Urd

[Magycmyste]

Muscadine, black and red patchouli, cereus and nag champa.

 

Ok, so muscadine is grape, and cereus is cactus, basically. Those were the two notes in this I hadn't heard of before.

In the imp: Mostly grape and patchouli.

Wet on skin: There's some sweetness from the grapes, but it's heavily tempered by the nag champa and patchouli.

Dried down: Soft and fruity, but tempered by incense. This is really pretty!

Throw: There's both fruit and incense in the throw, but I'm getting more of the grape.

Verdict: ***** This is another beautiful scent I think I might want a bottle of in the future.

[ResinManiac]

I get pure unadulterated grape champagne from this, perhaps in a little bistro in France somewhere. Classy, but soft and understated, improves with aging.

[Jangzonrice]

wet: patchouli and nag champa - like a head shop on steroids in the best way possible! dry: head shop mellows out and muscadine (sour grapiness) appears to give a slightly sweet fruity touch to it. I actually like this, but won't be wearing it to anything professional!! There is a lot of throw with this so only wear it on days off!

[elinox]

First Sniff: Something vaguely familiar, but I’m not sure what. After reading the notes, I’m guessing it’s the patchouli.

 

Initial Wet Application: I’m not impressed with this at all so far. It’s light and makes me think of water flowers like lily or gardenia. Or, upon reading a description of nag champa, of plumeria!

 

Dry Down (first 15 minutes): After this completed the dry down, and I figured out why I wanted to try it, then I was getting ripe purple grapes. Apparently, ‘muscadine’ is a grape! It now smells like the kind of grapes freshly picked for wine: concord grapes, I think.

 

My Reaction: I had this on my ‘want to try’ list and could not remember why as the notes are not ones I generally enjoy. However, I found that according to some people, it’s a good ‘grape’ scent. Once it dried completely, I was getting lovely, ripe grapes: sweet and ripened by the sun! The grape scent is similar to the one I get from Bess, but a bit more cheerful.

 

Rating: 3

[Malaena]

Wet: Strong muscadine! Sweet and juicy!

 

Drying: The muscadine disappears and is replaced by sweet nag champa. About 30 minutes in the nag champa takes on a stale characteristic. It's odd and it lasts a bit too long!

 

After 2 hours: It's a patchouli skin scent.

 

Verdict: I wish I could have muscadine all the time but alas, no. This one isn't for me, especially with the stale phase of weirdness.

[Bassmastadroog]

I don't have much to add on the front because most of the reviews capture it perfectly...I especially like (been steeped in incense since the 60s )...it IS headshop. Purely, but like, old school headshop. Not "I just walked in and they are unpackaging incense from the truck that brought it in" but "I just got to San Fran and am visiting a headshop that has been planted here since the 60s and the wall still smells like it."

 

At first application, the fruityness was musty and smelled sort of rotten with the incense...but that really was only at the beginning. Urd is like getting high on a psychadelic...its like "WHOA there it is" at first...then "oh crap...I'm uncomfortable, something is weird" then finally..."aaah coasting along, this is good, this is the best part."

 

4/5. Could order a bottle. It is a very specific smell to go for.

Edited December 18, 2015 by Bassmastadroog

[Casablanca]

Wand: OMG patchouli (both colors), purple-red grapes, incense, and musk.

Wet: First come the grapes, with loads of patchouli right behind them. I guess this qualifies as a "fruitchouli." At first, though, something goes wrong for me on the back end of this -- something goes deeply sour. Is that the cereus? I think so, because after some minutes, the sourness calms down and the after-smell reminds me a little of the prickly pear in Tenochtitlan. I like it at this point, on its own, but it's too deserty-smelling for me to think "Norse" for Urd, and it's a little weird with the grapes.

Dry: Once this settles down, it's OK, but there were bumps in the road getting to this point.

 

For those who like juicy, purple-red grapes and patchouli, this might be just the thing. I agree with Bassmastadroog: this one is a scratch for a pretty specific itch.

[Kay Torres]

In the imp: Wine grape! Yum!

 

Wet: Fruity patch...

 

Dry: Same! Nag Champa, patch and wine grape! I'm digging this! Hella throw! Not something that I thought I'd like, but it's excellent. I swear there's myrrh in here too, tho. It does the cola thing on my skin for a fleeing moment when it's drying down.

Edited September 24, 2016 by SunsetKay

[Bamels]

Frimp. This reminds me of dragon's milk without the milk in the bottle! As soon as it's on my skin it changes and the smokiness of the patchouli comes out. I keep getting a slight cigarette ash scent. Things are starting to calm down and I see what people mean about an incense shop, and the slight mustiness of it. 10 years ago I would have loved this, back in my Uni days. Unfortunately I am over my incense phase as they all smelled largely the same on my skin. Off to the swaps!

[LizziesLuck]

Wet: This reminds me a lot of Depraved, with grape instead of apricot. And then it reminds me of something I can't place. Hmmm. Not loving it, or hating it.

 

 

Dry: Very grapey. Grape and I aren't really friends, it just ends up smelling really artificial on me.

[lizabelle]

This is shockingly grapey. My first impression is of very dark red wine that's been chilled too long and needs to warm back up before it's drinkable. From the notes I thought this would be a warmer scent, but it's quite cool on my skin, although it is blended well. After reading some reviews while sniffing I do smell the incense, and the patchouli--they sort of blend into a background earthiness, for me. I get no cereus at all, which is sad because I've loved it in other scents. Strikes me as a dark, midnight purple scent, reminiscent of velvet or some other rich fabric that's absorbed some perfume over time.

[marilyn eyre]

I'm starting to discover that I really like fruity patchoulis. This was a frimp that had been in my list to try, and I finally got around to it. Beautifully rich and deep. Sexy. It's the scent equivalent to smoky-eye makeup and and smoking a cigarette on a holder. Classy and sassy.

[doomsday_disco]

In the imp: Graaaaape. And patchouli. It smells more like grape juice than actual grapes to me. I can also smell the incense note.

 

Wet: I do get a lot of grape, but the patchouli and nag champa notes are stronger on my skin than they were inside of the imp.

 

Dry: The grape isn't as juicy anymore, but I'm still getting a fair amount of grape, earthy patchouli, and finally, the incense.

 

Verdict: I'm not a fan of dark fruit scents and incense, so this isn't really my cup of tea.

Edited July 18, 2017 by dementia_divine

[ramblingrambler]

I got Urd because I love all the notes, and it doesn't disappoint... but it is definitely different from what I expected! On me, it's a playful blend of fruit and incense, very light and almost child-like. Patchouli is almost non-existent except to balance and temper the fruitiness from the grape. If you were to tell me this were a patch blend, I wouldn't believe you—unless I stopped to think about how to balance a bright and juicy fruit like muscadine in a completely understated way. THEN I would notice the patchouli.

 

Beautiful all around, especially as the muscadine fades away and gives in to the trailing nag champa at the end of wear. Lovely!

[roseus]

This pretty much just a slightly gritty patchouli on me!

[milo]

I'm guessing that muscadine must be some kind of fruit. I'm thinking grape? This is extremely fruity, with a touch of musk. Much like fruity musk scents like Hollywood Babylon and Mania. Fun to try, but not me.

[Lucchesa]

I was frimped Urd and put some on without checking notes.  If I had, I might not even have skin tested.  Grape is usually Dimetapp on me, and nag champa can turn my stomach.  It wasn't as bad as all that -- in fact, the blend that it reminded me of was Dia de los Muertos, and sure enough they both have cereus.  But despite the presence of both black and red patchouli, the patch is drowned out by the fruit, cereus and nag champa -- my least favorite incense note.  Not my cup of tea. 

[cyborgutena]

I got this because I love nag champa and I quite like patchouli. Unfortunately, it turns out I don't love the other notes with them.

 

This, to me, is really grapey. REALLY grapey. To the point where it sort of smells like fake grape when it goes on (not like Hubba Bubba level of fake grape...more dark and less artificial than that). The nag champa and what I assume is cereus start peeking out from beneath it and I enjoy those.  I don't know what cereus smells like but I assume it's the sort of spooky floral that I'm getting. The nag champa is spicy as well as (I think) the patchouli (although I don't recognise it that well in this mix for some reason).

 

I would like this a lot better if it didn't have the muscadine, I think. It makes the scent a bit too sweet and rich in a way I don't love, although luckily not in a way that is sickly. I don't think I'd love any grape scent though, to be honest.

[spookyumbrella]

The patchouli in this is very smooth - not gritty or funky at all. It has a slight earthiness, but doesn't smell like full-on dirt like patch does sometimes. The nag champa isn't dusty or stuffy, either. Both notes are at their best in Urd, and they combine beautifully with the muscadine grapes. The grapes are rich and tart, not candy like at all. I know that cereus is a cactus, but I have no idea what it smells like, so I can't speak on that one. 10/10 - lush, rich and uniquely fruity.

[DigitalCoyote]

Wet: Grape Kool-aid and something earthy/seedy.

 

Dry: Sweet and dirty in a good way. 

 

Dry dry: Pixy sticks and incense.

 

I'm not sure how I feel about it.

 

#BPALphabetAUG20

Edited August 25, 2020 by DigitalCoyote

[IoPan]

I just tried this one on from an imp. What a great illustration of how you have to try perfume on your own skin to know how it will work. And you have to give it time to settle in.

 

I can't wear any sort of musk, not even a tiny bit of it, because it turns into a nightmarish stink on me. It just does not play well with my skin chemistry. So sad, because I like musky perfumes in the bottle. When I sniffed the Urd imp, I got a resin/incense note with a little bit of fruitiness from the muscadine.

 

I tried it on and was horrified--did it have musk in it?? I'd just pored over BPAL listings picking out zillions of imps that were MUSK-FREE! But wet on my skin, Urd was smelling like a definite musk-mess. I almost removed it with rubbing alcohol, but then I sniffed it one last time... and it had transformed.

 

Nice, sharp cedar and the grapey fruity note had transformed into roses. All the sharp muskiness was gone.

 

Another few minutes, and it settled into the most delightful, mellow, aged-incense fragrance with a faint sweetness barely floating over it. It's like how there's that gentle plumeria note in nag champa that you can't smell all the time, only occasionally... but this is sweeter and punchier than the plumeria in nag champa. Yet still quite unobtrusive, just softly there sometimes.

 

I immediately put a full-sized bottle of this one in my cart. It's a keeper for me.

[melandie]

Frimp received a few months ago! Like others, I find this very grape-forward, with a strong smokey-incensey aspect. It does feel like a dark "purple" scent. The patch is pretty quiet, I feel it's in the background grounding things, stopping the grape from being TOO much. I'm not sure how often I'll reach it, but will definitely enjoy the imp. Lovely blend! 

[Rane.]

Bought a bottle. Smells like grapes at first, but then the patchouli comes out smokey. It's a mature grape, not like kool-aid. I get the faint Nag Champa, but later it amps up. THen it does a switch, I get grapes with a nice strong smokey patchouli. It smells like a hippie shop. I love it!

Edited October 16, 2021 by Rane.

[forspecial_plate]

In moonarcana's review, 

I was the friend who said he didn't want to try this because it had a grape note.  That was waaaay back when I was a little more picky about bpal scents and my tastes were a little different back then anyway.   

 

Now I've learned to stop worrying and just love the Urd, and I can't believe I've never reviewed it in here before!  It is a little on the sweet side but that's not really a problem, it just means there might be certain days occasionally when I'm not in the mood for it.  

 

It does smell like a deep grapey incense scent to me, I really don't detect a lot of patchouli standing out, but that isn't uncommon for me, patchouli tends to just drift into the background and acts as more of a deep backdrop for the other notes.  

 

This is very different from Midnight On the Midway, another fabulous incense scent.  I think Urd is...darker, more subdued, even though it's not a quiet scent really.  

 

I hadn't thought about this for a while, happened upon an imp and put it on right away, and immediately put a 5ml bottle in the cart to include in my next order.  Love it!