Twenty-One

[hangingfire]

I like to drink martinis
Two at the very most.
Three, I'm under the table,
Four, I'm under my host.
-- Dorothy Parker

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:

The Perfect Martini, as an idea, has infinite possibilities. For me, the Dry Martini remains an American symbol of elusive perfection, a kind of pagan Holy Grail. The dedicated Martini drinker views this deceptively simple cocktail as a true if fleeting, salvation, ... As in religion, one may not have actually witnessed the Conception of the Perfect Martini, but one accepts on faith that it exists, and that it takes away the sins of the earth.
-- The Martini, Barnaby Conrad III

This scent is dedicated to all the mods on the BPAL forum as thanks for their hard work, friendship, and for all they do to make the forum a pleasant, safe, and friendly place.

(Oh my god, am I first?)

I love (Tanqueray 10 gin) martinis, I love Dorothy Parker, and so I couldn't resist this scent. In fact, I ordered a 5mL unsniffed.

In the bottle: Herbalicious and slightly boozy. There's a junipery note that I associate with good gin (oh, hurray, it's a GIN martini!). It's sweet and aquatic too, very clean-smelling, with a slightly fruity note.

On, wet: The juniper, a slightly piney scent, seems to predominate. The sweet fruity thing holds pretty well, too -- now it seems almost lemony. It balances out the juniper nicely.

Drydown: It's staying pretty true through the drydown: piney, aquatic, and slightly fruity. Not much of a throw; you have to get up close and personal with it to smell it. As time passes, the pine aspect calms down, leaving a berryish, aquatic smell. It actually reminds me somewhat more of a gin and tonic than a martini; I keep catching a note that reminds me of tonic water and lime. Nonetheless, I find it delightful. And it only gets nicer as time passes.

I suspect some people might find this smelling a bit like a certain household cleanser on them, especially if they find the juniper running rampant. For me, I find that it's a clean, refreshing kind of scent (albeit one with a suggestion of decadence under the junipery freshness). I think I might try layering it with Black Forest, to bring out the pine notes. It's also a pretty gender-neutral scent -- I might try and persuade the husband to test it as well.

Very nice. I suspect I'll get a lot of use out of this.

And I second the huzzah to the mods. Edited September 17, 2007 by clover

[graycat]

in the bottle: wow, that is a gin martini for sure!

 

wet: if you don't know gin think juniper berries and alcohol. this is a very clean smell without the annoying aquatic notes.

 

dry: it's does stay true to through the dry down. i also get the gin and tonic smell too or a martini with a lemon twist. i don't really smell the vermouth or the olive.

 

over all: i like it but i don't think i need to buy the bottle. it will be great for a holiday party though.

 

2.5 out of 5

[Laurel the Woodfairy]

I ordered an imp for my sister's 20th birthday, so that she can see if she likes it--if so, I'll get a bottle for her 21st. But I get to sniff it first, of course.

 

Completely clear in the imp, as good alcohol should be... Oo, lovely sparkling citrus top notes--a martini with a twist of lemon or lime or both. Then the juniper comes on strong and has a touch of pine; it reminds me of Tanqueray, although I will pretend this is a martini with my very favorite gin: Beefeater's "Wet". It's a "liquid" (aquatic) scent, definitely, and the notes are light and sparkly--I can see the "tonic" idea, or it could also be seltzer water.

 

This is delightful, a wonderful fun party scent, very Jazz Age. Now I want to go to the martini bar downtown. And it's certainly gender-neutral; my sister's boyfriend turns 21 before she does, so maybe I should get *him* a bottle, too, plus some for me... "Bartender, I want another round of imps over here!"

 

Edited October 17, 2005 by Laurel the Woodfairy

[Macha]

I ordered this because...well...because I'm a moderator. Pretty much a given, isn't it? Of course I had to have this!

 

Which is not say I did not have a reservation or two. I do not drink alcohol, not so much as a sparkling wine cooler, and although I gleefully cook with alcohol, I have not had much tolerance for the smell of alcohol in a long, long time. So this could have gone very wrong on me. On the other hand, I haven't met a BPAL "booze" perfume yet I haven't liked — go figure. And, I am utterly fascinated by mixed drinks and cocktails (the chemistry of them, the history of bitters, the "correct" way to make a martini.)

 

Ah, but nevermind that, how does it smell?

 

I'll agree with Hangingfire that some people will think this smells like Pine-sol. I can simply give such people a faint smile, sip my martini, err...wear my martini, and feel privileged that I am not part of their clique. (Hey, a lot of people don't "get" martinis either, right?)

 

This is delightful. It's fun! Sparkling and effervescent (how does she DO that!?,) herbaceous with a strong juniper current and tantalizing, faint lemon notes. It has doesn't have much throw, but excellent staying power, and it's a clean, uplifting, energizing, and one of those wonderful, elusive BPAL perfumes I cannot smell without grinning like a madwoman. It's clean and silver and absolutely reeks of the Superflapper and the Speakeasy. LOVE it!

[shelldoo]

ok in the vial this is indeed the smell of a martini. gin martini to be exact.

 

wet: stays very true to in the vial it is junipery gin and smells just like a martini duh

 

as it dries it is still very much a gin martini. and frankly i think this gin martini could make james bond switch from vodka martinis to gin...shaken not stirred my dear

[trowely]

I wanted to like Twenty-One, I really did. The Dorothy Parker reference meant I had to order an imp of it.

 

Unfortunately, the smell, wet/dry, whenever, reminds me not of alcohol, but of 7-Up. And I never liked 7-Up. It reminds me of being sick, and I really don't like smelling like I spilled 7-Up on myself.

 

Sad though this makes me, it must go off to a better home.

[sheepzeit]

Hangingfire is right on the money, and she says it better than I could. I love a good old plain gin martini and this smells amazingly like that. But I do also get a hint of lime in there to freshen it up, and it makes me think also of gin and tonics (another favorite of mine).

 

I am a Bombay Sapphire girl, but this is so swank either way! I am fairly certain I couldn't pull off wearing this to the office, but on the weekends anything is game.

[UltraViolet]

The 2nd alcohol based scent that I try today from BPAL...hmm...I sense a theme based BPAL collection brewing in my head.

 

In the bottle

Even more juniper like than "The Hamptons", and definitely more alcohol smell of "Swank".

 

On

A lot of juniper/Gin smell.

 

30 minutes

Hasn't morphed at all, it's a nice true juniper smell.

 

Throw:

average

 

Scent category:

green

 

Summary

21 is more of a nice conifer smell than alot of the BPAL pine blends.

If I wanted that wonderful juniper scent that is almost a single note and clear and not too anything, i'd want to wear 21. If I wanted more of a cocktail type of scent I would want to wear "The Hamptons" instead I think.

"21" is a nice blend to have and use in a collection of BPAL alcohol cocktail blends patterned after cocktails made from clear liquors such as Vodka and Gin.

 

Purchase again?

Maybe.

 

1-5 rating (5 being best)

3.5

Edited November 28, 2005 by UltraViolet

[joseybird]

A juniper-scented citrus soda, straight-up. Not masculine, despite the juniper--pretty gender-neutral. I'm not sure what to make of Twenty-One; it's a really interesting scent, but not really "perfumey."

 

However, I think I might wear it as a bit of a "breather" from my beloved heavy orientals, when I want to smell a bit cheeky. Thankfully, I don't get an actual *alcohol* note from Twenty-One, so hopefully I'll be able to splash this on without people thinking I'm drunk!

[spring]

This has to be a first for me: a scent that smelled pretty much the same way from the bottle to drydown.

 

I put a little on in the morning and smelled like gin with a twist for hours. No vermouth, no tonic, just straight up (very good) gin with a twist of lemon as a garnish.

 

It wasn't perhaps the best choice for wearing to my mildly staid office. But I think it will rock for a party

[grrrlennyl]

at first: this reminds me a lot of the hamptons, but more boozy. it's a fresh, citrussy alcohol

on: definitely alcohol. this smells just like a dry cocktail with a twist of lime.

half an hour later: i think this smells like gin.

2 hours later: still an almost bubbly alcohol.

overall: this is ok, but i definitely like the hamptons much better.

[wickedgoddess]

First, a confession. I am not a fan of gin martini's or gin in general. In fact, gin is the one liquor I cannot drink. But I ordered an imp of this anyone out of curiousity. I am not expecting to like it.

 

Wet - Juniper. If you asked me a few months ago if I liked juniper I would have told you no, but this is the second blend I have tried recently, where I really like the juniper note. It smell warm, much warmer than a gin martini.

 

Dry - yeah, I can see martini and yet, it smells better than a real martini does. It still has a bit of warmth from the juniper. I like this much more than I was expecting to, but I still can't see myself ordering a bottle. I probably will hang on to the imp though.

 

On the wickedgoddess scale of 1 to 5, with 5 beign best, this rates a 3.

[feline.by.design]

I received this as a frimp today in my Blood Moon order, and I'm so glad I did! It's fabulous. I love the clean, subtle juniper that seems lightly offset by something sweet, perhaps citrusy (could be a twist of lime).

 

Since I have a cold, a piney, herbal fragrance really does my senses well. I ran out of my beloved Jabberwocky a few days ago, but now that I have this imp of Twenty-One, I think I'll manage with this cold. The similarities between the two are very scant, as Twenty-One is far lighter, more clear than Mr Jabbers. I don't think Twenty-One really smells overtly boozy; anyone who isn't familiar with the BPAL name or its description on the website would just brush it off as a clean, juniper-pine fragrance. So if you're worried about having your boss think you've been getting lush during your lunchbreak, I wouldn't be concerned a bit.

 

I had wanted to try this fragrance, and am so glad the Lab decided to randomly include it as a freebie imp. This is a wonderful fragrance that could be worn by anyone of any sex, and I think a man would smell quite posh with this on. It's a light fragrance, but doesn't really disappear on my skin; even with ruined sinuses, I can smell Twenty-One quite well on my wrists when I hold my nose against them.

 

Would definitely consider getting a bottle of this in the future. In fact, I'd better order a 5 ml at least with my next order, because I can't see my imp lasting too long.

 

-doreen

[Gin]

Twenty-One

 

Yay for gin martinis! At first, I didn't think I wanted to smell so obviously boozy, but Twenty-One is such a fun, effervescent scent, I can't help but want to wear it. It reminds me of Demeter's Gin & Tonic scent, but way better.

[zenvodunista]

crispe and cold, this is reminiscent of Swank, but with Juniper rather than pomegranate. more than that, it's a high-quality gin martini (think bombay sapphire, or Hendersons!) with a lemon twist -- no olive, and certainly not a Gibson

 

this scent, amazingly enough, is extremely cold. actually, i could see this being extremely refreshing during the summer.

 

It's lovely, but for me not as a perfume. I'd love to use this one for a soap and have that bright cold juniper rise up around me. It's a ton of fun this scent!

 

i bought 5ml of this unsniffed for my best friend who is a total martini hound. it will be part of a trio of BPALs for her this xmas of Twenty-One, Swank (already has and loves an imp) and Persephone (loves rose and pomegranate).

 

good stuff!

 

(and i swear, i only tried a drop of her xmas perfume!!!)

 

n.

[Splendid Molerat]

Tanqueray with a twist of lime.

Three or four of those.

 

Sudden realization that was rather a lot of gin, now surreptitiously nibbling on cardamom seeds to achieve some scent of sobriety.

 

 

And the perfume was bang-on, too.

[Finny]

Smells like The Hamptons, without the berry note.

 

And sadly it misbehaves on my skin in exactly the same way. Juniper, green and harsh.

[Little Bird]

I really like Twenty-One... I've been surprised by liking a lot of the boozy scents lately. Odd because I hate alcohol in real life and never drink. I have no clue what a real martini smells like either.

 

First on this is strongly juniper, but it's not really harsh or biting. It's fizzy and bright. As others have said, it's as if this is a juniper flavored soda. It gets more citrussy in the drydown and makes me think of ginger ale and lime juice. So carbonated that you almost expect it to start fizzing on your skin. At the same time that it's fizzy and soda-like, it also has a sort of pleasant dryness to it. I wouldn't say that this smells like Pine Sol or any cleaning fluid at all.

 

Sadly, this fades on me within an hour. I like it enough to buy a full bottle and reapply frequently though . I can imagine wearing this one all the time in the spring too.

[Northernminx]

Gin martini. This is actually a really cool, refreshing and sophisticated scent. Unfortunately It's also one that tends to be so dead on I can't wear it to work. ("Are you teaching SHakespeare while intoxicated?" "Uhm...")

 

So off it goes despite it being spiffy.

[Fefferbella]

Gin martini. Dead on.

 

Not a good thing to wear to work, as I own a liquor store (hey, I was just sampling the products!)

 

Really fun scent to wear for a night out!

[Em-]

I am going to go with the contingent pulling that this is more G&T than martini- there is an effervescent citrusy note in this that is more evocative of the former's sweetness than of a dry gin-soaked olive. Then again, I do prefer vodka martini's to gin, so perhaps that's my bias. But I adore a good gin and tonic, so I'm not complaining.

 

This is a fabulous going out on the town having fun light refreshing blend. I probably won't be wearing it to, say, the office, or a job interview, because there is a definitely alcoholic clink to this scent, but it is great for an evening out, and I think it will be a fabulous summer scent.

 

I cannot wait to drink a tanq and tonic while wearing Twenty-One.

[UploadedLobster]

Hot damn, the packers at the Lab know how to pick 'em. I got this as a frimp with an order and now I surely must have a bottle. It's amazing! Unlike nearly every other BPAL scent I've put on, it STAYS TRUE from imp to skin to drydown.

 

It seems like a very simple scent to me. Very, very sharp. I can make out only three notes, but they are STRONG notes and they don't change.

 

1. Juniper

2. Black pepper

3. Lemon or lime, hovering on the edge of the juniper.

 

It has excellent throw; just a dab is enough. This is an aggressive scent that will grab people (and you) and do kung-fu stunts.

 

 

 

Lobster Rating

Better than: Spaghettios

Edited January 27, 2006 by Uploaded Lobster

[SnornL]

I got this as a frimp from the lab, and I'd never even heard of it, so I looked it up and was intrigued. I was hoping it would be a vodka martini, as I've never been a fan of gin, but I thought I'd give it a go anyway. It's a very sharp, clean scent in the imp, much like dishwashing detergent or maybe it's Pine-O-Cleen. Not exactly the kind of thing I want to smell like, but I know how much a scent can change on the skin, so I applied it and waited. As the oil dried, it lost its edge and became softly herbal with a twist of lemon. It's not at all bad at this stage, I like the freshness of the citrus, but it seems to fade quite quickly into a stale detergent smell. I think this could really work for a man when it's in that bright and bubbly stage, but on my skin, it just kind of makes me smell like I've been washing dishes.

Edited January 18, 2006 by SnornL

[Thaleia]

Since this is the one I'm going to be wearing today, I may as well review it now ... it literally came out of the box and went into my handbag.

 

I'm going out for drinks later with a good friend of mine who's had a bad week, so why not go smelling like a martini? It smells EXACTLY like a straight-up gin martini (Beth, HOW do you do that? It's awesome!) in the bottle, complete with lemon twist. This is good, as I'm not a fan of putting vermouth in my martinis. (The vermouth-y scent may very well be there, I'm just not getting it right now.)

 

When I told my mom I was getting a scent that smelled like a martini, she said to me, "Why would you want to smell like a martini? People are going to think you've got a drinking problem." On the contrary. It's clean, junipery/citrusy fresh, and it doesn't smell like I've been drinking at all. I just smell like a bottle of Tanqueray 10 or Bombay Sapphire without the astringency of alcohol, with a small bowl of lemon and lime twists waiting to be put into martini glasses. Once it dries, however, the lemon comes out more and mingles with the gin. Lemon martini, maybe? I don't know, but it's really good.

 

I love martinis (gin or vodka, doesn't matter), but I don't actually have a drinking problem. I wouldn't mind smelling like one. This is fantastic. I give this a 5.

 

(By the way, I saw the Dorothy Parker poem that's in the Lab description on a set of coasters at Restoration Hardware. I may have to pick up a set now.)

[rhubarbbear]

yep, gin and lemon! very clean, and kind of sparkely or maybe kind of clean and very sparkely! i don't drink martinis and the ones my family drinks are made with olives instead of lemon peel, so to me this smells a lot like sprite or 7up without the sugar.