Fragrance Reviews by Jemimagold

Bulgari Black starts off with a warm, almost rice pudding note. It is a velvety fragrance and though it is apparently for men, I could easily imagine wearing it myself. As it dries down there is a very faint rubber/leather smell which I really only found by having read about those notes. If I hadn’t, I don’t know that I would have detected them as they are not dominant notes in the composition. The best way I can describe Bulgari Black is that it is a soft yet translucent, vanilla musk fragrance with a mild hint of coconut, cinnamon and powder. Which doesn’t do it a lot of justice as Bulgari Black really is much more stylish and modern than these words indicate. It also reminds me a good deal of a current favorite of mine – Le Labo Aldehyde 44. And finally, no question about it, that is one sexy little bottle!

Per The Perfumed Court, here are the notes for Bulgari Black: black tea, rosewood, bergamot, cedar, oakmoss, vanilla, amber, sandalwood and musk.

Well, if anyone has a hankering for the smelling like Grandma’s mothball stuffed hall closet, look no further because Serge Luten’s Tubereuse Criminelle is for you! I scrunched up my nose so hard when I smelled this – it was teeth-gnashingly revolting. Tubereuse Criminelle’s vaunted top note is a cross between mothballs and the bitterness you get when you take a swig of mentholated Dayquil. Yeah, yeah, a decent tubereuse smell eventually emerges but I just could not get past that nauseating mothball initial note.

For a beautiful creamy floral without any olfactory pain, I much prefer Serge Lutens’ Un Lys to this.

As gleaned from various sources on the internet, here are Tubereuse Criminelle’s notes: menthol, tuberose, orange blossom, jasmine, vanilla, clove and banana.

La Perla Eclix is a sweet, soft lemon fragrance which definitely belongs in the “foody perfume” cupboard. I agree somewhat with others who have likened it to lemon meringue pie but I also detect smidgens of flour and vanilla notes so I am going to say that Eclix smells more like a lemon angel food cake. I think if I wore this with any regularity, I would start craving sweets! However, Eclix is certain to please a gourmand perfume afficionado who enjoys citrus. I was a bit surprised to learn that Eclix had so many “official” notes (see below) as none of them were apparent to my nose.

Here are the notes, courtesy of The Perfumed Court: bergamot, blackcurrant leaves, osmanthus, waterlily, may rose, almond blossom, exotic woods, cocoa and white musk.

Guerlain’s Quand Vient la Pluie is yet another classic offering from Guerlain which showcases the super-sweet, vanilla-ish “Guerlainade” base to perfection. If you take that base and add black cherries and violets, that is what Quand Vient la Pluie smells like to me. I have to confess that I really don’t like this style of perfume and can’t imagine wearing it, however, for an incredibly sweet perfume, the notes are true and it seems to be of very high quality and well made.


Per The Perfume Court, here are the notes: Top:bergamot, orange blossom and rosemary; Heart: heliotrope, jasmine and violet; Base: patchouli, praline and musks.

Jo Malone’s Grapefruit perfume starts off sharp-ish but then is toned down with white flowers so that it becomes a very tame, light fragance. The vetiver in the middle and base notes give it some warmth and depth and is probably why some reviewers characterize it as a masculine perfume. Jo Malone’s Grapefruit doesn’t have the zing that I adore in Aqua Allegoria’s Pamplelune or the cheerfully unabashed zestiness of Frederic Malle’s Bigarade Concentree, but Jo Malone’s Grapefruit is a competent scent that will likely appeal to a man or a woman who doesn’t want to smell overly “perfumey” but wants to smell “clean”. Ho hum.

Per The Perfumed Court, here are the notes: grapefruit, tangerine, vetiver and rosemary.

Etro’s Shaal Nur is a dark oriental fragrance whose semi-acrid top note reminded me of Estee Lauder’s style of perfume – Youth Dew in particular. I also caught fleeting whiffs of saffron and amber which petered out after about 10 minutes. As the middle notes of vanilla and incense crept in and softened things up, Shaal Nur became a much more likeable and wearable fragrance. My overall impression of Shaal Nur is that it has a cozy “frankincense and myrrh” vibe and is definitely a fragrance for colder weather. Despite the listed notes below, I cannot say that I detected any citrus, rose or narcissus at all but then I dabbed it on which seems to produce different results than spraying.

In terms of comparison, if you like cuddliness of Shaal Nur, you would also enjoy Cristiano Fissore’s Cashmere for Women or the Ormonde Jayne line.

Per The Perfumed Court, here are the notes: citrus, rose, narcissus, karo karounde, jonquil, incense, vanilla and spices.

Eau de Rochas Pour Homme starts off a little sharp but in less than a minute, it opens up to become a lovely warm elegant men's fragrance. It is an elegant mix of citrus with dashes of cedar and vetiver.

For those of you who know and love Eau de Rochas, Pour Homme is a richer scent that I could easily imagine my boyfriend wearing in the fall whereas Eas de Rochas is chiefly a summery citrus perfume. Cap d'Antibes and all that.

Having said all this, it is important to keep in mind that Pour Homme is a very light fragrance and doesn't last all that long (maybe 30 minutes) so perhaps it would be a good choice for a man that is a little hesitant about smelling strongly of cologne. It would be awesome if Rochas were to offer an "extreme" version of this!

Here are the notes: vetiver, mandarin, grapefruit, verbena, mountain narcissus, cedar, patchouli, wild rose, ambre, myrrh and sandalwood.

I adore a good vetiver fragrance and was anxious to try Andy Tauer's interpretation. However, I found Vetiver Dance to be pretty disappointing.

Plainly put, Vetiver Dance is a soapy boring vetiver with hints of iris in the top note that gives it a rooty, almost depressing feel. Despite the listed notes, I definitely did not smell any pepper. I am huge pepper fan and adore Ormonde Jayne's Isfarkand and Frederic Malle's Angelique Sous la Pluie. If anything, Vetiver Dance is a "cold" vetiver as opposed to Guerlain's various Vetiver scents which are warm and confident. If anything, Vetiver Dance is a "cold" vetiver as opposed to Guerlain's various Vetiver scents which are warm and confident. Annick Goutal's Vetiver and i Profumi di Firenze's "Fresco di Vetiver" absolutely blow Vetiver Dance away in terms of creativeness and overall wearabililty. I'd save my money and pass on this.

Here are the notes for Vetiver Dance, courtesy of The Perfumed Posse: grapefruit, black pepper, clary sage, lily of the valley, cedar wood, ambergris, tonka and dark vetiver from Java.

Enslaved is a heavy, one-dimensional perfume that smells chiefly like old fashioned ladies powder, ie. loose powder in a cylindrical container that comes with a luxurious white powder puff. I detected a tiny bit of spiciness in the fragrance which I guess was the carnation and clove trying to get out but, it was firmly "enslaved" by the unrelenting Mistress Powder! None of other notes listed below were detectable. For comparison purposes, Enslaved reminded me a lot of that other cloyingly robust powder fragrance, Etat Libre d'Orange's "Rien" (aka "Dorian Gray").

In the powder/aldehyde genre of perfumery, I much prefer Hermes' Rouge or Le Labo's Aldehyde 44 to Enslaved.

Per The Perfumed Court, here are the notes: Bergamot, Orange, Lemon, Geranium, Orange Blossom, Rose, Ylang Ylang, Jasmine, Carnation, Clove, Oakmoss, Cedarwood, Vetiver, Patchouli, Labdanum, Ambergris and Musk.

I had really hoped that Chypre Fatal might be the fragrance to counteract my cursed luck in finding a Guerlain to love. Alas, it was not to be. I am a huge fan of dry chypre perfumes (Chanel's 31 Rue Cambon, Hermes' Caleche, Piguet's Bandit and YSL's Y are some of my all-time favorites) and I especially adore Caleche's mossy, almost citrus/astringent quality. However, Guerlain's Chypre Fatal has that sweet-ish Guerlain base that I find so sugary and cloying that it really takes away the pleasure of smelling the chypre notes. As the fragrance settles down to its basenotes, it acquires a non-descript "perfumey" smell that is just kind of average, department-storeish, etc... Ho hum. If I am going to veer towards the land of sweet chypres, I would much prefer to do so in the competent arms of YSL Yvresse or Dior's Diorama.

Here are the notes for Chypre Fatal, courtesy of The Perfumed Court: White Peach, Rose, Patchouli & Vanilla.

Miller et Bertaux's "Green, Green, Green, Green's" top note smells just like the scent of a freshly broken branch of a young tree mixed with a generous helping of fresh coriander. It is quite bracing and almost too sharp to my nose. However, after about 5-10 minutes, lemon verbena and jasmine arrive to prune back the sharp green claws and then it evolves into a soft lemony floral fragrance which is clearly well made. I detected a slight hint of vetiver in the end but this fragrance dies pretty quickly so you really have to be on the lookout for it.

Similar perfumes to Green, Green, Green, Green (what an annoying name!) are: a) Hampton Sun's Privet Bloom which is a tiny bit fresher and prettier, and b) Nanadebary Green which is warmer and has a more pronounced green tea note.

Here are the notes, courtesy of The Perfumed Court: laurel, bay leaves, verbena, sap, coriander, jasmine, cedar, vetiver and musk.

Acqua Allegoria's Herba Fresca is a soft minty fragrance that smells like freshly torn mint leaves if you subtract out any possible sharpness. As the fragrance mellows, hints of thyme, marjoram and grass come through but it is all handled in an extremely light way. If I really put my mind to it, I can smell the green tea and lemona verbena notes. It reminds me a lot Comme des Garcons' Peppermint perfume except that Herba Fresca is a tiny bit sweeter. In any event, Herba Fresca conjures up wonderful images of a summer evening on a stone terrace at a farmhouse deep in Provence surrounded by a lush herb garden.

Here are the notes, courtesy of Sephora: Citrus, Clover Leaf, Italian Lemon, Peppermint, Green Tea, Lily of the Valley, Cyclamen, Pear Blossom. (SSS) 8/10

Montale’s Embruns d’Essouira is a refreshing marine/algae scent that I enjoyed very much. My first thought upon sniffing was thank goodness it was not another “faux beachy” scent, ie. another variation on the smell of Coppertone Sun Tan Lotion (Yoohoo- Bobbi Brown Beach, Philosophy!). In contrast, Embruns d’Essouira smells nearly exactly like the smell you experience when you are at the ocean sitting on the sand at the edge of the water, and the waves rush up around you tinged with green algae. It is also a much lighter style than I am used to seeing from Montale (another plus), and I thought it was pretty interesting and wearable. Finally, Embruns d’Essouira was good on me but I think it would really rock on a man!

Here are the notes, as gleaned on the internet: Iodine from the water of Essaouira, Moroccan Atlas sandalwood, spices, musk, Yemeni Oud, Oman olibanum pearls, frankincense, Egyptian balsam, Cystus ladaniferus and amber.

Simply put, Tan Rokka's Aki is the lovechild of Guerlain's L'Heure Bleu and Shalimar. Aki is a sweet-ish, predominantly amber/sandalwood fragrance with a great deal of powder and a smattering of spices. It is surprisingly strong so be sure to apply it sparingly as this is one of those perfumes that could easily end of "wearing you"! As compared to Aki, I much prefer Becker Eshaya's Golden Amber for amber, or 10 Corso Como or Diptyque's Tam Dao for sandalwood.

Here are Aki's notes, courtesy of The Perfumed Court: amber, patchouli, sandalwood and vetiver.

Acqua di Biella's Janca is a light fruity floral scent with dominant notes of peach and linden. Stylistically, it is very similar the floral perfumes offered by Annick Goutal such as Petite Cherie, Eau de Charlotte, etc.... It is not nearly as complex as the notes below would seem to suggest and I did not catch any iris - which is good since I don't care for its mustiness. Overall, I think that Janca could be a lovely casual fragrance to wear in the summertime as it wouldn't unduly amplify in the heat. Lastly, as is typical of this style of perfume, Janca does not have good sillage. It lasted about 45 minutes on my skin.

Here are the notes listed on the Acqua di Biella website: Florentine iris, peach, tamarind, mandarin, linden, osmanthus, magnolia, cardamom, musk, cedarwood and patchouli.

The top note of Heeley's Cardinal perfume was an astringent dry, soap smell that rushed through my nose to the back to my throat. I truly felt like I was tasting soap. Cardinal was that pervasive (or should I say, invasive?) And I applied it sparingly! After about an hour, Cardinal calmed down to become an austere, powdery green fragrance that reminded me a great deal of Balmain's Ivoire. At around hour 3, Cardinal became became rather nice but I am much too impatient to wait that long for a fragrance to develop.

I know Cardinal is much revered in certain perfume circles as a "reference incense" and all that, but I think that Comme des Garcons' Kyoto and Ouarzazate are much wearable and pleasant than this.

Here are Cardinal's notes, courtesy of LuckyScent: incense, cistus, grey amber, patchouli, vetiver.

Demeter is so good at creating ultra-realistic single note fragrances that it really makes it hard to write an interesting review about one of their perfumes. Riding Crop smells just like you'd expect it to- it is a warm, manly fragrance that smells just like a piece of new leather. Smelling it immediately conjured up thoughts of walking into a boutique that is piled high with all sorts of new leather equestrian goods.

I think Riding Crop could be very useful to layer with if you are into that sort of thing. But, would I wear Riding Crop on its own? Probably not. If I'm gonna smell like leather, I think Le Labo's Santal 26 and Heeley's Cuir Pleine Fleur are much more wearable and stylish (at least for a woman).

Here's the lone note: leather.

The Escentric Molecules line has been responsible for one of the most exciting perfumes I've ever smelled (Escentric 01's smoky lime/pepper/cedar rush) and also one of the most frustrating (Molecule 01's faint, disappearing cedar water on skin).


So, with eyes (and nose) wide open, I tried Escentric 02 which struck me as being very similar to Escentric 01 but without the lime or pepper, or stellar longevity. Escentric 02 definitely has a generous helping of ISO E Super- its cedary, woody notes are pronounced- but its real mission is apparently to showcase the synthetic molecule called Ambroxan. According to my internet research, Ambroxan is meant to smell like ambergris which is "a waxy substance occasionally produced in the large intestine of sperm whales". It'd be interesting to know who figured out that ambergris could be of such use in perfumery!

Anyways, to me, 02 has pronounced cedar/wood notes but it also has blended non-specific floral notes, which veer into a little musky/powderiness. It is one of the harder fragrances I've ever had to describe because it does not smell like anything I've ever smelled before, other than its cousin Escentric 01. In closing, thumbs up to Escentric 02 for being quirky, original and (thankfully) non-sweet with decent longevity.

Here are the notes, courtesy of Luckyscent: Ambroxan, vetiver, muscone, orris, elderflower.

I know others may love this but Voleur de Ciels smelled absolutely horrible on me. The topnote gave off awful wafts of cheapish amber and what smelled just like (I hate to say this but....) sweet-ish decaying, rotting flesh. Like the smell of a piece of raw meat that's been forgotten in the back of your refrigerator for 3-4 weeks. Oh dear, Voleur de Ciels was disgusting and I could not wash it off fast enough so I cannot tell you what the middle and basenote were like. Also, for some reason, Voleur de Ciels reminded me a lot of Neil Morris' Coral.


Here are the notes: wood, chypre, mint, jasmine, milky notes and leather.

Remember that inexpensive super-pungent 80's fragrance, "Jungle Gardenia"? Well, one of the best niche perfume lines have produced a reinterpretation. I know that gardenia is not one of the listed notes but to my nose, biehl's hb01 is a dead-ringer for it. One sniff and I guarantee you"ll be transported back to the days of big hair, shoulder pads and lots of makeup. Hb 01 is a big jolt of gardenia with a tiny bit of spice (cumin, maybe?) in the top note. The middle/base notes are basically tuberose and other white flowers which turns hb 01 into a close cousin of Giorgio (loud, vulgar, obvious floral).

As gardenia scents go, I much prefer Chanel Gardenia (understated stylish gardenia) and Monyette Paris (luscious, tropical gardenia) to hb 01. Or, if you just want a truly beautiful elegant floral perfume, I'd highly recommend biehl's mb 01 over this.

Here are the notes, courtesy of The Perfumed Court: top: orange blossom, blackcurrant, peach, gardenia, green leaves, bergamot, Middle: rose, jasmine, lily of the valley, iris, tuberose, ylang ylang, Base: vanilla, cedar, sandalwood, musk.

I really did not see what the big deal was about Valentino Gold. It had an overall generic "sweet perfumey" smell that was utterly unremarkable. At the beginnning I think I may have caught a hint of mandarin but after that note quickly evaporated, Gold smelled like an average department store perfume. Even Fendi's Palazzo was more interesting than this! Methinks a certain Italian clothes designer sold his name (and reputation) to a giant beauty licensing firm for big bucks without caring what was produced....

Here are Gold's notes from what I've been able to find on the internet: Mandarin, Key West Lime, Cardamom, Cinnamon, Cranberry, Ginger Water Lily, Sandalwood, Blue Iris, White Musk.

Gres Cabaret surprised me with its cheerfully sunny rose smell. I definitely prejudged it having found Gres' Cabochard's dry chypre notes to be a bit austere and thought Cabaret might have been some kind of Cabochard flanker. However, Cabaret has an upbeat rosy smell and the drydown features a slight hint of sandalwood and musk for enhancement purposes but at all times, rose remains the dominant note. Speaking to its modern-ness, if someone had told me that Cabaret was by Les Parfums de Rosine (a house noted for its rose scents), I would have believed them. In fact, it reminds me an awful lot of Rosine's Une Zeste de Rose. On the downside, Cabaret really did not last on me more than 20 minutes so regretfully I would not consider buying it.

Here are the notes for Cabaret, as gleaned on the internet: Rose, Lily Of The Valley, Peony, Incense, Blue Orris, Sandalwood, Amber and Musk.

Sage Onyx is a cloying, sickly sweet coconut/musk bomb that smells cheap but somehow manages to gets rave reviews on the MUA Fragrance Board when the "best coconut perfume" poll crops up time after time. I don't get the point of Onyx at all but then again, I'm in my forties. Maybe this Onyx is something the "tween" set enjoys... All I know is, I don't like this one bit. Get out the kitchen sponge 'cause I need to scub this off !!

Here are the notes, courtesy of The Perfumed Court: dark coconut, oakmoss, tobacco and vanilla nectar.

I think that Le Labo’s Patchouli 24 (samples, decants, bottles or what have you) should come with a big flashing warning sign that says “APPLY WITH CARE”! This is quite possibly one of the most intense-smelling, longest lasting fragrances I have ever experienced (which includes Ysatis, Angel, Creeds, Montales, etc..). And as you can see from the volume of my perfume reviews, I like to think that I have smelled a fair amount of perfume.

When I first tried Patchouli 24, all I had was a small sample and lightly dabbed it on a small place on my wrist. Its top note of earthy smoke was readily apparent and reminded me a good deal of CB I Hate Perfumes Burning Leaves but was not quite as sweet. Then, as the drydown continued, wafts of dark, sticky vanilla began to emerge but with the smoke and some leather still hanging tough. I would say that patchouli is actually one of the least recognizable notes in Patchouli 24. Both my boyfriend and I were entranced by this dark and lovely fragrance so I purchased a spray decant.

Before Boyfriend and I embarked on a recent roadtrip, he generously spritzed himself with Patchouli 24 before getting in the car and man, was that ever an intense sensory journey! Accckk. I had to roll the windows a number of times to be able to breathe. Patchouli 24 is not a fragrance for close quarters and I think the car still smells of it . After we returned home, just for experimental purposes, I sprayed Patchouli 24 into a bowl of potpourri to see if it would last there since most perfumes evaporate pretty quickly when sprayed on potpourri. A week later and still counting, Patchouli 24 is proudly in evidence. Le Labo’s website calls Patchouli 24 “A scent filled with danger for those of us who like to walk a tight rope…” and that is certainly true if you cannot handle a tenacious perfume with monster sillage.

Here are the notes for Patchouli 24, as gleaned from the internet: birch tar, patchouli, styrax, and vanilla.

I like a dose of luxurious aldehydes now and then, and had good memories of smelling Vraie Blonde in NYC at Henri Bendel back in May of this year. My recollection was that Vraie Blonde was definitely the most pleasant scent in the intentionally weird Etat Libre d’Orange line which, upon reflection isn’t saying much, I guess.

Anyways, I purchased a sample to see if Vraie Blonde could be for me. Unfortunately, the top notes had that dreaded shampoo smell. A high-end floral and musk scented shampoo, but shampoo nonetheless. After 10-15 minutes, the powderiness of the fragrance emerged with peach and myrrh notes peeking out ever so slightly which made the composition a little more interesting. I got a tiny amount of patchouli in the end by really, really smelling for it. Lasting time: About 1 ½ hours. In conclusion, would I wear Vraie Blonde? Yes. Is there a similar perfume that I like a lot better? Yes – Le Labo Aldehyde 44.

Here are the notes for Vraie Blonde, courtesy of The Perfumed Court: aldehydes, champagne, rose, peach, white pepper, myrrh, patchouli and suede.

My first thought when I smelled CdG's Luxe Champaca was “Ooh, wow! This is beautiful!” And it is. It smells exactly like a lush, juicy, tropical white flower and is miles away from CdG’s usual minimalist, understated style. Simply put, Luxe Champaca is a very pretty, girly strong floral perfume. Since I’ve never smelled a champaca flower before, I am going to say that it smells predominantly of tuberose (and somehow jasmine, although that is not listed in the notes). I can also detect slight cardamom and pepper notes peeking in. However, Luxe Champaca is Miss Tuberose’s domain and she seems pretty determined to keep everyone else firmly in the background!

Caveat: I liked smelling Luxe Champaca on my wrist for testing/review purposes but given its strength and sillage, I don't think I would ever personally want to wear this, nor would I buy it. This is one perfume that would definitely wear me!

Here are the notes, courtesy of The Perfume Court: white pepper, angelica, cardamom, champaca, bird pepper, tuberose, white musk and iris wood.

I've recently begun exploring Comme des Garcons' incense line and have been impressed with their mastery of this genre. So, I was pretty jazzed about trying a sample "Monocle One Hinoki" (whatever that name is supposed to mean) which I bought when one of the on-line perfume decanters had a recent sale. A full bottle of this stuff is pretty expensive - it retails for $145 for 50 ml.

Anyways, I am sorry to say that Hinoki was a complete and utter let down. It smells EXACTLY like the smell you get when you enter a musty old wooden attic filled with decades old debris (broken wooden rocking chairs, dusty cribs, yellowing books- you get the picture!). It is really a shame that CdG is marketing Hinoki as a precious fragrance worthy of such an astronomical price tag. I did detect a bit of leather in the middle/base note when the musty note faded away but in general, Hinoki didn't stick around long. Which was just as well. For a leathery incense with a bit of verve, I would highly recommend instead CdG's Ouarzazate which is about a quarter of Hinoki's price and is much, much better.

Per The Perfumed Court, here are Hinoki's notes: hinoki wood, greenery, frankincense, moss created after soaking in a hinoki wood bath in Kyoto (?!?), turpentine, camphor, cedar, thyme, pine, Georgian wood and vetiver.

EO 02 is a zippy perfume from the biehl parfumkunstwerke line which would appeal someone (male or female) who enjoys light, unisex herbal fragrances with a twist. At first, it started off a little unpromisingly with a strong, perfumey, sharp green, almost generic “man’s fragrance” smell. But – it just needed time! Once it settled onto my skin, I became entranced. The thyme note was unexpected but a very intriguing addition to the composition, especially when coupled with fir and sandalwood in the middle notes. Rose and jasmine eventually appeared in the base which made it wearable for a female but still, it would be great to smell this on a man. I didn’t catch much of the base notes listed below- maybe a little patchouli if I really tried. Which is just as well since I am not much of a fan of heavy oriental perfumes. Overall, EO 02 was refreshing and I very much enjoyed it. Well done, Egon Oelkers!

Here are the notes, courtesy of The Perfumed Court: Top: bergamot, grapefruit, galbanum, cardamom, coriander, Middle: thyme, davana, fir, rose, jasmine, carnation, Base: atlas cedarwood, patchouli, sandalwood, incense, vanilla, cinnamon, amber.

E0 01 is a very pretty perfume from the biehl parfumkunstwerke line that starts off quite sweet, much sweeter than the notes below would suggest. After a couple of minutes a warm spicy cardamom note starts to develop and I am slightly reminded of Aftelier’s Tango. From there, a pretty symphonic floral fragrance emerges along with unexpected but very charming hints of chocolate. The cocoa note is delicate but hangs around and that is the scent which keeps wafting towards my nose as EO 01 settles in for the long haul. The middle/base of EO 01 has a marked hint of powdery luxuriousness that I associate with aldehydes, a good example of which is Le Labo’s Aldehyde 44, and a bad example is Etat Libre d’Orange’s Rien. EO01’s final phase is comprised of warm, slightly spicy woods that are so well blended that it is hard to isolate a particular note.

In short, EO 01 is an elegant, gracious fragrance and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys this genre of perfumery (which I do!). Well done, Egon Oelkers!

Here are the notes, courtesy of The Perfumed Court: Top: tangerine, blood orange, cardamom, muscat, apricot, cocoa, Middle: rosewood, pimento, iris, orchid, lily of the valley, Base: styrax, vanilla, cinnamon, tonka beans, cedarwood, vetiver, patchouli.

At first blush, I thought Comme des Garcons's Vettiveru was a strong contender for becoming my favorite vetiver. Its warm yet delicate vetiver beauty has a wonderful overlay of floral notes which helps it avoid the harshness of Guerlain's Vetiver Pour Elle (and clearly Guerlain's very masculine Vetiver). I also would say that Vettiveru is a bit more ladylike than Le Labo's Vetiver. In any event, when I intially applied it, I found its light scent to be extremely pleasant. However, that is what leads to its downfall. The problem with Vettiveru is that after about 20 minutes, it settles into a very pale, almost soapy version of its once beautiful self and then quickly peters out. Such a shame!


Here are the notes courtesy of The Perfumed Court: vetiver, bergamot, neroli, and white cedar.

I am an admirer of Creed's Love in White and Jackie Onassis (apparently Oliver Creed's inspiration for Love in Black) so I was eager to try this out. My first thought was why "black" was even in the name as there is nothing dark or sinister about Love in Black. (Surely it is not because of JKO's hair!) Anyways, the dominant smell of the entire composition is violet. The top note has a bit of the floury/saltiness that characterizes La Artisan Parfumeur's Bois Farine which was an unexpectedly creative touch. The middle and base notes incorporate iris whose rootiness is quite evident and gives the perfume an unfortunate "sad" or "decaying" aura. It is hard to say which exactly but I found myself not liking the smell of this on my skin. The base note was a general sweet-ish floral smell and was evident on my wrist at least 4 hours after the initial application.

As compared to a fellow violet perfume, Armani Prive's Cuir Amethyste, I would give a big nod to Cuir Amethyste as it has a wonderful leather aspect that gives it an adult-like complexity and elegance. Love in Black, however, stays too sickly sweet for my tastes and chiefly reminds me of Howards violet scented gum chiefly sold in England or state-side at Cost Plus World Market.

If Creed's Love in White was skewered by Luca Turin and compared to a funeral arrangement in his "Perfumes: The Guide", it will be very interesting to hear what caustic witty comments he'll have on Love in Black. I am personally a Creed fan but they can do, and have done, much better than this.

Here are the notes for Love in Black: "night-blooming wilfdflowers" from the Greek isles, violet from italy, Virginia cedar, iris, clove, Tonkin musk, blackcurrant, and Bulgarian rose.

Nanadebary Pink is another one of those perfumes that has an incredibly devoted following on the Makeupalley Fragrance Board so that when The Perfumed Court had their 1st Anniversary Sale, I just had to get a sample to see what all the fuss was about.

I have now applied it twice and have pondered what to say in my review. At the risk of upsetting the diehard "Nana Pink" MUA gang, I can't help but ask "what is the big deal??" Pink is essentially an aldehyde perfume with a large dollop of nutmeg and clove notes thrown in. I guess you could say that it mostly smells like a fresh grating of nutmeg on top of the vat of Christmas eggnog combined with lashings of Mom's Elizabeth Arden's Red Door perfume wafting by as she scurries to the living room to make sure that the porchlights are on for the carolers. Pink's drydown is a pleasant enough vanilla-ish scent. Mrs. Beasley's homemade poundcake, anyone? With these perfume images and smells in mind, I can see why Pink might be a "comfort/cozy" scent for some, especially those who enjoy gourmand fragrances. (And, FYI, I am not joking about Red Door above - Pink is rather similar from what I can recall about it.)

Personally, if aldehydes turn you on, Le Labo's Aldehyde 44 easily surpasses Nanadebary Pink in terms of style, sophistication and quality. If you are looking for a spicy, special Christmas scent, I think that Caron's Parfum Sacre is much better made and more elegant.

Here are Nanadebary Pink's notes, courtesy of The Perfumed Court: nutmeg, coriander, Sicilian tangerine, bergamot, sandalwood, cedar, Indian amber and Bourbon vanilla.

Mb 03 is probably my least favorite in the biehl’s mb line but that is only because I am so enamored of mb 01 and 02. Mb 03 is predominantly an incense perfume which is similar to CdG Zagorsk but the chief difference is that mb 03: a) is smoother due to the addition of chamomile, and b) comes across as slightly more complex given its swirl of spices. The gentleness of mb 03 also had me thinking of CdG’s Palisander. After 10-15 minutes, mb 03’s sandalwood notes gently emerge in a dry aromatic way and combine nicely with the red pepper. Lest you be concerned about the red pepper aspect, I think it is extraordinarily well blended and serves to complement the other notes rather than overpower them (ie. this is not like TDC's Rose Poivree).

Mb 03 also has Mark Buxton’s trademark etherealness and is very much in keeping with his style of creating perfumes that stay close to the skin. By that, I mean that you really cannot smell it unless you have your nose right next to your skin. But, even with this closeness, it lasted about 2 hours.

Here are the notes for biehl parfumkunstwerke’s mb 03, courtesy of The Perfumed Court: roman chamomile, red pepper, elemi, cistus, cashmere wood, styrax, amber, incense, sandalwood, patchouli.

Mb 02 is another ethereal scent created by Mark Buxton for the biehl parfumkunstwerke line. Whereas mb01 is all floral gorgeousness, mb 02 is a little more sporty but still very elegant. Mb 02 has Mark Buxton’s trademark etherealness and is very much in keeping with his style of creating perfumes that stay close to the skin. From the top note I get lovely warm notes of bergamot and neroli which are charmingly leavened with violet. The violet then goes on to work very nicely with the fir balm to create a cheerful yet calming scent. I am not much of an iris fan but the small amount added is just enough to give the perfume gravity without launching a rooty “ashtray” accord that can sometimes accompany iris. In fact, mb 02 reminds me a bit of Armani Prive’s delicately exquisite iris masterpiece, Pierre de Lune.

However, the best comparison I can think of is that mb 02 is to mb 01, what Diorella is to Diorama. And those of you who know those Dior classics will know exactly what I mean. Well done, Mark Buxton!

Here are the notes of biehl parfumkunstwerke’s mb 02, courtesy of The Perfumed Court: violet, bergamot, tagetes, basil, carnation, violet, iris, labdanum, sandalwood, musk, fir balm, benzoe siam.

Guerilla 2 is a quirky little fragrance that I liked right off the bat but then, I tend to enjoy off-beat perfumes such as Escentric Molecules Escentric 01 and CdG Peppermint.

It is hard to say definitively what Guerilla 2 smells like and heaven knows, the name is no help. However, from this I get a fresh green/slightly citrus fragrance that has a touch of ginger and musk. As it dries down, a warm yet delicate vetiver note emerges. Guerilla 2 is truly a unisex fragrance, appealing to both men and women.

Here are the notes for Guerilla 2: bergamot, pink pepper,ginger, red pepper, curcuma, raspberry, tuberose, vetiver, cedarwood, and musk.

Biehl's MB 01 is hands down one of the most beautiful floral perfumes I have ever smelled. It has Mark Buxton's signture light touch and is smell-able only if you get close to the skin which I think makes it a very alluring fragrance. MB 01 is so well blended that it is hard to isolate a particular floral note but I can detect a generous helping of white musk which becomes the dominant note in the drydown, and softens and enhances the fragrance. It should also be said that MB 01 is a "warm" floral in the style of Serge Lutens "Un Lys", but in contrast to a "cold" (but equally beautiful) floral such as Frederic Malle's Lys Mediterranee.

Here are the notes, courtesy of The Perfumed Court: jasmine, tuberose, champaca, gardenia, ambergris, musk and sandalwood.

Demeter's Salt Air is a light feminine fragrance that has marine notes as well as musk which gives it that “soapy clean” aspect that so many people seem to love. At the risk of being completely unoriginal, it is a pleasant little perfume that is best suited for the summertime and being outdoors. Also, you can’t go wrong with Demeter’s low prices. The only drawback to Salt Air is, of course, that Demeter perfumes have notoriously short lives although this one has better sillage than most. For those of you who know the CB I Hate Perfumes’ line, Demeter Salt Air is a kissing cousin to CBIHP’s Mr. Hulot’s Holiday. Salt Air would be a great gift for a teenaged girl that wants to smell "clean" or for a new mother that doesn’t want to wear heavy fragrances around her baby.

Here are the notes: marine, ozones, white floral, musk, driftwood, salt.

It's always amazing to smell a perfume that blows you away the first time you smell it and sends you running to check the full bottle price online. That happened to me with Armani Prive's Pierre de Lune, Dior's vintage Diorling, Dior's re-issued Diorama and now this quirky little fragrance, Escentric 01.

With Escentric 01, I get a rush of lime and pepper in the top note which then morphs into a lovely yet exciting warm vetiver/wood fragrance that is somewhat indescribable. Escentric 01 comes closest in smell to Ormonde Jayne's Isfarkand but Escentric 01has a touch less pink pepper and a bit more metallic/cedar in the middle and base notes. Escentric 01 also doesn't last as long on my skin as Isfarkand although I've read that on others, it comes and goes in waves. The last thing I should say about Escentric 01 is that apparently 65% of it is a synthetic aroma chemical called "ISO E Super" which is a base for a lot of fragrances made today. It kind of bummed me out to hear that my new love is mainly artificial but I think I'm just going to have to get over my prejudices. It is just too darn wonderful!

Here are Escentric 01's notes, per The Perfumed Court: wood, sweet pink pepper, lime peel, and orris incense.

PG's Bois Blond is a rich leather fragrance that features galbanum, as well as a touch of sweet-smelling hay. Somehow I get a slight feel of it being an “oriental” type scent which is probably due the amber that forms the backbone of Bois Blond. It is not as sickly sweet as Serge Luten’s Daim Blond (thank goodness!) nor does it have the delicacy of Armani Privé's Cuir Amethyste, and neither does it have the spiciness of Etro’s Gomma. Rather Bois Blond is an understated scent that when it dries down, it smells like a very expensive suede shirt in the palest shade of cream. Of all the scents I have smelled, I think this is closest in style and smell to Heeley’s Cuir Pleine Fleur. While I would not buy Bois Blond for myself, I can appreciate that it is a very well-made leather perfume.

Here are the notes, courtesy of The Perfumed Court: galbanum, blond tobacco, amber, cedar, musk, cereals, grass and hay.

Creed’s Zeste Mandarine Pamplemousse seemed like a floral for about the first 3 minutes on my skin but then quickly evolved to become a near scent twin to Annick Goutal’s Nuits d’Hadrien. They both have the same rich cumin note which overlays a bed of bergamot and bitter orange. If had had to closely comapre the two, I would say that Nuits d’Hadrien is slightly more dry, aromatic and longer-lasting but I think one would have a hard time figuring out which was which in a “blind” smell-off. I happen to be a long-time bottle owner of Nuits d’Hadrien so of course I love the spicy, uniqueness of Zeste Mandarine Pamplemousse. It would be a wonderful scent to wear in the fall, as the leaves are turning deep shades of orange and red.

If you like enjoy this, also be sure to try Editions Frederic Malle’s Bigarade Concentree for a slightly different interpretation of spicy orange.

Here are the notes of Zeste Mandarine Pamplemousse, courtesy of The Perfumed Court: bergamot, lemon bark, mandarin and grapefruit.

Technically speaking, a “croquembouche” is a fancy French dessert which is a conical pile of hollow pastry balls stacked on top of each other, and held together with nougat. There are also ribbons of clear spun caramel drizzled up and down the pastry “tree” which gives it a festive, elegant look.

To me, Demeter’s Croquembouche fragrance smells like a cross between freshly made angel food cake and suntan lotion (hint of musk), which may sound icky but it is actually quite pleasant in an innocent, child-like way. I am not much of a gourmand fragrance person (no Lostmarc’h Lann Ael for me!) so the lightness of Croquembouche makes it wearable and enjoyable. Furthermore, as an aside, if you tossed a handful of fresh lemon zest into Croquembouche, you would have La Perla’s Eclix. Yum!

Here are the notes, as gleaned from various internet sources: vanilla, musk, caramel, honey and coconut.

Fragonard’s Soleil is a generic sweet-smelling “perfumey floral” with no obvious single note and seems targeted directly to the mass market, especially to the kind of person that wants a safe, inoffensive perfume. The boringness of the perfume is a real shame because Soleil’s bottle has a stylish hammered gold cap in the shape of a star which sits atop an artfully textured glass bottle and looks like something you might find in a chic little shop in the South of France.

According to Fragonard’s website, here are Soleil’s notes: jasmine, orange blossom, lily, rose, iris, wisteria, amber, sandalwood and musk.

Maharanih opens up with intoxicatingly rich notes of orange flower, sandalword, amber and perhaps a wee bit of pepper. Its drydown is measured as one would expect from a well-made perfume and the middle to base notes emit a soft patchouli-like earthiness. Maharanih would be beautiful to wear in the fall. In fact, it is very much an autumnal perfume with all that that implies. If Maharanih were a color, it would be a deep luxurious russet. Lastly, if you like Maharanih, be sure to give Becker Eshaya's Golden Amber and/or 10 Corso Como a whirl!

Here are Maharanih's notes as shown on the Luckyscent website: Bitter orange, geranium, lavender, cinnamon, sandalwood and amber.

MPG's Pour Le Jeune Homme is a deliciously aromatic, herbal, citrussy fragrance and I can easily imagine it being worn by those handsome well-dressed young men that one sees living the good life in Ralph Lauren's clothing advertisements. It smells expensive in a understated, elegant way.

However (yes, there is a "however" to my review), I am sad to report that Pour Le Jeune Homme has no staying power at all. It lasted about 20 minutes on my skin, which is even less than its scent twin, Etro's Lemon Sorbet. And, as I pointed out in my review of Lemon Sorbet, if you like this style/smell of this fragrance then you can do much better with Roger et Gallet's Extra Vieille cologne. Extra Vieille is very similar to MPG's Pour Le Jeune Homme and Etro's Lemon Sorbet but Extra Vieille has better staying power and comes at a much more attractive price. Plus, Extra Vieille also comes in soap, shower gel, lotion, etc... if you really want to ensure fragrance longevity. Stylish bottle and label too.

Here are the notes of Pour Le Jeune Homme which I found up above in zztopp's review: Top: Bergamot, lemon, brazilian, orange; Middle: Neroli, rosemary, nutmeg, coriander; Base: Musk, sandalwood.

I really wanted to like Eau d'Ete . From all that I have read about Patricia Nicolai by Luca Turin and perfume writers, she is well respected as a talented perfumer. I am also very partial to colognes and adore Eau de Rochas, Chanel's Eau de Cologne and Dior's Cologne Blanche, for example.

However, Eau d'Ete is not in the same category as those mentioned above. It honestly smells like spicy cinnamon/musk scented soap with maybe a dash of orange flower. If Eau d'Ete were a beautifully packaged $10 bar of soap, I would probably like it fine but as a perfume at perfume prices (and I know Parfums de Nicolai is one of the more reasonably priced lines), I'm going to have to give this a miss (although the sillage is excellent for a cologne-style fragrance).

Here are Eau d'Ete's notes, courtesy of The Perfumed Court: jasmine, lime, grapefruit, blood orange, cinnamon, balsam, musk.

I tried Shalimar Light because it was described by several perfumistas on the MUA Fragrance Board as a "great citrus" fragrance and I love citrus. In fact, it is probably my single most favorite note in perfumery.

That said, I honestly felt a bit let down by Shalimar Light as it is not a citrusy or lemony perfume. Rather, as its name implies, it is a lighter version of Shalimar and has its recognizable sweet-ish oriental and sandalwood notes. I don't care for Shalimar and Shalimar Light is not much better. Tsk, tsk. A dash of orange flower does not a citrus fragrance make.

Here are Shalimar Light's notes as gleaned from the internet: orange flower lemon, bergamot, jasmine, rose de mai, opopanax, tonka bean, vanilla, iris, incense, ambergris.

Le Labo's Bergamote 22 launches with the green smell of freshly cut branches and then evolves into a sunny, warm citrusy fragrance that is downright cozy. The middle notes are like burying your face in a bouquet of orange blossom flowers sprinkled lightly with amber pebbles. Bergamote 22 would be beautiful to wear on a summer evening but it also would be a definite "mood-lifter' in the dark cold days of late January.

The only thing I find disappointing about Bergamote 22 is its weak staying power- it pretty much disappears after 20 minutes on my skin. For this kind of price, I expect my perfume to stick around a while but when it is present, it is gorgeous.

Here are the notes, courtesy of Fishbone's website: bergamot, petitgrain, grapefruit, nutmeg, orange blossom, aspic, cedar, musk, amber and vetiver.

At first I did not care for Le Labo's Vetiver 46 at all. Something in the top note (petitgrain maybe?) gave me that same "elderly man" smell that I get from Dior Jules, which I find a little repulsive. But Vetiver 46 has been strangely compelling. I keep sniffing my sample over and over, and now I find it rather mesmerizing.

Vetiver 46 is a rich, smoky, earthy fragrance which reminds me a great deal stylistically of Comme des Garcons' Tea. It also seems to have aldehydes in the middle notes which softens the fragrance and gives it a sense of voluptuous luxury similar to Chanel No. 5. I also smell a touch of leather and what seems to be a bit of clove/metal/amber in the final drydown, similar to Comme des Garcons' Jaisalmer.

Vetiver is a hard perfume to totally figure out. However, I think it is fair to say that Vetiver 46 is a unique vetiver fragrance like no other. It doesn't have the sunny, astringent "captain of industry" manliness of Guerlain's Vetiver, nor the softer, girlishness of Creed's Vetiver. Rather, Le Labo's Vetiver 46 is a mysterious tall, dark handsome man wearing a deliciously soft, well-cut black cashmere blazer.

Here are the notes, from "Now Smell This": bergamot, black pepper, clove, cedar, vetiver, ladanum, olibanum, gaiac wood, amber and vanilla.

Rien, aka "Dorian Gray" is the last scent in my Etat Libre d'Orange Smell-A-Thon and I am getting weary of their nonsensical marketing material. Here is an extract from their description of "Rien": "Rien is a second skin perfume, a perfume that clings to the body and perseveres in the mind. Like venial sin on the verge of becoming mortal, irresistable and resolutely pervasive". Whatever.

In case you are wondering what this smells like in plain English, and despite the laundry list of official notes below, Rien smells like loose body powder for ladies, ie. the kind that comes with a powder puff. I sniffed it all the way to the end and the whole time it smelled like uninteresting body powder that Estee Lauder might have produced in the 1950's. I could tell that they added aldehydes to try and give it a sense of luxuriousness but that was overpowered by the strong smell of powder.

Similar to Dorian Gray but far outclassing it in terms of complexity and beauty is Le Labo's Aldehyde 44 and Chanel No. 5.

Here are the notes, courtesy of The Perfumed Court: incense, rose, leather, iris, ciste, foam chene, styrax pyrogene, patchouli, amber, cumin, black pepper and aldehydes.

I approached Charogne with a degree of wariness since Etat Libre d'Orange's Secretions Magnifique was one of the vilest perfumes I have ever smelled. Also, ELdO's other name for Charogne is "The Beast" and who wants to smell like a beast?? Not me, anyways.

For all of the hoo-hah, Charogne actually turned out to be quite a docile, almost child-like creature. Its top notes smell like cherry and ginger, and remind me a great deal of POTL's Luctor et Emergo. Charogne is an intensely sweet fragrance and is definitely something for those who enjoy gourmand perfumes. (Other than Neil Morris' Afire. I am not one of them). Anyways, Charogne became more pleasant as time went on. It mellowed nicely and hints of vanilla and ambrette cropped up to ride it out to the basenote.

The marketing material for Charogne is so ridiculous that I just have to reproduce a snippet here: "A docile, consenting victim. The beast is actually not far away. He lies in ambush and, as the fine connoisseur he is, anticipates the moment he will take possession of her essence". (major eye-rolling here...)

Here are the notes, per The Perfumed Court: bergamot, pink pepper, leather, ginger, lily, ylang-ylang, jasmine, incense, vanilla, ambrette and animalic notes.

If I liked amber scents (which I generally don't), I think I would enjoy Idole de Lubin very much. It is a warm, well blended spicy amber-ish fragrance with a dollop of rum in the top note that could be very wearable on a winter's day. Idole de Lubin is essentially a gentle interpretation of spices and amber (Olivia Giacobetti signature light touch is evident) which is similar to Becker Eshaya's Golden Amber. It is miles away (thankfully) from its rocket fueled spice-cousin, Frapin 1270. I also think it should be said that Idole de Lubin’s bottle is a touch trashy, in a 1970's sort of way...

Here are the notes, courtesy of Luckyscent: Rum absolute, saffron, bitter orange peel, black cumin, Doum palm, smoked ebony, sugar cane, leather, red sandalwood.

Hampton Sun's Privet Bloom is one of the prettiest perfumes I have smelled in a while. It is a white floral that quickly morphs into a fresh green fragrance with a bit of zing that smells like freshly cut branches (in a good way!). Its ultra-realistic style is akin to those in the CB I Hate perfume line and, in particular, reminds me of CBIHP's "To See a Flower". Privet Bloom would also appeal to someone who enjoys Miller et Bertaux's #3 (the green one) which is very similar to Privet Bloom but has a touch more lemon verbena.

Privet Bloom is refreshing and perfect for summertime wear, especially in a hot or humid climate. Last of all, and perhaps best of all, it is moderately priced.

Here are the notes, per the Hampton Sun website: sea spray, dune grass, blue plum and privet blossom.

As other reviewers have noted, CdG Peppermint is definitely (and thankfully) NOT a "candy-cane" peppermint scent but rather the top note is the exact smell you get when you tear fresh mint leaves apart. I found that rather thrilling, from an olfactory point of view, but the middle and basenotes were just general green-ish notes that were pleasant but not particularly exciting. The sillage was ok- it lasted about 30-45 minutes on my skin. Although CdG Peppermint is not something I would personally want to wear, it would be a great scent for a candle (hint, hint!)


Here are the notes, courtesy of Luckyscent: curly mint, peppermint, bay rose, white pepper, cardamom, amber, white musk.

GS01 is similar to Geza Schoen's Ecentric Molecules Escentric 01 in that they both have a warm woody, cedary base powered by ISO E Super but GS 01 has a more green, herbal side to its personality. It is so well-blended that it is hard to isolate any of the other notes, even having the list available (see below). The drydown is mellow and very pleasant, and lasts a decent amount of time.

In short, GS 01 smells like something that Daniel Craig's James Bond would wear to the Hotel de Paris casino in Monaco for an evening of baccarat and martinis. It is an incredibly understated and stylish masculine fragrance that smells expensive but worth it.

Here are the notes, courtesy of Luckyscent; Dewdrop green, orange flower, green lime, carrot seeds, magnolia blossoms, basil, pink pepper, bay leaves, absolutes of white peach, freesia, water lily, rose, jasmine, davana, and cedar wood, vetiver, sandalwood, guaiac, basmati, musk, ambergris, moss.

There are families of scents that Comme des Garcons does extremely well (eg. Wood, Incense, Leaves- especially Tea) and then there are their fragrances that leave you wondering why CdG even bothered. So far, CdG's citrus/"Energy C" series has been more than a little disappointing to a die-hard citrus lover like me. CdG's Lemon perfume smells like "lemon-scented" dishwashing liquid. It is vaguely sweet and bland, and has no complexity or zestiness at all. CdG's Lemon is very similar in style to CdG's Citrico and I am shocked that there is a market for either of these, let alone both.

If you want a truly well-made citrus perfume, I would highly recommend Lostmarc'h Din Dan, Editions Frederic Malle's Bigarade Concentree, i Profumi di Firenze's Limone di Sicilia or Guerlain's Aqua Allegoria Pampelune.

Here are the notes, courtesy of Luckyscent: Bergamot, yellow lemon, citron, cardamom, angelica, incense, musk, vetiver.

The initial whiff of Comme des Garcons Tea perfume conjured up thoughts of an ancient wooden tea chest, blackened over time and filled with rare, carefully packed Lapsang Souchong tea leaves. It had an earthy, smoky rich smell that would be gorgeous to wear on a crisp fall day and would also be an excellent layering scent. There was bit of soapiness in the basenote which appeared to be white musk. If you are a fan of tea by Mariage Freres or Hediard, be sure and try CdG's interpretation of Tea.

In the interests of giving a complete review, I feel I should point out that that Tea's luridly green bottle is cheap-looking and an unfortunate marketing choice for this well-crafted perfume.

Here are the notes, courtesy of Luckyscent: black tea, zest of bergamot, rose petals, cedar wood, absolute maté.

I guess my love affair with Comme des Garcons perfumes had to end sometime and Citrico was the culprit, although I won't go as far as to say it has ended on a "sour note" (ha ha). After experiencing the intriguing and wonderful Comme des Garcons' Ouarzazate, Kyoto, Zagorsk and Jaisalmer, Citrico was a return to the world of mundane, bland perfumes which seem dumbed down so as not to offend any potential purchasers.

There is no zest or liveliness with Citrico. Instead, it focuses on emitting a light herbally lemon smell that is rather boring. In the herbal/dry aromatic sub-genre of citrus perfumes, Etro's Lemon Sorbet is better made and more complex than Citrico, but that old stand-by Roger et Gallet's Extra Vieille outshines them both. And is much cheaper!

Here are Citrico's notes, per The Perfumed Court: bitter orange, bergamot, neroli, cedar, sandalwood and lemon.

Ok- I'll be honest. The only reason I tried Nasomatto's Silver Musk was because I was enamored with Escentric Molecules "Molecule 01" and Luckyscent's website said that if you like M01, you might like Nasomatto Silver Musk. So, being the mindless perfume slave that I am, I bought a sample.

Well, I cannot say that I detect any similarities between the two. Silver Musk is a soapy, extremely clean smelling masculine green/musk fragrance with slight metallic undertones. Over time, it developed a slight "cigarette ash" note and then mellowed into a classic soft musk scent. Is it just me but does cigarette ash always seem to waft in when iris added? I've experienced that same smell in both Serge Lutens' Iris Silver Mist and Fath's Iris Gris.

Anyways, back to Silver Musk. On the whole, it was a pleasant enough musky masculine scent if that is what you want. The bottle is oh-so-stylish with its grained wooden top. A similar fragrance to Silver Musk is Bulgari's Pour Homme. However, if you seek a similar thrill to that of M01, look no further than Ormonde Jayne's Isfarkand.

Nasomatto Silver Musk's notes are impossible to find so I'm just going to list them as: musk and iris.

Some people may enjoy wearing the smell of old-fashioned lipstick but I am not one of them. Notice I said the word "wearing" because from a curiosity viewpoint, it can be very interesting to do a bit of time travel via smell. Frederic Malle's Lipstick Rose conjured up nostalgic thoughts of my grandmother's purse, rummaging around in my aunt's crowded cosmetics drawer and the most beautiful model ever- 50's model Suzy Parker, all very glamorous and happy memories. Lipstick Rose really does have that unmistakable rose and violet "lipstick" fragrance that I remember from the Revlon days of yore. "Cherries in the Snow" anyone? But as far as wanting to personally smell like a tube of lipstick, I shall politely decline the offer.

Per The Perfumed Court, here are the notes: violet, grapefruit, ambrette, coriander, tagette, aldehydes, rose, iris, raspberry, and heliotrope.

Le Labo Rose 31 came with such high accolades that I was naturally a bit wary. From my observations on the MUA Fragrance Board, it is one of those fragrances of which devotees have multiple back-up bottles lest it ever be discontinued, World War Three break out or other similar such tragedies occur. Now that I've tried it, I can understand why it has such a zealous band of followers.

To my nose, Rose 31 is cedary rose scent with a generous dash of musk and spices, and has excellent sillage. As compared to similar rose fragrances, it is a fragrance twin to Montale's Roses Musk and those who like TDC's Rose Poivree or Caron's Parfum Sacre might also enjoy this. As compared to Parfums de Rosine's pepper-rose offering "Rose Diabolo", Rose Diabolo is a teenaged girl whereas Rose 31 is a sophisticated woman.

I personally don't gravitate towards heavy spicy fragrances with intense sillage so I cannot go on and on about how Rose 31 has changed my life. Also, given its relatively high price, my little sample is plenty for me and I doubt I will get another once I use this up. However, it is plain to see that this is a high quality, artistic fragrance. Well done! Here are the notes, from The Perfumed Court: rose, cumin, pepper, clove, nutmeg, olibanum, cedar, amber, gaiac wood, oud wood, cistus, and vetiver.

For some reason, Luctor et Emergo generates feelings of near hysteria on the Makeupalley Fragrance Board so it was with a bit of trepidation that I reached for it at Aedes in NYC to try. I had no idea what to expect and upon spraying, was shocked that Luctor et Emergo is basically a girlish almond and cherry blossom scent. It was pleasant enough (I would take this over the intense Pierre Frapin fragrances any day) but I am still puzzled that a grown women (or man) would want to smell like this.

Maybe for some people, Luctor et Emergo conjures up happier days of eating grandma's homemade cherry pie. Maybe it is the gratuitously weird name that bears no relation to the actual scent. Maybe it is the peculiar beaker bottles that draw one to POTL's scents in general. In any event, Luctor et Emergo was a bit like the "Emperor with no clothes on" to me. Not much there once all was revealed.

From what I've been able to glean online, here are Luctor et Emergo's notes: sweet incense, vanilla, woods, cherry, almonds, marzipan, fresh grasses and white florals.

I smelled 06130 Lys during a marathon sniffathon at Aedes and my chief recollection of it was that it was a pretty cedary lily fragrance that did not last long at all. To me, if you are going to do lily, then for heaven's sake, do it right and trot out Serge Luten's Un Lys or Editions Frederic Malle's Lys Med.!

I have to be honest. Upon testing Chanel Gardenia, I thought it was very gardenia-like so I was more than surprised to read online after the fact that it doesn't have any gardenia in it, but rather it is meant to be "reminscent of gardenia". So much for my sniffing abilities!

Another confession I have to make is that I wore Jungle Gardenia back in the days of yore (I was 13!) and I have always like the sunny, unabashedly voluptuous smell of gardenia. Chanel Gardenia is a light, ethereal take on gardenia and is absolutely stunning. It is elegant, very pretty and the drydown is fine for an edt (lasts about 2 hours or so on me). It is not as complex as JAR's blue cheese/gardenia kooky masterpice "Jardenia" but then again, I think the folks at Chanel's aim was to create a light, wearable sophisticated "gardenia" scent that paid tribute to Coco Chanel's signature flower and produce a commercial hit. In both cases, they have hit the proverbial bullseye!

Here are the notes per The Perfumed Court: top notes of absolutes of jasmine, orange blossom, and tuberose, heart notes of clove, sage, pimiento, and base notes of musk, patchouli, sandalwood, and vetiver. Here are the notes, per The Perfumed Court: top notes of absolutes of jasmine, gardenia, orange blossom, and tuberose, middle notes of clove, sage, pimiento, and base notes of musk, patchouli, sandalwood, and vetiver.

Yuzu Rouge is light, uncomplicated citrus floral perfume that I find very appealing, especially in Houston's humid summertime. I like Yuzu Rouge much better than say Fresh's "Lemon Sugar" which has too much of a powder/Ajax note to be truly enjoyable. In contrast, Yuzu Rouge is a clean, bright mixture of citrus and rose. I just wish it lasted a little longer than 45 minutes on my skin. In fact, if you like the notes listed below but want something with more sillage, Parfums de Rosine's Une Zeste de Rose would probably do the trick. However, I plan to fully enjoy my sample of Yuzu Rouge while it lasts.

Here are the notes from Luckyscent: Japanese yuzu fruit, grapefruit, verbena, black currant and damascena rose.

I really wanted to like Harissa after reading that it had a strong blood orange note. I adore a good orange scent, and in fact Frederic Malle's Bigarade Concentree is one of my all time favorites. So, it was with much disappointment that I did not detect any orange note at all in Harissa. I vaguely got a smoky, spicy smell with a touch of saffron from putting it on but the whole thing died on my skin after 10 minutes and so I really don't know what else to say. I tried it twice and both times got the same results. In contrast, CdG's Jaisalmer lasted about 3-4 hours on my skin so I guess Harissa was just not meant for me.

Here are Harissa's the official notes, per The Perfumed Court: blood orange, red chili pepper, angelica, saffron, nutmeg, cardamom and tomato.

Jaisalmer is predominantly a cedar fragrance with lashings of vetiver and pepper which smells the same from the application all the way to the drydown. The pepper/wood combination reminded me a lot of 10 Corso Como which is chiefly sandalwood whereas this is cedar (to my nose, anyways). I also agree with a fellow Basenotes reviewer who described Jaisalmer as conjuring up “images of campfires and charred pieces of wood”. The pepper note reminded me a good deal of Ormonde Jayne’s Isfarkand. Lastly, although it is characterized as an incense fragrance, Jaisalmer does not have a heavy “churchy” incense smell. In fact, it is quite dry and aromatic.

If you enjoy Diptyque’s Tam Dao, Diptyque’s Feu de Bois, Ormonde Jayne’s Isfarkand, CdG’s Ouzarzate or 10 Corso Como, Jaisalmer would definitely appeal to you. From what I’ve been able to glean from various sources, here are the notes: cedar, vetiver, cardamom, incense, cinnamon, amber, benzoin, pimento berries, guaiac wood and pink pepper.

Rose Alexandrie smelled just like a cherry "SweetTart" (ie a kind of candy). There was absolutely no subtleness about it, nor any rose note that I could ascertain. It is hard to understand how a fragrance house like Armani Privé can create an ethereal iris masterpiece like Pierre de Lune and then simultaneously churn out something this sweet and icky.

From what I’ve been able to find on the internet, here are Rose Alexandrie's notes: bergamot, yellow mimosa, rose and vanilla.

Opal is an honest, gentle little musky/floral perfume. Within 5 minutes of spritzing, it comfortably melted into my skin and felt like it belonged there. A bit further into testing, I got faint coconut and vanilla notes which were delightful. At this low price level, I'm astonished at how delicate and well made Opal is. A decant of this will definitely be part of my perfume collection for years to come.

Per the Sonoma Scent Studio's website, here are the notes of Opal: sandalwood, vanilla, musk, bergamot, and ambrette.

I did not care for Profumum's woody perfume known as Alba even though I generally like "woody" fragrances along the lines of Diptyque's Tam Dao and 10 Corso Como. To me, the wood note in Alba was obscured by pervasive soapy/powdery/musky notes that frankly smelled rather cheap. To be fair, I generally prefer more transparent sheer fragrances and Alba definitely was not that. Another thing I wonder is whether the soap/powder/musk combo is part of Profumum's base as their "marine" fragrance Acqua di Sale smells rather like Alba (and I did not like it either). These are the only two I've smelled from this line but they sure were similar.

Here are Alba's notes, as gleaned from various perfume websites: Musk, amber, aniseed, vanilla, wood, hazelnut.

I was predisposed to like "Mat Orange" given its tantalizing notes below. However, to my nose, it smelled like a bland orange blossom scented shampoo from VO5 or for those of you who grew up in the 70's, one of those orange milkshake concoctions from Orange Julius. Anyways, Mat Orange had no complexity or note development. It was just sweetish, boring, babyish orange so I was not unhappy when after 30 minutes it disappeared from my skin. Ho hum. If you love orange perfumes as I do, be sure to sniff Fendi’s Theorema (creamy orange), Frederic Malle's Bigarade Concentree (zesty spicy orange) and Red Flower's Guaiac (hippie chic orange) which all blow Mat Orange away.

Here are the notes, courtesy of The Perfume Court: blood orange, bitter orange, watermelon, passion fruit, apricot, mango, mandarine, lotus flower and crystal musk.

The name "Marshmallow" is extremely misleading as the perfume is anything but that. It is a musty rose scent that seems to have a large dollop of moody old iris. Out of curiosity and without any leading commentary, I asked my 8 year-old niece to smell Marshmallow on my wrist and tell me what she thought. Her answer: "It smells like a nursing home." And you know, it does.

Here are the notes, per The Perfumed Court: Rose, White Carnation, Vanilla Bean, Pink Musk, Cotton Candy and Jasmine.

I cannot think of any other way to say this. Izmir was absolutely horrible! I don't like gourmand notes on the best of days but this reset my bar of dislike as high about as it can go. Izmir is an intense concoction of overpowering coffee notes and is very similar to Bond No 9's New Haarlem. Both are equally vile. I tried to stick it out with Izmir for as long as I could to see if any other scent would emerge but it did not and eventually I had to run scrub it off. I get chills just thinking about this olfactory experience.

Per Neil Morris' website, here are Izmir's notes: Top: papaya, orange, cinnamon; Middle: fig, rose, geranium, coffee; Base: vanilla, agar wood, sea air and patchouli.

According to Micallef’s website, Black Sea has “lemon, spices and Mediterranean flowers”, however I did not find any of those notes when I smelled it. Rather, Black Sea has an odd clean/soapy scent with notes of carnation, clove, cedar and maybe a little saffron if I try really hard to get there. Another way to describe Black Sea is that it smells like very expensive church incense. Please don't take this the wrong way but I can see this being popular in Eastern Europe or the former Soviet Union.

Black Tourmaline was sent to me as a freebie with a fragrance purchase when I mentioned to the seller that I like perfumes with a pepper note. Well, I don't get a pepper note in this. What I do get is a tidal wave of patchouli and musk that is frankly aggressive and overpowering. The more I smell Black Tourmaline, the more I am reminded of the sillage of Polo and it actually kind of smells like an older brother of Polo. Let's just say that I would not be pleased if my boyfriend started sporting Black Tourmaline.

Per The Perfumed Posse, here are the notes: cardamom, coriander, cumin, frankincense, pepper, smoked wood, oud, leather, precious woods, musk, amber, moss, patchouli.

Institut Très Bien’s Cologne à L'Italienne is a wonderfully executed eau de cologne that comes in nearer the masculine end of the cologne spectrum. I am not sure if the petitgrain note was playing tricks on me but I could almost swear that I got a coffee note from it, in fact, the kind of the scent you get in Italy when your espresso comes with a peel of fresh lemon rind. Whatever it is, L'Italienne is unquestionably glamorous and conjured up thoughts of having my first cup of espresso at a cafe in Rome seated next to a well groomed, handsome Italian man. More seriously, if you like Parfums de Nicolai's Balle de Match or Patou’s Eau de Patou, you would like Italienne very much. As point of comparison, its sister Cologne à la Francaise is much more subtle and feminine.

Here are the notes courtesy of The Perfumed Court: lemon, bitter orange, citron, orange flowers, rosemary, neroli, iris, petitgrain and benzoin.

Institut Très Bien's Cologne à la Francaise is hands down one of the most beautiful fragrances I've ever smelled. It is simply that good. Cologne à la Francaise is an exquisite, ethereal mix of citrus and floral notes that is charming but never obvious. I would have to say that it is more feminine than its sister fragrance, Italienne, which has a good dose of petitgrain in case you've smelled that. As a point of reference, Cologne à la Francaise is similar in style and quality to Chanel's Eau de Cologne and Dior's Cologne Blanche- both winners in in the cologne class. Bravo!

Here are the notes, courtesy of The Perfumed Court: Chinese magnolia, Israeli grapefruit, Sicilian white lemon, Calabrian citron, Sicilian bergamot, Mexican limette, Provence lavender, Moroccan rosemary, Provence verbain, Tunisian neroli, Siamese benzoin and Florence iris.

Institut Très Bien's Cologne a la Russe is a lovely powdery fragrance with notes of orange blossom, almond and vanilla which has a clean, high-quality smell. Scent-wise, it is nearly a twin to Dior's Cologne Blanche with Russe having a touch more powder and Cologne Blanche containing a tiny bit more citrus. Both are comforting and beautiful perfumes which would appeal to someone who wants to smell "clean". Personally though, if I could only have one item from the Institut Très Bien line, it would have to be the exquisite Francaise.

Per The Perfumed Court, here are the notes: Sicilian bergamot, Calabrian cedrat, Provence verbain, Moroccan romarin, Florentine iris, Siamese benzoin and ambrette seeds.

Afire is one of the most intriguing, irresistible perfumes I have smelled in a long time. It has top notes of orange and cinnamon which are reminiscent of the smell of really good homemade Christmas potpourri containing masses of dried orange peel. Then, the luscious buttery, salty caramel notes appear and I am reminded, of all things, of Diorama which is a fruity chypre. My guinea pig boyfriend took the obligatory sniff and said "incense" which I don't get at all, but frankincense is one of the listed notes so maybe the boyfriend is on to something. Last of all, the sillage is outstanding. I sprayed Afire on a scent strip and found it in my purse 3 days later with a very recognizable smell. I am enjoying Afire so much that I want to eat my wrist (and coming from an avowed non-gourmand, this should tell you something)!

Here are Afire's notes, per Neil Morris' website: Citrus, berries, caramel, frankincense, wood.

Secrète Datura is clearly a floral but does not smell like any flower I've ever come across, and is blended with a great dollop of warm musk and powder. I didn't care for its initial aggressiveness but after 5-10 minutes, it dried down to a pleasant gentle fragrance. Secrète Datura reminds me a lot of old-fashioned loose talc powder, furry powder puffs and pale pink silk ribbons. An elderly maiden aunt would be very pleased to receive Secrète Datura.

Per The Perfumed Court, here are the notes: Datura flower, sandalwood, vanilla and chocolate.

At first, I was not sure what the big deal was about Le Labo's Neroli 36. It seemed like a gentle orange blossomy fragrance that didn't have any special bells or whistles. But then, I wore it outside (which, in the summertime in Houston, is not insignificant) and Neroli 36 really came into its ow