Lycaon

[Neely]

A monstrous, brutal, and bloodthirsty blend: blackened myrrh, crushed olive leaf, black musk, spikenard, frankincense, cypress wood, opoponax, white ginger, and patchouli.

In the bottle: woody aquatics. Ohhh I love Beth's aquatics.

Wet: woody aquatic with a slight citrus note? Maybe that is part of the aquatic, I didn't see citrus in the notes listed.

Dry down: woody citrusy aquatic. The citrus isn't orange or lemon, just a tang in the scent. All the notes are so well blended together I can't pick them out. This is just a gorgeous blend. Who knew cruelty punished could smell so good?

30 minutes: same lovely sophisticated, "masculine" scent. I say masculine, but obviously one women could wear. I do better with "masculine" scents, this is no exception.

Conclusion: I love Beth's aquatics, and they love me. No dryer sheets, no powder, always lovely. I love Lycaon, so much I bought a second bottle from a lovely formulite.

Rating 1-5: on my skin this is a 5.

[Trish]

In the imp: Rich musky slightly sweet resin.

 

Wet: Seems to disappear for about 1 minute, then slowly warms up. Definitely dark musk and myrrh here, and a lot less sweet!

 

Drydown: I love musk and I'm on a myrrh kick right now so this is very pleasing to my nose! There's a tiny tinge of dark green which must be the olive leaf, and although I can't smell the ginger there is a sense of spice. There's some wood emerging in the background also. It's definitely a dark murky scent, but in the very best way.

 

Dry: It's changed a bit, a little sweeter again, the spice has gone and the myrrh has subdued.. Musky resinous wood with some myrrh and opoponax floating over the top. I don't smell patchouli at all, and I wouldn't know what spikenard smelt like if it grabbed me by the throat. Hell I don't even know what it is (must look it up). There's still a tinge of green but it's a very dark green and buried in the background. It doesn't jump up and make my nose wrinkle like most green scents do. Doesn't seem to have much throw, and although I wasn't exactly light handed it's not all that strong either.

 

The myrrh pops up again after a while, which makes me so very happy. Warm, deep, rich musky incense. Then suddenly there's a slightly plastic note when I sniff my wrist, similiar to what I sometimes get with vanilla based scents after an hour or so. And like those it's only noticeable when I put my nose to my wrist and not in the throw. But there's no vanilla in this.

 

The plastic note doesn't go away unfortunately, it just gradually fades with the rest of the scent. However I do still like this very much - dark, murky, musky resins are definitely my thing.

[Gwydion]

In the bottle: Much sweeter than one would expect and pleasantly resiny. I am noticing two types of Myrrh, blackened and sweet (opoponax), and frankincense right off the bat. I am willing to bet that spikenard is the thing mingling so pleasantly with the opoponax. The cypress and ginger give it a little bite. I'm not sure what olive leaf smells like, but I'm betting that's what's giving the cypress it's odd depth. The effect is complex, incensey with a hint of something more feral underneath. It is a rich scent hinting at sacred groves think with incense and surrounded by herbs. Wet: the elements separate a little, giving a sweet upper layer reminiscent of bigger critters, with a darker layer lead by the cypress, patchouli, and blackened myrrh underneath. Unfortunately, my skin seems to swallow it, eating up a lot of the nuance. Did I mention the patchouli? In the bottle, it's unnoticeable. On my skin... yeah. Maybe these are hippy cannibals, the Manson family as werewolves. Dry: Not so good. Powdery patchouli and Frankincense, mostly. maybe Nard, it's hard to tell. It's not awful or anything, but the dry down is sad because the in the bottle scent was knock it out of the park.

[tartchef]

In the imp, Lycaon was distinctly cologney, to the point that I put off testing this for a few days... I needn't have worried, though - once on, this snarling man-beast is decidedly well-behaved. The ginger, myrrh & cypress are most prominent, a spicy, lightly fizzy combination akin to very very dry ginger beer... For all the heavy notes in it, Lycaon is fading fast, leaving a vague halo of woody spice after barely an hour It's really tasty, though, a more wearable Penitence, at least for me (the myrrh amped to a high-pitched shriek in that one)... I'll try this again in a few days & see if I can get Lycaon to stick around...

[fairnymph]

Sniffed in imp: Thick (even in high 80 degree weather!) amber oil. Woody, earthy, incensey; those incense notes dominate by far. Slightly sweet, slightly smoky. Dark, headshoppy. Some sharper herbal notes (olive, spikenard, cypress), and faint kick of fresh ginger. Masculine.

 

I don't care to try this one on my skin, but it fits the description quite aptly!

[hlinspjalda]

In the bottle: Interesting, complex. I can make out a few notes: olive, spikenard. Not very strong, though.

 

Wet: Patchouli and myrrh right away, and something pungent above it. This has potential.

 

Twenty minutes: Herby now, I think that's the olive leaf. There's also a woody note, a lot of musk, and something else that bites. It's not brutal, but it's overbearing.

 

One hour: Herby resin with a wood note. It's calmed down a lot but is still powerful and intense. I think the myrrh is dominant, but it is supported by a lot of other notes.

 

Three and a half hours: Yum, I like this much better now it's not so intense. Pleasant herby floral overlaid onto very nice resin, with just a sliver of woodiness.

 

Six hours: Resins and patchouli, still going strong. A hint of that olive fragrance, too.

[Lamia]

MAGNIFICENT!

 

I must hunt down a 5ml of this, it's divine. Thick and red with musky wood, it envelopes with a warm dark cloak with a fur lining that I wrap tightly about myself and hug to my chin.

 

Mmmmm nummy.

[donnatron]

Bottle: Patchouli with a woody greeness in the background.

 

Wet: The patchouli flares up and dominates the blend. A blend of resins in the background sort of warms but doesn't come out. The black musk warms and lends a very soft, fuzzy skin quality.

 

Dry: Monstrous and bloodthirsty are the perfect descriptions for this scent. I kind of want to bite things. When dry this is a sweet, spicy patchouli with the musk overlaying it. It's slightly tinged with cypress wood, the olive leaf is present in a bit of oily greeness, and the myrrh is deadly sexy. I smell a bit like I'm on the prowl. For what, I don't know, but it's dark, mysterious, unisex and very commanding.

 

Throw: Moderate.

 

Overall: A perfectly dark and sinister resin blend. I don't wear it a lot because it's very much mood and season oriented, but when the mood strikes, it's absolutley perfect. It's already aging beautifully and it's just going to get better and better. Definitely pick some up if you're a fan of dark, evocative resins.

Edited November 3, 2008 by paperrose

[femmefatale]

hmm. For something that's supposed to be dark, monstrous, and bloodthirsty, it's rather light (throw wise)and sweet. Wonderful for what it is though. It's a sweet, not so heavy smelling headshop on the boardwalk. So well blended no one note is overpowering. It does go faint very quickly though and then stays close to the skin. The strange thing thow is that every now and then it seems to blossom and then recede. Once it's fully dry more of the olive leaf comes out. It reminds me of a less golden version of Tabella.

It strikes me as a rather unisex blend, something both hubby and I can wear. I like it.

 

Edited January 19, 2009 by Femme_Fatale

[rayvn1]

For all those strong notes, I didn't get very much scent from this. Mostly bitter olive and a little frankincense. I'll have to try this again and see if the patchouli and musk come out a little more.

[crebbsgirl]

This is the myrrh scent I have been looking for!!!! YUM! It starts out a little sharp. There's a green note here that cuts through the blend in the wet stages that I'm not too thrilled about, but the dry-down, whoo-boy is that awesome! The myrrh is definitely centre stage, while the patchouli provides a nice supporting role. The resulting scent is deep and sweet and earthy. I'm not getting much frankincense here, but I can faintly detect the black musk. The lemon peel was only present initially, and I couldn't smell it on me after it started to dry.

[zankoku_zen]

Lycaon smells like a green patchouli - kinda furry, and kinda powdery. In fact, for a werewolf, it's got a vaguely masculine wood spice. It smells more rugged than anything else.

[Dark Alice]

This is a rugged kind of scent. Not what I would really expect a lycaon to wear. I imagine Beast from Beauty and the Beast might have worn this scent while twirling Belle on the dance floor. It was his cologne not the singing candlestick that made her fall in love.

 

This dries down to a light cologne mixed with sweet patchouli with just a hint of powderiness. I wonder how the fiancee would smell with this on?

[asciident]

Wet: Sweet resin.

 

First on: Same. Quite pretty really, although I think it might make a better room scent.

 

Dry: Rather faded and quickly, unfortunately.

[tragedy]

I've had this bottle around for a while, untried... thinking it would be a winter scent, but decided to try it out this morning.

In the bottle: very resiney the myrrh is a standout.

Wet: Patchouli!! its a very strong but nice patchouli, almost entirely.

Drydown: Its like a blend of Wolf Moon and Lilith, I get wine for some reason (olive leaf and myrrh?) the patchouli backs off a bit but stays to fuzzy it up a bit. A slightbit woody.

Hours Later: Its a dusting of amber on the skin, very faint.

 

Love

[MellowCello]

Monstrous, indeed. Sinister sweetness, sharp, dark spicy/resiny blend. I pick up the myrrh and patchouli mostly.

[Shollin]

First sniff: Darkness, resin and wood and musk and darkness.

 

Wearing: Still very dark, a deep brown sort of scent, dry wood and deep resins and dark earth. Not for me.

[Dharklady]

In bottle: dark heavy incense.

Wet: Same as in bottle.

Dry: Still a heavy scent though it does mellow considerably.

Notes: If you are into darker scents, this might be a good choice for you!

 

[FireWolf]

This was my first true love and real OMGS intro into the BPAL world. I felt like it was made for me. I wear it on the days I'm feeling feral and furious.

[dreamingjune]

For me this is the perfect blend of the powdery smokeyness of Black Musk and Myrrh, with just enough green wood notes, incense and fresh spice.

 

In the bottle: much lighter with powder as well as fresh wood notes.

 

On the skin: It is not overly masculine or pungent in any way, just smooth and darkly feminine. With the olive leaf, spikenard, and white ginger I was worried about soapiness but nothing of the sort comes out here. I know my chemistry does interesting things with heavier notes so this might be totally different for someone else. Decent throw and length of wear too.

 

So grateful I was able to hunt a bottle down.

[SophieCedar]

Wet: black myrrh and black musk with oppoponax and frankincense. Nice strong start but it's shifting quickly.. The crushed olive leaf is in the background.

 

Drydown: the myrrh dries out and the musk disappears almost completely. Frankincense and olive leaf, spikenard, cypress, dried ginger and patchouli. I think this blend has lost strength, being 5 years old.

[Teaotter]

Wet: spicy black musk and myrrh -- the type that smells like the heat coming off a candle to me.

 

Drydown: Lots of black musk still, but the myrrh pulls back a little. A tangy resinous note comes out, and I'd swear there was juniper in this.

 

Dry: I love this scent! The olive leaf comes out (olive leaf is one of my favorite notes!) balanced on the spicy musk and the incense-y myrrh and frankincense combo. This is dark and feral and intense. Moderate throw.

[windbourne]

Strong, very dark and myrrh, slightly reminiscent of Priala, but less fiery. Definite black musk, some frankincense. Tiny bright hints of greenish olive leaf and tart dimples of white ginger.

 

Really strong, hefty throw. Not particularly violent, just dark and broody. Certain aspects remind me of a darker, damper Ifrit, too. This is getting really gorgeous, smoky, heavily black-brown in nature, and with a really deep and baleful myrrh. There's a nearly powdery green note that may be the spikenard showing up late to the party. Gets a bit sneezy (and -very- masculine) in late drydown, but that's usual with me and myrrh.

 

Fades nicely after about six hours, which is average on me. I like it far more than I was expecting to, given the comparisons to Schwarzer Mond, which I don't like at all. ;

[JazzieCazzie]

Working my way through my BPAL collection -- old imps, new imps, brown bottles, blue bottles -- from A-Z, reviewing or revisiting. This entry is from an imp I decanted myself from my original 5 ML bottle of Lycaon 2006 from the Lab, purchased at time of release.

 

IN THE IMP: COCA COLA IN A TINY GLASS BOTTLE!!!

 

Dabbed on wrist, into crook of arm and into cleavage.

 

WET: Definitely cola on me. Which happens to be one of my favorite morphs. Still not sure what notes create it ... a few people in this thread have suggested maybe the oppoponax? Or however you spell it? A resiny delicious and slightly spicy cola. There is a tiny tingling when I apply it to the crook of my arm.

 

DRYDOWN: While I can understand why this would morph on some people to be distinctly "masculine," fortunately on me it's just deep and resiny and divine. It dries into a dark resiny sweetness but not a wonky one, which can sometimes happen on me with myrrh. I'm getting minimal if any myrrh or patchouli, and maximal ginger, musk, frankincense and, I guess, oppo of that is what causes the coca-cola scent.

 

OVERALL: I love love love this. Now, I'm working through my goodies A-Z so when I reach S I will be sure to pull this imp out and "test drive" it again on one arm when I re-visit my Schwarzer Mond on the other arm to compare the two. And I guess I should also check all my references to "smells like coca cola" and see how many of them contain oppo. Whatever that is.

 

On a scale of 1-5, a 5.