Lunasariel

In the imp: A slightly aquatic, very green floral. The orris is an interesting addition here - it lends the whole thing a powdery, slightly bitter tone.

Wet: Fairly true to ITI, although the florals amp up and the aquatic/green notes amp down. I admit I was hoping for something more like La Belle Au Bois Dormant, which is literally the smell of a princess who's just come in from picking wildflowers, but this feels...haughty? Distant? It has this commercial perfume-y aspect where it's pleasant enough, but nothing really makes an impression. This may be good for those of us who work in an atmosphere where smelling like Snake Oil or something is discouraged, but we still want to have SOME sort of scent on. It's inoffensive, I'll give it that; it just doesn't have any gumption to it.

Dry: This stage was actually my favorite, with a good balance between the florals and the green/aquatic notes. There was even a dash of something with a little more substance (proper rose? Musk? Amber? Who knows) riiiight at the very end, about eight hours along.

Alas, this one failed to wow me overall. It definitely feels like something I that could be found at Sephora, formulated for very young women or those who want something "office-appropriate" and overall inoffensive. But for me, it just didn't have enough personality to really be interesting.

In the imp: Primarily rose, but a kind of rose that reminds me of English Rose, a drugstore perfume my mom got me for christmas when I was about eleven - it was cheap (which was good, because at eleven I didn't know good perfume from a hole in the wall) and inoffensive (which was also good, because I pretty much doused myself in it for like a week), but slightly synthetic-smelling. There may be some hints of moss, dirt, or something salty way deep down at the base, but I have a sneaking suspicion that's me just trying to smell the listed notes rather than what's actually there.

Wet: Like lady_pandora said: sour roses, but not necessarily in a bad way. I mean, the roses themselves are okay, but there's a hint of something kind of unsettling/off-putting at the back...which turns out to be probably the dirt. At this stage, my boyfriend said that this smells like Sally from The Nightmare Before Christmas, which...given the listed notes, is actually pretty spot-on!

Dry: Fairly linear - the rose goes drier and drier, taking on a sort of musty, preserved quality. But it does stay rose as far as I can tell - the dirt note never does develop, at least to my nose. (Although my boyfriend said he could smell it distinctly.) It's unusually short-lasting, too, with maybe 4-5 hours' worth of wear time.

In the imp: Like so many people here are saying: Snake Oil with a floral, orange blossom-y edge. I'm even getting the sweet, almost syrupy vanilla edge! There's also some patchouli evident, but this is a much sweeter, mellower, sexier patchouli than I'm used to.

Wet: Ironically, less like Snake Oil now, but no less lovely. It's sharper, brighter, and sweeter, with the patchouli coming on stronger and the ginger actually a distinct note of its own. There's less of the languorous, sensual, boudoir feel of SO, but this is still so very much "a true heartbreaker's perfume." After a few minutes, it settles down into about equal measures floral-citrus orange blossom and zingy ginger, over a lovely smooth patchouli base.

Dry: Gets more boudoir-y over time, with what I SWEAR is Snake Oil's vanilla note creeping in. The ginger softens way up, but the orange blossom note stays dominant, making the whole thing sort of floral-citrus-sweet, rather than dominantly spicy-vanilla-sweet. The patchouli is also a bit more noticeable, so if patchouli has a tendency to go dirty-hippie on you then you may want to be careful of this one, but patchouli tends to A) amp a little bit and smell awesome on me, so this is a big plus in my opinion.

In the imp: Mostly the "zing" of mint and eucalyptus, although perhaps a little more of the latter than the former. I'm not getting much of the florals, unless the sort of indolic taint way deep down is the neroli. (But I usually like neroli, so I'm thinking not.)

Wet: Eurgh, that indolic edge takes a big step forward - now it's almost exactly the scent of my guinea pig's cage, or perhaps a stable, that's in need of a good mucking-out. The sharp, cool edge of eucalyptus-and-mint-in-that-order is still there. After a few minutes, it settles down into something more recognizably like the violet pastilles that I adore. In fact, it's now almost pleasant, in an earthy sort of way. This is my first violet scent, so I gotta admit I didn't really know what to expect. I had kinda anticipated something like the above-mentioned violet pastilles, which are very light, floral, and girly-scented, but this is something almost unisex.

Dry: It leans more and more powdery, and then poof! it's gone. I went to test it at the four-hour mark, and nothing. It was like I hadn't even applied perfume. Can't say this one particularly wowed me.

In the imp: Like Tweedledum (which I tested yesterday), this is a fun, silly, fruity, child-like scent. But whereas Tweedledum was all Juicy Fruit gum, this is an orange creamsicle (which I remember being the height of sophistication when I was seven, for what it's worth).

Wet: And the Tweedledum similarities continue (to the surprise of none)! Like its twin, Tweedledee isn't anything like grown-up enough to wear to, like, class (I'm a grad student) or a job interview, or anything where I want to be taken seriously at all, but for, say a day at the beach, or for helping to oversee my cousin's 12th birthday party that's coming up, then sure. Also like Tweedledum, Tweedledee has a nice solid grounding of tea (white here, but green in Tweedledum) to keep it from floating away. The more I think about it, the more of a masterstroke on Beth's part this is - as I lean more towards light summer scents, I find that too many of them (Embalming Fluid case in point) are just a waft of lovely light top notes, but without anything to anchor them. But the tea here makes sure that the light burst of citrus has something to grab onto, if that makes any sense.

Dry: Alas, here is where it really begins to distinguish itself from its twin. Tweedledum had a fairly linear drydown, while here, the effervescent citrus goes a little flat, and a mildly soapy edge emerges. Nothing disastrous, but less enjoyable all the same.

In the imp: I have really bad scent associations with mango (my elementary school/middle school/high school/some of college BFF was deathly allergic to them) and figs (...dead wasps. Dead wasps inside figs. Say no more), so I when I read the description (this was a frimp), I was a little worried. But what I'm actually getting is a fun, fruity, silly child-like smell - gum and Froot Loops and Starburst and Lifesavers and everything else I wasn't allowed to have as a kid. If there is any patchouli or green tea here, it's buried too far under the fruit for me to detect it.

Wet: Still predominantly fruit, but now the green tea is much more visible, giving it a nice fresh base to rest on. Maaaaaybe a bare hint of patchouli is working its way in too, but the overall effect is of a less child-like scent, but still a very young, fun one. This isn't something I would wear to class (I'm a grad student) or to a job interview or anything, but for a summer day out with friends, this may be just the ticket.

Dry: Very linear - the same clean, fruity scent, only less so. Alas, the patchouli never did show up for me...

In the imp: Um, wow. This is lavender, but real, earthy lavender, straight out of the ground. There's also jasmine, but it's softer and father away. I may be feeling more kindly towards this than usual because, add in the scent of grass, rain, and slightly malodorous pets, and this IS the smell of my childhood home, which had an enormous and aggressive lavender bush out front that I adored, and a climbing jasmine plant that only bloomed for two weeks out of the year, but man, those were two beautiful weeks. No honeysuckle so far.

Wet: Right off the bat, I'm getting more honeysuckle and less lavender. I guess the amount of jasmine is technically about the same, but the lavender backing off means that it's more noticeable. Unfortunately, the honeysuckle quickly develops into a soapy note, as it is wont to do on me. Dammit, honeysuckle, just give me my lavender and jasmine already!

Dry: A surprisingly quick fade. It stays mostly honeysuckle soap all the way through, but a note of genuine jasmine does emerge after awhile. It's still soap-dominant, but the real jasmine makes me feel more kindly towards it.

In the imp: Woooo, that's a noseful! I'm not getting any of the notes individually, just a strange, heavy soporific thing with astringent/antiseptic overtones. Maybe hints of rubber and nutmeg, but that's about as concrete as I can get.

Wet: I had a major imp spill as I applied this one, so everything is probably going to be amped waaaaaay up. My boyfriend says that he can smell the nutmeg from 2-3 feet away, and it's almost headache-inducingly strong right up close. Other than that, though, I'm getting a strange, fresh scent, like IceBreakers or any of the really strong breath mints. (I'm tempted to put this down to the sassafras.) Luckily, the rubber/burning tires don't transfer over, which I was afraid of. Now, it's obviously very strong, since I got about 20 times my usual dose, but actually kinda pleasant. I'm even getting whiffs of something floral/herbal/incense-y that may be the poppy and/or myrrh, but the aromatic breath mints are so strong that I'm having difficulty discerning anything else.

Dry: The fresh mintiness dries down over time, and the poppy becomes dominant. However, when I say "poppy", it really does smell more like jasmine - I blame the addition of sassafras to the poppy itself. The strength is still a little headache-inducing, but that's almost definitely due to the spillage.

In the imp: Mmmmm. ^.^ Red musk, amber, and roses, in precisely that order. But, oddly enough, it's a light, fresh scent - not at all as dark or slinky as the notes make it sound. (Also, I think I picked up sandalwood somewhere in there??? Maybe I'm getting a false positive from the red musk or something.)

Wet: Oh, now that's just lovely. Amber-rose, with the rose coming out more strongly over time. But at first I get the distinct impression that the amber is acting as a veil for the rose - not obscuring it per se, but making it more mysterious, seductive, and difficult to describe. The red musk is still there, but more as a reliable anchor for the other notes than something notable in itself.

Dry: After a few hours, it takes a sharp turn towards red musk and amber (in that order), and the rose does a surprisingly quick fade. The amber does head in a faintly powdery direction on me, but nothing too dire.

It should be noted that my boyfriend, who very rarely comments on my perfume, says that this one smells like "vanilla and a shot of bourbon to the face", but apparently in a good way.

In the imp: Soft florals, dominated by what I believe to be lily of the valley, but I'm not sure - the florals are rather omnidirectional. It feels like a soap or air freshener that was designed to be pleasant, yet inoffensive and unobtrusive. Or maybe I'm just getting a soapy vibe because that's where I've mostly encountered lily of the valley before?

Wet: At first it's about the same as ITI - a soft, inoffensive floral soap - but now with an interesting aquatic element. But after only a minute or so, the soap comes out in force. Alas!

Dry: It softens up a bit over time, and the soap does dissipate eventually, but it never reaches anything other than "soft inoffensive floral." To top it off, the wear time is also far from impressive - five hours tops, and my skin usually hangs onto florals for 6-8. Meh.

In the imp: Simple but pleasant: I would say this is the exact scent of the color green: grass and cucumber, in about a 60/40 proportion. The only surprise here is the amount of throw it has - if the imp is uncorked, I can easily smell it a foot away, which is rare for me.

Wet: Now it's more like 60% cucumber and 40% grass, but this is still a very WYSIWYG* scent - grass and cucumber we were promised, and grass and cucumber we get. I could see this being a wonderful cooling summer scent; I especially like JuliskaMarie's idea of mixing it with water in a spray bottle!

Dry: Unsurprisingly for a light, fresh scent like this, lasting power is pretty much nil. My skin holds perfumes fairly well, but this one didn't last beyond 2-3 hours. Fairly linear all the way down.

This one reminds me strongly of Embalming Fluid, both in its light/fresh/clean properties, and in its (lack of) longevity. However, I like this one a bit better than EF, so I'll be hanging on to it until some unbearably muggy summer day comes around, when this will be exactly the refresher I need.

* What You See Is What You Get. Sorry for the flashback, fellow 90s kids.

In the imp: A dry, warm, spicy scent. I'm definitely getting the sharpness of the cedar and spiciness of the balsam, but the vanilla softens things up and rounds them out beautifully. This is an unfrivolous scent, the scent of someone who knows how to get shit done and doesn't waste their time. But he's still a fundamentally pleasant dude, because this is definitely a masculine scent.

Wet: Much sharper right off the bat, with the cedar and probably sassafras taking a big step forward. Thankfully, though, it avoids veering into either pencil shavings/plywood or foody/root beer territory. However, the vanilla and balsam start to creep back in, both to my delight. The vanilla takes the unpleasant edge off of the cedar's sharpness, and the balsam adds a wonderful spicy note that's almost cinnamon, but not quite. But then, after only a few minutes, disaster! It's gone straight to the pencil shavings/plywood that I was afraid of. Dammit, cedar, this is why we can't have nice things.

Dry: Thankfully, cedar eventually decides to start playing nice with everyone else, and it settles down into something sweeter, warmer, and less austere altogether, but still masculine. However, the sassafras and vanilla combine into an unfortunate (at least for me - I've never been a big fan of gourmands) sweet root beer scent right at the very end, but hopefully some proper aging will take care of this, and the rest of it is so lovely I don't even mind.

In the imp: Like y'all are saying, a fresh, springy floral with a hint of lemon. But down at the base, there's something funky going on, like dirty dishes or garbage - I'm tempted to put this down to jasmine, as that's how other people have described it, but jasmine has never been anything but wonderful-smelling to me, so I don't think that's it.

Wet: A big ol' initial burst of lemon, which is constantly threatening to lean into cleaning product territory. But that calms down soon enough (although it certainly does make its presence known for a good long while), letting creamy jasmine step forward. While it's primarily a jasmine scent, I'm also getting some sort of omnidirectional spring florals underneath.

Dry: Soap. Straight-up, slightly floral soap, so much so that I can taste it in the back of my throat. A whiff of vanilla at the very end, but overall, something in here has gone straight to Soaptown. Booooo.

In the imp: I can tell right off the bat that, whatever this is, it's going to be STRONG. I'm getting minty chocolate even before uncorking the imp! When actually uncorked, I'm still getting some first-rate dark chocolate and mint, but now with that nutty, "toasted" edge a couple of people have mentioned - I'm tempted to say almonds rather than pistachios, but maybe that's just because I associate almonds with chocolate.

Wet: Still heavily chocolatey, but now definitely more nutty than minty. The mint is still there in the background, providing a lovely cooling note, but what are more notably pistachios have taken a big step forward. The cedar also makes itself known, but it's a gentler, softer cedar than what you may be thinking of - nothing fresh-cut here.

Dry: Fairly linear; nothing unexpected. The mint burns off first, of course, and the pistachio does a surprisingly graceful fade, leaving only the woodsy chocolate. Out of these two, the chocolate lasts the longest, but I can't say I'm particularly enamored. I've never been much of a one for gourmands/chocolatey scents (to which El Dia de Los Reyes is a HUGE exception - it's pretty much the only chocolate scent I need, and I love it so), and I already have my fill of woodsy/cedar scents, so I may either age this one to see if it develops into something interesting, or swap it.

In the interest of full disclosure, I bought this one for the bottle art first and the notes second. That toad always cracks me up, but I'm not saying no to amber, vanilla, carnation, patch, and lemongrass either.

In the imp: Promising, very promising. My beloved amber is dominant, along with vanilla and a blessedly non-foody coconut. Carnation and perhaps some patchouli provide some spicy mystery in the background.

Wet: Hoo boy, THERE'S the lemongrass everyone has been mentioning! Combined with the coconut and vanilla the result is certainly startling, but not in a bad way (nor, surprisingly given the description, in a foody way). Alas, the amber, frankincense, carnation, and patch have faded to pretty much nil.

Dry: And the startlement continues! It's now a wonderful summery scent, coconut dominant but in a lovely amber-vanilla-sunscreen kind of way (and this is from someone who hates coconut-flavored anything), over a patchouli and/or carnation base. The lemongrass is still in evidence, but now in a softer, subtler form.

It should be noted that my boyfriend commented that this one smells like pumpkin pie, but I think he was picking up on the spicy-sweet combination of what strahlend described as "cinnamon without being cinnamon."

In the imp: Neroli and tea are the most dominant notes, but the oudh and benzoin are also making themselves known. Surprisingly little tobacco so far (or, at least, tobacco as I've experienced it).

Wet: At first I thought it was going to head towards a lovely neroli-tobacco area, but, nope, when I asked my BF to sniff it, the immediate reaction was licorice. XP Oh, well, at least there's an undertone of oudh keeping things from going straight-up candy, but it's a small victory if that.

Dry: Up close, I'm still getting whiffs of neroli, but from afar, it's still pretty much straight licorice. Eeeeehhhhh, maybe this one will age well.

In the imp: It's amber-dominant, but a dark, smoky amber - thanks, tobacco! The vanilla is also there to sweeten the deal with maaaaaybe the faintest whiff of florals in the background. Ironically, this is simultaneously both the most complex (note-wise) and the most simple (scent-wise) of the Odes to Mars I've tried so far.

Wet: Alas, that wonderful warm smoky sweetness is gone, leaving something much more cologne-y and "clean"-smelling in its place. The tobacco is still there, but now more directly masculine than unisex, as it was ITI. The benzoin and/or vanilla sneak back in over time, but they always hang around in the background instead of coming forward.

Dry: A tobacco-amber scent, but nothing like as sultry as that might sound. It's definitely more clean, even soapy. This is what I imagine to be the cologne of the teacher you had a vague crush on in high school, or maybe a youth pastor (not that I've ever had a pastor, youth or otherwise, but this is what I imagine one would smell like). Somebody you would trust with your kids, but is still reasonably attractive.

EDIT: After about a year and a half...woo, now this is what I was looking for! Woozy, boozy smokiness - caramelized tobacco is the most dominant note, but the amber and dark, smoky vanilla round it out beautifully. But at the same time, I get the impression of sticky-sweet resins, melting in the sun, like going for a hike in the Sierra Nevadas in the summer. Mad, bad, and dangerous to know, but soooooooo good. Aging takes this one from mediocre to outstanding!

In the imp: Not as sharp as I would have thought - the leather is very dominant, but it's a smooth, sophisticated sort of leather. There's also something musty-musky-herbal which I assume is the sage. No juniper as of yet.

Wet: Okay, there's the sharpness. The juniper and sage take a BIG step forward, while the leather fades to the background. It's now a very masculine, cologne-like scent - I'm definitely getting the gin comparison above! (Sidenote/random train of thought: it's ironic that gin is considered such a sophisticated dude's drink now, as it was the cheap swill of the masses, and actually a mark of a LACK of class, not too long ago. Divergence over.) However, the pure juniper-sage stage turn out to be just an initial blast, and it quickly settles down into something much smoother, but also much more difficult to describe. Let's put it this way: in my notes, I have a category called "fancy lady grown-up scents", and this is the perfect male equivalent of those. It's smooth, sophisticated, self-assured, and at once classic and modern, if that makes any sense.

Dry: It settles down into something eerily like the smell of the leather armchair my grandfather used to sit in, in his cabin in the Sierra Nevadas - I'm guessing that's mostly the leather and sage. But it really does smell like a very lived-in, well-loved leather armchair. Alas, this one doesn't last too long on me (none of the Ode to Mars seem to do so), but really having to shove my nose into my wrist to get at it just enhances the sense of coziness.

In the imp: Sweet in an almost salty-citrus-like way that must be the combination of white musk and ambergris. The chamomile is also making itself known, as a lovely soft herbal-bordering-on-floral scent.

Wet: My first thought was "oh, dear...well, every Luper I've tried so far has hit it out of the park, so one dud ain't too bad." What is probably the white musk goes very synthetic-sweet, almost high fructose corn syrup, overpowering the more delicate ambergris and chamomile. But I should know better than to give up on BPAL so quickly - the white musk quickly settles down into more of a supporting player for the sweetly herbal chamomile and warm, barely-salty ambergris. So far, this is turning out to be a surprisingly complex scent for just three notes!

Dry: Throughout the day, I kept getting wafts of this delicate, not-quite-feminine scent from my wrists and cleavage. It's pretty much exactly what it says on the tin, notes-wise. The ambergris occasionally threatens to lean soapy, but never quite gets there. Later, at about the four-hour mark, it dries down to entirely ambergris, but I love ambergris, so I'm A-OK with this development.

In the imp: Primarily vanilla bourbon, but without the alcoholic tang (which, to my mind, is a plus, making the whole thing smoother). There's definitely something floral going on here, but it doesn't announce itself as jasmine right away. There's a base of something...citrusy? Which could be either the tea, if it goes Earl Grey, or amber, if it's the same kind of amber as in Haunted.

Wet: Starts out fairly true to ITI - vanilla bourbon and amber are dominant, there's some unidentifiable soft floral playing second fiddle, and the odd citrus note is still hanging around. However, the jasmine develops into itself fairly quickly, but on me, it's not a jasmine soliflore - it actually does smell something like a really well-made cup of jasmine tea, but the vanilla bourbon changes it from a foody or tea-based scent to something full of old-world elegance and, for lack of a better word, class.

Dry: It becomes tea-dominant for a while, but eventually the jasmine fades, followed by the tea, and ends up as a vanilla-bourbon-amber (in that order) mix - faint, but at once comforting and elegant.

In the imp: I would probably call this a citrus-dominant scent, but not citrus the way I'm used to it. This is a citrus beautifully blended with soft, intoxicating florals. The beeswax may also be in there, but I've only experienced beeswax in one other BPAL blend, so my nose isn't as attuned to it as it could be. There's a lovely, strong, almost creamy base that is almost definitely beeswax, though.

Wet: The blood orange begins to distinguish itself from the creamy florals a bit more. It's retained that refined, sensual tone, though, although that may be the amber, which loves my skin and anything on it about 80% of the time. (The other 20% it goes to baby powder, but at least it's sexy baby powder.) No cedar or honey yet, although this is probably a good thing in the case of the latter, as honey can get kinda overpowering on me.

Dry: Ah, THERE'S the beeswax! It settles down into a lovely beeswax-amber blend, with both the citrus and the florals still there, but now more in the background. If The Phoenix, Having Burst Her Shell and The Lights of Men's Lives had a beautiful, beautiful lovechild, it would be this.

 

If anybody is watching Marvel's Agent Carter, Hayley Atwell has gone on record saying that her character wears a perfume very like Bésame's Decades of Fragrance: 1940, which is described thus:

 

After prohibition, NYC jazz club, 1940s Aromatic, Floral, Ambery

Top notes: bergamot, cognac, davana

Heart notes: rose, clove, labdanum

Base notes: sandal wood, amber, benzoin

I would love to smell like Peggy Carter! Does anyone have any suggestions?

 

I tried to look for ones with similar scents, but given the different blends, who knows how similar they'd be? Eh, worth a shot. The closest I can find, kinda sorta are:

 

Moscow - "A rich, bold blend of imperial rose, carnation, lush jasmine, lily of the valley, dark musk, amber, bergamot and gilded tangerine."

The Little Wooden Doll - "rose-infused amber and soft golden sandalwood."

For Each Ecstatic Instant - "velvet-red roses and sensual aged patchouli with night-blooming jasmine, caramelized bourbon vanilla, labdanum, black amber, and oudh."

The above is a limited scent, so if it sounds good to you, get it while the gettin's good.

In Templum Dei - "Oman frankincense, cistus labdanum, white sandalwood, and liquid ambar."

Lady Death: Savage - "White musk, grey amber, Calabrian bergamot, vanilla absolute, French labdanum, styrax, wormwood, caraway, and bois de jasmin."

Bette Noir - "Benzoin, wild plum, smoky amber, bergamot, orange blossom, myrrh, and dark berries."

Spooky Action at a Distance: "rose-infused sandalwood with violet leaf, frankincense, geranium rose, and a spark of elemi."

 

And that's the best I could do. Hope this helps!

 

Ooh, thanks! LOL, most of these are on my wishlist anyway (except for The Little Wooden Doll, which I've already tried and which goes a little too maternal for my tastes), especially For Each Ecstatic Instant (mmmm Lupers), so thanks for the extra incentive to try them out.

In the imp: A sexy-foody scent, like caramel body butter warmed to just the right temperature. Not getting much coconut (which I was afraid of, as coconut always smells like disappointing birthday cake to me), but also no amber (which I miss, as it's my One True Scent Love). I don't want to eat this QUITE as badly as El Dia De Los Reyes, but it's still making my mouth water more than a little bit.

Wet: WOW, talk about your morphers! This one goes from straight-up sexy caramel to an immensely complex smoky-sweet-sexy-spicy thing that I think I'm in love with, but don't quite know what to do with, if you know what I mean. I'm having difficulty wrapping my head around everything that's going on here, but I believe that the "sensual blend of Asian spice" is making itself known, as are the tobacco and opium. The amber is probably hanging around at the base somewhere, but TBH there's so much going on that I'm hard-pressed to discern it among all the other notes. If I had to sum it up in a sentence, this would be the scent of the kind of girl your mother warned you about.

Dry: It settles down into something not quite as complex as the wet stage, but still sweetly warm, with some notable spices. Thankfully, that smoky note from the tobacco and/or opium turns out to be in for the long haul, turning this from a gourmand to a slinkier, sexier sort of scent. (Sorry-not-sorry for the alliteration.)

In the bottle: A cleansing, herbal-citrus scent. There's definitely a touch of sweetness, but the sharp herbs are so distracting I can't tell whether it's foody, floral, or both. (Based on the notes, I would say floral, but my nose can't tell.)

Wet: Citrus is definitely the main player here - both the herbs and the sweetness take a huge step back. However, this isn't just citrus. It's complicated by something way deep down at the base, something lovely that I can't quite put my finger on. (Violets, perhaps? Something that cuts the sharpness of the citrus, anyway.) Both here and ITI, it reminds me definitely of some sort of candy I used to have as a child. (EDIT: Thanks to the boyfriend, I finally put my finger on it: it smells like Otter Pops!!)

Dry: The sugary sweetness has dried down, and the herbal notes have moved up to about equal to the citrus. Now, it has a slightly odd, astringent, even medical aspect to it that isn't entirely unpleasant.

In the imp: Like Dwarf itself, this is some POWERFUL stuff - it actually made me jerk my head back a bit when I first popped the cap. There's definitely something fermenting in there, but also something sweet and butterscotch-y that has quite the throw to it, while the fermentation stays pretty close to the oil itself.

Wet: Holy foodiness, Batman! After an initial blast of sweet honey/butterscotch, it dries down to something completely unexpected - dry, woodsy, and just a bit spicy. I would call this closer to the cask dwarven ale is aged in than the ale itself. I'm still getting the sweet foodiness from afar, but close up, its very woody.

Dry: Develops a resinous, incensey edge from god knows where. Otherwise, still getting the same woodsy-spicy scent with some foody-sweet accents all the way down.