I've mentioned this before, but I'd like some input from those that know a thing or two about producing Absinthe...


I'm a bit stuck on this point but here are my questions...

Was preban Pernod Fils aged in oak barrels?

Any idea how long it was aged before they bottled the product and shipped it worldwide?

What would happen to the taste of Absinthe that was properly stored for over 100 years?

At what point does Absinthe stop aging and does the color of the bottle (Green, Brown, Clear, Blue) have anything to do with that?

From the current selections of HG that I've tried I've heard this repeated many times... "It's still young" ... "It'll mellow a little with age".

How would those statements affect a 100 year old bottle of Absinthe?

i wouldn't trust anybody who let it sit around that long.

drink up, you fucking bitches!

buy a painting if you want something to look at for that long!

If a bottle is stored properly, the contents can be preserved remarkably well, though actually opening the bottle can cause the contents to deteriorate rapidly.

I'm assuming Pernod aged in oak for the same reason anyone else would: flavour.

The difference between a 1 day old absinthe and that same absinthe 3 months later is much more noticeable than the difference between a 6 month and 1 year old. No absinthe "stops ageing" from a technical point of view.

From a flavour point of view, it's unwise for an HGr to make recipe based decisions for future batches on a product that is younger than 3 months.

They probably used Oak barrels for aging because that's what they had available and that's what had been used traditionally to store Wine/Beer/Liquor. Wine/Brandy barrels were relatively inexpensive, back in the day, compared to other storage containers. The size of the Barrels compared to the amount of Liquor inside, would only contribute a slight oakiness.

For those of you that are going to say: "I've had vintage Pernod Fils and it didn't taste 'oaky' at all," there are many other flavours that can be leeched out of wood besides a "woody" or "oaky" flavour. Flavours like nutty, vanilla, sweet, almond, etc. can be extracted from oak.