Athens

[Ordo_ad_Chao]

A reformulation and modernization of a true Classical Greek perfume, myrrhine: voluptuous myrrh, golden honey, red wine, and sweet flowers.

For me, this went on wet as a strong, heated honey. I tried to pick up on any of the other notes, but didn't get any. So, honey. and more honey. Hot and sticky and sugar-sweet.

[girbot]

In the imp Athens smells like honey and wine. Wet on my skin it has a spiced vinegar/wine smell to it until the floral honey really starts coming forward. The honey phase reminds me of some floral honey candy I got at a monastery in Italy. The dark myrrh is in the forefront after it dries down. It brings back really good memories for me. This is the first scent for me that really connects with imagery in my head of what I imagine an ancient Athens would be like. I adore this scent the whole way through. It has a decent throw and a little seems to go a long way so I'm not constantly bringing my wrist to my nose. Definitely going on my bottle list.

[theredshoes]

This has always been one of my top favourite scents, and I got a bottle unsniffed after being away from the sweet, sweet crack BPAL for the past several years -- and it didn't disappoint. In the bottle, yes, this smells very sharp and wine-y, but on my skin, the wine keeps the honey from being too sweet, the honey tones down the sharpness and booziness of the wine, and the myrrh adds a great spice note. (Husband: "It smells kind of like spices....Christmas spices....and flowers?" Heh.) I don't get much floral, but that's okay. I don't so much smell individual notes as a great musky, almost dark but sweet, v complex scent. It's rich without being foodie. For me, this is a very comforting, relaxing perfume; not a go-out-and-party scent, or a go-out-to-work scent, but a stay-home-and-dream scent. I really slather it on, and it has good throw and lasts a long time -- and my skin EATS perfume. It's almost something more private that I wear mostly at home, just for me; it's intimate. Rocza's "end-of-a-cozy-candlelit-dinner-party-with-wine impression" (previous page) is just about perfect.

Edited October 23, 2012 by theredshoes

[ralenth]

Source: Lab imp, new.

Wet: Warm, resiny, lush, slightly boozy.

 

Drydown: Slightly honeyed red wine. The resin seems to be fading as it dries.

 

Dry: Barely there, honey dust.

 

Throw: Minimal. Very close to skin.

 

Overall: It doesn't last more than an hour, at most. I enjoyed Athens, though.

[Alainn]

Source: Imp from forum, vintage unknown.

 

In the imp: Honey and booze--uh oh. I'm a little scared of this one, I won't lie.

 

Wet on skin: Good lord the WINE. It's strong, and doing it's best to smother everything else. It's King Wine All-the-Time, and it's vaguely nauseating--it reminds me not so much of a freshly poured glass of cabernet as it does the sour reek that comes from your pores after a night of heavy drinking. Let's see if I can get through to drydown. *mouth-breathes*

 

Dry: Better, but not much. The wine finally sat down and shut up, though he's not happy about it. A powdery floral comes out, lightening everything considerably, but the honey starts to amp to high heaven, as it always does for me, leaving an aspartame-y film in the back of my throat that takes me back to nausea-ville. I had to wash this one off after about an hour, as I just couldn't stand it any longer. It's not a bad scent in and of itself, and it's probably great on someone who can wear wear wine and honey notes, but it definitely isn't for me. Pass.

[yakiguri]

This is probably the only BPAL blend with wine in it that didn't immediately turn sour, but the combination of it with the other notes makes for a scent that's like baby powder, but off. I blame the myrrh since unless it's far deep in the background it can start smelling vomit-esque on my skin. Ah well.

[elinox]

First Sniff: A beautiful, deep incense smell. (That’s not patchouli!)

 

Initial Wet Application: It’s sweet with a deep note in it that makes this lovely so far.

 

Beginning Dry Down (first 15 minutes) & Dry: As it began to dry it turned a bit powdery and there is some sort of flower in this, maybe jasmine. After reading the notes, I believe the wine is mixing with the honey to make a sweet booze scent.

 

My Reaction: This is one of the very few oils from the lab where I’m getting throw; I can actually smell it on my wrists as I type (usually I have to get right up to my skin). There are some floral notes in this, but they seem to be a bit different than the usual soft ones I get. The myrrh and the wine mix with the honey to make this sweet and mingle nicely with the flowers. There does seem to be some sort of underlying incense or smokiness to this though which

tones down the sweetness. It’s pleasant and interesting, but I’m not sure it’s one I need to hang onto given the choice.

 

Rating: 3

[vthesiren]

I was worried because of the STRONG honeyed-wine notes from the vial (almost sickly), but those burned off on me immediately. It was mostly myrrh for a few minutes, and now it's... potatoes. Yeah. I don't get it, either.

[GuardianOfTheMoon]

Initial impressions: Bought an imp of this because I wanted to try a scent with wine notes. I’m also really into the Greek tragedies, so why not take a whack at it?

 

Imp: The first whiff is straight-up wine, but the more I sniff it, the more I get the honey. Its different, but still sweet and nice.

 

Wet: Definitely very herbal now. I guess that’s the myrrh? I don’t think I’ve ever smelled myrrh before. Kind reminds me of shopping for plants in the summer at the local green house. Very earthy.

Dry (10 minutes): Ooo! This is rather strange for me, but I kinda like it! The honey is definitely sitting at an equal place with the myrrh now, and the wine is subtly lying there too. It also has a nice throw. A lot of scents die on me within two hours or so, but this one seems pretty strong. I have high hopes for what its going to do in the next few hours.

Dry (2 hours): Well, pooh. The wine is still there but the rest of the notes went powdery on me. Not to an extreme, but still noticeable. Its not bad, but its not what I want either.

Dry (5 hours): Its like a herbal soap now. Nothing is really distinct.

Consensus: I agree with other reviews in that it’s not a scent I would wear in public/at events. It’s nice and comforting, but there is no wow factor for me once it’s on my skin. But I’ll use up the imp on days I’m not planning to leave the house.

[MiasmaResonance]

Divine in the imp. Reminds me ever so slightly of Rose Jam from Lush, without the sweetness.

 

It's a very sexy scent. It ends up being a spicier, more winey Rose Jam on me, into the territory of turkish delight (lemon and rose), and it's gorgeous.

[Cazzadeathgirl]

got this as an imp earlier today as a freebie from the lab (not a personal choice of mine)

In imp- it's a honey colour after a small sniff I was overpowered by over sweet golden honey, red wine and a hint of smokiness

So far- I am really not liking this 1, turning out that any type of good scents are not for me

Wet on skin- not nice at all! I don't mind honey as a sweetener in my food but as a perfume? Ewww

I can smell a fair hit of red wine, the honey is slowly calming down and not so sweet any more...I'm smelling more of the smoke now which is a good thing, much better than pure honey

Dry on skin- well, it's bearable I guess...just not something I'd wear anytime soon, not a good summer scent (bees would be chasing me by the smell of things)

Overall- this would probably be aged or going to a new home with a family member that likes sweet scents and wine

[Magycmyste]

In the imp: Honey tinged with a few drops of wine.

 

Wet on skin: Still honey and wine, but the myrrh comes out to play as well.

 

Dried down: Sweet wine, with just the barest hint of myrrh.

 

Throw: This has a little bit of throw on me, butt wears pretty close to my skin.

 

Verdict: **** This is very pretty, but I'm not too sure I need a bottle of it. I'll hang on to the decant, though.

[Veronica]

In the bottle and wet, this is a heady sweet wine, with a hint of honey. Dry, the honey becomes more prominent and this is sweet honey, still mixed with fruit from the wine, and just a hint of incense. A more wearable Anubis for me, but still not something I would reach for.

[Sarah Morehouse]

My body chemistry is a lush: all wine all the time.

 

I know this is a gorgeous perfume and I wish it worked for me. When it first goes on, it is so complex and ever-shifting between the myrrh and honey and something herbal-spicy. But very soon it is overtaken by syrupy, grapey wine. It smells like a dessert wine that I would love to drink, but not wear.

[DiesMali]

In the imp: STRONG honeyed wine.

 

Wet on my skin: Thick, strong, cloyingly sweet honey and wine. It's warm honey.

 

Dry: I love BPAL's wine note, but this is the honey that doesn't really work on me. Syrupy-sweet, almost to the point of being cloying and sharp. It's tolerable after about an hour, when the myrrh comes in and the honey takes a backseat to it and the wine. Unfortunately, my skin just doesn't like this particular honey, and I have wine/incense blends that work much better on me.

[LizziesLuck]

Wet: Super fruity at first, perhaps from the wine?

 

Dry: I wish Athens had actually smelled like this when I went...

 

This is beautifully balanced, sweet and sultry. Usually Bpal's wine note is not good on me at all, but this is great. I think the addition of the Myrrh makes the difference. Lovely.

[d0gbones]

In the imp: sweet, cherry-like.

 

Wet: Definitely picking out the honey and wine. It actually smells like a super sweet Cherry B.

 

Dry: Powdery, sweet myrrh. I think it may have been the myrrh giving it a cherry edge earlier because that's gone completely. Wine can be a bit iffy on me, but it's really working here, maybe because it's just a background note.

[freyasfae]

This is actually a myrrh I can tolerate, probably because it's eclipsed by the honey at first, but then mellows down to a light, spicy floral that would be perfect for summer.

[Cali]

First sniff: HONEY!!! Jeez, that's a lotta honey.
Wet: There almost seems to be something fruity about this, but it's probably the florals messing with my brain. Still so much honey.

Dry: Ahh, there's the myrrh. I'm also getting the red wine now. It lives up to it's name quite brilliantly.

Smelling it I can imagine some sort of a greek god infront of me, or some sort of an old, sunlit greek lane,

[Casablanca]

Wand: Honey and a nose-punching boozy red wine. That syrupy dread in your mouth as you think, "That was one too many." The smell in the air right before the big party's surprise fist-fight.

Wet: A combo of booze and syrup almost knocks me out. I feel like I just smeared honey, wine and canned peach syrup on myself. It smells like a harmless personal issue and maybe a little too much free time. I can't help but picture it attracting bees.

Dry: Myrrh, like that one responsible person at every party, is trying to wind things down, but the honey and booze have locked her in the closet. Canned peach syrup is seeping into the rug somewhere. At this point no one remembers how it got there, but remember that time someone threw a strip of uncooked bacon at the ceiling to see if it would stick (it totally did), and yeah, no one has any attention span right now.

I don't think this is my thing.

[roseus]

In the imp: red wine and sharp honey.

 

Wet: Honey. Too much honey...

 

Dry: Sickly sweet honey choking everything out. I thought my honey problem had gone away, but I think it is just certain blends that it goes wrong. Too bad, I thought this was going to be lovely!

[CitrusFiend]

Lab frimp. Athens opens with a delicious sweet fruity wine but quickly dries down to a single note myrrh. Other reviews mention sticky sweetness, and I'm surprised that didn't happen on me because my chemistry likes to amp sweet notes. Instead, the drydown of Athens is resinous and smoky without a trace of sweetness. Which is great for myrrh lovers, but alas, I’m not one of them!

Edited January 7, 2017 by CitrusFiend

[lizabelle]

Wine and honey. Way too much honey, actually--I'd be happier if there was some more tartness or spice to ground it. For the first 20 minutes or so it's almost sickeningly sweet, not helped by its large amount of throw. Over time the wine does come out as the main note because I seem to amp it, but I much prefer Blood Kiss as a honey/wine blend because of the other notes. I get no myrrh or flowers at all until much later, at which point there's a faint whiff of something spicy and a little powdery. I wanted to love it but this is not a favorite for me.

[Sionnanful]

I got this as a frimp in one of my orders, I can't remember which, but my initial thought was: Berries. So many berries.

 

Out of the Imp: As I said, a whole lot of berries. It was so overpowering that I thought it'd be too much, so I let it age for a good while. (I can't remember how long, either.) When I came back to it, it's almost like those berries fermented and became wine, because that's exactly what it smelled like now! It was odd to me, that a perfume could do that.

 

After Trying It: I found out that berry/wine scents do nothing to me, and all I have is complete honey on my wrist now. I get small hints of floral, but the honey just took the show. Good news is, it's not a bad one, though. I'm not much a fan of honey, but if I ever feel it, I'll pick up this perfume again. (As a smalls side note, I was also a bit disappointed that that's all I got after trying it, because I absolutely love the smell of wine.)

[Lucchesa]

In the imp and wet, Athens is a honey-forward scent, with myrrh in the background and just a hint of red wine which is all the red wine I can usually take in a blend. As it dries, the myrrh becomes more assertive, and after an hour or so they switch places, so it becomes primarily a myrrh scent with honey backing it up. Resiny, drily sweet but not sickly in the least, not floral or alcoholic on me. I quite like this!

 

ETA I spilled most of that first imp, and a second imp I was frimped, which seems a bit darker in color, is much more about the red wine on my skin, and I like it less.

Edited October 5, 2018 by Lucchesa