Herr Drosselmeyer

[surf-tormented]

Magus, toymaker, and Godfather to Klara. An enigmatic man, seemingly somewhat sinister, but bearing a gentle air and a sincere love for children. This scent is dignified, refined, but dark, and hints towards esoteric mysteries and the secrets that tie mechanics to magick. Pipe smoke, sweet leather, woods and linen.

2010 Version.

In vial: Smokey tobacco, something else that smells like stale leather. I am interested!!

Wet on skin: Fresh tobacco, smoke, a tiny bit of leather. It's pretty strong and manly. I like it!

Drying: Oh no, is that lemon? Or lemon trying to be linen? I am not sure of this anymore! I have read reviews where it is lemon first and then smokey goodness, but I fear my skin grabbed the great smoke/tobacco/leather notes first and as they leave, is only giving me that familiar smell of lemon drop Pledge I get from a lot of BPAL perfume oils with lemon notes in them. I don't get a linen vibe, only somewhat smokey lemon. Which smells like rotten lemon.

Overall: Pleasure and pain. The first part of this blend is fantastic. I wish I could keep the lemon from showing up and ruining my manly note party. About a half hour later, the smoke is gone and the only thing that remains is overly sweet lemon drop. Ick. I agree with another reviewer that lemon should had been listed as a note here. It is almost all lemon.

[mimosa]

Wet- smoke and dampness.

 

Drying- Lemony smoke. It's unusual and strangely good: Like the comforting familiar childhood smell of a pipe smoking uncle's tweed jacket, with leather patches on the elbows.

 

Dry- I miss the initial smoky-ness,but the lemon has faded into a well blended fresh scent.

 

Verdict- a surprise keeper and bottle wish.

[thekittenkat]

This is for the 2010 version.

 

In the bottle: Yeah, baby! That's what I'm talking about: all the yummy notes!

 

Wet: The pipe smoke is cherrywood, and the leather is soft and sweet.

 

The dry-down: This continues to be yummy. My ex-bf used to smoke a pipe early on, and he ever only bought the sweet-scented tobacco. But this is a lovely and unique scent that I can sniff whenever I want to, and not have to worry about lung cancer, etc. Probably more masculine than not.

[DifferentDances]

Decant!

 

Imp: Leather and linen! Fun combo...

 

Wet: The smoke sneaks up and blends with the sweet leather.

 

Drydown: Hmmm...the sweet leather is interesting. I like it, but I'm not sure I'd ever wear it. Let's see what else happens in the stages of this blend's drying process.

 

Dry: Sweet leather.

 

My rating: 4/5

 

Argh. I can't decide if I'll get a bottle before it goes away...Not really a blend I can ever imagine reaching for, but it's so damn pretty. I bet it'd layer nicely with some other blends...

[porcelina]

in the bottle, it's smokey, woodsy and lemony? huh?

 

on my skin, i think what i perceive as lemon is actually the fresh, crisp linen (unless there was a mixup and someone grabbed the lemon bottle instead of linen? ). anyway, it is less citrusy on my skin, and as it dries the linen note becomes reminiscent of the linen i remember from black lace, before i swapped away my bottle.

 

i get only a faint hint of leather in the background; what i mostly smell here is sweet tobacco and rich, dark woods. it doesn't smell smokey at all. the linen keeps the whole thing from smelling too dark and sticky. this is right up my alley and i can see myself wearing it a lot! mm.

[misamisa01]

Wet: I got tobacco mostly, as if a cigar was being smoked, masking the leather (though it was peeking out a little), and the woods give it a bit of spice to it.

 

Dry down: a little bit after it had completely dried, the tobacco was still predominate, and then out of nowhere SMOKE. It become incredibly smokey but died down eventually where the leather really came into it's own. The scent become slightly musky and sweet.

 

Not much throw but was at it's strongest when it was really smoky.

 

Overall, not a bad scent and I wouldn't mind getting my hands on a bottle.

[pekeana]

I never tried Herr Drosselmeyer because, well, I'm clearly an idiot. But I acquired a bottle of 2005 vintage, and, well, let's just say that I'm an idiot.

 

It's like a warm blanket of sweet and slightly spicy things married with woods and leather. It wears high on my skin and wafts the sweet notes really well (while keeping the deeper notes close to the skin and giving it longevity). Not sure how the newer ones would wear, but if you have any problems? Just age it and try again.

[mymymai]

In the Imp (ITI): Linen, verdant woods, and a hint of tobacco smoke.

 

Wet: I still get the linen and woods, but there is a sweet aspect to this. It might be from the leather, but I don't really get a leather note.

 

Dry: Ah, now I get the tobacco smoke and sweet leather paired with linen and just a touch of green. It's rather enjoyable.

[brilliantcat]

In the bottle: Mostly the woods and linen.

 

Immediately after application: Getting some hints of smoke once it's on my skin.

 

Warming up: The slightest hint of leather and a bit of a powdery scent.

 

Fading: Slighty leathery, a smidge of smoke, and a sweet undertone.

 

Faded: Soft throw, short to average wear.

 

Overall: Much softer and sweeter than I'd expected. Unfortunately not for me.

 

Rating: 2/5.

[aquazoo]

Definite leather. It’s a good soft leather, nice mix.

[Zii]

05 version:

In bottle: Sweet leather

 

Wet: Mostly pipe tobacco now, which must have been that herby sweetness that was so yummy in the bottle. The leather blooms quickly, making this leather and pipe smoke. There's a hint of candiedness about this that reminds me a bit of cherry tobacco, but it's not at all artificial.

 

Drying: This is the most unusual and wonderful smokey leather. Where Loviatar was sexy smokey, this is incredibly comforting. There must be a little bit of wood in this, because it has a similar feel to my beloved cedar, though it doesn't smell too much like it, unless I'm confusing it with the spice in the leather.

 

Dry: it's much sweeter now, a vanilla note coming to play with the tobacco. Perhaps this is finally the linen showing up. At any rate, it's amazing.

 

For all of it's gentleness, this is a very masculine scent. I love it, but I think I might even like it more on the boy.

[Nicnivin]

2010 version, purchased on the BPAL Sales FB page.

 

My husband got a bottle of this for himself, and it brought back the most beautiful memories of my grandfather, Josef. He was a shoemaker by trade, and always smelled like a combination of crisp linen shirts, pipe smoke, and a combination of leather and wood from his workshop. Scent is so strongly tied to memory, and whenever we use a couple of drops in our aromatherapy diffuser, it's like my granddad is in the room with us. Just wonderful.

 

It really is a lovely, masculine scent, though I can imagine that it might get a bit sweet on some people, depending on their chemistry.

Edited January 20, 2016 by Nicnivin

[AirimirOfGondor]

I got a 2006 bottle of this off Ebay recently. For a pretty good deal, too, so I'm stoked about having it!

 

Wet, this smells very much like both cherry -and- black licorice to me. With a touch of pipe smoke, and rather dark and sweet.

 

Dry, it's much more mellow; the smoke smell comes to the foreground the most, and the leather comes out more. It's also still sweet, but not cloyingly so. The cherry and licorice are still there as well, but more muted.

 

I don't get any linen from this either, but that's ok. It doesn't have very much throw, and it doesn't last quite as long as I'd like, but it's definitely a keeper!

[Cali]

I'm pretty sure it's the linen note in here that makes it "cozy".

Sweet, dark, soft. Only slightly woodsy, and a fireplace smoke note. I'm getting a plethora of berries in there?

Lovely and intriguing but not wow enough for me to keep.

[Lucchesa]

Not sure what year my imp is (bought on forums).

 

I love pipe smoke. It is one of my favorite smells, period, and while I'm glad people are no longer subjecting themselves to mouth cancers, I really really miss the fragrance of a good pipe. So I was thrilled to get to try a decant of Herr Drosselmeyer. Sweet soft pipe smoke, soft leather, woods -- it was so beautiful it made me cry because I could BARELY SMELL IT. I had to get my wrist right up against my nose to smell anything at all, as if I had applied it five hours ago, not five seconds ago. The same thing happened with Hellfire, another pipe smoke blend -- it barely showed up on me. I don't know if my skin chemistry is sucking it into a black hole or if I'm somehow scentblind to the Lab's pipe smoke note, but it's hugely disappointing. Herr D lasted for quite a while at exactly that very low level it started out with. I hope other people can smell this one because it's fantastic.

[follis]

Bottle: Something medicinal...
Wet: Leather, linen, woody and a touch resiny. Very little tobacco which is a shame as I love chewy tobacco. Fortunately the cherry everyone is mentioning didn't amp on me (I'm actually not a fan of cherry). 
On: This becomes sweeter as it dries like currant. I can smell all-spice in this which always makes me think of body odour on me...dang. It wasn't listed in the notes. 
Dry down: this dries so differently to expected. It becomes an all-spice currant, very low throw. I can't really smell anything else... 
Verdict: low throw and wear, doesn't smell like notes with my skin chemistry (and when compared with the toothpick I used to sample this) sadly not for me. 

[starbrow]

A 2005 vintage cobalt blend for me:

 

This is a quiet cherry tobacco, but quite rough around the edges for a few hours. Finally it mellows into something smooth and woody. I like it but not in love with it. The smokiness is not bbq, at least! 

Edited May 20, 2021 by starbrow