Kolding isn't the first place that comes to mind when you think of absinthe, but Trolden Distillery has built their own version of the green fairy anyway – sweetened with honey from their own hives and brought down to a strength you can drink straight from the glass, no ice-water ritual required.

Expert's Description

Delirium Absinthe Trolden Distillery Danish Absinth Ordinaire 50 cl 55% is a Danish Absinthe distilled on wormwood, anise and fennel and bottled at 55%.

Trolden Destilleri & Bryghus in Kolding built their Delirium absinthe on Pierre Ordinaire's original recipe – the man who, according to legend, first created absinthe in Switzerland in the late 1700s. Anise seeds, fennel seeds, lemon balm and wormwood are extracted and distilled using the house's own methods, in line with Trolden's philosophy of craft, calm and respect for flavour.

What sets Delirium apart from a classic French absinthe is the honey. Trolden sweetens the absinthe with honey from their own hives and brings the strength down to 55%, making it ready to drink without the traditional ice-water and sugar-cube ritual. The result is a round, warm and full-bodied absinthe built to be enjoyed as it is.

Served in a cognac or whisky glass rather than the traditional absinthe glass suits the style well – Delirium is meant as an absinthe you take your time enjoying neat, not one that needs diluting or ritualising.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Anise and fennel up front, with a sweet honey note and a hint of lemon balm. The wormwood sits softly underneath, without the sharp bitterness found in stronger expressions.

Palate

Round and warm, with the honey's sweetness as a clearly carrying element. Anise and fennel give the classic absinthe character, while the wormwood stays in the background.

Finish

Full and warming, with a lasting sweetness from the honey and only a faint trace of herbal bitterness.

Specifications

Name: Delirium Absinthe Trolden Distillery Danish Absinth Ordinaire 50 cl 55%
Producer: Trolden Destilleri & Bryghus
Region/Country: Denmark
Type: Danish Absinthe
ABV: 55%
Size: 50 CL
Botanicals: Wormwood, anise, fennel and lemon balm
Serving suggestion: Served neat in a cognac or whisky glass

Flavour Profile

Honey · Anise · Round · Warm · Soft

Did You Know?

The recipe is inspired by Pierre Ordinaire, the Swiss doctor who, according to legend, first distilled absinthe in the late 1700s.

See our full range of Absinthe

Pernod is the name that set absinthe's golden age in motion in 1805, long before the ban shut the whole category down for decades. Recette Traditionnelle is an attempt to bring the original recipe back – herbs from the Pontarlier region and a strength that hasn't been cut down for modern taste.

Expert's Description

Pernod Absinthe Recette Traditionnelle Fransk Absint 70 cl 68% is a French Absinthe distilled on wormwood and bottled at 68%.

Henri-Louis Pernod founded his distillery in 1805 and became one of the names that defined absinthe's golden age in France over the following century. Recette Traditionnelle builds on his original 19th-century recipe and uses wormwood from the Pontarlier region, the area in eastern France that was historically the centre of the country's absinthe production.

Where many modern absinthes have been cut down in strength to be more approachable, Recette Traditionnelle holds on to a classic, high strength of 68%. The flavour is dry and lightly bitter, with a herbal, woody character from the wormwood, carried by coriander and anise rather than sweetness.

The colour is a clear, pale green that turns into a hazy cloud once ice water is added following the classic ritual. Sugar is recommended to balance the dry, bitter character, which is more pronounced here than in many newer absinthes.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Grassy and floral, with violet blossom, fennel, coriander and aniseed. With water, anise and fennel come through more clearly while the floral notes recede a little.

Palate

Dry and lightly bitter, with a woody herbal character from the wormwood. Coriander and anise lift the flavour, especially once water is added.

Finish

Long, lightly bitter and woody-herbal, with a dry close that lingers.

Specifications

Name: Pernod Absinthe Recette Traditionnelle Fransk Absint 70 cl 68%
Producer: Pernod
Region/Country: France
Type: French Absinthe
ABV: 68%
Size: 70 CL
Botanicals: Wormwood, anise, fennel and coriander
EAN no.: 3047100052161
Serving suggestion: Ice water poured slowly over a sugar cube on an absinthe spoon

Flavour Profile

Herbal · Dry · Anise · Spiced · Classic

Did You Know?

Henri-Louis Pernod founded his distillery in 1805, and the Pernod name later became so closely tied to absinthe that for many French people in the 1800s it was practically synonymous with the drink itself.

See our full range of Absinthe

In Fougerolles, a small town in Haute-Saône known for its fruit brandies, Auguste Peureux started a distillery in 1864 that would become one of France's great absinthe names. Un Peureux still carries his name forward – now in a revived version of what once made the house famous.

Expert's Description

Un Peureux Absinthe Frankrig Absint 50 cl 48% is a French Absinthe distilled on wormwood and bottled at 48%.

Grandes Distilleries Peureux was founded in 1864 by Auguste Peureux, who built his distillery strategically close to the railway line to distribute the bottles widely. The house won recognition at the 1900 Paris World's Fair, and in the years between 1870 and 1915 – when absinthe made up more than 90% of all aperitif consumption in France – Un Peureux was one of the well-known names in the French glass.

When absinthe was banned in 1915, Peureux turned production toward kirsch and the berry-based Griottines, which today are the house's international flagship. Un Peureux lives on as a revived tribute to the absinthe that once made the distillery a name across France.

At 48%, it sits at the milder end of the classic French absinthes, making it an approachable way to get acquainted with wormwood, anise and the herbs that defined the era before the ban.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Anise and fresh herbs up front, with the wormwood's earthy bitterness sitting underneath. The aroma is clean and classically French in its build.

Palate

Medium-bodied with a clear anise sweetness and a herbal, lightly bitter counterpoint from the wormwood. Ice water softens the flavour and pulls the green notes forward.

Finish

Medium length, with a dry, herbal bitterness that fades quietly.

Specifications

Name: Un Peureux Absinthe Frankrig Absint 50 cl 48%
Producer: Grandes Distilleries Peureux
Region/Country: France
Type: French Absinthe
ABV: 48%
Size: 50 CL
Botanicals: Wormwood, anise and herbs
EAN no.: 3123020001851
Serving suggestion: Ice water poured over a sugar cube on an absinthe spoon

Flavour Profile

Anise · Herbal · Classic · Mild · Fresh

Did You Know?

After the 1915 absinthe ban, Peureux shifted to producing the berry-based Griottines, which today are far better known internationally than the house's original absinthe ever was.

See our full range of Absinthe

Pontarlier was France's absinthe capital, long before the ban left the town's great distilleries idle. Deniset-Klainguer is one of the names that survived – not as straight absinthe, but as a sweet liqueur carrying the history forward in a lower gear.

Expert's Description

Deniset-Klainguer Absinth Likør Frankrig 50 cl 25% is a French Liqueur with absinthe distilled on wormwood and bottled at 25%.

The name comes from two merged histories. Henri Deniset founded his distillery in Pontarlier in 1908, and in 1939 Jacques Klainguer took over the house and put his own name alongside Deniset's on the label. When absinthe was banned in France in 1915, the house, like many of the town's other distilleries, switched course and began producing liqueurs and anise-based spirits instead – this absinthe liqueur among them.

Today Deniset-Klainguer belongs to Les Fils d'Émile Pernot, another old Pontarlier house with roots in the absinthe tradition, which took over the name and recipes in 2006. The liqueur is therefore a direct link to the town's lost heyday as Europe's absinthe centre.

At 25%, this is far from a classic full-strength absinthe – it's a sweetened liqueur built on the same herbs, wormwood, anise and spice botanicals, meant to be drunk straight or used as a cocktail ingredient, without the classic ice-water ritual.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Sweet and herbal, with anise and liquorice up front and the wormwood's bitterness sitting discreetly behind.

Palate

Soft and sweet, with liquorice and anise dominating. The bitterness from the wormwood is clearly toned down compared with a classic absinthe, making the liqueur easy to drink.

Finish

Medium length, with a sweet anise close and only a faint trace of herbal bitterness.

Specifications

Name: Deniset-Klainguer Absinth Likør Frankrig 50 cl 25%
Producer: Deniset-Klainguer
Region/Country: France
Type: French Liqueur
ABV: 25%
Size: 50 CL
Botanicals: Wormwood, anise and spice botanicals
EAN no.: 3363170001626
Serving suggestion: Served cold or on ice, or in cocktails

Flavour Profile

Sweet · Anise · Liquorice · Herbal · Soft

Did You Know?

Throughout the 1800s, Pontarlier was France's most important absinthe town, home to several major distilleries – Deniset-Klainguer's roots go back to this era, long before the 1915 ban left most of them idle.

See our full range of Liqueur

The forest bites through even at 89.9%. Hapsburg's XC Black Fruits takes the same extreme strength as Extra Strong and layers dark berries over wormwood and anise, giving a deeper colour and a sweet counterpoint to the bitter herbal core.

Expert's Description

Hapsburg Absinthe XC Black Fruits Italien Absint 50 cl 89,9% is an Italian Absinthe distilled on wormwood and bottled at 89.9%.

Black Fruits is one of the fruit-flavoured expressions in Hapsburg's X.C. series, where the same extreme 89.9% base found in Extra Strong is flavoured with dark forest berries – blackberry, blueberry and raspberry. That gives a sweetness that works directly against the wormwood's bitterness rather than being softened by it.

The colour shifts from the classic green to a deep, almost dark-purple hue, and the louche becomes correspondingly denser than in the milder expressions once ice water is added. At this strength, neither the flavour nor the colour is easy to mistake.

Like the rest of the X.C. series, Black Fruits is built to be diluted or dosed sparingly into cocktails, where the berry sweetness can give a drink a completely different character than the classic anise-dominated absinthe.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Dark berries arrive first – blackberry and blackcurrant – with wormwood and anise sitting heavy behind them. The alcohol is clear in the aroma.

Palate

Sweet and powerful at once. The berry sweetness meets a marked herbal bitterness, and the anise ties the two together. Even diluted, the flavour stays intense.

Finish

Long and warming, with a lasting berry sweetness that slowly gives way to the wormwood's bitterness.

Specifications

Name: Hapsburg Absinthe XC Black Fruits Italien Absint 50 cl 89,9%
Producer: Hapsburg Absinthe
Region/Country: Italy
Type: Italian Absinthe
ABV: 89.9%
Size: 50 CL
Botanicals: Wormwood, anise and dark forest berries
EAN no.: 5016978102207
Serving suggestion: A few drops diluted with plenty of ice water, or dosed into cocktails

Flavour Profile

Berry · Sweet · Herbal · Powerful · Dark

Did You Know?

The colour in Black Fruits comes from the added dark berries and stands out sharply from the green standard colour found across the rest of Hapsburg's range.

See our full range of Absinthe

Some bottles are built to be respected rather than sipped neat. Hapsburg's X.C. series tops out at 89.9%, and the Extra Strong expression is marketed as one of the strongest absinthes around. The colour is green like the rest of the family – it's the strength that sets it apart.

Expert's Description

Hapsburg Absinthe XC Extra Strong Italien Absint 50 cl 89,9% is an Italian Absinthe distilled on wormwood and bottled at 89.9%.

The X.C. series is Hapsburg's answer to extreme strength, and Extra Strong – the house's own name for the plain, unflavoured expression – sits right at the top of the range alongside the fruit-flavoured X.C. variants like Black Fruits. Where Classic at 72.5% is meant as an entry point to the brand, X.C. is built for experienced absinthe drinkers and bartenders who want maximum herbal power in a small dose.

At 89.9% there's room for far more essential oils from wormwood, anise and fennel than in the milder expressions, giving a denser, more intense louche once ice water is added. That's exactly why it's never recommended to drink it undiluted – the bottle is built to be diluted heavily or dosed into cocktails.

The extreme strength also means even a small amount changes a drink significantly. Bartenders typically use XC Extra Strong as a drop-dosed flavouring rather than a base, where it can lay down a clear anise line without filling up the glass.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Intense and sharp, with mint and pepper pushing through alongside anise. The wormwood sits heavy and earthy underneath, and the alcohol clearly makes itself known in the aroma.

Palate

Powerful from the first contact, with spice, herbs and a marked liquorice sweetness fighting against the wormwood's bitterness. Even diluted, the flavour stays intense.

Finish

Long and warm, almost burning, with a persistent herbal bitterness that lingers in the mouth well after.

Specifications

Name: Hapsburg Absinthe XC Extra Strong Italien Absint 50 cl 89,9%
Producer: Hapsburg Absinthe
Region/Country: Italy
Type: Italian Absinthe
ABV: 89.9%
Size: 50 CL
Botanicals: Wormwood, anise and mint
Serving suggestion: A few drops diluted with plenty of ice water, or dosed into cocktails

Flavour Profile

Intense · Spiced · Herbal · Powerful · Mint

Did You Know?

At 89.9%, the X.C. series ranks among the strongest absinthes sold anywhere, and the bottle is marketed outright as one of the most potent on the market.

See our full range of Absinthe

In Paris's Quartier Latin, writers and artists sat with green glasses in front of them long before absinthe became something you photographed. Hapsburg named their mildest bottle after the neighbourhood, and even with the strength turned down, there's no mistaking which family it comes from.

Expert's Description

Hapsburg Absinthe Quartier Latin Italien Absint 50 cl 53,5% is an Italian Absinthe distilled on wormwood and bottled at 53.5%.

The name comes straight from Paris's Quartier Latin, the district on the Left Bank where absinthe was the drink of choice among writers, painters and other creative types in the late 1800s. Hapsburg uses the history as a frame for their mildest absinthe – an expression built to be drunk more often, without giving up the bitter herbal character.

At 53.5%, Quartier Latin sits markedly lower in strength than the house's Classic at 72.5% and the extreme X.C. editions at 89.9%, but that doesn't make it tame. The wormwood is still clearly present, and anise and fresh herbal notes give a lighter, more fruit-forward expression than the stronger bottles in the range.

The colour is pale, almost translucent green – lighter than the deep golden green of Classic – and the louche effect, the well-known cloud that forms when ice water is added, turns out more delicate and less dense as a result.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Anise and fresh green herbs dominate, with a light sweetness and a hint of mint. The wormwood sits discreetly underneath, more suggestion than statement.

Palate

A light, fresh entry where liquorice and a mild bitter herbal streak from the wormwood meet. The sweetness is more pronounced than in Classic, and the overall experience is more approachable.

Finish

Short to medium, with a clean, herbal bitterness that fades quietly again without overstaying its welcome.

Specifications

Name: Hapsburg Absinthe Quartier Latin Italien Absint 50 cl 53,5%
Producer: Hapsburg Absinthe
Region/Country: Italy
Type: Italian Absinthe
ABV: 53.5%
Size: 50 CL
Botanicals: Wormwood, anise and fresh herbs
EAN no.: 5016978102108
Serving suggestion: Ice water and sugar following the classic ritual, or as a shot

Flavour Profile

Anise · Herbal · Fresh · Fruity · Mild

Did You Know?

The Quartier Latin district takes its name from Latin, the language students and scholars at the Sorbonne spoke in the Middle Ages – long before absinthe made the area famous for something else entirely.

See our full range of Absinthe

Italy has its own home for the green fairy, and Classic is where Hapsburg's house style begins. The aroma reaches you long before the sugar spoon is set over the glass – mint, anise and a touch of liquorice, carried by the bitter wormwood that gave the category its name. The colour is a deep golden green, right up until the ice water turns it into a hazy cloud.

Expert's Description

Hapsburg Absinthe Classic Italien Absint 50 cl 72,5% is an Italian Absinthe distilled on wormwood and bottled at 72.5%.

Hapsburg is an Italian absinthe brand founded in 1999 and produced by Pallini, the house otherwise best known for its Limoncello. Under the Hapsburg name, they've built an entire range around the green fairy, from the milder Quartier Latin at 53.5% to the extreme X.C. editions at a full 89.9%. Classic sits in the middle and works as the entry point to the brand – the expression that shows what wormwood, anise and mint can do without turning the strength all the way down.

Like all modern absinthe, Hapsburg Classic stays well below the legal limits for thujone, the compound in wormwood that gave absinthe its slightly dangerous reputation in the 1800s. The flavour is built on the herbs themselves rather than on any half-mythical intoxication.

The classic absinthe ritual suits the bottle well: a sugar cube set on a slotted spoon over the glass, ice water dripped slowly through it, and the colour shifting from clear golden green to a dense, cloudy haze as the sugar dissolves into the bitter herbal flavour.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Mint arrives first, fresh and almost cool, with anise and a sweet touch of liquorice right behind it. The wormwood sits deeper in the glass, earthy and lightly bitter, without taking over.

Palate

Intense from the first sip, with warm spice notes and a clear liquorice sweetness that the mint cuts straight through. Ice water softens the whole thing and pulls the green herbal notes further forward.

Finish

Long and warm, with a persistent bitterness from the wormwood and a cool trace of mint that lingers well after the glass is empty.

Specifications

Name: Hapsburg Absinthe Classic Italien Absint 50 cl 72,5%
Producer: Hapsburg Absinthe
Region/Country: Italy
Type: Italian Absinthe
ABV: 72.5%
Size: 50 CL
Botanicals: Wormwood, mint and anise
EAN no.: 5016978102290
Serving suggestion: Ice water poured slowly over a sugar cube on an absinthe spoon, or as a base in cocktails

Flavour Profile

Mint · Anise · Liquorice · Herbal · Intense

Did You Know?

Hapsburg is produced by the Italian house Pallini – the same family that turned Limoncello into an export success from the Sorrento coast.

See our full range of Absinthe

The green fairy doesn't need to knock you off your feet. NV is the version where anise and fennel get to speak first, because the alcohol isn't shouting over them. Same ritual with sugar and ice water, same green shimmer in the glass, just in a lower gear.

Expert's Description

La Fee NV Absinthe French Absint 70 cl 40% is a French Absinthe in the verte style, distilled on wormwood, anise and fennel, and bottled at 40%.

NV is the house's everyday bottle. Where La Fée's Parisienne expression sits at 68% and is built as a reconstruction of how absinthe tasted in the 1800s, NV is turned down to 40% and made to be used. The recipe draws on the same herbal world with wormwood at its centre, but the strength is cut back so the bottle can go into a drink without taking it over.

The number on the label changes more than you'd think. Alcohol is what keeps the essential oils from the herbs in solution, and at 40% there's simply room for fewer of them. The louche turns lighter and more translucent than the dense cloud a full-strength absinthe makes, and it takes less water before the balance sits right.

That's also why NV more often ends up in a cocktail glass than an absinthe glass. Absinthe is used classically as a rinse in the glass for a Sazerac, where a few drops set an anise line under the rye whiskey, and as the topper in a Death in the Afternoon alongside champagne. At 40%, you can be a little more generous with it without tipping the drink over.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Anise leads, sweet and distinct, with fennel right behind it. The wormwood is there, but it sits underneath rather than pushing forward. No alcohol burn, so you can hold the glass close without narrowing your eyes.

Palate

A soft entry with a liquorice-like sweetness. Fennel and a green herbal streak arrive mid-palate, and only at the end does the wormwood's bitterness cut through as a dry line against the sweetness. With ice water it turns almost easy-drinking, and the sugar is far from necessary.

Finish

Short to medium. The anise fades gently, leaving a faint bitterness on the palate. The mouth feels cool, but the lingering numbness of a full-strength absinthe never arrives.

Specifications

Name: La Fee NV Absinthe French Absint 70 cl 40%
Producer: La Fée Absinthe
Region/Country: France
Type: French Absinthe
ABV: 40%
Size: 70 CL
Botanicals: Wormwood, anise and fennel
EAN no.: 5033566034597
Serving suggestion: Ice water poured over a sugar cube on an absinthe spoon, or as an ingredient in cocktails

Flavour Profile

Anise · Liquorice · Herbal · Soft · Fresh

Did You Know?

Absinthe was banned in France in 1915 and vanished from French distilleries for almost a hundred years. La Fée was the first traditional absinthe to be distilled on French soil again after the ban.

See our full range of Absinthe

In Auvers-sur-Oise, north of Paris, where Van Gogh painted his last canvases, there is a museum devoted entirely to absinthe. The woman who founded it signed off on this recipe. Green in the bottle, milky white in the glass, and built on wormwood the way it was in the 19th century.

Please note: No absinthe spoon is included with this bottle.

The expert's description

La Fee Parisienne Absinthe France Absinthe 68% Without spoon is a French Absinthe distilled from nine herbs to a 19th-century recipe and bottled at 68%.

The herb list runs grand wormwood, petite wormwood, genepi, green anise, star anise, fennel, hyssop and coriander seed, plus two ingredients the house keeps to itself. Each herb is distilled separately and the distiller blends the parts afterwards. It is slower than throwing everything into one still, but it hands over control of how far the anise steps forward and how dry the wormwood is allowed to bite.

The recipe was developed with Marie-Claude Delahaye, who founded the absinthe museum in Auvers-sur-Oise and still runs it. She approves every batch before bottling, and she looks at three things: the colour, how dense the louche turns when the water hits, and whether the herbs sit in the right proportion to one another. La Fée Parisienne is the only absinthe the museum puts its name to.

The base spirit is distilled from sugar beet and reaches roughly 96% before the herbs and the dilution. The green colour is not added but drawn out of fresh plants macerated in the spirit after distillation, so the chlorophyll does the colouring. At 68% this bottle is made for the ritual of iced water and sugar, not for drinking neat.

Tasting notes

Nose

Wormwood first, green and bitter like a crushed stem between the fingers. Anise settles on top and sweetens the aroma, with fennel right behind it. Move the glass and the coriander surfaces, warm and faintly peppery.

Palate

Undiluted it is concentrated and hot. Iced water changes it completely: anise and fennel spread out and soften, wormwood lays a dry bitterness underneath, and hyssop cuts in with a mineral, almost minty edge. Sugar takes the peak off the bitterness without making the drink sweet.

Finish

Long and coolly bitter. Anise holds on longest, wormwood stays at the back of the tongue, and the mouth is left clean and slightly numb the way only anise spirits manage.

Specifications

Name: La Fee Parisienne Absinthe France Absinthe 68% Without spoon
Producer: La Fée Absinthe
Region/Country: France
Type: French Absinthe
ABV: 68%
Size: 70 CL
Botanicals: Grand wormwood, petite wormwood, genepi, green anise, star anise, fennel, hyssop and coriander seed
Natural colour: Yes
Distillation method: The herbs are distilled separately and blended afterwards
EAN no.: 9010330000374
Serving suggestion: 1 part absinthe and 4-6 parts iced water poured over a sugar cube on an absinthe spoon

Flavour profile

Anise · Herbal · Bitter · Fresh · Powerful

Did you know?

The bottles carry a UV-inhibiting coating. The green comes from chlorophyll in the plants, and chlorophyll fades in sunlight. Without that coating the contents would slowly drift from green towards yellow-brown while the bottle sat on the shelf.

See our full range of Absinthe