Twenty-One

[glass_cat]

A tribute to New York’s 21 Club on West 52nd, formerly the speakeasy Jack & Charlie’s Puncheon Club. This is the scent of the perfect martini.

I got a frimp of Twenty-One with my last order, and I was thrilled. I'd been curious about it, but was hesitant about actually ordering it on purpose. I took it for a spin the other night while I was sitting around with my fiance watching Clark Gable movies. He's intrigued by my BPAL collection and isn't afraid to sit with me when I'm wearing something new that could go either way.

This really does smell like a martini... one made with gin as opposed to vodka. It's fresh, cold, wet, and clean. Everything that makes a martini a nice experience. I really enjoyed wearing it, and I'm sure I'll wear it again. My boyfriend absolutely loved the smell of it, too. However, I don't think I would ever actually... oh, I don't know... wear this anywhere outside of the house? On me it doesn't smell like a perfume based on a martini. It smells like I've been actually drinking quite a few of them, and I'm not sure I want to make that impression, per se. However, that is definitely my only complaint. I love Twenty-One. It's worth trying for the novelty value alone. Edited May 18, 2008 by Shollin

[iheartbooks]

I can't recall ever having a straight martini so I don't know how true Twenty-One is to the drink. On me, Twenty-One is VERY junipery and piney. I don't really get any booze from it, though occasionally it smells almost a bit too sweet. Sometimes it almost smells fizzy! I'll have to ask some friends if I smell like I've been drinking alcohol.

 

I'll definitely be keeping the imp because Twenty-One is very unique, but I don't think I'd wear it enough to warrant buying a bottle. I agree with glass_cat, it's worth trying for the novelty value alone.

[diamondstars]

I ordered a 5ml of Twenty One for my 21st birthday, purely for the name alone.

 

Unfortunately it's not for me. It's a very boozy one, and to me smells strongly of diluted orange. Gutted!

 

Edited May 27, 2008 by saracakes

[Suu4LC]

Uhoh. When I thought martini, I had thought vodka, but it seems this one is gin based! Eep. I'm not a huge fan of gin, but I'm not drinking the oil so I suppose I should give it a shot, eh?

 

Ooof gah. Yeah, this is VERY gin-like in the imp. Strong and herbal and a little fizzy feeling.

 

OMG, this is dreadfully strong herbal piney gin doom on my skin. So not for me. I am going to give it some time to mellow, but I am sure this will be a fail. That's what I get for not checking the reviews before going after an imp!

 

Yep. This is GIN. Not me for me, but I would definitely recommend it to someone who wanted to smell like Gin.

[girlygirl]

Smells like juniper berries. It's actually quite delicate.

It is quite sophisticated. Spa-like. I am biased because I love a good martini and gin is my preference. This kinda smells like Bombay Sapphire minus the alcoholic tingle.

 

Smells a bit cool - refreshing, like a Gin & Tonic on a hot day.

Edited June 28, 2008 by girlygirl

[filigree_shadow]

Yep, gin. And maybe a little juniper. Something sweet that reminds me of the Lab's Yule blends, so I'm gonna guess juniper. A slight hint of some sort of berry.

 

I've been testing a bunch of Tiki scents in the past week or so, and this reminds me of some of them. I bet if you layered this with one of the fruity BPAL scents you could sort of make your own Tiki-like scent. LOL, Tiki home brew.

[Enferdame]

This is gin! The bubbly quality makes me think that it's a gin and tonic, but as it drys down, it becomes the gin martini. Which is great, because I LOVE gin martinis and gin and tonics.

 

Int the bottle it's a very green scent. I get a lot of lemon when it's wet, along with a bubbly fizz that is really interesting. Dry, it's still mostly citrusy, but the green juniper comes back pretty well. Normally, I'm not a fan of smelling like a lemon, but given the bubbly quality, I think I'll make an exception.

This is a great summer scent, light and refreshing.

 

For the record, I'm more of a dirty martini girl, but I don't think I'd like to smell like one.

[kythryne]

I'll join the GIN! choir.

 

Mind you, gin is my poison of choice (although I usually drink it with cranberry juice, not in martinis) and I quite like the smell of it. The juniper is very crisp and resinous, which I like. I like strong gins, though.

 

I'm not sure I end up smelling like booze -- it goes more herbal/resinous on my skin after a few minutes. It's a very pretty scent, in my opinion, and I will probably wear it fairly often.

[VioletChaos]

in the imp: wow. fabulous juniper berries.

 

wet on skin: more of the same, with a touch of lime around the edges.

 

dry down: more of the same!

 

in all: anything that falls within the evergreen family tends to make me smell like a christmas tree. Twenty One does not do this- it is pure, sparkling juniper, but reminds me of being in a thick forest on a hot summer day: the "pine" is there alright, but it sure won't make you think of Santa Claus!

 

 

[gecko]

I got this as a frimp from the Lab and I was curious. It smells like a gin and tonic on me. In fact, it's so strong I smell like an alcoholic uncle of mine! I scrubbed it off but I could still smell it. After three hours and another scrub it finally went away. I apparently amp juniper berries.

 

Although it was disastrous on me, if you like juniper or piney scents it's worth a shot. Beth does a very good job evoking the scent of cocktails. This is another imp that would be very sexy on a guy. It could also work on a woman who amps more citrus/herbal notes.

[NixieCakes]

Uck. All I smell is Christmas tree. I dont like pine.

[gingiemay]

Wet in imp - This does have the faint smell of a martini, but it’s also freshly aquatic and almost has a very, very faint citrus scent.

 

Wet on skin - I can really smell bitters all of a sudden, with that martini-esque scent underneath. It’s a gin martini, btw.

 

Dry on skin - Yumm, gin martini, bitters with a dark citrus tinge. This is fresh without being too citrus-y or too aquatic.

[skepticism]

In the vial it smelled very much like lemon. It has a bitter smell on the tail end that I can only associate with a very very very subtle white sage. Yum! On the skin, the lemon died down a bit and the sagey/woody scent came through. I'm a little disappointed because it didn't have much throw and the staying power on me was weak. I think I'll hold onto this imp just to sniff, though!

[voodoocatwoman]

I have never had a martini. However, if they really do smell like this, I see trouble ahead.

 

I pick up soft breezy pine with a tiny hint of citrus. Since I love pine, this is definitely a keeper.

[innocent]

Blah. I smell like toliet cleaner.

[greenranger]

I don't think I have actually had a martini, so, I can't really compare it to that.

 

It seems like a fresh, clean, almost aquatic juniper scent. I think I actually like it. Which is odd for anything aproaching aquatic. =)

 

So far, the throw is pretty good, and it doesn't seem to be changing much.

[isisonearth]

Imp: Whew...strong martini.

 

Wet: A bit of a sharp piney scent.

 

Dry: Ok as it dries it is going straight up christmas tree. Interesting but not a keeper.

[asciident]

Wet: Smells like sweet, sharp booze.

 

First on: Unchanged. I don't think I really want to walk around smelling like I've had a few though.

 

Dry: Same, but faint.

[Andrea912]

I love this! It totally belongs with the Atomic Lounge collection; the gin is sweet and bitter and citrusy all at the same time; I'm heading to the bar right now to celebrate this drink with a gin and tonic

[odalisque]

Ha ha! This scent was so much fun it brightened my whole day. I opened my imp of it for the first time at my inlaws' house and walked around making everyone smell it.

 

It smells fizzy! How does something smell fizzy? Bwahhh. (Yes, I am easily amused. Why do you ask?)

 

It smells very much like a citrusy seltzer water. Or a dry version of the long-discontinued Cherry 7-Up. Or the Champagne soap bar from Magic Hands Workshop. Very clean, a light sparkly crystal-clear scent, without being overly bright or fruity or sweet.

[donnatron]

Imp: Fizzy juniper.

 

Wet: Very fizzy and crisp. If we're going with the martini idea it smells like the martini when it's just been shaken and strained into a glass and there are still bubbles on the surface.

 

Dry: Crisp, clean juniper with a bit of... ozone? It's definitely juniper and it's definitely a bit fizzy. Thankfully it doesn't smell like I've been hitting the martinis all day but it does smell kind of like I ran out of shower gel and had to use my boyfriend's soap on a rope.

 

Throw: Minimal.

 

Overall: Eh. Kind of soapy, kind of clean. I like juniper as a cooling scent but this is not really doing it for me. It reminds me too much of... club soda, or something.

[sarajane]

This is wonderful! GIN! GIN! GIN!

 

I think I might even get a 5mL... for layering purposes. I think this is one that layers well for those (like myself) that like boozy scents and wouldn't mind if everything was a boozy scent!

[Seismogenic]

I've never had an actual martini, but looking at the Pile O' Untested Imps, it seems like a good bet for a kind of scent that might be refreshing on a stupidly hot day. I'm sure actual martinis warm you up some degree due to their contents, but I'm hoping the "on the rocks" bit comes through here.

 

In the imp: Dry and cool, though not icy. A tiny bit tart, but not screamingly boozy.

 

Wet on skin: Not as dry now, and more tart than it was when wet. Still cool overall, though. The alcohol is starting to come through more now, though it's doing so in a way that strikes me as typically perfumey, not mixed drink-y.

 

Drydown: Freshly dry, it's smelling like a drink now, not like perfumer's alcohol. It's like there's a bit of of lemon-lime soda mixed with a larger portion of some dry alcohol. By one hour in, it is staying pretty much where it settled when it dried to begin with, though the tartness may be less specifically citrusy.

 

Five hours later: Pretty much the exact same balance as the one hour mark, though fainter.

 

End of the day: Still a little bit of dry tartness.

 

Overall: So, I figured I should look up what goes in a martini, and reading the description, the scent of this oil makes complete sense. I suspect that, were I to go sniff the real deal, I'd be all, "That smells just like Twenty-One!" Anyway, this definitely was cooling on a hot day, as I hoped it would be, but in general, I am not enamored of walking around smelling like I've been sitting in booze, no matter how classy the booze is. I think I'm going to swap the oil, though it has made me more interested in trying an actual martini in the future.

[diamondstars]

For some reason I've always been under the impression that Twenty One was supposed to smell like a Cosmopolitan rather than a Martini. Either way, I didn't like it unfortunately. After trying my frimp today for the second/third time (just to make sure), I can confirm it does smell a lot like toilet cleaner.

[rayvn1]

Juniper! One of my favorite notes. This really hit my nose in the imp and during the wet stage. Drying, though, it acquired a boozy note that diluted some of that gin-y goodness Went a bit down powder lane, actually. I'll have to try this again since I love gin so much and won't mind smelling like I poured some all over me one little bit