The Great He-Goat

[spanishviolet]

The Great He-Goat, Francisco Goya.

Haitian vetiver, Egyptian amber, carnation, black musk, pomegranate, patchouli, and smoked ginger.

I've been looking forward to this one with great anticipation since someone in the Speculation thread wondered if it might be kind of like He-Shub. I love all things ginger, and in general approve of smokiness, so smoked ginger sounded like a winner. The only ingredient that tempered my enthusiasm was the black musk, which generally goes powdery on me. But I ordered it anyway. It was of course the first part of my order I tried ...

It's a very earthy scent - almost like Gnome, if the eucalyptus were swapped with ginger. But lighter. The ginger, vetiver, & patchouli all swirl together in a wonderfully rich way, and the amber is underneath them all. I don't really smell the pomegranate on its own ... The black musk, happily, doesn't go to baby powder here.

All in all, a winner! If you liked Gnome or Samhainophobia, I think you'll love this. It seemed a bit masculine, so I dabbed some on my guy, but he dubbed it only okay on him. Much better on me! I love the earthy, confident feeling this gives me. It's my first definite Salon love, so I'm extra-happy I went straight for it instead of waiting for somebody else to sell off a decant.

[cuervosueno]

This sounded delicious, esp. with the smoked ginger and carnation, so I ordered it right away.

 

It isn't like I expected it to be, but my review will be similiar to Spanish Violet's. This is an earthy scent that seems very appropriate to the artwork.

 

In the bottle: I wondered if I'd made a mistake. This is earthy--I can smell vetiver and patchouli--but it is also quite sharp and astringent. I also thought eucalyptus, and that's before I read the review.

 

Wet: The sharpness disappears on the skin, thankfully, and I get vetiver and patchouli and something green beneath that. It has incredible throw--it is completely overwhelming the scent on my other wrist. The patchouli in this is quite dark, and perhaps a bit sharp? Maybe that is the green edge? At this stage it is all earthy--with almost a dirt note plus the patchouli. This is very masculine and sharp. At this stage I'm still wondering if I will keep the bottle.

 

Dry: It really settles down nicely. The vetiver and patchouli settle down and I get a bit of the musk, so it because a dark earthy scent, but earthy in the best way (not like dirt!). As these notes fade a bit, I get just a hint of spice, which could be either the carnation or the ginger. If I press my nose very close to my wrist the ginger comes out more, and it is smoky, but this is a fairly hard to detect note on me.

 

Final verdict: I like it. I wish the carnation and ginger were stronger, but I still like this scent quite a bit. And it bears more testing before I decide if I'll keep the entire bottle or not, but it is good, and suits the art well.

 

eta: a couple hours later, the initial notes have faded and the smoked ginger is in evidence. I love the way these salon scents change, and I real love how this blends turns out to be a soft spice on me. Very nice!

 

I also read Sarada's review below, and noted the comparison to malediction, which, fortuitously was a frimp in the same package. So I compared them and totally agree--these are absolutely the same family of scents, but He-goat is softer, sweeter, not as stern. I'm not crazy about malediction, but love He-goat.

Edited January 6, 2007 by cuervosueno

[sarada]

I had to grab a bottle of this one right off the bat, since vetiver, patchouli and pomegranate are among my favorite notes, and amber and black musk work for me in many a blend. Carnation and ginger also tend to work very well with patchouli (Masque, Masquerade, and Lycaon have various combos in this realm).

 

In the bottle it's a strong, sweet earthy scorched vetiver with a hint of deep red pomegranate, sparkling just a touch with those earthen crystals and a hint of ginger adds light.

 

My skin loves nothing more than vetiver and patchouli. While it reminds me of Malediction at times, it's not as harsh and bitter as that blend. It's a much more advanced incarnation of the concept though. The lighter notes of pomegranate and ginger fizzle off quickly and a deep, dark looming shadow of vetiver takes over. Ominous and steeped in rich, dark earth, soaked in blood-red and shot through with flashes of light.

 

If Malediction was too burn and oppressive, but Samhainophobia suited you well, this would be a good balance. I'll have to wear it around awhile to see if I can get any more of the other notes, aside from the earth and resin tones, but since those are my favorite things anyway I'm quite content! Another favorite among the Salons!

[Little Bird]

He-Goat is very masculine, earthy, and dark. I was afraid of the pomegranate, but I don’t smell any fruity notes here. Unfortunately, the Egyptian Amber is awful on me and dominates in the drydown… I get a strangely soiled baby powder smell underneath the earthy vetiver and patchouli. It’s too masculine and dark for me to pull off, and the amber notes are hateful on my skin . In the end, I actually found myself wishing that I did smell the pomegranate in here somewhere.

 

I wanted this to work on me, if only because sarada's review is so beautiful, but this is too dark and powdery on my skin.

[edenssixthday]

The moment I opened this blend, it scared the bejeebus out of me. It’s dark and heavy, thick and smoky, husky and gritty. I can wear every note in this blend sometimes and not other times – it all just depends on what other notes they’re blended with. In this case, the black musk, vetiver, and patchouli blend together to create a scent that is so heavy as to be suffocating, and it even causes my lungs to constrict a touch. Even though this scent becomes a touch more palatable as it warms up on my skin and the vetiver moves into the forefront, supported by a soft bit of sweet spiciness, it's still too pungent for me. At best, when I smell this, I think of what it must taste like to lick the bottom of an ashtray, and at worst -- when I let my imagination really run wild -- I’m certain this is the odor of charred human flesh rotting in the depths of Hades. The throw is very, very strong, as is the wear length.

[Heavenlyrabbit]

This is the smell of the Underworld and dark goings on.

 

Shockingly, I am not reviled by this scent on my skin and actually like it. Alot. But I would never, ever wear it.

Edited January 7, 2007 by Heavenlyrabbit

[filigree_shadow]

In the imp: I can smell the vetiver in this even before I open the imp.

 

Wet: Lots of vetiver, very dark and dank. I'm going to agree with a couple of previous reviewers -- there's something in this that reminds me of eucalyptus. Hmmm. This vetiver must be similar to the one that's in Saturnalia because they both kind of smell a little like band-aids to me. Some vetiver likes me a lot and some doesn't, and this is apparently one of the ones that doesn't.

 

Dry: The strong vetiver wears off as the scent dries, and the rest of the scent is quite nice. It's dark, a little bit powdery, and kind of mysterious. My husband tried some of it on and likes it.

[AliBabble]

whoa! straight from the bottle, this one is intense!! heavy, heavy, intense vetiver - i love it!

on my skin it is extremely earthy and bitter - feral - smoky, yet soft at the same time - dark, and i think well blended - almost equal parts vetiver, patchouli and the smoked ginger. - it's rather peppery actually, like a black pepper, tho that's not one of the notes...

the musk and amber take a while to appear, but when they do, this blend just "heightens". the pomegranate is barely dectable. this almost smells like tar/burnt rubber - and quite a lot like leather. it's a dark one! sensual and strong. love it.

[shelldoo]

vetiver and patchouli. earthy, dark, slightly moist feeling. i don't get carnations, or ginger at all. just a dark, vetiver scent

[supremegoddessofall]

On me: Ooh, I think this could be the new Schwarzer Mond! You're gonna have to love patchouli to love this, because it is *strongly* patchouli, and fairly musky. The amber is rounding out the patchouli a bit, and I'm getting a touch of sweet-sour from the pomegranate. A lovely scent, very rich. Not as much throw as I would expect from something with patchouli, but that's a good thing - it says "I'm here" without being completely in your face.

[euterpe414]

OK, I must have different chemistry than all the other reviewers, cause from the moment I put this one on it was vetiver (a la Malediction) and pomegranite. The other notes were present, but these were the two that really popped out to my nose.

 

There was a short while during the wet stage where the notes were duking it out and I got a VERY strange waft- I can't describe it well, but it smelled like um...rotting or spoiled vetiver? it was not good. However this only lasted maybe five minutes and then i was left with a gorgeous smoky, earthy vetiver/pomegranite scent! Actaully, about an hour into wear this smelled a bit like Mme Moriarity, but less sweet and definitely darker. This one has lots of throw and long wear length, too.

 

All in all this is a winner, and will make its home among my other beloved vetiver scents!

[forspecial_plate]

This screams VETIVER on me. After a couple minutes, I can smell the pomegranate and smoked ginger. And it's definitely smoked ginger as opposed to regular ginger. Love it....all these dark blends keep finding their way to me lately. I'm all over it, and it lasts for hours on me. I fell asleep wearing this and I even dreamed about vetiver. Also it reminds me of a scene from a movie:

 

In Naked Lunch, when William Lee and another writer's wife (Judy Davis) are using a typewriter that types in Arabic, and they're high on a fictional drug that's like soft black resin in a little jar. They are writing an erotic scene, and the typewriter turns into an erotic fleshy creature that jumps on them while they make out, and flops around like a horny flounder. For some reason, The Great He-Goat reminds me of that scene. Maybe I'm turned on in a sick perverted way by the dark family of scents, this one in particular. It smells kind of dirty to me!

[sookster]

straight sniff from the bottle is initially pure vetiver...

once applied it remains...pure vetiver...hmmm

 

after 15 minutes or so i get a spiciness...probably the smoked ginger

 

unfortunately for me this never morphs into anything more than the

strongest of vetiver and spicy ginger...which is just fine as i am pretty

much a vetiver 'ho...

[lookingglass]

Oh, yeah. This is good stuff. If you like Blood Kiss this, too may for you, if it is not too similar. The vertiver is sharp and dark to begin, with a squirt of pomegranate instead of cherry. It seems to heat up with my skin, and instead of slightly souring, as Blood Kiss does for me (but not on DH, which is why it is still one of my top 10) it sweetens with the amber. Spicey, dark, sweet lit incense. I love it, and I hope He will, too.

[argylexsoul]

On me, this is all vetiver and patchouli at first. Usually I either absolutely love vetiver or absolutely hate it, but this managed to be sorta in the middle. The musk and amber come out in the dry down to give it a little softness, and finally the ginger is evident as well.

 

I was hoping for a big blast of ginger & darkness, but this ok. Not amazing, but it fits the artwork and I'll definitely be keeping my imp. And who knows, maybe it'll grow on me.

 

ETA:

Several months later, and I LOVE the great he goat. It has aged wonderfully, and is completely what I had hoped for it to be originally. Deep, earthy patchouli grounded by a bass note of that beautiful haitian vetiver. I had worried about the carnation, but I can't detect it at all. The black amber is wonderfully gleaming in that darkest of night way, and the black musk is able to present itself without turning to powder. The crown jewel of this scent is the smoked ginger. I don't even know what to say. It's smoked ginger. WHAT MORE COULD I WANT?????!?!?!?!?

 

My favorite scent right now.

Edited April 20, 2007 by argylexsoul

[Em-]

This is all dark musky vetiver on me, much to my great sadness. Sometimes I do like dark musky vetiver, but I was hoping for some ginger and pom and sweet patchouli out of this, but alas, it was not to be on my chemistry.

[indicolite]

Second Emzebel's review above. This is vetiver vetiver vetiver vetiver. None of the other notes even give a hint of appearing. I am going to wash you off, He-Goat, I am sorry.

[Emma2403]

Okay I can’t say I have huge expectations about this one, as vetiver and patchouli are two absolute no-no… while I love pomegranate, I’m not too keen on ginger and carnation.

 

In the bottle: yuk patchouli… patchouli is killing me. And there’s vetiver in the background plus a hint of ginger.

 

On my skin: applied very carefully. It’s dark, heavy and very masculine. It makes me think of schwarzer mond a little (and yep, I couldn’t stand schwarzer mond!). There’s something sensual, I must admit, but this kind of slighty nauseating sensuality… if I make any sense.

 

After a couple of hours: it softens; the vetiver and patchouli settle down… I get some of the carnation but still not a hint of pomegranate, sadly.

 

Verdict: far too intense and heavily earthy for my liking.

[themerrybaker]

I was not sure what to think about a perfume whose name reminds me of the Three Billy Goats Gruff but it turned out to be a good one.

 

The patchouli reminds me of the patchouli leaf from the plant, and the musk provides a smoky sweetness. I suppose the pomegranite is in there somewhere, but I don't smell any fruitiness. The Haitian vetiver is a similar almost-bergamot note from Samhainophobia.

 

One caveat. This is a perfume with really nice throw but is not so good up close. If you evaluate this one by sniffing your wrist, you may be put off by a "dirty billy goat sock" smell. That would be too bad, because catching a whiff now and then is such a pleasure.

[maijasu]

On me, this is vetiver and vetiver only. Where is my beloved ginger? This scent is entirely too earthy and masculine for me, so into the swap pile it goes.

[eternalargus]

I opened this one up and made my "ew" face because it smelled like eau de buck goat, probably due to the patchouli, which isn't one of my favorites. On putting this on though, it almost instantly turns into black ginger, which I like a whole lot better than patchouli. A few hours later it ends up turning into the musk and amber described above. However, I never caught the carnation and the pomegranate. All in all, this is a keeper because I love the ginger scent and the scent as a whole makes me think of Baphomet.

[Ajila]

In the bottle - The first whiff is sweet and sugary, but then it's overpowered by the vertiver. This is so strong i'm dubious about putting it on at all.

 

Wet on me - Vertiver slightly warmed by the patchouli.

 

Dry on me - Pure vertiver after about 6 hours it does become slightly sweeter, but the vertiver is still dominant.

 

Overall - I'm not that keen on vertiver so this blend isn't really for me.

[mooncityminx]

In the Imp: Um, definately dark but a little dank too.

 

Wet: Ah, here we are. With my skin chemistry Vertiver goes all candy which I enjoy. I may be picking up on the pomegranate too. Fruity candy with a darker back note.

 

Drydown: Gets darker more woodsy. Mmmm sexy musk and earthy forest smells. I am so psyched that at least one of the salons is going to work for me. I am finding that I really enjoy wearing the more masculine scents. This almost reminds me of Count Dracula without the cinnamon. This is still very sweet on me. Yum.

 

[wolfie13]

In the vial: Vetiver and Patchouli.

 

Wearing: The same, with the addition of Black Musk. It reminds me a great deal of Typhon, crossed with a touch of Lycaon, perhaps? (A little of the ginger and green from that one, maybe, though I never actually smell these notes.)

 

Conclusion: Sadly, I never really get the carnation, pomegranate or ginger notes as individuals, and these are the things that I was looking for to differentiate this from other similar blends.

[siddal]

In the imp, I can smell the redness of pomegranate, and the spice of carnation, ginger and patchoulie mellowed by the amber. On my skin it was mostly musk and amber, giving this blend a very incensey smell with just a hint of the pom. The finally drydown was musky and sweet, and still seemed to smell of incense.