Rose Red

[violetflower]

The perfected winter rose, dew covered and freshly cut.

In the bottle: Fresh green stems, with the scent of dew glistening, blood red roses in the background. I can see a garden that is full of large, full red roses, glistening in the first light with dew upon the petals, the stems being cut and the smell of the sap is heavy in the air!

Wet on my skin: All I can smell is the green stems now, like I am in the florists, surrounded by freshly cut green stems

Dry: As it dries the rose is peeking out more and more from behind all the green stems. This has been on quite a while now, and I can smell much more of the rose, this is a lovely blend!


In the wet stage it seems like a ton of green rose stems have been squished to pulp, strained and bottled, with a few red rose petal hiding in there! It is very fresh and tart.

I have to admit this was one I thought wouldn't work on me, as some other rose blend have been very bitter! Not so with this one!

[slave1]

ROSE RED 07

 

In Bottle: Pungent rose

On Skin: Rose hates me, it’s a fact. It always turns so sharp and sour on me… to the point I need to wash it off. Why??? It makes me so sad. Here, it’s the same old story, rose hating me. But I can tell you, it is a true plush red rose, freshly picked… there’s even a little dirt on it offering a nice earthy note to contrast the sharp perfumey bloom. It stays very true to all the variations of this scent Beth has made over the years. Sadly, it is not for me, but those of you who love rose, this will be your holy grail. Very strong throw and average wearlength on me.

[Christine Daae]

In the bottle, this is chilly and green and smells, yes, exactly like a florist's freezer. It's very lovely.

 

Wet, on my skin, it smells more like the greenery of the rose than the actual flower, though I do get the hint of floral. It's got something sharp and cold to it. I'm wearing Peacock Queen on the other wrist to compare these, and I can say that this is definitely a "younger" rose - it's sort of a frozen, red rose with crushed green stems. I get a LOT of green here.

 

This one is a lot more intensely green and cold-smelling than Peacock Queen. It's actually a lot more intense, period, and it doesn't fade as quickly. It has an edge of tartness that smells like green apples to me, actually. Green stems, green apples, and a dewy, almost-frozen red rose. This is like springtime!Persephone to Peacock Queen's underworld!Persephone.

 

I think Peacock Queen is going to be my holy grail of rose, but I'm definitely keeping this one, maybe for spring.

 

Edit to add: Hmm. This is one of the very few (read, two) scents that my fiance had a negative impression of. He says it reminds him of his grandfather's funeral. D: (The other was Sea of Glass, which smelled "like hairspray" to him.) So maybe this will end up in the swap pile after all...

Edited December 21, 2007 by Christine Daae

[Ohmaude]

When it comes to roses, I am a true fan of '05 PQ, but was excited to finally get to try Rose Red. I think the best way to review this scent is to compare and contrast with PQ.

 

I agree with what many others have said about Rose Red, its very red roses, but there is a green sap quality also. It is fresh, fresh rose, complete with stems and leaves. This is what I imagine you would smell like if you worked in a florist shop all day cutting strongly scented rose stems.

 

While PQ is a regal woman sitting in her boudoir, Rose Rose is a sharp-tongued wild thing.

[dluszcz]

In the bottle and wet on the skin Rose Red is fresh rose, overpowered by smashed green stems, and dare I say, freshly turned earth. After dry down, the green stems and dirt disappear, revealing a true, clean rose. Light and fresh, but not long lasting.

 

Pretty, but not as exciting or sexy as my favorite rose blend, Blood Rose.

[SarahScent44]

Rose Red 2007

 

In the imp, ohhhh - it's a beautiful, fresh, growing rose - not just the flower, but the greenness of the stem and leaves as well.

 

It's the same on my skin - just a very fresh, very beautiful, very natural rose. It's outdoors, where Peacock Queen is indoors.

 

When it dries, GORGEOUS - that's all I can say. This is my ultimate rose.

[500ml]

Rose Red 2007

 

In the bottle it smells just like it should, absolutely spectacular. Wet on my skin it turns into a strong mix of fresh rose and juicy fruit, mostly apple. I'm surprised, I wasn't expecting that - although it's not bad, just unexpected. Most of my experience has been with the 2004 version, which seems much more sedate than the 2007 version which truly is right in yer face. The green note is also incredibly present. Dry the blend calms down considerably and becomes much more like the Rose Red I love so much. This years version also seems to be longer lasting than the previous versions, but that might be due to age.

 

This little bottle held some surprises for me, but I'm still incredibly happy with it.

Edited April 27, 2008 by porcelain

[persephanise]

I read all these reviews before I bought myself a bottle of this. And I thought to myself, "Okay, it smells like a rose. What's so special about that?"

 

Then I opened the bottle and I understood.

 

Holy CRAP! It smells like an actual, honest to goodness, living rose. Not just petals. Not just attar. Not just the distilled happy goodness that perfumers have taught us to enjoy. But an actual rose the way nature brought it to us--unrefined, with green leaves and a woody stem, with sap dripping here and there, with petals and water. It smells like a rose bush in full bloom, in the crisp morning dew. Something about it does smell biting, like cold water. Almost minty. It catches my breath.

 

I was genuinely amazed that anyone could recreate this smell.

 

At first I didn't think I could wear this as a perfume--I thought it would make a good room scent. However, I find myself reaching for it more and more, because it just makes me smile.

 

I layered this with Dirty, and was gleeful all evening. Talk about feeling fresh and clean and loved--Rose Red layered with Dirty is like being in bed with the window opening and the scent of fresh roses blowing in. It's that good. T's an instant mood lifter. IF you have some Dirty on hand, get to layering!

Edited January 9, 2008 by Persephanise

[naeelah]

I always heard that this was very green, and that's definitely true. Peacock Queen is pure rose petals, but Rose Red is a rose garden or freshly cut stems.

 

Wet, it's almost all prickly, chokingly strong greenery. Luckily, this dries quickly, and when it does, a rich, red rose comes into bloom.

 

And that's it. Fragrant red roses, fresh from the garden. It smells exactly like a bouquet, or a florist's cooler. The rose smells quite like the bulgarian rose absolute that my mother has.

 

Because of the greenery, this feels a little more youthful and innocent to me. But it's a mature youth, not bubbly and perky. This is a beautiful and elegant scent. I guess you could call it classic. I didn't think I'd like the greenery so much, but I'm very pleasantly surprised. This is a great choice for anyone who wants a pure rose scent that's a little lighter, fresher, and more complex than just straight rose petals.

 

I've tried many, many different straight rose scents, by many manufacturers, and this is one of the best, easily. It doesn't turn weird or soapy or lemony on my skin. Recommendations for this are quite simple -- try it if you like roses, and don't try it if you don't. Try it even if you don't care for plain rose scents, because this is definitely special.

 

The throw is very good, at first. Wear life is maybe average, at least for the 2007 version. It's only been an hour and a half, and the throw has already dropped off markedly. It's still noticeable, just not so throwy. But it stays at this level for the next several hours. About 5 hours since putting it on, it's still noticeable, but it's softer, and slightly powdery. The greenery seems long gone. So it seems it's long lasting, but because the throw drops off so much, I'm ranking it somewhere in the middle.

Edited December 28, 2007 by naeelah

[mooncityminx]

Rose Redd 2007 version:

 

Wet it smells well, wet. I detect the wet stones note from Shanghi Tunnels and I suspect it is some sort of mint even though it doesn't smell particularly minty, because it reminds me of the mint plants in my grandma's garden. Tea Rose is the dominant note. It's very beautiful to combine the wet stones smell and the tea rose note. I can imagine I'm in a rainy rose garden with mossy rocks lining the path.

 

Rose Redd never goes soapy or artifical on me in any way. I usually have a very hard time with all rose I've tried other than tea rose. This is such a sophisticated and unique fragrance. It's easily my favorite rose perfume I've ever smelled. I could easily believe that I were smelling a real rose. I even get a tactile sensation like velvety dark red petals on my fingertips.

 

I'm going to need to stock up on this! I rarely wear florals but I could see myself really becoming a Rose Redd girl!

[PurringPulsar]

Rose Red 07

 

In the imp: crisp, icy, fresh rose. Very much like 05.

Wet on skin: now it turns a little sharp…but still retains that dewy, crisp, cool rosy scent.

Dry on skin: oh, this one is lovely! Whilst I find 05 a little sharp, this one is closer to 04, which was the perfect frozen rose scent. This has that hint of almost lemony-geranium type scent that I got in 05, mixed with the pure, icy rose scent I got in 04, making a gorgeous rich red rose scent with a nice chilly watery aspect. This is truly the classic BPAL rose.

After a while: oh yes, this is much nicer than 05. It's not sour at all-a bit tart, but not nose-piercingly sharp and wilted. The icy scent from before has toned down, and now the scent is a bit fainter, but it smells like a pure fresh rose…and not just the flower. I smell the stem too, maybe the leaves. A graceful, elegant, long stemmed rose, with a hint of dew.

It does fade away very fast from the skin though, in about 2-3 hours, there’s little trace of the rosy goodness left on me.

Verdict: oh yes, this is Rose Red in it’s best incarnation! I have fond memories of how lovely the 04 version was, then I swapped that off, and bought 05, which was nice at first but a little bit too tangy, and then became really sharp on me after a year or so. This reminds me more of RR04, and I love it. The perfect frozen rose, petals on ice, long stemmed and sophisticated, fresh and very genuine. I get hints of stem and leaves as well as the flower. This is rose in it’s purest and loveliest form. The only disadvantage is that it fades too fast, but is beautiful while it lasts. I need a bottle now!

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? yes-I'm getting this one for sure!

If you like this, try: Peacock Queen, London, Hope, Lucy's Kiss, Rose Cross, Empress

[CrazyPretzel]

Another of the Yule goodies I got from snapeophile

 

Well, I know snapeophile loves this one to death, and it's popular with almost everyone else too, so I kind of feel bad to have less-than-entirely-kind things to say about it! Admittedly, in the decant, it smells amazing. In fact it made the entire bubble mailer smell amazing, and it was only a partial decant, very well wrapped, and not a drop had leaked! This is a seriously strong scent.

 

My first thought when I smelled it was of apples. It's a really crisp and juicy rose scent that, to me anyway, verges on being apple-y. Tart and a little snowy. I don't get any of the dirt or green notes that other people have mentioned.

 

My skin, unfortunately, does not seem to bring out the best in RR. In fact it went quite pungent and almost chemical on me, and that combined with the throw gave me a headache! Too bad - I was kind of glad when it faded before too long.

 

My mother absolutely loves it though, so it's found a happy home regardless.

[mothglitter]

I really love this one (as the other 2 in the Mirror Mirror set). While Peacock Queen is the cold, wet tea rose (to me), Rose Red is the spicier rose, with a hint of carnation (I've found that I like to cocktail this one with Lush's "Potion" scents).

 

When I first smell it wet, it's really the red rose, for sure. It does have that carnation/dianthus angle to it that makes it just divine. Wet, it has that teensy, slightly green tinge but dries to a moderate, straight spicy rose. Very nice. Sits somewhere between Snow White & Peacock Queen in terms of complexity, Snow White being the most complex & Peacock Queen being the most straightforward.

 

I love this set & may have to sell a kidney to buy more!!!

[eloiseattheplaza]

I received a frimp decant from a wonderful forumite, and I was so excited to try it! I usually like rose, especially London and Two, Five and Seven, but Rose Red sounded subtly different.

 

In the imp: I remember the first time I sniffed BPAL (it was the Knave of Hearts) and I was bowled over by how real it smelled. Not like a perfumer's interpretation, but like being inches away from the real thing. This is not like sniffing a vial of rose attar; it's like holding the stem and thorns and flower of a real, big-as-life rose bloom. It's green and fresh and perfect.

 

On skin: the greenness stays for about twenty minutes, beautifully crisp and lively.

 

Dry: the green fades somewhat, and the rose petal scent comes through, very similar to Two, Five and Seven on me, though maybe a little redder. It didn't last long--a couple of hours, at most.

 

In locket: the stemmy scent remains. I'll probably wear this both on my skin and in my locket to capture both of its beautiful elements, or I might wear Rose Red and London in the locket together.

 

Verdict: Rose Red is absolutely beautiful, and Beth's artistry in creating such a complex and evocative scent that is at the same time so pure and true... it just blows me away.

[ravenfeathers]

in the bottle wow! now that is a beautiful rose. sweet, fragrant, and a little saucy. LOVE! (this also has the pretty label instead of the parchment labels, which are cool, but only when they're not compared to the picture labels.) it really does smell like a big bunch of roses with stems and leaves and all run through a shredder.

wet on skin this has a soft, syrupy character that's quite beguiling. the surface is so rose, but the sugary quality draws you for a deeper whiff. it's like a big bowl full of sugared rose petals.

dry on skin rose red stays sweet, but greens up a lot on drydown. no longer rose petals in sugar, it's a whole rose sprinkled liberally, dusted with white, crystalline sugar.

[willowtreeling]

Wet, this smells like tea rose and mint. As it dries, the mint drifts away. Then it goes through a few transitions--dusty rosewater (), and finally a creamy rose that is nice, but not as pretty a rose on me as Libra was. I am somewhat relieved. Rose Red is my favorite fairy tale maiden but my bank account isn't loving me right now.

[DARKBEAUTY28]

Wow! This one is niccceeee. I smell the green stem of the rose like others do. Very bright, and I am getting a green apple-like note. This is super fresh and tangy! I really, really like this one and am glad I bought a bottle. Might sound cheesy but I want to swim in this! It is a definite mood lifting type of fragrance.

[lady_pandora]

Not entirely sure why this gives me such a strong impression of white wine. It smells boozy as all get-out in the imp, then goes on smelling like rose petals drowned in white wine. Then, my skin gobbles up the rose and it smells mostly like wine until it fades, which it does relatively quickly. Is there even a wine note in this, or is my skin on crack?

 

ETA: This is the '05 version.

Edited January 15, 2008 by lady_pandora

[Shannihilation]

In the bottle this is a damp, freshly cut rose. It's so pretty. You can picture yourself standing in a rose garden and furtively cutting yourself a gorgeous fully bloomed rose for your very own. On my skin it develops a hint of sharpness. It's almost a green sort of sharp.Leaves, stems and of course watch out for those thorns! After about ten minutes it softens down to a really lovely, feminine rose. Almost as if you've been working in a florist all day and the scent has seeped into your clothing.

 

Probably not a scent I'll wear often, but it is very nice. I can see why it's such a favorite.

[fortytricks]

My best girlfriend(the one I enabled*evil laugh*) pulled out her decant of this over the weekend and let me try it. Sadly, my skin turned it into bug spray. I'm serious. It was bug spray for about ten minutes and then it disappeared completely.

 

On her, however, it's the freshest, prettiest rose you can imagine. Really lovely. She says it fades on her too(not as quickly), but she catches whiffs of it hours later unexpectedly.

 

I just don't think my chemistry will ever play nicely with rose.

[Lyrical]

Rose Red 2007

 

In vial: *cough* It's a very sharp, green, woody rose - at least in the imp.

 

Wet on skin: it's nothing like conventional rose perfume. It's not even like the BPAL rose notes I've tried. It's tart, almost sour, and greenish, yet with real rose petals underneath.

 

Dry on skin: The sour note recedes and I get a clear image of playing behind my grandad's rose bushes when I was a child. It smells like roses still growing on the bush, then it gradually softens into the smell of my nan's hall cupboard. I don't like this as much as the other BPAL rose blends I've tried.

[erraticprophet]

Initial Impression: rose and stems. It smells like someone literally crushed an entire rose into the bottle.

 

On Wet: strong rose, undercurrent of green

 

On Dry: the green disappears and leaves a gorgeous red rose behind

 

Final Impression: I really, really love this. This is the ultimate rose scent!

 

Rating (on a scale from 1-5): 4.5

[Lunaliquid]

ROSE RED 2007

 

Bottle

Sharp, tangy, almost peppery rose.

 

Wet

Oh wow! A very true rose, full of thorns, stems, and leaves. It is as if a herd of elk broke into my greenhouse and trampled the roses and I'm stuck cleaning up the damage while crying bitterly over all the beauty lost.

 

Dry

More of the above, but now it seems the elk trampled my lemon geraniums as well. There is a soft whisper of slight peppery lemon (a scent which I associate with rubbing the leaves of my lemon scented geranium plants). Absolutely fabulous!

 

Verdict

Love it, love it, love it! It is the perfect scent for me when I want to feel like summer in my garden while the world outside is perpetually frozen in ice. It gives me the promise that yes, this winter shall pass, and soon it will be just a fleeting memory. Brava!

[eatingthesea]

i'd never tried this blend in the past but everything i'd heard about it certainly made my expectations high. i'm sooo very glad they were met, even exceeded. truth be told, i was nervous, considering roses and i aren't typically friendly. there are but two ways i like my roses: dead, or surrounded by greenery (oxymoron, i know ). nonetheless, i was reeled in by the recurring likenesses to "a fresh, juicy rose in a florist's fridge." hoping "fresh, juicy" didn't somehow equate "tea rose" or anything else suggestive of doilies and teatime (ruuuuunnnn!), i went for it. and now i think i may be in love. more than anything, i'm finding myself fond of rose red's incredible throw and wear length. the beau-man could not believe how strong it was -- but in a good way.

 

definitely very feminine, but not prissy. though i've never tried peacock queen, i get the idea it's a "stately" rose. rose red is not that, either. this is sensuous yet not really romantic. kind of wild but not slutty. coquettish, mayhaps? a rose with a wink and a grin, really gifted at putting on the pure but carrying around wayyy too many wonderful secrets. yeah, that's this kind of rose. tasty, indeed

Edited January 22, 2008 by eatingthesea

[treadpath]

Upon sniffing the imp: Very green and stemmy, with a little bit of rose in the background.

 

Wet: Stems. Long, cool green stems that you've just snipped the ends off to put them in the vase. Where are you, rose?

 

Dry, after a half hour: Still sharp and a little herby and very stemmy-sappish. I want to think I smell the rose, but I could just be wishful thinking due to wanting to smell it so badly.

 

Dry, after two hours: It's still there! The sharpness has settled and it is still a nice green herby scent. Something deep and earthy has come out too. Still no rose. I think my weird skin chemistry ate the rose.

 

Conclusion: I like this scent best after it's been on for 2+ hours and it is very long-lasting, but I am still a little disappointed that my skin got me a red rose but it eated it.