Port Royal

[Gold Dust Kitten]

The Sodom of the New World! -- touted as the richest and wickedest city in all creation! Port Royal was the center of 17th century Caribbean commerce, a notorious safe harbor for pirates, and the site of our third flagship store, which was, sadly, destroyed in the earthquake of 1692. Spiced rum and ship’s wood mixed with the body-warmed trace of a prostitute’s perfume and a hint of salty sea air on the dry-down.

In the vial (before I dumped it on my sweatshirt): Cool salty sea air, wood, booze, and a hint of floral perfume. On my skin, it was rum and wood, but not as masculine as expected. Then, I smelled cloves. I was pleasantly surprised, because anything faintly aquatic goes dryer sheet on me, but this was a perfect balance of boozy, woody, spicy, and sea notes.

edited to add Lab notes Edited March 28, 2011 by Shollin

[Penance]

Origin:

 

Testable empty from paperrose.

 

Preconceived notions:

 

I never really thought to try this one before paperrose so generously offered me her (not quite) empty. It sounds interesting and if it weren't for the "prostitute's perfume," I'd probably have sought this one out a while ago. I've got nothing against prostitute's, it's the perfume part that worries me. Anything described as perfumey or cologney is generally bad for me. But the rest of it sounds good. I love anything that makes me think of pirates.

 

First sniff:

 

Whoa, perfume! It's hard to describe exactly what Port Royal smells like in the bottle, other than "perfumey." I'm definitely getting the salt air and a bit of wood, too, but the main scent here is sharp, heady and floral smelling. I don't judge a BPAL scent based on its smell in the bottle, though. I've learned that you miss some really great scents that way (and get your heart broken by some that turn out not so hot on you, too, but that's not the point).

 

Wet on skin:

 

Port Royal goes through a stage lasting about...oh, ten seconds, where it smells amazingly similar to Anne Bonny (it smells very much like red sandalwood, which in turn smells a lot like cedar to me) and makes me happy before taking a turn towards salt air and perfume again. This one seems to change in waves, which is appropriate, I suppose.

 

Dry down:

 

This is actually pretty nice, although there's still a floral, perfumey undertone that's keeping me from really getting into this. I smell the wood, I smell some aquatics (the salty, oceanic variety), I smell a bit of spice and sweetness from the spiced rum (although the rum itself is pretty subtle) and then there's the perfume. It blends in very well with the rest of the scent, but I can tell it's there, especially since it's giving me a little bit of a headache (like a lot of florals and perfumey scents do).

 

The bottom line:

 

I can see why someone else who likes florals and/or perfumey scents would really like this, though. It's unique for sure and it's evocative. It's also not for me.

[Altaira]

This was fairly light on me. The woods are prominent at first, but then the perfume takes over. And it is a very strong, very floral perfume. I never get any rum at all.

[January Garnet]

Port Royal does it's name justice. This fragrance smells like a high seas adventure! I can smell woods, spice, and sea air. The rum is there, but to me it isn't very prevelant. This is one of my favorite BPALs, and may be one of my first bottle purchases

[ShannonElisabethJones]

I received this as a frimp.

 

On first sniff I got RUM DRINK! But not in an overly-sweet way. I also caught the slight woody note and a wee bit of the sea. Very nice.

 

However, I just can't wear it. It's too dude-smelling for me. I'm glad my boyfriend liked it, because he will be wearing it.

[imaginepageant]

In the Vial: Warm wood right out of the gate - I love this already. I'm getting more spice than rum, and a hint of the salty sea air. It's reminding me a bit of dragon's blood.

 

Wet: Goes a little sweet and floral - I suppose that's the prostitute's perfume. That ebbs quickly, though, and that spicy woodsiness comes out more. And there's the rum. They're right about the hint of salty sea air - it truly is just a hint, subtly blending into the background.

 

Dry: GAH, SO GOOD. Very warm and sexy. That wood is just gorgeous! The rum has left the building, and the general spiciness is taking on more of a cinnamon smell now. One second I think the ozone note is flaring up, but then the next it's gone. In any case, I keep smelling my hand and going, "MMMMM." If this keeps on as it is, I can see it becoming a favorite.

 

An Hour Later: Happily, it held up really well! It stayed mainly the same, only getting a little more smoky and musky, and slightly less sweet.

 

Overall: Love it, love it, love it. I kind of wish the rum had stuck around, but I am so glad the salty ozone note is as subtle as it is in this blend. Those who dislike ozone notes, like I do, will be surprised as how soft and unoffensive it is in Port Royal. I'll likely be getting a bottle of this at some point, unless I find a wood blend I like even more.

[SueTigger]

I received this as a frimp with my last Lab order. I had tested it once before, but couldn't remember if I liked it or not. I grabbed it this morning and tried it out. Wet, it reminds me very much of my husband's Bay Rum cologne and after shave. It's a pleasant fragrance and I like it, but on my skin it morphs into something my grandfather would wear and then kind of disappears. I'll have to test it on the hubby and see what his skin chemistry does to it.

[holborne]

Wet, Port Royal is extremely spicy; I get the impression of cinnamon and cardamom and not all that much else. When it dries, it's far more woody than it is wet, although the cardamom note is predominant on me. It doesn't smell like rum or wood to me so much as it does a spice rack. After about half an hour, I can detect a faintly salty note, but frankly, I probably wouldn't have identified it as such had it not been part of the Lab's description.

 

To me, this is a rather masculine scent, although a woman who liked unisex scents could certainly wear it.

[Honey]

Me and aquatic notes.. now I know.

 

 

Imp: I get.. salty gherkin, clove and heavy sweet perfume. All layered with ozone.. or something aquatic at least.

 

Wet: Sour, salty.. and clove. Spicy and sour, maybe a bit soapy and a bit boozy.

 

Dry: Much better once dry. A spicy wooden scent with a salt crust (still mainly clove, though) is presenting itself on my skin. I don't get much of the aquatic notes anymore (and that's, for me, a good thing).

 

 

I smell clove mostly. So it's clove with other subtle perfume layers. While this is not the worst note in a scent, I am not too keen on it either.

[Amoraexcena]

Wet: Whoa, clove! This rum is definitely spiced with clove, with a hint of heat –maybe black pepper? I do get a little hint of “prostitute’s perfume,” but I wouldn’t have if it wasn’t in the description. It reminds me of Hellhound.

 

Drydown: A touch of salty aquatic, distinguishing it from Hellhound. Off to the SO this goes!

[Maleficium]

Imp: a wooden box and salty air, foamy waves.

 

Wet on skin: Oh hi there copious amounts of spiced rum! Smells like cloves, and a wooden box that's had lots of alcohol spilled on it for many years. Something dusty and floral, I guess that's the prostitute perfume.

 

dry down: woody, sweet and boozy with a hint of something sweet.

 

Yep, I'm keeping this one.

 

Edit: I'm DEFINITELY keeping this one. I want to buy five bottles like right now!!

Edited September 17, 2011 by Maleficium

[Monday]

Frimp from the Lab. This is seriously salty. Port Royal is rather masculine and perfumey in a sharp kind of way.

The clove hovers over the salty scent adding some warmth, but it doesn't really blend together. For me this is too disjointed.

[primadonna]

Out of imp: oooh, spicy and dark....very mysterious. I immediately detect the rum, but I can't seem to wrap my head around the floral scent that is begging to come forth. I'm hoping it'll be better with the dry down.

 

Dry on skin: I've worked at Michael's [the craft store], and the scent kinda reminds me of the store around the holidays. There is a nice clove-like note that's being lapped by a frothy salt like smell. It's quite nice actually.

 

I had to talk myself into liking it, but after a while, I came around. I can definitely see myself wearing this around autumn/the holidays, or when I want to snuggle up with a good book.

[VelvetSky]

Spiced rum, wood, salt air, prostitute's perfume...yes yes yes, I get all of this right away with Port Royal and it's great...but I'm also getting...Christmas candle? Like something waxy with cinnamon or bayberry. I think it smells great, but I don't know if this is a 'me' kinda scent. I think I'll pass this one to my hubby and see what he thinks.

[catalyst]

This is good, and I liked it in general, but the last lingering note was spices. For hours. Strongly. To the point that after about four hours I was so sick of smelling spices that I washed it off and gave away the imp to a male friend who thinks it's the best thing ever invented.

[sunlitgarden]

Received as a lab frimp.

 

In the imp: Wood (sandalwood I think), and a little of boozy rum.

 

On my skin, I'm getting more of the spices in the rum (Michi says it smells like cinnamon candy; I don't smell cinnamon in particular, though, as opposed to just a general collection of spices.) I am getting a little saltiness with the wood, but like I remember from Calico Jack (which I tested a couple years ago at Knows Perfume, but have not yet reviewed) it's not in a gross, overly salty or dryer-sheety way.

 

This smells really good, but I think I need to test Calico Jack again and compare them before I go for a bottle of either one - I really only need one manly pirate scent.

[calivianya]

I had absolutely no hopes for this one, as both rum and aquatics don't tend to work. However, this isn't half bad. The rum sweetens up the woods and the salty air isn't too obtrusive, leaving it a sweet wood with a hint of something tropical. I have enough woody scents to rule out buying this one, unfortunately.

[undream]

wow. this one was a strange & wild ride, for me. wet, it smelled of a pleasant though strong and somewhat non-descriptive perfume? once on, it immediately turned masculine, a delicious kind of . . . cedary scent? something which made my nose want to put this on the BF and devour him. unf . . .

 

it didn't take long, however, for this to morph into ALL OF THE SPICE. it smelled of cinnamon, orchid, carnation, christmas, craft stores, any & all things autumnal and spicey and just. gorgeous. (reading through the description and reviews, i clearly amped the spiced rum & cloves, though i had no idea at the time that this was what i was smelling. i genuinely thought this was a cinnamon/orchid floral blend!)

 

ultimately, it was a peculiar morph of male & female which settled & bloomed - once on my wrists & nestled in the hollow of my neck - into a beautiful, exotic spice. strong, heady. lascivious. a new favourite.

[tharsei-thanate]

Got an imp of this from cyndaelle!

 

This is a blend I’ve always wanted to try since I love evocative blends.

 

In the imp it’s spiced rum and wood and salt. Wet on my skin though the spice is amped to high heaven and it’s evocative, all right, but not of the Caribbean in the 17th century. Like others have noted, it smells like Christmas! It smells exactly like the place where we buy our Christmas tree every year. We pick out our tree and go to the little indoor shop to pay for it and there’s this lovely cinnamon-spice scent all around, mostly caused by the hot, homemade apple cider which they let their customers sample and the cinnamon incense sticks they have all around the counter.

 

As it dries the spice is still front and center but light touches of wood and floral mellow it. There is also just a hint of salt air. It’s like passing by a port-side Christmas shop with its doors wide open in the evening. This wasn’t what I was expecting at all but I absolutely love it and definitely need a bottle of it in the future.

[Fuhrankie]

Imp: Slightly green, planty, with a touch of a nice floral underneath.

 

Wet: Slightly alcoholic, with the florals coming to the fore.

 

Dry: Now I have two different reactions to this depending on the time of the month. The majority of the month all I smell is 18th century whore perfume; lots of florals, not much else - very very nice on my skin. During ladytime I get the woods as well as the whore perfume, which rounds out the scent even more.

 

Overall: Dry, uninhibitedly feminine. This is my absolute favourite GC scent so far. <3

[Kit Foxly]

Definitely not for me, this one. Very floral-perfumey and sweet-woodish, with only a hint of the ozone and spices that I was hoping for. The scent is more along the lines of the laundry-detergent aisle (which always gives me a headache) than something I'd wear – though it's not nearly as bad as the detergent.

 

I smile ruefully at the people who got a sense of masculinity out of this - for me it was femme all the way, which is exactly what I wasn't after!

 

It faded after a couple of hours to a sweet spiciness that I like, but that then disappears within minutes. So yeah - sadly, not a keeper for me.

[BiancaSlate]

In the vial: woodsy, spicy, sweet - possibly the rum?

 

Wet: Floral for about 10 minutes. I couldn't detect anything past the flowery smell. It was that kind of perfumy flowery smell in which you can't tell what the flowers are, but they're sweet.

 

Dry: the floral had faded away and changed to a spicy and woodsy smell, with occasional spikes of clove. I actually had to get up and make sure there were no Christmas candles burning, the clove was that strong.

 

After about 20 more minutes - about half an hour after applying it - there was only a mildly spicy smell left.

[JazzieCazzie]

Received as a lagniappe imp in a purchase, I did not have high hopes for this when I read the notes -- in fact, I assumed it would be an "open it, sniff it, and recap it and stick it in the swap box" based on the fact that rum and aquatics are both notes of doom for me (no blame placed on the supplier, who was generous enough to provide any extras at all ... it's the rare swapper who actually checks your wishlists or good/bad notes!)

 

So imagine my surprise when ...

 

IN THE IMP: Sweet wood with a tiny touch of salt. Very light, slightly cologne-y but no booze or aquatics at all.

 

Still cautious, dabbed on wrist.

 

WET: Hmmmm. Very light. Sweet wood. The perfume is fragrant rather than department-store. NO booze at all. Salt air is refreshing, not aquatic.

 

I decided to proceed further and dabbed a wand's worth into the crook of my arm, where scents go to amp.

 

The perfume was the note that did amp more, in a white floral but not LUSH floral way. I do not have a sophisticated enough nose to identify the note but it's very pleasant. I guess I must have been a prostitute in a former life.

 

DRYDOWN: Floral, sweet, woody and very very subtle. NEVER got the booze or the aquatics at all.

 

OVERALL: A surprising keeper. Not something I'd buy more of, or reach for often, but unique enough for me that I'll keep it unless I happen to see someone searching for it who has something i want to swap for.

 

On a scale of 1-5, a 3 but a keeper 3 because I don't have much else like it.

[TurpentineChai]

Oh my, I love this. If I were a man, this would be my signature date night scent.

 

I rarely have scents come out with all the notes described but this one does flawlessly, wood and salt and rum and perfume. It smells on me how must bro-spray scents wish they could smell. As I try it more though, the initial masculine associations fade. I could see this being a tougher Anne Bonney.

 

My god, I love the wood note. It reminds me of beaches but not in a sunscreen kind of way, just that salt and the bits of floral. Driftwood and nips of rum on a warm night. Not sure if I'll get a bottle, but definitely will get some use from this imp.

[Veronica]

Wood, sweetness, rum. Interesting but not for me.