galahad

In The Bottle Tea and light musk On Application Bergamot (nice and strong bergamot) and tea (ie. Earl Grey Tea) with musk Dry Down Oh this is fabulous and suprising since it was so faint in the bottle. The best tea scent to date for me. After a nice long tea period, the vanilla starts to warm and round out this scent. This is a very masculine scent. This has rocketed to number one on my favourites. I would like to try layering this with De Sade. Rating (0-5) 5

In The Bottle Black grape and patchouli. Juicy On Application Incense and patchouli Dry Down Just nasty incense. Disappointing. Rating (0-5) 0

In The Bottle Very soft, faint spice On Application Dry, spicey amber Dry Down Softly spicey amber on drydown. On the fence on this one. Rating (0-5) 3

In The Bottle Rum and wood On Application Spicey rum Dry Down The wood emerges to blend with the rum as it warms up. Ust when I was starting to think this would be a heavy spicey blend the salty air cools things down and I can detect the prostitute's perfume wafting. Surprising! I like. Rating (0-5) 4

In The Bottle Buttery sweetness On Application Buttery cinnamon cakes and honey Dry Down My initial alarm at te butteryness seems to be unfounded (buttery notes turn rancid on me). No wine but love the sweet spicey cake scent. Eat me without the currant. Rating (0-5) 4.5

In The Bottle Ooooh! Icy and smooth floral with a spicey kick On Application Green stems, fresh COLD air. Awesome! Dry Down I can't express how wonderful this is, but I'll try anyway! I'm not sure how the lab get the icy air note but it is masterful. I don't get much earthiness but it is there somewhere and the flowers are subdued. The incense is not overpowering. This is one of the lab scents that chokes me up with it's beauty. Rating (0-5) 5

In The Bottle Faint tobacco with a touch of rum On Application Cinnamon(!), coconut and tobacco. Dry Down This so so not what I expected. Really really spicey cinnmon and clove with a faint underpinning of coconut. WTF? I will have to come back to this and see if anything changes. Rating (0-5) 1

In The Bottle Honey, moderate rose and a touch of orange. On Application Orange first off and then rose joins in quickly Dry Down I can smell each of the individual notes on this initially and, suprisingly, they seem to play well together. Sadly, it doesn't take long for the rose to bully the others into submission. Rating (0-5) 1.5

In The Bottle Spicey and slightly floral On Application I can pick out all of the notes. I love Arabian musk! Dry Down Rich and musky. Almost cherry-like as it warms (cherry is the kiss of death for any blend for me). I want to pull out the plum in this amd replace it with a touch of vanilla. He notes sounded good but don;t work for me. Rating (0-5) 1.5

In The Bottle I get jasmine first off and some ginger and tobacco in the background On Application Opium and balsam. A very sweet, herbiness Dry Down I really get the hay scent coming through the opium and resinous notes and then the jasmine and lily amp up big time. This is too disjointed for me. Rating (0-5) 1

In The Bottle Vanilla and cedar. Soft and sweet. On Application Very dry and dusty vanilla and woods Dry Down Wow. The dry cedar, the sweet vanilla and a cool, almost-minty note in the background make for a beautiful blend. This will be a favourite once I experience more of it. Rating (0-5) 5

In The Bottle Peach and amber. On Application Awful toilet cleaner Dry Down The jonquil in this muddies the water of this scent. A complete miss for me. Rating (0-5) 0

In The Bottle A soft balsam and incense scent On Application Almost buttery incensey scent on application. Colour me surprised (and concerned). Dry Down This one is so hard to describe. I expected it to be dark and brooding but it is actually quite warm, almost fruity and light. Lovely. Rating (0-5) 4

In The Bottle Rose with a touch of lemon On Application Ugh! Rose. Dry Down I get occasional whiffs of apple beneath the all encompassing rose. Goes a little bit more Turkish delight, thanks to the lemon, I assume. I actually quite like this once it settles down. I may use the imp but won't purchase a bottle. Rating (0-5) 3.5

In The Bottle Really pleasant in the imp. Almost fruity and very slightly floral On Application Very different on application. Fragrant flowers, slightly piney. Dry Down Definitely a wild flower scent, slightly aquatic. Becomes a warmer scent to me as it dries down as compared to the initial chilly floral. I can smell a sweetish lemon note in the background. This is nice but not something I would wear. Rating (0-5) 3

In The Bottle I get soft vanilla and amber as well as wafts of juniper and pine. More outdoorsy and fresh that I expected. On Application Pine and juniper with just a little vanilla Dry Down The pine starts to blend with the sweetness of the amber and vanilla early in the drydown to take off the sharper edge of the conifers. I find the combination of pine and vanilla a little strange. They seem to work against each other and not really in a good way, but as it warms the amber seems to act as an intermediary to settle this down to something more pleasant. I quite like the final effect. Rating (0-5) 3.5

In The Bottle Fresh flowers and the greenness of their stems in the background. On Application White floral with greenery (the ivy?) Dry Down Chilly, indeed. The flowers, initially are not too strong to induce a headache. Quite soft and organic. This is quite nice but I am thinking it is the Calla lily in some of the floral blends that makes me a little nauseous. Will have to pass on this one. Rating (0-5) 2.5

In The Bottle Slightly musky with aromatic herbs. Quite cool smelling in the imp On Application Sweet musk and herbs. Nice and not too strong at this stage Dry Down Becomes dry as it dries down. I get a pine/cypress like scent from this along with fairly subtle musk. The herbiness fades to the background. This is really great. Almost certainly could be considerd gender neuttral or even masculine. Rating (0-5) 4.5

In The Bottle Lilies and honey On Application Ah. The lilies come to the front, all spicey and fresh Dry Down Something in this blend holds the lily back from becoming too strong leaving a nice, not too sweet, spicey scent. I get a coolness from this rather than heat, which fits the concept. Probably the nicest lily blend that I have experienced to date. Unlike Tiger Lily, which to me was bright and sunny, this one is cool and darker. Rating (0-5) 3.5

In The Bottle Carnations and amber. Sweet. On Application Spicey carnation and wild flowers. Very sweet. Dry Down Gets even spicier, peppery. I do smell a bit of lanolin (the wooly wine?) in the background. The treacle adds a depth to this. I really, really like this one. I didn't think I would. Rating (0-5) 4.5

In The Bottle Fresh and fruity. Smells like honeydew. On Application The snapdragon amps up immediately but then settles down pretty quickly. This is so fresh and sweet. Dry Down I get just a touch of rose behind the fruits. Doesn't really morph from the fresh, juicy and sweet fruit stage. Lovely. Rating (0-5) 4

In The Bottle Tobacco, lilac and musk. Sweetish but a little thin and sharp. On Application Frankincense and musk. Resinous and slightly peppery. Dry Down Very dry, dusty and thin. Famine, indeed. No sweetness at all now and the frankincense seems to have taken over. This is quite musty and odd. So far not a favourite but willing to give it another chance. Rating (0-5) 3

In The Bottle Oddly, a very faint berry-like note in the bottle. Barely detectable. On Application Berries and tobacco Dry Down Ah, there we go. As it warms, it's warm incense and tobacco. A little sweet but fairly dry. Still very, very faint. So far the most disappointing of the CD blends that I have tried. I suspect aging may help. Rating (0-5) 2

In The Bottle Hmmm. Honey, cognac and a little bit of floral. Reminds me of the CD beeswax blends so far. On Application So much like Hand of Glory. Beeswax and amber and incense Dry Down This does become dry and resinous as it warms, becoming more spicey. I am really glad the tuberose and geranium don't surface and take over but they obviously have their part to play in this blend. Eventually, dry, musky but still rich. Very sexy, indeed! Rating (0-5) 4.5

In The Bottle Soft and almost fruity. Smells delicious in the imp. On Application Orchid and musk. Normally the orchid notes are terrible on my skin but this is, so far, nice - almost a peachy note in there. Dry Down Alternates between plasticky floral and floral with peach. Not for me. Rating (0-5) 1