, you owe it to yourself to track down and snatch up a bottle of the stuff. It’s significantly different than anything else on the market; while it’s very controversial, it’s an interesting counterpoint to the more traditional absinthe bottlings out there.
Speaking of the bottle, it’s a real work of art: etched glass with the face of a demon, women’s faces in profile, and that inimitable green fairy hidden amongst the swirls. When full of the green stuff, the effect is quite striking (though my photograph doesn’t do it justice).
Oh, and please don’t ask me where I got the bottle. I’m not allowed to say. Seriously.
A / about $60 / distillerievinetege.com
June 4th, 2008 at 9:03 am
“If you’re into absinthe, at least a little, you owe it to yourself to track down and snatch up a bottle of the stuff.”
No, you don’t. This isn’t absinthe, it’s a waste of money. Artificially colored, artificially sweetened, this as little to do with absinthe and everything to do with a marketing scam. If you are into authentic absinthe, you owe it to yourself to NEVER WASTE YOUR MONEY on this.
June 4th, 2008 at 9:05 am
DoctorLove - I admit I’m not an absinthe expert but I do like Tourment quite a bit. That said, what do you recommend a U.S. consumer check out instead… particularly among the new U.S.-available bottlings. What’s “authentic” that you can get here?
June 17th, 2008 at 9:18 am
Hi cnull- If you like Le Tourment Verte that’s perfectly fine, I don’t mean to disparage anyone’s personal tastes. However, just be aware that it’s not authentic absinthe. The authentic options available in the U.S. are still few, but are slowly growing in number and will continue to do so. Currently, the brands Lucid (a verte) and Kubler (a blanche) are widely available across the country in many liquor stores. They are not as good as the small-batch stuff available in Europe but they are decent and much cheaper than having other brands imported. Also available less widely are Sirene from North Shore Distillery near Chicago, St. George Absinthe from St. George spirits in the Bay Area, and Leopold Brothers. I’d recommend AVOIDING Grande Absente unless you’re really curious - it’s artificially colored and pre-sweetened, despite their claims to the contrary in their marketing materials. For more information, I suggest checking out http://www.wormwoodsociety.org
June 17th, 2008 at 9:27 am
Thanks Doc - stay tuned this weekend for reviews of Lucid, St. George, and Kubler.
June 20th, 2008 at 5:15 pm
I agree cnull, I too like Tourment, especially compare to all the other absinthes on the US market. Have you all tasted Lucid and Kubler? I can barely even hold my nose to the glass. When I consume a beverage, whether it is a spirit, soda, beer, or wine -and- it has got to taste good. Call me crazy! Sure people want to drink absinthe to “do” absinthe, but in my opinion, why put your body through that with Lucid and Kubler. I would definitely recommend Le Tourment Vert as the absinthe of choice on the market because not only is it a real French absinthe, but it TASTES GOOD! (#1 in my book). I am also not a heavy drinker. I drink socially and like to sip on my cocktails and not get too tipsy (hard to do when you’re drinking a 120 proof liquor). When I first bought a bottle of Le Tourment Vert, I started researching old absinthe recipes and found that mixing absinthe with soda water and fresh lemon made a really yummy “spritzer.” It’s my summer beverage for sure right now! Lately, I’ve been invited to absinthe tastings and to be honest, it just doesn’t taste the same with Kubler or Lucid. I had my spritzer once with St. George’s and it was tasty. However, I am having difficulties finding it. Also, if grand wormwood, anise and fennel are the main ingredients in real absinthe, then Le Tourment Vert definitely falls into that category. In summary: try a “spritzer”, you won’t regret it!
June 28th, 2008 at 11:03 am
Le Tourment Verte does not fit the descriptor of “a real French absinthe” by any historical point of reference. An educated absinthe connoisseur will not likely identify this product as an absinthe if it were not labeled as such, and any claims of authenticity as to this product are IMO, questionable.
For starters, this product is a low proof “liqueur”, which indicates that it is bottled with sugar. Absinthe is/was a high proof herbal spirit, not a sugary low proof liqueur d’anise, like Pernod, Absente, etc.
Secondly, this product is clearly labeled as containing synthetic chemical dyes (Blue, Yellow, and Red), none of which have any place in the crafting of a traditional absinthe. This explains the alien color, which appears more like Listerine than absinthe. This raises questions as to its method of production, or should we say, “manufacture”.
Given the above observations, I am left with little doubt that this product is one that aims to profit from an emerging category, while offering little quality or authenticity in return. This is possible in the category of absinthe, only because many consumers have no prior frame of reference. I might add that according to the COLA, only the first 3500 bottles were allowed to have the devil image on them. Since those I’ve seen on the shelf have the image, this product seems to not be selling well.
July 2nd, 2008 at 10:07 am
There are many different types of absinthe, I prefer swiss le blues myself. The French recipes are too bitter and overpowering for me, where the swiss ones are much smoother from my experience. I have a bottle of Kubler and St George on the way and will try both and introduce a few friends to absinthe for the 4th. I will return and post reviews either this weekend or next week.
July 2nd, 2008 at 10:40 am
[...] some beers. As I got closer to the counter to pay for those beers, I noticed they were selling some Le Tourment Vert and I just had to buy it. It was right around 60 dollars and I got a chance to win a absinthe kit [...]