Witches' Currant Cake

[zankoku_zen]

Red currant and rosewater gooseberry cake with a sugar-dusted gingerbread crumble topping.

[hackess]

I haven't been the first to review something in quite some time - eek!
 

Bottle: This is when it's most redolent, for me. The crumble topping is much more apparent and balanced with the fruit.
Skin: I really, really wish the strength of the bottle-smell would last but rosewater lightens it up quite a bit and the gooseberry lends a nice tartness. The crumble hangs out for a little while but it's eventually taken over by rosewater (I amp anything rose so YMMV) and currant. Not much throw but it's a such a soft comforting scent. Really beautiful, and I can see why it was the surprise favorite at the DragonCon booth.

 

Verdict: I ordered this because I had a suspicion it would be reminiscent of Crumpet Rebellion, and it is - sort of. It's nowhere near as strong as CR, but the currant+pastry combo is there. I think if I layered this on heavy with something more pastryish, I could reasonably reproduce CR.

[ghoulnextdoor]

Whenever I see the word "gooseberry" I think of the time I spent listening to Eddie Izzard's memoir and how his British pronunciation ("guuzbury") always makes me smile. As a matter of fact, this sweet/sour, tart/tangy scent blanketed with a molassey-gingery cozy streusel, could even be the cake he's talking about in his "Cake or death?" clip from his Dressed To Kill special. Let's just make it canon. Our beloved, wicked Eddie Izzard circa 1999 smells like a guuzbury gâteau, a witch's currant cake.

[Pinkghoulette]

Witches currant cake is pure autumnal comfort in a bottle. The gingerbread/cake note is not too sweet & very welcoming, & the currant/gooseberry somehow make it so juicy at the same time. The rosewater note really keeps the fragrance from being too dessert-like and gives it more of a refined vibe. I honestly wish I could bathe in it! The perfume itself sits really close to the skin, so it's perfect for work or school. I just wish it lasted longer than 2 hours. After that it honestly just disappears as if I never applied any perfume beforehand 

Edited November 6, 2023 by Pinkghoulette

[samanare]

The gingerbread dominates on me, but more smells like it's fighting with the other notes. It feels like the berries and rosewater are part of a different dessert and are trying to get your attention away from the gingerbread cookies, but failing. I can't put my finger on exactly what didn't work for me in this scent. But, in short, more of a gingerbread cookies scent, soaked heavily in rosewater, with berry icing.

[splendidissima]

Oh, this is delicious! Gingerbread warmth, plus red juicy fruits, with a little whisper of rose so it's not entirely gourmand. Autumnal with the spiced warmth, but not screaming FALL like some heavy pumpkin scents can. Low throw, but really nice - I keep sniffing my arm!

[doomsday_disco]

I think I enjoyed this more the first time I tried it, soon after the decant had arrived, a few weeks ago.

 

Then, it was more fruity-foodie. Now, I'm getting more of the rosewater than I did after a few weeks of this getting to settle.

 

Full disclosure: I have no idea what gooseberry smells like. But I do get lots of red currant and rosewater from this, topped with icing, and just a hint of the gingerbread crumble. There isn't much spice to this, and it doesn't really smell like cake to me, as there's not enough crumb here for that, so the icing (I do feel it is more like a drizzle of icing than just a dusting of powdered sugar) is the foodiest element to me about this. The rosewater is not nearly as strong as the currant and does not overpower the scent on my skin, but it does read as more fruity-floral than fruity-gourmand to me.

 

I like this, but I don't think I need a bottle of it. I wanted more gingerbread, and more cake! Maybe it's just me amping currant, though, because it seems other reviewers got more gingerbread from this.  

Edited January 4 by doomsday_disco

[Cali]

This is super lovely, but reminds me a loooot on my skin of A little more tea. In the bottle it's a little more crumbly/molasses-y. 

But it's definately a soft, berries cake that leans a lot into tea-and-cookies-territory. It has a slight watery quality (or maybe it's just that that's what keeping the other notes from going out of line/amping too much). This is beautiful though!!

[PumpkinGuts]

I've never tried a tart gingerbread scent, but I guess there's a first time for everything. That tartness must be coming from the gooseberries. There's a little red currant, too, but mostly the gooseberry and gingerbread. I can't pick out the rosewater. This is like a witch's coffee cake.

 

It's a fun scent, but the combination of spicy and tart is just too odd for me to get any wear out of it. It fades quickly, too.