Bengal

[isisonearth]

A sultry and unruly blend that emulates the ambient scent of the markets in ancient Bengal: skin musk with honey, peppers, clove, cinnamon bark and ginger.

Imp: Sweet honey and sharp ginger jostle against each other.

Wet: Sort of dry at first. Piles of cinnamon and pepper and a bit of ginger in the market place.

Dry: The sweet honey drifts in and out. Not really sweet enough for me.

[catattack]

Imp: Spices and musk (smells like the red kind to me)

Wet: Very spicy. cinnamon

Drydown: Cinnamon. It's different from Chimera. I can smell a whole kitchen cabinet full of baking spices.

Overall: I didn't get honey or musk on my skin. Maybe with some aging. This is a spicy scent that I can wear. Yeah!! Spicy scents can be hit or miss, so this is exciting. Definitely bottle worthy.

Edited May 1, 2009 by catattack

[CreamyJade]

In the imp: Sharp strong honey and spicy musk.

Wet on skin: Still very strong honey, musk, and spices.

Dry on skin: It softens when dry, the scents become blended. Nom nom nom.

Final thoughts: I received this as a frimp with my locket and I am so happy! I never paid any attention to this blend, but now its time has come! *insert thunderclap here* It's a lovely scent and as skin musk always transforms into something delicious, carnal and dangerous on my skin, I am quite pleased with it! Big bottle? I think so Aged Bengal is going to be awesome!

[liquidtrance]

Smells AWESOME in the bottle. Like the best chai ever, and then multiply that by 10. One the skin, what I THINK might be the skin musk turns the scent a little sour, a littly musty. In the bottle the honey, the ginger, the clove, the cinnamon, were all there perfectly. Now, they all seem to be gone. From a distance there's almost a lemon tea twinge, but up close the skin musk smells a little damp and moldy. An almost sweet mold. Really similar to what I was smelling predominantly in Giant Vulva, except here there is that slightest of slight lemony twinges. Damn. This may just be a locket scent... Maybe it's the clove that's getting beaten over the head with skin musk, and comes off as lemony? Still not becoming the winner it was in the bottle. Fades sort of quickly? The skin musk dominates the whole time. Never a whiff of the clove, cinnamon, ginger, peppers again.

[djsiberia]

another interesting blend - this one is spicey. cinnamon, ginger, pepper and musk. i actually kind of like it. i can smell the honey and it smells like honey from the jar this is quite delicious and pretty.

 

 

i don't think this is bottle worthy, but an imp here or there.

[sweetpessimism]

In the bottle: Pale orange in color. Scent.. Oh! This is beautiful.. It's light, and elusive, but lovely.. What is it exactly? One moment it's like vanilla.. The next there's some cinnamon, and then lemon zest..

 

Wet on skin: Definitely some musk there, but with some spice as well.. It's still wonderful! Hope it stays wonderful the whole way through..

 

Upon re-reading lab description: Yes, exactly! I smelled all of those notes at one point or another.. I'm getting more musk and ginger right now, I think.

 

Mom comment: "Ooh! It's too sweet!" But she conceded it was alright.

 

On the drydown: I adore this one! This may be my signature scent.. It has all the notes I love! I'm getting some more of the cinnamon now, with honey in the background.. It's warm, sexy, and just lovely!

[angelicruin]

Inside the imp, it's a warm, spicy blend.

 

Wet on my skin, I get mostly cinnamon and clove to start. As it begins to dry the honey note emerges.

 

Dries down to a soft, spicy, sweet musk. Very nice.

[cinnamonster]

I sniffed this in the imp and put it into my swaps pile because it smelt too peppery, but then something pushed me to try at least a skin test first.

 

It begins as strongly cinnamon, not in a cinnamon gum way, more like actual cinnamon. I get the sweetness of honey and strong skin musk, it's reminding me of Demeter's Cinnamon Toast, only with musk.

 

 

A few minutes later it has a hint of tea in the throw and the pepper has come back, but a few minutes after that it has sweetened again. I think this either is battling on my skin or my nose is switching from one note to another. I do like it a lot though, it's a sexy spicy smell without becoming cinnamon pot pourris.

 

As a side note my arm is now itching a bit. Maybe not one for the sensitive skinned.

[splendidissima]

First impressions: cinnamon, cinnamon, cinnamon. Strong and spicy. Maybe some ginger in there too. I usually like ginger and pepper, though honey notes sometimes go powdery on me. This does not seem to be a problem, however, as all I can smell is spicy cinnamon.

 

After about 30 minutes: the cinnamon has calmed down and some sweetness is coming out. Spiced honey, now, sweeter and more what I wanted in terms of balance. Dry, this scent makes me think of spice tea with honey, alongside cinnamon toast, as someone mentioned up-thread.

 

Verdict: the final stage is very nice, but it takes a while to settle down, so I'm not sure it's bottle-worthy.

[Dominique]

In the vial: The oil is a warm yellow with a faint touch of green. My first impression on smelling it is that it’s a sexy cinnamon roll. It’s warm, it’s gently spicy and it’s sweet. As far as individual notes, I’m aware of the musk, cinnamon and honey, with the cloves in the background. The ginger and pepper aren’t immediately noticeable.

 

On me (dry): (Applied to inner wrists.) The scent is slightly sharper – the cinnamon has mellowed a little bit, and the various spices melded, making picking out notes more difficult. Not quite as sweet as in the bottle, but still very much a cinnamon-roll scent. (Possibly an evil Cinnabun, with only a little frosting?)

 

After a while: It’s been a few hours, and between handwashing and work, the perfume has faded. It’s still there, though not nearly as noticible. It has not morphed much since drying on my skin- still sweet, musky and with a strong dash of cinnamon.

 

Verdict: It’s not a particularly loud scent, even wet, the scent isn’t that strong, and the throw isn’t that incredible, but I don’t mind reapplying Bengal every few hours. It’s sweet, musky and cinnamony – and that’s a good thing. When the imp runs out, I’m planning on getting 5 ml. Mmmmmmm…

[skylarkza]

In the imp: Ginger and honey!

 

Wet: Ginger and honey and cloves and cinnamon! It smells like a great herbal tea for clearing up a headcold. o.0

 

Dry: Cinnamon and cloves and honey. And something almost peppery lurking in the background.

 

A while later: This one has staying power. It smells like honey and cloves. Quite delectable.

[obsidienne]

So simple, yet so good: Bengal is mega-sexy spices with golden honey and warm skin musk. It's a blend that cozies up to your skin and sends tendrils of lusciously sweet and peppery cinnamon, ginger and clove to your nose. Gorgeous. My only complaint is that my nose doesn't love skin musk! But I still love this blend and it's definitely bottle-worthy for that sexy spice factor.

[annanwater]

This smells like a warm, delicious cup of chai latte. Lots of cinnamon, but nicely balanced with honey, ginger, and clove. I am a lover of the spicy scents, so of course I got a bottle of this one.

[Siberia]

This is wonderful: it smells like rich honeyed chai, spices, and skin musk. I wouldn't be able to describe skin musk before using Bengal, but now I can identify it. Unfortunately, either the cinnamon or the chilies gave me large red welts when I applied it to my wrists, neck, and inner arms. The welts weren't painful, but it was obvious my skin wasn't happy. I am using this in my scent locket, and it really responds to body heat so that I catch whiffs of it all day. It's got decent throw, too, even with a small amount in a scent locket.

[benthic]

Unmistakably chai. I think any fan of chai would love this blend. Unfortunately, I really dislike chai. It's a nice, evocative, well-blended scent, just not one that I want to smell or smell like because it's not to my tastes.

 

After it dries for some time, though, I get a really lovely honey and skin musk scent. It's a shame because it smells fantastic, but at that point the oil's wearing off, and it's not worth dealing with the chai spice stage of the blend. For anyone who's into those notes, I recommend this highly, but it's not for me.

[Balame]

In the Imp: Cinnamon and honey, very yum. I get a bit of the ginger as well, lending some sharpness in addition to an "eat me" vibe.

 

Wet: The pepper and clove come to the foreground making this very spicy at first, sort of the "I'm going to sneeze but I still want to be able to breathe this" reaction, though I'm pretty sure it will settle as it dries. The cinnamon is surprisingly not too overpowering, which I'm glad about since I can only tolerate it in smallish doses.

 

Dry: I find skin musk almost similar to vanilla, and combined with honey this is alluring but sweetly so - the "passion" comes from the fiery notes which have indeed settled and now balance very nicely with the softness of the first two. People have been saying this reminds them of Chai tea and I can see (or rather smell) that as well.

 

Verdict: I'm starting to feel if I end up addicted to too many scents with a vanilla/honey base I'll get stuck in a rut. Hrm. Despite that I can still say this might be a bit too... inviting, for me. Odd as that may sound. I like my scents to be a little "different" so that people stop and go, "Whoa, that was nice but what is it?" instead of a straight-up, "Mm, she smells good," response. I think this is an occasional "when I'm feeling extra cuddly" scent versus more frequent wear, but it is nice.

 

Rating: 3/5

[jamethiel]

In the bottle: almond and spice.

Wet: almond.

After 5 minutes, almond.

After 15 minutes, sweet almond.

Sweet almond all the way... for the swap pile.

[hkhm]

imp: very cinnamon-y and spicy.

 

wet: this is mostly ginger and cinnamon, not that i don't love that, but i was hoping for more musk and honey.

 

dry: this doesn't really smell like chai to me. perhaps it's because there is no "tea" in the scent or perhaps it's because i'm used to my chai having a more peppery bite, but this is all cinnamon and ginger on me.

[Unicorncupcake]

Woo, good lord this is delicious in the imp! It smells juicy and golden and spicy and luscious, i'd like to eat this. On my skin however, what I suppose to be pepper comes out and ends up making me smell like dry spicy dust.

[Finch]

Ah, sweet spice. This is ginger and cinnamon love with a surprising hint of floral sweetness that stays close to the skin. Oh yes, I like this very much.

Edited January 22, 2010 by Finch

[ami226]

I am surprised that I haven't reviewed this one before. It was one of the first GC's that I ever fell in love with!!

 

On the skin: This smells like yummy yummy spicy chai with honey. Good stuff! Becomes even spicier on the dry down. Mmmmmmmm!

[undream]

oh, bengal. i had been certain you would be a disaster on me, with your honey note which never seems to settle well with my tummy, and your clove and ginger, both of which can often wreak havoc in my sensitive little nose. but something in me said, "oh ta. have faith! it sounds so very intriguing!" &honestly, musk? cinnamon? peppers?? a recipe for the exotic, &i love me some exotic . . .

 

the scent of this perfume oil, once on, is suuuch a delicious, spicy experience, very much like a potently cinnamon-spiced holiday scent, but brighter somehow. after some time, the honey comes out, warming it sensuously, morphing it into a thick & heady, comforting embrace. it is just. honest to god, it something like heaven.

 

i am astonished with every single note in you, bengal. you largely contain a group of scents that, anywhere else, would induce an upset tummy and an unhappy disposition for me, but in this? in you, bengal? oh, honey. i am in love.

[Greenwoodtree]

A delicious spicey brew...if you like spiciness, this is your scent! This is all spice...its like taking a chai bath! And that for me, would be just fine!

 

I cant see myself wearing this all the time because its kind of sweet too (but my skin seems to amp all musks of any kind), but for something when you want to feel hot and spicy...yeah, baby!

[hmelt004]

Wonderful warm dry spice with honey and cream. This seems like a gentler GC version of Enraged Groundhog Musk to me. As it dries the spices get stronger. I would wear this all the time, but I know this would definitely suit some people at Christmas.

[sunlitgarden]

I bought a bottle of this because I love chai spices so much. It basically smells like chai without the tea. I can't distinguish the individual spices but I really like it. I didn't notice much of a difference between the scent in the bottle or on my skin -- just spicy deliciousness. I do have to reapply this once or twice if I want it to last all day, but I find myself constantly sniffing my wrists. This is a cold-weather scent for me.