Druids Cutting Mistletoe on the Sixth Day of the Moon

[Seajewel]

Burdock root, mugwort, birch sap, oak bark, watermint, ash leaves, wych elm, hazel nuts, juniper boughs, black poplar, yew, and dew-laden mistletoe berries.

[LavenderCoffee]

I don't know what half these notes smell like on their own, but collectively they match the painting really nicely, and I like this a lot more than I thought I would. The hazelnut is most evident early on, but it recedes and finds its place in this magically clean and orderly forest scent. It doesn't have the throw of an evergreen blend (juniper and yew are very well behaved here) and it's neither crisp nor dry. It's wintry, but permeated with a soft living glow. I wish my house smelled like this.

[doomsday_disco]

This one is wild.

 

It goes on as mostly chewy oak on me, almost tootsie roll-like in its chewiness, with no sharpness whatsoever. That is joined by the ash leaves, burdock root, and watermint (which definitely has a watery vibe and just adds a light coolness to the scent without any intense mint). Now, I don't like to eat burdock root, and I had no idea how it would work in a perfume. If you are curious about it as a scent note, I highly recommend you give it a try, as it is noticeable here, and it is weird, with a light pepperiness and rootiness, but oddly, wearable? I love mugwort, but it's not a main player here, and I'm not able to isolate the various tree notes, although they are present. But this is an earthy non-evergeren-heavy forest scent with a touch of coolness from that watermint (so if you're looking for strong evergreens, maybe try Zima V Lese). By the end of the day, I swear I smell patchouli in this even though none is listed, so maybe it's just the chewy oak bark combining with something else?

 

If you're looking for a unique scent experience, I recommend trying this one. It's not a scent that I feel the need to grab more of, but I enjoyed trying it because it's a morpher and burdock root is just not something you normally see as a perfume note!

Edited April 19, 2023 by doomsday_disco

[Biocarbons]

Imagine it's yule season, and you walk into a herbalist shop. There are a handful of others browsing and the clerk is busy with a client so you browse.

 

The clerk has a stone bowl and mortar they're currently using to mash up some unidentified combo of herbs. You watch them pause and sprinkle in some red berries and keep grinding.

 

The smell is fresh, a touch herby, war with the creaminess from the hazelnuts, a light red sweetness from the berries, over a warm wood. There's a chewy, chocolatey background note. The water mint mostly adds a frosty chill.

 

A nice holiday season alternative smell that doesn't immediately scream ITS CHRISTMAS (aggressive spices and apples / pine). It slowly gets sweeter as it sits on me.

 

It reminds me of light betwixt the horns, but without the strong patchouli.

[patina]

In vial: hazelnuts, surprisingly strong hazelnuts.

On: This reminds me strongly of Oak Moon 2011 with a brown, almost caramel tinge and watered down mint. Sweet.

 

Image: A dark grove with a huge oak tree in the middle. It's dimly lit by cool green fire playing around its branches.

[RoseThornAndOak]

Twigs, light evergreens, savory herbs, roasted nuts, acorns, all dried, and almost a hint of distant smoke. The juniper doesn't go in a gin direction and doesn't go weird on me. I picture a cutting board with dried offerings, sitting ready for a gathering, in a forest where the trees are boney and clackling amongst themselves. No snow, but, there is a cool freshness in the air, maybe from the dew. The air is still, everything surrounding is in shades of brown and soft green. It almost wants to go pencil shavings, but doesn't quite get there. There's a somewhat balsalmic quality, kind of how oak goes in that dried tobacco direction but there's a sweet/savory/almost syrupy thing going on. Not a lot of berries, maybe dried. It dries down to mostly soft woods and herbs.

 

I fully expected to destash this, but I really like it. It almost feels like a TAL, but I'm glad for the label art. This makes me want to listen to Tull's Songs from The Wood and dance in the forest. Layers beautifully with this year's Wolf Moon.

 

Edited December 19, 2024 by RoseThornAndOak