monocainsheresy

This is an interesting one! Definitely a bubbling, effervescent scent. Due to an allergy I can't compare it to root beer like a lot of the other reviewers have, but I will say that it reminds me of the flavored gloves that kids' dentists use. Specifically the orange and bubblegum flavors. Verdict: I'm gonna say carbonated bubblegum - I'll be doing more experimenting with this one.

I am very harshly judging whoever made the executive decision on this one. This is an eye-watering MEAT smell. Who decided that amount of vetiver was okay?? Straight vetiver would have been acceptable, but there's something else in there I can't identify which amps it to high heaven. It was better before it aged - more of a smoldering, husky, evergreen scent. Two years later it's unbearable.

This was the first BPAL I ever fell head over heals for, and I will love it till my dying day. Full of vibrant, shadowy greens and thickly spiced browns. Brings to mind an ancient forest with the rotting logs of fallen trees, covered in moss and fungus, suffused with rich, tingly, WARM incense. "Primordial" is correct. This is such a deep, dark, complex herb scent. Unfortunately, this happens to be one that I think suffers with age. It develops a citrus edge which is detrimental to the depth, at least on my skin.

Instantly conjures the image of a big, lush, thick-petaled, luxurious hibiscus. I didn't know what flor de maga was when I ordered this and upon first sniff I though lavender + magnolia. Has the same heady, round throw as jasmine, but the scent itself is definitely much more tactile and tropical than jasmine, with a more robust grace. A big flower with a big personality. Not something I'll reach for often but this could very easily become a comfort scent for me.

For me I get a sadly uncomplicated but still lovely soft vanilla-mint. Very little throw but lasts a decent length of time. Comparison: those little white mint christmas candies shaped like chocolate chips with the red and green sprinkles on the bottom.

This is like Dorian squared. When original Dorian is allowed to age for a while the astringency of the tea brings it a kind of greenness, and the cypress and grass in this seem to be the next logical step on that path. I've never been able to smell the clove, but I always get the afterthought of lavender, though it never goes far before it disappears. A lighthearted but sophisticated scent, not as sensual as the original. Good for summer.

Gooey green absinthe (exactly like the GC scent to my nose) underscored by ozone and the faintest hint of florals This really is rather a weird scent but it's gorgeous

My first Dead Leaves! Had to let this one sit for a month for the incense to come out. Starts very green and mossy which was worrisome, but thankfully on my skin the leaves powder a little and allow the vanilla incense to come out. The vanilla incense is more vanilla than incense. Overall the notes complement each other in a way I wouldnt have expected upon first sniff, but which I am nevertheless very pleased with.

In the bottle: i don't know how the notes aligned to produce this but it smells exactly like florida water - citrus and spice from the combo of db + peppercorn. reminds my of the "faded georgian cologne" note from Pale Student Of Unhallowed Arts Wet: mostly the peppercorn and musk - a hint of resins in the background Dry: I'm a massive dragon's blood snob and this is by far the best BPAL db that i've encountered. True, dusty, moody dragon's blood mellowed by warm amber underscored by red musk. Definitely masculine. This has immediately leapt to the top of not only my incense/resin list but my all-time favorites. Everything I've ever wanted and never gotten from the Ars Draconis scents. Pairs beautifully with Pale Student Of Unhallowed Arts.

Bright green! Not in an aggressive or gooey way - sweet like sap, sunny, airy - spring in a bottle. Like un-boozy Absinthe. Warning: this will attract bees

2018 version The same incense from Cathedral, balanced by slightly spiced vanilla cake. New favorite incense scent

Glowing, glittering apple buoyed by sugary milk. On the dry down my skin turns this into apple-y bubblegum! A very happy, carefree scent.

In the bottle: LAVENDER Wet: still a lot of lavender, and then suddenly its friend jasmine takes over the show. Thankfully it is a soft jasmine, not a stinky one. Dry: The coconut cream turns this into a smooshy lavender-jasmine pillow. Very gentle and comforting. Gives the impression of incredibly high-end marshmallows.

According to my mom this makes me smell "like an alcoholic Yankee candle" and I think that is an apt description. A booze-heavy foodie scent, coated in stereotypical-autumn-candle-smell

This is definitely leather + copal forward on me. There's a very definite smokiness, though not a tobacco smokiness, so I'm assuming it's the copal, and the intersection of the leather + copal is giving me big Dee vibes. There's a tiny bit of vanilla to keep it from being a Weird Smoke scent. The first thing that comes to mind when I smell this is: blacksmith. This smells just like the smithies at Williamsburg, without all the sweaty humans of course. Something about it just makes me think hot metal. Overall, this is super nostalgic and a definite boy smell. New favorite.

I ADORE THIS. Warm, sugary, boozy bourbon with the tiniest hint of mint. Simple, cozy, perfect.

This is my first encounter with Samhain. I've avoided for fear of it being too fruity, but I felt I had to go for this if only for the reason that it's from the year I was born. In the bottle: Crisp, juicy apple. Not quite the smell of a single note - there's a hint of something more complex under the surface. It glows. Wet: Still apple, with a bit of maybe incense or tobacco. You have to get really close to smell anything but the apple. I also detect dead leaves. Dry: Finally, the apple recedes and lets some of the other notes have their moment. It's delicately warm, a little fuzzy. It reminds me of a very gentle All Souls, though not as sweet or thick. Verdict: Like the dampened aroma of an incensed apple pie. EDIT: I have had an epiphany. That complexness I mentioned in the bottle, and the fuzziness when it's dry, is definitely mullein. I knew there was something I wasn't familiar with to identify upon first test, and I found it! Discovered while grinding dried mullein leaves in a mortar and pestle. New favorite note.

The aspirations of man, both in the material and spiritual worlds: clove, birch tar, red ginger root, and frankincense. I guess I'm up first! In the bottle: GINGER - antiseptic and tbh smells like the adhesive on really strong stickers if that makes sense? Fresh on the skin: still lots of ginger, with a bit of powdery frankincense. There's something gooey in the background - I think that's the clove; it's gentle. Could be the birch tar, but i don't know what that smells like so don't take my word for it. Overall it gives the impression of something just starting to catch fire, something smoldering but still cold (edit - this goes away ) Dry: This is definitely a familiar scent, almost like Christmas, but early Christmas when you're opening up all the boxes of decorations - it's the smell trapped in the box from last year's holiday cookies. This is much much gentler and more tame than i expected for something called "The Fiery Mountains". I wanted something a little more exciting. Almost plasticy, borderline mainstream, reminds me of a Yankee Candle (not in a bad way, it just has that kind of uniformity. Does smell a bit like a lit unscented candle). One could definitely get away with this an everyday scent. I'm hoping this ages well and warms up - I'll revisit it in a few months

To me this is an incense-y version of Lush's Twilight - I get a lot of tonka - with a little leather in the background. It's super calming.

Fresh out of the mail this was a bottle of pure fig. After a few days it settled to a figgy variant of Burial - lots of cypress coming forward. On the skin this was, again, mostly fig, but as it dried it took on an aquatic tone that I didn't like. Not my cup of tea. I'll be passing this along.

Huh. This is my first encounter with any Snake Oil scent (it is NEVER in stock when I do my big semi-annual orders) and... I'm underwhelmed. This just smells like honeyed Dragon's Milk, though I will say the DB in this smells more faithful. I literally cannot tell where the Snake Oil is. Next time the original stuff comes back in stock I'm going to have to jump on it and compare.

Ngl this smells like literal air conditioning - like air vents when you turn on the AC for the first time after the cold months, plus clean laundry. Edit: This can be duped with Ode On Melancholy, which I personally prefer.

I tend to stay away from scents with more than about half a dozen notes as a rule, but I'm soooo happy I went for a bottle of this. It would seem that my skin has amped only the things that I absolutely love - frankincense, light rose, and a blanket of sugary vanilla

In the decant this smelled like stereotypical, department store, richy rich perfume. A little worrying. On the skin, this is an ever-so-slightly-darker Aelopile - the same glowy amber. And then it morphed. Patchouli! Tobacco!! Maple syrup?? It smells delicious now, a bit like carnival food, but woody and ambery It's still got a bit of department store superficiality, but I'm not mad at it. Mmmm, I'm going to have to get a bottle.

Lemony butterscotch! Not my thing, but very bright and jubilant. I wish the patchouli was more present - it needs a little grounding.