Chartreuse Green Liqueur

Unique and balanced, sweet/herbaceous. Goes perfectly with tonic water or on the rocks. Personally im partially to the aged VEP stuff as it mellows out both the alcohol and the sugar, but i dont see either the green or yellow VEP on distiller.

Rating: 19/23 No idea what to expect here. N: There's a minty spiciness with anise, as well as some richer, more savory herbs, some earth, straw, wood, and a hint of citrus. It smells good with an intriguing, ever-changing profile. Definitely though, it smells like something that some people will not enjoy and it smells quite situational. P: The palate has a big vibrancy yet doesn't taste super rich. There's a bit of prickliness and herbaceousness that remind me a little of a high rye rye like WhistlePig. The particular herbal profile reminds me of Jagermeister, but with more distinct flavors, less sugary viscosity, and none of that metallic cola flavor. There's a bit of that Jagermeister Cold Brew spiciness in this, but not the roastiness. The complexity here is really surprising and enjoyable, particularly since the flavors just go together so nicely. It masks its alcohol pretty well too. I figured it was probably 30 to 40 percent alcohol, but I checked the back and it's 55! The actual flavors include a big kick of black, white, and even rainbow peppercorns. played against a viscous sweetness with an herbal backing. The mint, anise, and citrus come through, though not nearly so much as the pepper. There's some sort of bitter herb flavor hanging out in the back that I'm having trouble placing, but I definitely get some piney rosemary in here and maybe a little bit of thyme as well. There is unfortunately a bit of something a little off with the alcohol flavor coming through that causes me to not love this. F: The pepperiness and light herbaceousness persist while the alcohol and viscous sweetness subside. It's a light, fresh finish that sticks around for a while and is enjoyable to contemplate while also being more balanced than the palate (albeit less complex). This strikes me as the herbal counterpoint to St. Germain - it's elegant and very complex with a particular genre of flavors being targeted (specifically floral/fruity and spicy/herbal as opposed to being limited to chocolate or a spattering of fruits and spices and nuts and caramel and ...) and it doesn't reveal much alcohol either. This isn't just something that I could drink - it's something that I'd be happy to drink. It's a shame it's so expensive, but not much is necessary at once, so I think this bottle will last me a while. I'm not sure I have any reason to restock Jagermeister when I run out now that I have Chartreuse Green (not that I really did anything with Jagermeister to begin with), even though they aren't quite perfect substitutes. I'm looking forward to trying this out in various cocktails and maybe just enjoying a small pour now and then. I need to actually rate this though. I started off with a 16, which I probably should have posted as a separate tasting, but I was too lazy. That seems low now though. This strikes me as better than any of the orange liqueurs I've tried as a sipper (though less likely to achieve universal appeal) and I'm not really sure what to put it in (I mean, I only know of like 2 cocktails). That said, it doesn't seem at all bad mixed in with some gin or tequila, but it needs to be moderated, so it won't be the main flavor there. The flavors here do get muddled fairly quickly, whereas they hold up better St. Germain when it is mixed and with a palate that is not in perfect shape. Considering that, I think St. Germain is the better of the two. Its flavor also holds up well in a drink and both are best suited for refreshing drinks with comparatively low ABVs where the complexity of the spirit is more in play, so I don't think that the St. Germain's lower ABV hurts its relative value for the money a lot. A couple of things I tried that should serve as good yardsticks for cocktails are this with vodka and this with gin. The particular vodka (Beluga Noble) is a bit milky/oaty sweet with a harshess to it. It worked well, taming this a bit, while adding a new element. The cheap gin (Dover Strait) also gave the Chartreuse an interesting new personality with its stark juniper flavor and clean presence. I wouldn't say that either was necessarily better than plain Chartreuse Green, but they at least helped to stretch the bottle and are promising for actual cocktails involving Chartreuse. I've even tried mixing it with bourbon and found that the result was about as good as the neat Chartreause and possibly better. It's like sugar plus slightly bitter herbal stuff, so that makes sense. I think with a bit more effort I'll find something that really clicks here, but, regardless, there is a lot of potential for Chartreuse in cocktails. I think that Chartreuse tastes at least as good as Grand Marnier does neat (and really I think it's better). I can therefore sort of imagine going as low as a 17 for this, but really I think that 18 is more the bottom. I don't see it going as high as 21 though, so 18 to 20 is the most realistic range and either 19 or 20 really does seem right. 19 it is for now, but I can definitely imagine this moving up to a 20 in the future. Here's where I'm going to do something really unusual. I have not found that excellent cocktail that definitively moves this up to a 20 yet, but because I have found so many that are about as good as this is neat, I'm going to make an assertion: because Chartreuse Green neat is on the borderline between 19 and 20, at least one of those cocktails is most likely enough better than neat Chartreuse to bump it into the 20 range, and if none is good enough, I'm sure that one is out there and not incredibly hard to find. Think of this as a loan, Chartreuse. I may take it back and bump you down to a 19 at any time.

Herbal, medicinal and palate cleansing. strong, viscous licorice. Appealing, especially after a large meal

It’s got a complex flavor, and a beautiful color. But I can’t see myself ordering this in a bar or drinking it at home. It’s sweeter than I usually like, and I taste a lot of thyme and rosemary, which makes me think of a chicken dinner. Not really sure what I’d use it for, as its unique flavor is nothing I would want in my cocktails. Maybe I could cook a pheasant in it?

Smell: fennel, licorice, ethanol (55% Alcohol will do that), menthol, anise, clove Neat: white sugar (like dissolving), anise, fennel, licorice, mint/menthol, vanilla?, heat (higher proof), wormwood (leaves mouth dry like absinthe), cinnamon, On Ice: vanilla, white sugar, menthol, clove, anise, fennel, licorice, cinnamon, Verdict: Share it, this is a delicious herbal liqueur that I have never had anything like it. I jokingly say that Absinthe wishes that it tasted and looked like Green Chartreuse. For those that are interested in exploring Absinthe, I 100% recommend getting and trying this liqueur out to see if you may like the flavor profiles, though I do warn that absinthe won’t be nearly as sweet as Green Chartreuse is. I have made fantastic drinks with this bottle, and I cannot recommend enough to get this and share it with friends to see if they pick up any flavors that you missed since there are at least 130 different ingredients/botanicals in this bottle.