The Death Of Sardanapal

[hologhost]

Red wine, gurjum balsam, dark myrrh, honey, cassia, lemongrass, palmarosa, elemi, cognac and olibanum.

In the bottle: Tea - really really strong tea and spices. Also notes of tobacco, what I think is the cognac, and myrrh.

On me all spiced tea and cassia.

This is really strong. I can't decide if I like it or not.

[MrsDevilDog]

in the bottle, this is a lovely spiced tea. it reminds Mr DD of tea he was offered at people's homes in iraq.

 

at first daub...the cassia is VERY overpowering. however, after about 10 minutes it mellows into that first-whiff spiced tea scent, which makes me very happy indeed. it isn't exactly a girly-girl scent, but it is languid and sexy and i like it!

[Miss Lynx]

My first Salon scent! And it's a really fascinating one. It was hard to imagine, from the diversity of notes in it, what it would smell like.

 

At first sniff, it's decidedly boozy -- unsurprisingly, I suppose, with cognac and red wine in it. But there are dark, incensey undertones to it, and a heady sweetness that's intoxicating and defintely not a conventionally girly sweetness.

 

It's reminiscent in some ways of some of the Maelstrom scents, notably Montresor and Fortunato -- both of which were also dark, boozy scents that came across as both heady and hypnotic, and a little bit creepy. But this is richer and more complex than either of those. The myrrh in here is really bitter, the sort I'm used to from making my own incense, and gives the scent a seriously dark edge that's almost unpleasant, but in a way that only makes the scent better (if that description makes any sense at all).

 

As it settles in, the wine and cognac notes fade down, and it becomes more strongly incensey, with the resins predominating. The sweetness has pretty much gone out of it at this point, leaving a warm, aromatic, slightly bitter scent that slowly and grdually fades.

 

I don't think is necessarily going to be a top favourite, but it's a complex and interesting scent which bodes well for my explorations of the rest of the Salon...

 

Grade: B+

[gingersnapp]

In the bottle and wet on the skin, this blend is sharp and astringent. I kept screaming at my wrists for it to mellow a bit. It's been dry for about an hour now and it's finally starting to calm somewhat, but the throw is all red booze. At first it was mostly wine, but now that I know that there's a cognac note in this, I can definitely see a similarity to the throw I got from Imp of the Perverse.

 

Closer to the skin, I can smell the myrrh and cassia. It's kind of woody smelling, but I don't really see any woods in this. Maybe the gurjum balsam? I'm not sure.

 

I bought this for the honey note, so I'm hanging onto it to see if it emerges more as the blend ages.

 

All in all, a very interesting and complex blend.

 

ETA: Holy crap, as this has continued to morph throughout the day, the cognac note has sweetened with the help of the honey and lightened up considerably and is just gorgeous. It reminds me of the cognac note in Formula 54 as well as previously mentioned Imp of the Perverse. I am totally in love with this blend and am so glad I sprang for a bottle, unsniffed.

Edited October 2, 2006 by gingersnapp

[supremegoddessofall]

Honey mead. Good but not great.

[Emma2403]

In the bottle: cognac, whisky and... yuk.

It's sickening. I can't go on sniffing that, I'm afraid of throwing up.

 

I haven't even been brave enough to try it on my skin. It's the first time ever.

I know it might morph on my skin and all but really I cannot stand this... cognac and rotten fruit or something.

[Alchemy21599]

In the vial: very complex. I can't discern individual notes.

 

Wet: hmmm. I'm getting a dirty hippy smell...

 

Dry: This blend really morphed on my skin. After about an hour it was lovely myrrh and cassia. I don't know if I'll get a bottle, but I will enjoy the imp.

[Voleuse]

Honey, cassia, and sickly cognac. Wow! It's spicy and swoony warm and dark gold. The cognac fades, but leaves an unsettling note in the background, of much too much excess. For the most part, however, it's a gorgeous honey and spice blend, sensual and occasionally overwhelming.

[forspecial_plate]

Reminds me of warm spicy cookies, and honey. Plus, uh-oh...there's that bpal booze note that is so touch and go for me. It's not too terrible this time. It has a little bit of the 'latex-y' quality that I get from Grand Guignol, and the wine is just a little sour for me. I can tell there's more going on here, but I'm not familiar with a lot of the notes in this scent. Maybe resins and some wood in the background. It's not bad, really, I just don't think I like it enough to wear on a regular basis. Generally the booze notes don't work out for me but this came with the set and I like to try everything I get in my hands. This reminds me a little bit of Haloa from this year's Yule scents.

[jasmine]

At first, this is a dark, winy scent, and then a cocoa note floods instantly through it, followed by smoke. This is the Death of Sardanapal (or Sardanapalus, if you prefer the Greek) made into scent. I'm stunned by how well the scent matches the inspiration.

 

This scent doesn't contain the helplessness of the concubines or the fear of the horse. What it contains is Sardanapal's gaze, his intense languor, the chaotic, murderous storm of activity surrounding him, and the hues of the painting -- the darknesses and the reds, most of all.

 

The cocoa was present for only a second before vanishing. Now, traces of something high-pitched and mintlike float above plumes of smokiness and always the wine, which is a true, dark, dry red with no trace of falseness to it. Resins flow between the smoke and the wine. This is a highly physical scent. At one moment, I think it might be too smoky and masculine for a woman; at the next, I think it might be too honeyed and feminine for a man -- I truly can't decide. The one thing I am sure of is that this fragrance has complexity, presence, power, and charisma. It isn't sexual, but it is sensual -- in the meaning "of the senses" -- and it is overwhelmingly magnetic. It demands reaction and response, yet may not deign to produce any of its own.

 

Well done. What more can I say?

[moon_lemming]

In the imp, The Death of Sardanapal was so super sweet that I almost didn't put it on. I wrote it off pretty fast.

 

On me, the lemongrass and honey are just about the only things I can smell. It's like a honey straw has been flavored with lemon.

 

Normally this would be a good thing -- I love honey, I love lemon -- but there's something lurking underneath that makes me wrinkle my nose a bit. Maybe the myrrh, maybe the cassia. I'm not sure. It's something that smells a little bit scratchy and sour and just ruins the blend for me.

[Em-]

Woah - syrupy sweet. I love honey and cassia, but wine notes are hit or miss for me and this is an overpowering miss. After a time, the syrupy tang calms and morphs into something more spicy sweet and nice - but not quite nice enough to get beyond the beginnng stages for me.

[Brienze]

I love how this scent keeps me guessing.

 

In the vial, it's sweet grapey wine. On my skin, if I sniff near my skin, it's just cassia. BUT, the waft morphs constantly, and it's all good. Sometimes I get the apple pie scent that others describe, and sometimes I still get honeyed wine. Sometimes I can't really tell what I'm smelling, but it's all good, and it all has warmth and a red/purpleness to it.

 

I can't wait to try this one in an oil burner... all the yumminess of making wassail, without going to the trouble of actually making wassail.

 

It's also worth noting that this is the only BPAL honey that hasn't done very nasty and rude things when applied to my skin, so if you're a no-honey person, you might want to give this a try anyway.

 

Definitely keeping my bottle of this.

[zenvodunista]

I tried this at a MnS yesterday, and it's one of the only BPALs I have ever had to wash off.

 

In the bottle its' a lovely and potentially complex scent. On me? Within 5 minutes of application, it turns to vomit. A perfect fascimile of the scent of vomit.

 

 

I would hazard a guess and say that something, somewhere, here doesn't like me.

 

I think it might be the cognac. Imp of the Perverse and I did NOT get along - and it might just be one of those things where if it's a certain amount of the note it doesn't work, and if it's less, it does. I can wear Sed Non Satitata - but not Imp of the Perverse, and not this.

 

N.

[phedre]

In vial: honey and sharp lemongrass, something that smells like tobacco leaf. Rich and indolent.

 

Wet: cognac. It's very warm, thick and encompassing. It reminds me of the smell of fresh tobacco leaves.

 

Drydown: still tobacco leaves and cognac. This would be nice to wear on a cold winter night.

[jiggahava]

The only note I can pick out is cassia and some myrrh. I have no idea what the heck the rest of the notes are, or what they smell like.

 

This is SO. GOOD. It's warm and spicy, I now catch something like carnations or cardamom? My nose must be playing tricks on me. This is one of my favorites in the Salon set. It has a small amount of throw, enough for me to smell it wafting off me but not too intrusive. This is something you would put on for cold nights to keep warm. It's delicious and decadent and just perfect for me.

 

Edit: immediately after I applied this on my neck, it turned it a bit red. It was there for a little bit then went away. Strangely enough it didn't turn my wrists or the insides of my elbows red. Oh well.

Edited March 22, 2007 by Hava

[lightgatherer]

Two words: Mulled wine. The throw from this is the grapey-wine scent that's typical of BPAL red wines, but when I get within a few inches of my wrist, this is the perfect mulled wine scent I've been seeking. Unfortunately, this doesn't last very long on me - after about three hours the scent has faded. Also, when the scent fades, it turns into something kind of icky and sour-smelling on my skin. But for mulled wine, it's worth it. I'll just plan on scrubbing my skin when the scent fades.

[Meg]

In the bottle: whoa, this packs some serious kick. Red wine and cognac, I believe.

 

Wet: Red wine, cognac and elemi, possibly also the gurjum balsam.

 

Drydown: It doesn't change much, still wine and cognac dominating, with lemongrass coming out in small touches, the elemi also going strong. I think I get a hint of palmarosa, too. Finally, as it dries down, it goes much sweeter, honey and wine mix in a pleasant sweet blend, with hints of bitter herbals around them.

 

Overall: The blend smells very much like the darkest edges of the painting. It's all in red and browns and golds, and smells very somber and a bit bitter, at least in the early stages. Then it mellows slightly into bittersweetness. There's a hedonistic side to it, but generally I percieve it as rather gloomy. A very interesting blend, though not one that I'd wear.

[steffanina]

The Death of Sardanapal-

 

In Bottle: Cinnamon and wine, really cloying, yipe.

 

Wet: Still cloying like cinnamon and wine.

 

Dry: This is very resinous-incensey and it's just too cloying for me to be able to enjoy it. Too bad!

 

Overall: Not for me.

[voodoobaby]

In the imp, I smell a profound boozy and very, very strongly medicinal scent. It...ugh. To be honest, I retched a little upon first sniff. This is the first time I've never made it past the imp. Something about the way it smells in the vial brings back unpleasant feelings or memories or something. I'm really, really, really doubtful about wearing this. I might try it before I take a shower because I've seen other reviewers say it smells a whole lot better on than in the bottle, but I'm going to have to work up the courage to do even that. Maybe I'll get back to this review later, but for now, those are my feelings on the blend.

 

ETA: I finally tried it on my skin, and yeah, it does change a lot. It actually smells quite pretty on. I do get the tea scent that others have mentioned. It smells like honey with a generous helping of cassia sprinkled on top, with a drop of citrusy tea. I can appreciate cassia for what it is, but I'm not the biggest fan, and that's definitely the dominant note here. Thus, I think I will still swap this out, but I'm glad that Death of Sardanapal and I could part on a friendly note.

Edited June 4, 2007 by voodoobaby

[Shollin]

First sniff: In the vial, this smells quite a bit like Scotch. A very sharp-edged, peaty, burn all the way down and not necessarily in a good way Scotch.

 

Wearing: It starts out very boozey and very spicy and ends up more like fruity spiced wine. Not quite me. Plus, I tried it in the crook of my elbow and it left a big red mark.

[LadyCrow]

In the imp: I'm not sure why I smell tea here, but that, and honey, and spices.

 

Wet: Baked goods! Holy food, this is foody -- like drunken cinnamon buns with a lot of raisins in that have been soaking in heavily mulled... cognac? And maybe have just started to bake? Did Sardanapal die from baiting a monster under his bed?

 

Drydown: I have no idea why this works. It shouldn't on me, because it has cassia, a note that normally stings on me and that my skin usually amplifies to the detriment of other notes -- see Tanin'iver for a prime example. But the myrrh is like an anchor point, I believe, that keeps all of the other notes from floating away and getting too foody; the wine is just wonderful, the way it is in Queen of Clubs. Overall, this is just a really well-blended Salon (which phrase is almost a redundancy) that works splendidly on me after the initial blast of doughiness fades off. Moderate to small sillage, but excellent staying power. I'm pleased.

[mystery213]

Whew! In the bottle this has a very sweet, boozy smell to me, with a hint of cassia lurking somewhere....

Wet, the cassia hits hard, but is equaled by a very cloyingly sweet raisiny red wine (wine and honey) that is almost overpowering ... after a few minutes it settles a bit into what reminds me very much of a craft store, and the boozy quality dies down a bit.

Dry, the cloying sweet smell resigns itself somewhat (still sweet now, but not sickingly so), and the wine and cassia come out to play together and mingle well, without the powerful boozy smell that was there when wet.

Not one for me, though I usually adore cinnamony scents, but the alcohol notes just don't play well with my skin chemistry and tastes.

[theseagrows]

unfortunately, this one did not work on me at all. i think red wine-honey combos generally don't fare well on my skin. bpal's wine note often works on me but there are instances when it doesnt, and this is one of them. i smell something almost foody, but not in a sweet way, mixed with a sour wine. unfortunate, as he description of this one intrigued me.

[zankoku_zen]

This was a frimp from the generous raspberryswirlgirl! Thanks luv!

 

In the imp: Plum wine and spices

 

On Skin: Prunes, olive juice and wine. There is also something smoky to this.

 

Drydown: Thankfully the olive like smell disappears. I am left with something that makes me think 'benzoin' so maybe its the tobacco and wine combination. Tobacco in general doesn't seem to agree with me.

 

Verdict: Alas, this does not work at all with my skin. The husband even commented it smelled like craft store potpourri. Sigh.