The Peacock Queen

[brineydeep]

In dramatic contrast to the soft innocence of Snow White and the dew-kissed freshness of her sister, Rose Red, this is a blood red, voluptuous rose, velvet-petaled, at the height of bloom. Haughty and imperious, vain, yet incomparably lovely to the eye, but thick with thorns of jealousy, pride and hatred.

 

2015 version.

 

I am a sucker for all of BPAL's rose perfumes and was super excited to add Peacock Queen to my collection.

 

This scent is 100% rose, deep and lush and not at all forward and dewy like the other Yule rose, Rose Red. Instead, Peacock Queen is very fragrant, rich and smooth. If any rose could be described as "velvet", it's this one.

 

I also find Peacock Queen to be a bit standoffish on my skin, in that it doesn't have a lot of throw or staying power (it's almost gone after 4 hours) and because the scent itself is more sophisticated and smooth than bright and flashy.

 

My overall impression is that Peacock Queen is a gorgeous rose scent but I wish it carried a little better on my skin. Still, I'm glad to have her as part of my BPAL rose collection.

[elbow]

Rose Red wasn't rosey enough for me -- it smelled of cut stem, green leaves, tightly clasped bud. Peacock Queen is that dark red bud in full flower, turned up to 11. No polite pink blooms here; she is one brassy dame! Given the potency of this scent, I was surprised at how quickly it faded. (She makes quite an entrance, but retires before anyone has time to get tired of her....) I don't actually consider this a negative; I like the idea of starting the day with a blast of confidence-boosting rose that fades to an inoffensive memory by the time I arrive at work. I'm going to try layering it with other scents, both to extend the duration and to explore the possibilities of what is effectively a gorgeous red rose Single Note blend (yay!).

[freyasfae]

Like brineydeep and elbow, Peacock Queen fades pretty quick. This is my second time wearing it, and I slathered it on this time as I had the same problem before, yet I think it faded even quicker this time! Maybe because this time I went out in the cold winter wind almost immediately after. It is definitely a velvety rose, but something that fades this quickly isn't a bottle for me. I will use up the imp, but Rose Red is still my Winter Rose of choice.

[Teamama]

Yule 2015 version, from the Lab.

 

This is outrageously sexy. This rose has its petals SPREAD, if you know what I mean. PQ is basically foreplay in a bottle.

 

The scent is red rose, without the citrus notes that are in some red roses. I'm not sure what the thorn ingredients are, because I'm not catching any green or wood in this. Maybe the totally sexed-up vibe that I'm getting from PQ is due to a skin musk in there? All I can really identify is the rose, and it's sweet, but not food sweet.

 

The scent stays true from application to drydown, although it did get a little sweeter. Then intensity of the fragrance dies down, but it's still all sex at 4 hours after application.

 

Mmmm-mmmm. Backup bottles.

[RayneofCastamere]

2015's version came in today!

 

In bottle: Rose+alcohol. Like someone made booze out of a rose. Fitting.

 

Wet: Rose+SKIN. It's like my normal skin scent, except rose and amped up to eleven. Like what I would smell like if I got my genes spliced up with a rose's, Spider-Man style. It's making me picture the Queen from Snow White as some sort of rose that got turned human. That would be an interesting take on the tale.

 

Dry: Skin. Rosy skin. Filthy sweaty rosy skin in the best way. This is a debauched rose queen. Way different than I thought she was gonna be, but I like her. This is fine on its own, but I bet it's fantastic combined with other scents.

Edited January 13, 2016 by RayneofCastamere

[marilyn eyre]

Perfect, pure rose. Velvety petals and all.

[Cali]

'05 version.

Mmm. It's very subtle in the bottle, almost a dusty, fuzzy rose. On my skin, it amps up that rose but there's a prominent green note in there as well. It's kinda weird but it's kinda of like a dusty attic to me... On drydown, it's a bit more like in the bottle- it's got a really good throw though but it's got that fuzzyness that's comparable to the waltz (don't know where I'm getting that, but it's there).

A happy, dusty attic with fairy lights up on the slanted ceiling and somehow there's a growing rose up there. Or, a snowy day spent in front of the window in a cozy room filled with pillows and books (...and roses, yes). Very, very pretty.

I've no problem holding onto this.

Edited April 19, 2016 by Cali

[Kay Torres]

A very generous foumite frimped me with the '07 version of this. It was love at first sniff. Bold, blooming, heady, red rose. Very intense, and it brings to mind the velvety feeling of rose petals. It's a pure, realistic rose, that doesn't really change from beginning to end. It just gets softer. I really love this one, and I'm sad I missed buying the 2015 version, but I didn't even know that I liked roses until I met a bpal rose. This one is saved for the times when I want to feel classically beautiful.

[roseus]

2015 version.

 

A beautiful, velvety red rose. A perfect bold rose.

[SmilesSunshine]

2016- regal, proud,, gorgeous as ever. I love her forever. This year if I'm to defferentiate, is gloriously velvety and smooth. Sexy.

[Casablanca]

2016

 

On the wand, this is… well, it’s the overstuffed crimson velvet pillow version of a rose. Inhale, and sink down into it, and down, and down…

 

On my skin, it’s the same -- just a little more tannic, reminding me of a velvety red wine in the depth of summer. Then it dries and settles and is less forward. An hour later it’s barely there.

[joopjoop]

2016 version.

 

Lush silky red rose. This is my first Peacock Queen, and the most anticipated of my Yule decants, and I'm not disappointed.

 

The perfect red velvet dress of a scent. A scent for late nights and fancy cocktails at fancy parties.

Perfection. Bottle for sure.

[gloame]

Ultimate rose. Lovely and womanly.

[ozthewild]

Lush, refined, and heady; this is both the scent of a perfectly cultivated rose garden and of the exquisite, unapproachable woman who tends it at her leisure.

[bellumed]

2011 version:

 

Boy howdy, that sure is rose. But some rose! “Voluptuous” is right, this is a powerful and beautiful take on rose. Somehow, I can smell the curl of the petals. Rose isn’t always as pretty a scent as it is a flower, however, Peacock Queen is just gorgeous. This won’t be for everyone, but it might be a new favorite rose blend for me.

[VetchVesper]

I've been testing this with other rose blends, and it's interesting how your nose starts to filter out different notes. Normally, when I smell this, I get a deep, wine colored, perfumey sort of rose, but right now, with my nose is noticing a lot more of a wine sort of smell, dark and fruity, along with something very woody, like teak or mahogany. I'm not sure what exactly, but I smell it in there. If you want a dark, seductive rose, give this one a try.

[thecaitycat]

In the bottle

Sharp rose. Not alcohol-based perfume rose, but definitely not a sweet rose either. A sharp, bright rose.

 

Wet on skin

Still rose. Think of a deep, reddish-purple, mature rose. Not a sweet rose. This is it.

 

Dry on skin after 30 minutes

Other reviewers who say there is a bit of a wine note are onto something, here. This is a really beautiful, mature, snobby rose, and there *is* a hint of red wine. Again, not a sweet red wine.

 

Thoughts

Out of all of the rose scents in my collection, this is the purest, most "Don't touch me, wait for me to come to you, IF I deign to grace you with my presence, you swine" rose in it. I adore it. It's not sweet. It's not soft. It's not kind. It's the kind of rose Cruella De Vil or Ursula the Sea Witch would wear.

[Lucchesa]

My tester of Peacock Queen, with a beautiful handmade label, is dated 09. Rose is hit or miss on me, but this came in a swap and of course I had to try it. I do enjoy wearing The Rose GC from the Marchen collection occasionally, for an understated realistic rose scent. The Peacock Queen is a whole different order of rose. A woman's rose, not a girl's. A rose in a power suit, with a dungeon in her basement. A rose in stiletto heels. The Peacock Queen's affirmation: "I am a goddess. Bow down before me."

[DigitalCoyote]

Roses (in your face) in a glass vase (the sharp) with water (vaguely watery/green).

 

The kind of big deep red roses you get when someone's trying to get back in your good graces.  While Pride grabs you by the face and says "I'm here!!!," this one is more "I will beat you with this bouquet, thorns and all, if you cross me."

 

I feel like--scratch that, I KNOW I'm Queen Bitch of the Universe when I wear this.

[Betula]

I was curious to try Peacock Queen out, so I could compare it to my favorite BPAL rose scent, Rose Red. This is the 2019 version. I think it's a blend of several different roses; there's a hint of the fuzzy, wilted one from Whip in there. There's also some red wine, maybe some skin musk, maybe a hint of wood, but it's all beautifully blended. 

 

I enjoy Peacock Queen, but it's almost a little TOO mature for me, you know what I mean? Like something I could pull off better once I'm 45 and have a mortgage and a wine decanter. It smells like rose petals that have been crushed by your body as you've been dancing all night, warm and wilted and debauched. It doesn't last long, but while it's there, it makes its presence felt. If you want a rose scent that takes no prisoners, this is the one you're looking for. 

[Miyabi]

So I thought the Peacock Queen HG was pretty. The perfume itself has some similarities, but on my skin it goes into old-lady potpourri with a bit of a sour/bitter note before it fades (much too soon). 

 

I'll definitely be keeping my HG decant, but the perfume isn't for me. 

[DizzyGinger]

Oooohhhh she is *LUSH*

 

Based on some of the reviews I was afraid this would be too oppressive or old lady/potpourri smelling, but not at all. Voluptuous is a good word for it. It's as if you tore the petals off the headiest, ripest red roses and just rolled around in them. It's intense - like sniffing the bottle your eyes roll back in your head *ohmygahthissmellssogood* intense - but in a good way, for me at least. She might be a little much for everyday wear, and admittedly is not the most complex of scents, but if you love rose this is an absolute treat. 

Edited September 25, 2020 by DizzyGinger

[hhelix]

2020. This is rose, a rose-lover’s rose, all rose all the time. It’s a velvety, jammy, realistic rose, not a rose perfume, not soap, not potpourri. It’s a living rose. Lovely. Low throw, short wear length. 

Edited April 6, 2021 by hhelix

[fairybites]

I can't comment on how similar this is to Rose Red since I haven't gotten a chance to try it, however I can definitely see some Snow White in here. The rose is sooo strong and definitely takes over the faint powdery snow. 

 

I have to say this is the nicest BPAL rose I have tried. It's gorgeous and not too perfumey, smells like I've got a bouquet right next to me. 

[Exquise-moi]

Reviewing the 2013 edition, received as a frottle from the lab... kismet! an enticing true rose in a bottle, richer than rosewater, ripe, lush, and boldly holding forth -sweetening slightly- as it dries.