Knecht Ruprecht

[bifemmefatale]

The snow-covered foliage of the Black Forest and the fruit and woods of apple and almond trees.

Wet: Pine/juniper/almond/apple. Christmas tree and sweet fruit, but not overwhelmingly fruity. This is close kin to Snow Moon, but sweeter and no florals.

Drydown: Much the same all the way through. Sweetened Xmas tree.

Verdict: I like it a lot, but love Snow Moon more and have a bottle of that. Swap

[steffanina]

Knecht Ruprecht-

 

In Bottle: HUGELY pine.

 

Wet: Pine, very pretty.

 

Dry: This is not as long lasting as Jolasveinar; I can't help but compare this to Jolasveinar since I just tried that one the other day. But it is a very nice pine in its own right. I don't really get other scents off if except that there must be others because this isn't just straight Pine-Sol, it's a really nice pine.

 

Overall: I like, wish it lasted longer.

[Rheliwen]

I could smell the almond and pine in the bottle the most and it smelled like that initially onmy skin.

 

As it started to dry the apple got really juicy and almond sort of retreated a bit. I'm left with a perfect balance of woods, apple and almond. It's not as piney as I expected it to be. It's not in your face, high in the nose woods.

[tempestteapot]

Apples and almonds on top of pine trees.

 

When will I learn that pine NEVER comes out well.

 

I now have apples and almonds over cat pee.

[Ajila]

In the bottle - Strong and sharp pine with just a hint of almonds in the background

 

Wet on me - Something clear and deep and dark and cold like a glacial lake with just a hint of something smokey/woody (think Herr Drosselmeyer) in the background

 

Dry on me - Clean airy mush with just a hint of almonds

 

Overall - This was very faint on me and whilst it's an intriguing scent I can't see me wearing it.

[Em-]

Yule-at-the-Lab snowy pine, but sweet this time...warmed with the fruit wood and the fruit itself, the apple is sweet, the almond creamy, and all luscious and light.

[PurringPulsar]

Knecht Ruprecht

 

In the imp: frozen almonds and green apple, and a hint of pine.

Wet on skin: a very soft almond note, green crisp apples, pine and woods.

Dry: marzipan and green apples, though knowing my skin, the almond will fade fast. And it does, leaving behind a delightful iced apple scent with a lovely pine/fir note and a hint of snow. Some green apple notes go odd on me but not this-for now the apple is staying true, it smells crisp and juicy and yet it is chilled, like the last apple of autumn frozen and kept fresh by the first snows. Smells of fresh Christmas trees and gentle woods peek through the iced apple scent. This is a gorgeous scent so far.

After a while: the smell of pine and fir, maybe juniper too, now dominates the scent. I still smell hints of fresh apple which has an almost effervescent scent to it, but now it’s mainly the fragrance of evergreen tree needles covered with a hint of frost. Like an outdoor Christmas tree, the only decoration it has is a covering of snow.

Soon, some woody notes come out, mingling with the pine needles. The apple wood and almond wood are almost like cedar or cypress, a dry, greyish-green wood scent, like fresh planks of timber but with snow and evergreens.

There are moments when this sweetens a tad and the snowy scent becomes a little stronger but then it goes back to woods and cool pine/fir needles after a few hours. The pine note lasts a good long time here.

Verdict: last year, I loved the ‘liquid Christmas tree’ scent of Mistletoe, but the scent lasted only an hour on me. this scent however, has a definite Xmas tree scent to it but lasts a great deal longer, and has almonds and apples, and woods and snow thrown into the mix. This is a wonderfully evocative scent, to me it’s like walking out of a house where almond based desserts were being prepared into a dark winter’s night. It is totally silent, the only sound is my crunching footsteps in the snow. First I walk through an orchard where snow-covered apples lie on the ground, preserved by the ice. Then I end up in forest of tall evergreens and firs and pine and I smell their needles and wood all around. This is perfect for this time of year and I think I might need to get a bottle.

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? Yes. I might get one bottle.

If you like this, try: the Hesperides, Mistletoe, Black Forest, Yew Trees, Ladon, Jabberwocky

[wolfie13]

In the bottle: A bit of the "snow" scent, some pine and a bit of almond. Nice.

 

Wearing: Well, the pine pretty much takes over on me, with a bit of almond lurking in the background, and a touch of floral that I sometimes get with the snow scents (though not overbearing like some.) sweetening up the whole thing

 

Verdict: It's okay. For pine and almond I just love The Organ Grinder - it's a bit

less pine, a bit more almond sweetness, with a touch of smoke where here there's that touch of flowers here, which just ruins it for me.

 

Once again - if might be nice an oil burner if it retains the bottle scent.

Edited December 13, 2006 by wolfie13

[theseagrows]

i like this one better than i imagined! i don't usually go for fruity scents, but i think the florals and woods temper them a bit in this scent. i get the snowy note and some floral and woods and just a touch of apple and that's about it. besides the aquatic, i can't make out any notes at all, it's very well blended. not a big bottle purchase, but i will keep my decant.

Edited December 14, 2006 by theseagrows

[Little Bird]

Much love and thanks to PilotKitten for gifting me with a decant of this one . It's the only new Yule that I haven't tried, and so far none of them have really worked on my skin.

 

In the bottle... smells like earthy, sharp juniper and undertones of fruit punch.

 

On me... smoky, sharp juniper and sugary tropical fruit punch. As it dries down, it begins to take on a medicinal/menthol note that makes me think of Vaporub.

 

Tropical fruit punch and vaporub, with the menthol getting stronger and stronger over time. While this isn't awful, it's not something that I'd ever wear as a perfume. Very pungent and heavy on the menthol. Maybe I'll keep my imp around for days when I'm having sinus troubles.

[dronzeka]

Please be kind... this is my first review.

 

Anyway, I got hold a lovely sniffie of Knecht Ruprecht which had just enough left to test, and I am. in. love.

 

In the bottle, I smelled pine and almonds. Wet, I started off with quite a lot of almond as well; there also seemed to be some cherry, although that may be because I associate almond with cherry b/c my husband likes them both. As it dried, the pine softened and the almond shifted into a wonderfully round fruitiness. (I think I got a whiff of apple for about 5 seconds, but that's it for the apples.) It's definitely a wintry, even Christmas-y scent, but in a lovely, sophisticated way; it doesn't smell like pine-sol or potpourri, but what those things *want* to smell like. The pine and fruits balance wonderfully. My only complaint is that it's faded fairly quickly.

 

Anyway, like I said, I am in LOVE with this scent - but not for me. To me, it's a masculine scent (though I wouldn't consider a woman weird for wearing this - it's just not for me). What I'm salivating over is the prospect of getting my husband to wear this!

[phedre]

in vial: sharp bitter almond and sour apple must

 

wet on skin: pine emerges, and the must thankfully fades a bit, but is still present. It's still sour, like those old super sour candies from the 80s.

 

drydown: pine and bright green apple. the sour mustiness is gone. It's bright and sweet, but not cloying. I like it, but it's not for me.

[Brianne]

In the bottle:

ooh Christmasy tree fruity goodness!

 

On me:

How does Beth do it??! How does she capture cold air in a bottle?? The first thing I think of when I smell this is the cold winter air carrying the smell of a tree and fruit on the wind. The fruit smells of apple and something else - a red, watery fruit - maybe holly berry? The pine is there, and normally I just don't care for pine much but it's tempered in this scent by the fruit and the mentholy cool air and junpier smell. I believe the warm, smooth scent in the background is the almond wood because it is definitely reminiscent of almond oil, but lighter.

 

 

Final note:

It all comes together to make a smell that makes me think of the winter air, but even more it makes me think of Christmas. It's clean but slightly fruity and has a smooth note underneath. This is just wonderful, not too masculine and very unique!

[Miss Lynx]

On first sniff, this is surprisingly nice - more so than I had expected from the reviews, many of which emphasize the almond note (I hate almond, but frequently try scents containing it anyway, since it's not a long-lasting note on me and sometimes the scents are nice once it's gone). I hardly get any almond here at all -- it's mainly pine forest and apple, with an undertone of that "snowy" note that's in Talvikuu and a few others.

 

I am not a big fan of that snow note -- it doesn't really smell like snow to me, just like some kind of synthetic chemical that wants to be snow. Kind of in the same ballpark as ozone, though not quite as foul. But the other notes in here are quite nice. It smells a bit like drinking apple cider in the middle of a pine forest, very fresh and clean and decidely wintery. Talvikuu with apples, pretty much (which is a considerable improvement over just plain Talvikuu, to me). I'd like it better without the synthetic snow note, but it's not bad as is.

 

Unfortunately, it doesn't last very long, at least not at the strength I applied it at (fairly lightly). Maybe if I put on a bit more heavily next time...?

 

Grade: B

[Aredhel]

Rating (on skin): 1/5

Summarised in a few words/smilie: Pine!

 

In the imp: Fruity, cider-y almond and the pine of Black Forest.

 

On skin, wet: Almond and pine makes for a very weird scent. It's... well, it's just odd.

 

On skin, dry: Nary a sign of fruit, wood, or apple, but oh! is there ever pine! Pine and almond. It reminds me a bit of Ice Queen, which is equally pine-tastic. Pine, as always, leaves a cool, almost tingly taste in the back of my throat.

 

Conclusion/Notes: I like Black Forest, and in small doses, I really like almond. However, I do not, it seems, like the two together.

[pkthunder]

The dominant note is forest - not straight-up pine, but woodsy and earthy. There is an sharpness to it that I guess is a snow note, as it reminds me of other aquatic fragrances. The sweetness of the apple and almond are in the background.

 

I don't like this on me, and I don't think it would be great as a room fragrance, either, but I think a man would smell delicious in it. A flannel-wearing man with an axe over his shoulder.

 

Whoops, as my skin soaks it up, a pine scent stands out. Not a keeper.

[juniperus]

Bottle: apples and sweet almonds

Wet: the same, with a hint of evergreen behind

Dry: evergreen and wood and fruit - like a large, creative holiday centerpiece with greens and edibles and all..

Later: this is getting both wilty and foody. something here isn't working, and isn't working in proportion to the length of time it's been on me. ugh.

[ktesedale]

Ah, I was really hoping for the apple and almond to come out in this (they're two of my favorite scents), but it was not to be!

 

In the bottle, I can smell the fruit a bit, though it's mainly pine.

 

Wet, wow, pure pine. Very realistic pine, but a bit sickening.

 

Dry, the lab's 'snow' note is incredibly strong on me, plus the pine. It's like last year's Talvikuu x 1000. It gives me a piercing headache after about an hour. I was hoping it would dry down and give me anything with the apples and almonds, but nope.

 

This one is definitely going for swap/sale. It's way to strong for me, and my skin didn't like it. (As a side note, the label is on upside down on my bottle! I thought that was pretty funny. )

[sarada]

Afraid of almond, I didn't get this one at first, figuring that no matter how much I loved the pine and hoped for a crisp, fresh apple, that the almond would smother everything.

 

I was wrong! And this might be my favorite of the Yules this year, alongside Krampus.

 

This is a pine-lover's pine. One of the lab's strongest, greenest pines. A dark, dark green but perfectly clear and glistening, sparkling with snow. The apple adds just the right touch of crisp sweetness...it's the kind of apple that I like, the tart, fresh kind, not the sugary, cidery kind. And finally, the almond is barely noticeable after it dries on my skin, though I can sense it in the bottle at first. It just melds into the background.

 

I keep craving this and going back for it. There are a lot of snowy-snow scents out now and I love them all but this has a stronger emphasis on dark green pine and that suits me just fine. A true Christmas tree scent!

[keltic]

. the description alone was enough to make me die a happy bliss, but up close and in person! ::dies a happy bliss of smellgasm::

 

this was my first yule bottle i tore right into. in the bottle, it is sharp pine and sweet fruit, with the apples having the tang that almost makes them smell like berries. and wet on the skin .... oh. my. god. perfect pine and balsam, cold icy air and sweet and spicy fruits.

 

sadly, the scent does not hold well on me, and i may have to decant an imp to carry with me to reapply during the day. throw for me is almost non-existent. why is it always the ones you want to impose on others you can’t?

 

still, for sheer pleasure of going on, i think i need a second bottle to horde this forever and ever and ever.

[mooncityminx]

In the imp: A tree smell, I mean exactly like a tree that used to grow in the courtyard where I used to live and a sweetish almond smell.

 

Wet: Overwhelming tree smell medicinal. Now I am smelling some citrus. Weird.

 

Dry: Oh no! The dreaded citrus and tree. I'm trying not to gag. BPAl citrus always goes horribly wrong on my skin. If someone who has better skin chemistry likes trees and citrus this could really be good, but I am not that someone.

[Tess]

Both pine and almonds get amped by my skin and my skin hates apples, but it just sounded yummy, so I had to have it.

 

In the bottle - Sweet, sweet, sweet! Apple juice with large amounts of almond extract.

 

Wet - Just the teeniest bit of pine is coming out...

 

Drying - Ooo! Soft pine with the chilly feeling of snow is working it's way underneath the sweetness. The apple is becoming more "generic fruit" smelling and the almond has really vanished. But the scent of a pine tree decorated with fruit for yule is just lovely.

 

Dry (2 hours) - This is so faint now, but it went through a glorious dry phase where it was like Et Lux Fuit with an added pine and snow notes.

 

Overall - The More Than Friend loved it on me and I love it on myself. It is very close to the fruit notes in Et Lux Fuit on my skin, which is nothing but love. The pine even is a calm, lovely pine. This is a keeper like mad.

[QueenFae]

This reminds me of one of my all time favorites, Ice Queen. This is very much like Ice Queen, except instead of fruity notes combined with the icy chill, it's a bit more of piney notes combined with ice. I love that beautiful winter/ice note that the lab uses; it is soo beautiful on my skin. This is just lovely, and a perfect replacement for the elusive Ice Queen. It has medium throw but strong sticking power. I will certainly hold on to my 5 ml of this.

[roxyhead]

Snow covered trees? I can see that. Fruit, apple, almond, wood? Not too big a stretch there. But what's overwhelming to me is this blend's resemblance to Fa (I think) bubble bath. It doesn't *smell* soapy, but I guess that just must be what the stuff smells like. Certainly beats Desdemona or whatever I reviewed that I thought was like Estee Lauder bubble bath, but I don't use Fa either, my mother did, so I'm not sure what to do about this one. I suppose to other people, they might not remember the bubble bath scent, or it could be a good thing if I smell like I just came out of the bath. It's not offensive or anything. Maybe I can train my nose to not immediately dig up the bubble bath reference if I wear it more? I don't know. I'm a little disappointed that of the five LEs I just got, I only like one of them.

[tinyvulture]

in the imp, this smells extremely sweet and fruity – like kool aid! on my skin, the fruitiness dies down, and the strong evergreen notes of the Black Forest come forth. there’s also that familiar BPAL slushy snow note, strong and sweet. the almond and tart apple notes fade in and out, and i smell menthol as well. 15 minutes later, it’s all snow-covered pine trees. a delightful, wintry scent.