The Arrival at the Sabbath and Homage to the Devil

[Ajila]

Bourbon vanilla, benzoin, caramel, Mysore sandalwood, aged black patchouli, carnation, and iris florentina.

 

In the bottle - Caramel and digestive biscuits.

 

Wet on me - A kind of smokey sweetness backed by pepper and something kind of wintery.

 

Dry on me - Molten sugar very reminiscent of Sugar Skull 04, but with the wood in the background to temper the sweetness.

 

Overall - I like this a lot and will almost certainly by a bottle as I diminish my supply of SS

Edited February 12, 2007 by Ajila

[siddal]

Wow, this is rich and sweet. In the imp I smell the caramel and vanilla big time. The sandalwood is also there, and the carnation spices things up. On my skin the snadal wood really shows through, as does the black patchouli, but not in the way patchouli usually does on me! Hey, I'm finally learning what I can tolerate and what I can't! Usually patchouli hates me. The drydown is rich and smooth and still very vanilla/caramel/patchouli. I can finally detect a hint of iris, too.

Edited February 15, 2007 by siddal

[Brianne]

In the vial:

First off, a big thank you to ivyandpeony who gifted me this imp!

The first thing I thought when I sniffed this was - "holy shit, is that bourbon vanilla?! @_@" and it was!

 

On me:

When this is wet, that bourbon vanilla is overpowering! Backed by the sugary sweet caramel, this smells extremely foody.

It does start to settle into something slightly less foody before long though and that iris is coming out and creating a deep floral background for this one. ANd then in comes that carnation.

 

It's unusual because it changes so quickly from a foody, vanilla and caramel scent to a deeper incense like floral. I still get that vanilla and the caramel but it's so much "quieter" now than it was. Even though the florals are very much there and what I would call an active part of the scent, I wouldn't classify this as a floral. It's lightly spiced and woody and has an incense quality to it.

 

Final note:

The end result is something rather exotic and mature smelling - an incense floral with a twinge of sugary sweetness. It's really rather pretty! It reminds me of scents like Red Lantern, Sugar Skull, Gluttony and The Masque.

Edited February 18, 2007 by Brianne

[zenvodunista]

I got to try this at a MnS yesterday, and I was shocked at how well behaved it was on my skin. I think I need a certain combo of caramel & sandalwood wrestling each other into submission. USually I amp sugar so high it just goes to caramel single note. That's not happening as often as it used to. Is my skin chemistry changing? Is Beth getting more judicious with the caramel? Who knows.

 

The carmel here is really bouyed by that gorgeous bourbon vanilla. Very smooth and much more "mature" than a lot of other foody scents I've tried. Still doesn't quite slip out of "foody" and into "gourmand" for me but this is very nice. If I find myself running out of Tireseas and craving a workable caramel, I could see getting a bottle of this.

 

N>

[lookingglass]

My long awaited has arrived at last... and I am just as infatuated now as I was anticipating. There was no reason for me not to love this scent. It is composed of everything I love. It is an orgy of sticky candied incense. Very caramel at first, drying out with a soft, dark, deep, sweet floral. It's perfect. So glad I bought a bottle unsniffed.

 

If you wanted to love Snake Oil but it just didn't work, I would try this for sure.

[Athenae]

I can see where people are saying Underpants, but unfortunately this goes plasticky on me, like Gluttony's been doing lately, where all I smell is slightly sticky butter. Too bad: In the imp, it was marvelous.

 

A.

[grrrlennyl]

at first: sweet caramel.

on: wow. tons of caramel.

half an hour later: a very foody caramel with a hint of vanilla.

3 hours later: just very, very sweet and foody.

6 hours later: a soft caramel with a hint of something floral.

overall: this was bordering on overwhelming when i first put it on, but ended up being a nice, simple, smooth caramel. very pretty.

[lightgatherer]

Oh my yum. Warm, rich vanilla caramel…I'm in heaven. This is sort of like Sugar Skull but whereas Sugar Skull is sugar and fruit, this is sugar and vanilla. During the wet stage I catch a waft of the florals, and they add a bit of interest without seeming out of place. The florals disappear during drydown, and the sandalwood gradually creeps into the caramel smell. The patchouli does its job in this blend by adding just the subtlest darkness and weight; I'm generally a patchouli hater, but the patchouli in here doesn't bother me at all. This dries down to a sweet sandalwood and is gorgeous from beginning to end. I'm so glad this is GC so I can wear it as often as I like.

[Em-]

Damn, but I wish I could wear caramel notes, but caramel in anything, no matter how amazing the rest of the notes - mysore sandalwood, aged patchouli, bourbon vanilla - the caramel take over and that is all that I can smell. Thick, heavy, burnt caramel sugar.

 

And I don't want to smell like that. Foo.

[Iceblink]

Oh dear lord, I want to eat my hand. The caramel in this is almost...sharp at first, but after 15 minutes or so it's vanilla caramel yumminess gone wild. And it's just getting stronger! This smells like some booze-drenched cake that we southerners seem to have at every family reunion. Possibly my first Salon bottle purchase, this!

[rhubarbbear]

gorgeous! this is what i was hoping red lantern 05 would be like...slightly smokey caramel sticky deep goodness!

 

i don't tend to wear sweet scents a lot, but this is one of my very favorites

[phedre]

In vial: Vanilla and caramel, with a boozy quality.

 

Wet: I've had a maple syrup whiskey before, and this reminds me of it. Sweet, yet potent.

 

Drydown: tobacco leaf and sweet maple whiskey. Interesting.

[solcita]

In the imp, I get light carnation floral touched with a warm sweetness, but the caramel overpowers everything upon application. Which is fine to me, because I love caramel scents! After a few moments on the skin, the sweet foodiness is tempered by rising floral notes. When it dries, the sandalwood comes out to play and the florals are much more prominent (almost too strong), but the caramel still lurks in the background. I think it might end up being similar to my beloved Red Lantern once it has a chance to wear a while. I do like it, but not enough to get a bottle right now.

[Aredhel]

Rating (on skin): 5/5

Summarised in a few words/smilie: Beautiful.

 

In the imp: Sticky, warm vanilla caramel! A lovely thing, this.

 

On skin, wet: Spicy, foody vanilla, and a surprisingly muted black patchouli. When it's this soft, I quite like aged patchouli.

 

On skin, dry: Oh, I'm already very fond of this scent. Spicy, sticky, mildly earthy, warm, slightly foody, just a tad flowery, and strangely beautiful. I catch just a breath of carnation, one of the few flowers I adore, but nary a trace of iris florentina (thankfully).

 

Conclusion: Absolutely gorgeous. I love that no one or two notes really stand out; it's most certainly a blend. I'll definitely be picking up a bottle of this.

[theseagrows]

as usual, the caramel is amped a bit more than the other notes on my skin. were i a caramel lover, i might enjoy this, but in this scent it tends to overwhelm. i can smell the vanilla below and a hint of the patchouli. this scent is nice, and i may wear it from time to time, but it's foodier than i generally wear. i wish the carnation and iris came out more with my skin chemistry

[LauraB]

Well, that was predictable! I have a tendency to amp caramel into the buttery toffee note of doom.

On me, this is the buttery toffee note of doom. For 10 hours so far and counting.

Off to swaps!

[jiggahava]

When I first read the list of ingredients, I was super excited about every note except caramel. Red Lantern and Tiresias were utter failures on me, they became single note burned sticky caramel. I was worried that The Arrival at the Sabbath....would have the same effect on me.

 

Luckily I have nothing to be worried about. This is the first caramel scent that has actually worked on me, and not drowned out every other note. It's still very prominent, but it gives the other notes a chance to shine. The vanilla matches the sweetness of the caramel, making it cake-like, sort of like a cousin to Eat Me and Drink Me. There's a tiny hint of patchouli, which grounds the scent and adds a hint of earth, and the sandalwood keeps it from being overly sweet. Plus the throw is GREAT! Primarily caramel, but up close I get the other notes. This is what Red Lantern SHOULD have turned out on me. I like this very much, but I'll be more than satisfied with my little imp.

[Miss Lynx]

I wanted to like this, but the presence of caramel made me suspect that I would not, and I was right, sadly. It's very much like Tiresias and Red Lantern -- an otherwise very scent marred by the unwelcome presence of caramel. I like caramel fine to eat, but I do not want to wear it. Every scent I have ever tried that contained it, that note has stood out unpleasantly and thrown everything else off for me.

 

And it's too bad, because everything else in it smells good to me -- a nice, sultry, incensey scent with slight spicy-floral overtones. *sigh* I guess caramel is starting to be up there with ylang ylang and cherry blossom as a note that can kill any scent for me no matter how good everything else in it is.

 

Grade: C

[Gale]

This is outstanding!

 

Wet: Caramel and vanilla--strong!

 

Dry: Caramel, vanilla, and something darker (the patchouli, I'm guessing). This is different from other caramel blends in that it is a clean smell--despite the presence of many potentially heavy and overwhelming notes. Perhaps that is the carnation's contribution? I can't smell carnations, but it is a clean scent--that's what really strikes me.

 

I love this. How beautiful the Salons are. (Sounds like the beginning of a poem...)

[alicia_stardust]

I cannot believe I haven't reviewed this before now, but it's amazing. I think it's my favorite Salon, period. The caramel, vanilla, and patchouli combination is just incredible. Aside from smelling great on my skin, it makes a fabulous room scent. Every time I put it in my oil burner I get comments on it, no matter what.

[squirrelmonkey]

My favorite Salon so far! Lovely vanilla and caramel scent, with just a hint of patchouli. Usually, patchouli is a "NoooOOOOoooo!!!!" note for me, as it amps beyond all reason and smothers everything else, but here it behaves, providing just a touch of darkness in the heart of this foody sweet delicious heaven.

[storme]

In the imp: boozy rummy caramel.

 

On me, wet: sort of a darker boozy smell, sweet and caramelised.

 

On me, dry: the caramel and sweetness really overwhelm this - I can faintly detect the sandalwood and the carnation in the background, but it's deeply buried.

 

Verdict: Far too sweet for my nose. The caramel just swamps everything else.

[TheOneTheyCallLuna]

This is scrumptious! I was so excited to try this blend and it has not disappointed me in the least. In the bottle and first on the skin, the caramel smell is practically lurching out at me. However, even at this stage, I thoroughly disagree with those who assert that this smells like a single note caramel, because I can already detect some florals and smoke in the distance. As this scent dries down, the smokiness builds into a big ol bonfire with some smoky floral in the background. The caramel and benzoin vanilla still taking center stage. Ooooohhhh, I'll definitely wear this a lot - I only wish I had a bigger bottle!

 

ETA: Over a year later, I finally have a big bottle of this and I still love it every bit as much as I always did. My one word review of this scent is a tie between "decadence" and "hedonism". This is pure orgiastic, hedonistic decadence in a bottle, and really captures both the feeling and the imagery (especially the colors) of the painting. Unbridled, luscious caramel indulgence! This blend is such an explosion of extreme hedonism that in that sense it really conveys a celebration of anti-morality. I just had to jump in here and back up my previous review of this brilliant artistic interpretation. This is not grog or gluttony or even cockaigne, okay...this is deep and dark and delicious!

 

Edited February 7, 2009 by TheOneTheyCallLuna

[stasha]

OH MY GOSH. This is the most sophisticated food scent I've ever experienced. It's sweet, delicious caramel but makes me feel like such a refined queen, LOL.

 

In the bottle it's a dark caramel but the vanilla lightens it up while wet on skin. As it settles in the sandalwood peeks through soothing it out. It takes quite a while for the patchouli to join the party and I'm not a huge fan of that stage to be honest.

 

I still think this is absolutely gorgeous though. I need a 5 ml ASAP.

[pugmom]

I really, really wanted this to work on me.

 

Wet. Caramel - very strong, with a touch of vanilla.

Early into drydown - really nice foody caramel and vanilla. Turns slightly powdery about 20 minutes in, with a little spice, I like this part.

Deeper into drydown - The other notes come out and don't seem to play togther nice on my skin. I get carnation, but it doesn't work with the caramel, turning to almost a dusty-smokey floral/caramel on me. Not nice. It does last a really long time in this state (going on 12 hours here).

 

I had high hopes for the first 30 minutes, but this turned into something not appealing on me.