One more absinthe !
I'm proud to announce a new absinthe, in production for nearly a year : Belle Amie.
I chose the recipe in a Traité de fabrication des liqueurs because I am deeply interested in its proportions and a special herb it countains. The recipe dates from 1908.
I asked Peter to produce it at Emile Pernot distillery ; I trust him to produce absinthe in the old fashion way. He used the herbs from Pontarlier.
The oldest distillation is from February 2007.
The absinthe is ready for release and should be avaiable next week in shops, and at Liqueurs de France.

I'm very very happy with this absinthe because it fits what I was looking for : a very special taste, herbal, refreshing and floral. The natural color is dark emerald.

Bottles are sealed with red wax, stamped with Emile Pernot seal (Peter's hand powered).
This first edition is limited, back labels (featuring a cat chasing a parrot) has been handwrited with numbers by myself.
The name is coming from the Maupassant's novel, "Bel Ami", it features absinthe drinkers.

I hope folks who will taste it will enjoy it

Some pics :

FRONT LABEL

A classy presentation.

And lovely colour.

And very good from what I remember! An herbaceous taste I really liked.
Lovely oval label.

Everything is lovely

Very beautiful, congratulations! Must get a bottle…

Hey, it's labeled "Amer". That means it has cock-rocking quantities of Thuj0ne!

I'm assuming that would be the Nimes recipe containing Elecampane? Just hazarding a guess, but I think that's the best recipe from that source. A well made Nimes is a fantastic absinthe.

That's for sure!

Congrats, indeed! Beautiful presentation, and the color does look quite promising.

Exchange rate be damned, this looks like a must try.

I think the subheading of this thread confirms it.

You been smokin' crack?

Do not ruin the conspiracy…



Indeed!™

More like drinking his retirement fund.

No, selling it.

I thought my new frivolous enthusiasm had given me away.

I thought frivolous enthusiasm was your modus operandi.

Frivolous enthusiasm sporting frilly underthings is the way I heard it.

Whatever rocks your fowl.

My modus operandi?

I'll bet Melanie, and Allison would have a good laugh over that one.

I mean "what's her head", and "who's her "…yeah, yeah, that's the ticket.

Was that from your wife, or my kid?

At least they were the ones wearing the frilly underthings that night.

I'll take your word for that.

Congratulations! Hope to taste it in Paris next year!

I read that title way too fast, it looked like: "She's cumming".

I'll bet your partners hear that a lot.

I had the chance to try Belle Amie at Luc’s shop when I was in Paris. It was delicious! I can’t wait for the official release.

Great work!

Hi Luc! I look forward to tasting the Belle Amie. The bottle and label are stunning, nice work. Will you ever share the herb bill with us here in the Forum?

Cheers!

Thanx !
I can't say to the "herb mix guessers" if they are right or wrong :) For me these absinthe is a whole concept, the recipe is part of the name, of the label. The purpose is to create a special memory of the past, a flavoring travel. So it's not very important to identify the book where I took the recipe from, the way I created the label, or the way Peter worked, etc.
Plus, the experienced drinkers will find out when they'll taste it I think

No worries! I can live with the excitement until it arrives. As we move closer to that time, is there a more solid date for it's release?

about a week

*Heavy sigh* Looks like I'm gonna have to place another order next weeks. :) And I just spent $380 last week! Now I just gotta find a way to tell the brother he's getting an old shoe for Christmas 'cause I'm broke. Maybe I'll be generous and let him try a tiny taste.

Seriously though, being limited, any idea how long it'll last? Maybe a few days, or a few weeks? I'd really like to wait until the 1901 is restocked to save on shipping but I don't wanna miss out.

now available at LDF!

Ordered this morning, but I was hoping its availability would remain a secret, so I could have unlimited access, you killjoy.

I waited until after I placed my order. Then I figured I wanted it to be a success so they would make more.

Okay, I take back the killjoy part…how could I possibly fault such impeccable reasoning?

Oh, goody, I just noticed that when the label is enlarged, one can see that the Belle Amie is classified as an amer, so, hopefully, it'll not only taste delicious, but have balztrippin'™ power, as well!

Better than KOS you daresay?

I don't know, that might be waxing a bit too rhapsodic.

It's here, it's finally here!!! Just arrived this morning - only four days after I ordered. These monkeys are FAST! But I am now the proud owner of bottles 525 and 526 out of 600 (along with another bottle of 1797 'cause that stuff was great). I want to try this so bad but I've gotta work in a couple hours so it's just gonna have to wait. Dammit!

Hopefully I'll get a couple reviews up soon.

Well, I'm only waiting for the glass I just louched up to chill a bit, but I can make these astounded preliminary comments…

The nose out of the elegant bottle is the most complex, deep, and profoundly spicy/floral aroma I've ever enjoyed from a modern absinthe. In fact, the only three absinthe aromas I could compare this one to would be the Pernod Fils 1914, the Edouard Pernod 65, or Berger, it's just that big, luscious, and beautiful!

To top that off, it comes complete with its own instant feuille mort, which is nearly identical to the beauteous golden color of the 1914. When it louches (very slowly, and with plenty of gradient swirling snowglobe action), it also turns a very similar translucent golden-green to the 1914's, with perhaps a shade more amber-brown.

A first taste revealed an extremely massive, yet refined blast of anise, fennel, hyssop, coriander, wormwood and perhaps cardamom. The coriander, and wormwood really stood out, and the aftertaste was as hugely spicy/herbal/floral as the initial flavor. I'd almost swear I actually tasted just a bit of that early vintage Rolls Royce leather thing in the aftertaste, as well.

I don't know how the hell you folks pull this gem off, but thank you, profusely, Heure Verte, Monsieur Pernot et Cie., and LDF for bringing this wondrous creation to fruition!

Wow. After all that bitching about shipping costs and exchange rates and the price of Absinthe, I finally cave in and shell out the mega bucks for it on the morning it becomes available, and people several thousand miles further away from the UK than I am get it first? I'm not giving that monkey any bananas when he show up this time.

You bastards got me. I had to order it.

Me too. We're so weak.

Goddamn peer pressure strikes again.

I'm closing on a rat-infested hellhole in a couple of weeks. No more absinthe-buying for me. (Except at St. George, that doesn't count . . . it's a moving expense.)

Trainer, you can taste the Belle Amie and a few other things when you visit.

Woohoo!

Thanks.

I'll bring a rat, if you like.

Sorry, I'll be real busy.

Unfortunately we can get one of those from our neighbor. You are also welcome to take one of our squirrels.

Nah, house comes with tree rats, too. But they seem to stay in the TREE.

Rats have taken over the attic. I left them some tasty treats.

This is so scarily like vintage that it's… uh.. scary? Very well done. My girlfriend finally likes absinthe! Bottle 446 is not lasting very long around this place. Cheers men.