Pinched With Four Aces

[alicia_stardust]

Pinched With Four Aces, C.M. Coolidge.

Colorado Maduro tobacco wrappers, cinnamon bark, coffee bean husk, and dry woods.

 

Yup, I was stupid for only getting a decant and not a full bottle.

 

I was sure that the cinnamon would burn my skin and the coffee/tobacco would be overpowering. Misk U was not my friend.

 

HOWEVER, Pinched with Four Aces is this amazingly creamy, heady, spicy coffee with a touch of cinnamon and a warm comforting scent. For a while it smells a bit like vanilla cake but then that smooths out and I again get the creamy, heady, tobacco and coffee scent.

 

Lovely!

[herbhealer]

Stunning gourmand scent that is rich and smoky. I wish this would become part of the regular catalog, it's amazing!

[deleahrium]

I am always attracted to blends with tobacco in them, but I've learned tobacco amps like crazy on my skin, and I smell like I just crawled out of an 80 year old chain smoker's lungs.

 

Pinched with Four Aces DOESN'T do that! It's definitely reminiscent of a man, but not in a man-scent way. This is what I smell like after spending the night in my man's bed. It's totally the morning after scent-- the sweetness of my foody BPAL mixed with his natural dry dull spice, wrapped up with his morning cigarette and a shared cup of coffee.

 

And there is someone I'm thinking about in particular, and he doesn't know how I feel. I miss him more and more each time I smell this. Pinched With Four Aces has literally inspired me to tell him of my desire, the next time he returns home. Thanks, Beth. Really.

[bifemmefatale]

Pinched starts out just as I had dreamed--the perfect marriage of Misk U and Underbed! Coffee backed by a hint of cinnamon and a wreath of tobacco smoke and woods. Then five minutes into drydown, something-one of the woods?-goes PURE SOAP on my skin. Woe is me! Figures, as usual it's lovely on my daughter. But she can't have it. Off to the swaps...

[storme]

In the imp: a sort of toffee-coffee ice-cream flavour.

 

On me, wet: seriously, melted coffee and toffee ice creams, mingled in a bowl.

 

On me, dry: toffee-flavoured coffee with shedloads of cream and maybe some sugar. Very caramelised and foody, and the coffee scent is pretty dilute.

 

Later: Man, this got guzzled up by my skin pretty quickly. But my skin feels *sticky* where the scent was applied, still.

 

Verdict: My SO will probably dislike this, and I think it's too sweet for my taste.

[PurringPulsar]

Pinched with Four Aces

 

In the imp: dry coffee with sweet creamy cinnamon-like a chai latte!

Wet on skin: now I smell the dry, crisp, smoky smell of tobacco mingling with bitter coffee and creamy cinnamon chai.

Dry on skin: mmm, this is lovely! The cinnamon note in here is so wonderful-it reminds me of the creamy cinnamon from the original version of Three Witches, which I adore. It smells like milky vanilla chai in here, but with coffee, this scent does have a feel of spicy latte to it, reminiscent of Christmas at Starbucks. The tobacco and woods add a gorgeous soft dryness but the tobacco doesn't overwhelm. A very comforting scent!

After a while: the wonderful milky scent of the spice in here reminds me of some of the clove scents, so smooth and cosy, it wraps around the tobacco and the fragrant woods like a blanket, with just that hint of coffee, and it's not the bitter coffee I feared. This is what I hoped Misk Uni would be like-it's not caramelised or as dusty, but truly gorgeous. It also reminds me of Count Dracula, another favourite of mine, but without the leather. There's an almost tonka-like sweetness to the scent though. The scent becomes less dry and tobacco-y and woodsy and becomes sweeter, creamier, softer and smoother. It really does smell like there's some tonka or vanilla in here-maybe both, but none are listed. It just smells like a lovely creamy clove (not cinnamon) scent now. Like a delicious milky spicy drink, but there's a lovely woodsy base that grounds the scent. This will be perfect for rainy days and winter. Then at the very end of the scent, about 5-6 hours later, the most beautiful vanilla scent comes out, like pure vanilla beans, and it reminds me of that wonderful vanilla in Lyonesse…it also reminds me of benzoin.

Verdict: why, oh why, oh why did I decide not to get a bottle of this? I was thinking 'should I, shouldn't I?', thinking the cigar tobacco would be too heavy, and thinking the coffee would smell bitter and overwhelming. But now I've tried a decant, I pine for more. first, it is the most wonderful chai latte scent. the perfect amount of coffee and the perfect type of coffee-it's not bitter. The tobacco plays over the creamy spicy coffee with it's dry, smoky, crisp tones and the woods are dry and dark, but smooth. The coffee does fade and the scent becomes creamier, smoother, and something in here makes it smell beautifully sweet. is it tonka? Or maybe benzoin? or amber or vanilla? I don't know, but it is good, it smells both like a warm cup of milky vanilla chai (reminds me of the Nocturne Alchemy chai scents but with cinnamon instead of cardamom) and also like a deep and rich vanilla-amber/benzoin-tonka scent with a wonderful wooden backdrop. Think the golden vanilla extract scent of Lyonesse (without the mossy flowers) meets the woodsy tonka of Count Dracula and the tobacco-tonka of Perversion-sweet and luxurious and sexy! And it lasts for ages on me. I want mooooore…but it seems this one is on the 'most wanted' list and is quite a rarity…I'd rather not but it seems I'll need to save some Ebay funds for a bottle because it really is that magnificent.

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? yes, and I'm kicking myself for not getting a bottle! And it's now becoming as coveted as some of the rarer, most coveted LEs…

If you like this, try: Miskatonic University, Three Witches, Count Dracula, Ventriloquist's Dummy, Perversion, Lyonesse

[abejita]

I got a bottle of this, thinking it would be a sure winner. I love Misk U, after all, and so few BPAL blends have a coffee note to them.

 

I really want to like this one, and I do, to an extent. But there is one note in there that is really funky to my nose. The tobacco wrappers are turning on me, I think. There is sort of an acrid tinge to them, and a vague hint of... wet cardboard? Argh.

 

I'll hold onto this for a good swap, at least.

[chrisann]

Yeahbutnobut's review pretty much sums it up for me!

 

I tried this on at the C13 M&S, when Evon had her "boxes-o-doom" out for us all to salivate over. I schmeered a wee dab of this on my wrist, and promptly forgot about it, with the evenings excitement distracting me. When we got back to our hotel room, I kept getting little wafts of this off my arm, and it was just so amazingly yummy!!! I'm not a fan of coffee, don't even drink it (blasphomy in Seattle) I HATE Misk U, but this is... swoon worthy yumma-licious on me!!

 

It's got the cinnamon that is dry and warm, not "red hots" variety. very "Chai" like (and I loves Chai!!) The coffee is rich and dry too, with a dash of milky vanilla, I do not get specific tobacco or woods in this scent, but I know it's there because of the warmth it lends to this scent. It is just so beautifully blended! it makes me feel comforted, warm, sensual...edible

 

Skyrocketed to my top 10!

5/5 with hearts in my eyes

[indicolite]

Ooh, Misktonic U has had the scroll smell removed (I love you, Misk U, don't be mad at me for speaking of you in critical terms, please!) and had a dark woody scent added that is probably a blend of the woods and cigar wrappers. Darkly delicious for my coffee days, yum de yum yum. I understand the popularity of this scent.

[Neely]

In the bottle: creamy caramel, smells in the bottle like Red Lantern? Huh? Where am I getting caramel from?

 

Wet: caramel, which is how my nose is interpreting coffee bean and tobacco wrappers together. There is a smokey note,and this is foody without being really foody. Still very similar to my nose to Red Lantern, I am too lazy to get up and get it to compare and see if I am just imagineing it smells like Red Lantern.

 

Dry down: caramel and smoke, and the tobacco leaf really comes out. Ok, so maybe my doofy brain is interpreting coffee and wood as caramel. Smoke is still hanging out, but chillaxin' smoking some doobie.

 

30 minutes: spicey, creamy, woody caramel, with a hint of smoke. Oh yeah!

 

Conclusion: I love this, so much so I got a second bottle! I only wish the Dogs would stay permanent. I wanted to try so many more, but couldn't afford to. And I would so pay more to reorder again and again. I can only hope that the doggies return someday.

 

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

[Naamah_Darling]

This is sweet and full in the bottle, a mix of sweet coffee and faint cinnamon swirling over a scent like the inside of a cigar box: pale wood and the softest, faintest aroma of tobacco.

 

The tobacco smell is almost like caramel, a similarity that comes out more as I wear it. This is wonderful. A sweet, smooth scent, unisex edging toward masculine. I love this, and I'm sorry I didn't get a bottle, or even a full imp.

[dronzeka]

Thank you so much to an awesome co-purchaser for putting a sniffie of this in my package - I was sure I'd never get to try it!

 

Anyway, initially the coffee went to that sort of sickly fake hazelnut that ruins Misk U for me, and I thought, "Oh, good, I don't like it." But that goes away, hallelujah! I get a kind of very faintly coffee, warm, slightly-caramel-y scent with just a hint of wood and maybe just a tiny hint of tobacco. It's soft, warm, comforting, and one of those scents that smells a little bit like you, but better. Perhaps a teeny tiny bit of spice.

 

It is *really* nice. But I'm not sure I'm enough in love with it to go crazy trying to track it down. I'd definitely take more if it were offered to me, but that's not going to happen! I think it's a scent I'd really like if I could slather, and of course, this tester is lovely, but I can't afford to slather.

 

Maybe I'll just have to deem one day a special day, and slather the little I have, and be done with it!

[Ajila]

In the bottle – Creamy coffee, with something bitter in the background

 

Wet on me – Warm creamy coffee, which just a hint of the cinnamon (and maybe the wood) behind it

 

Dry on me – Warm and clean and spicy. Mocha covered with whipped cream and sprinkled with cinnamon

 

Overall – I could bathe in this, it’s stunning

[melange]

After Misk U fought so horribly with my skin chemistry, I was nervous testing this scent. What a relief when it turned out to be, instead of a coffee-grounds headache, an amazingly warm, rich, milky cup of coffee! Four Aces has soft throw, lasts for a few hours, and I will cherish my single bottle.

[monkey1123]

Based on the description I should not like this at all, but I've just put some on my wrist and it's very wearable. The tobacco is way, way in the background but adds an extra something that makes this really complex and wonderful. It's not really "me", but I'm glad that I got to try it.

[funkmoppet]

With huge thanks to filligree_shadow, who generously frimped me this to try.

 

I'd actually been avoiding even wanting to try this one, because I didn't want to fall in love with something this rare and prized.

 

But oh - the legend is true! This is SO gorgeous it's hard to find words. It's in the family with Misk U, but it's so much gentler. None of the really overpowering caramel or coffee note here. It's gorgeous straight from the imp and onto the skin. Foody without being too sweet, woody without overpowering everything else. It's subdued and gentlemanly.

 

Utterly divine. Everything I feared it would be, because now I get to lament that I'll never have a bottle, and guard my precious imp like Gollum.

[LittleGreyKitten]

I paid a retarded amount for this. It is definitely a relative of Miskatonic U, but I like Misk U better. This has a sort of syrup base scent, not overwhelmingly sweet, then touched with coffee. There is also a sort of darkness wreathing it, too, which is neat. The cinnamon is so subtle as to be almost imaginary, which is fine. I also get a bare hint of dustiness, which I belive must be the wood.

 

Most wood and all tobacco are usually absolutely overwhelming on me, and horrible. Yet this blend shows no evidence of vileness from either one. It is beautifully blended, for sure, all the elements work smoothly together. For some reason it remains at "mm, that's nice" rather than orgasmic, for me; I can't pinpoint exactly what it is that makes me kind of indifferent to PWFA's charm, but for some reason I am, a bit. It has a short wear-length on me, even in a scent locket.

 

3.5 or maybe 4 on some days, out of 5.

[Avery]

I was kicking myself for ordering A Bold Bluff and not ordering this, once I realized that BB wasn´t as cherry tobacco as I´d hoped. But the Evil MIstress of Toast ( ) included an empty bottle of PwFA in my decant package, and... I´m so glad I didn´t spring for it! It´s nice, but... the sweetness is a bit cloying to me, and doesn´t really smell of "coffee" so much as the idea of coffee. It is really a bit too sweet for my tates, and something also rings false about it that I can´t put my finger on. Anyway, I luuuuurve Miskatonic U, and will be happily sticking with that (and ordering a new 5ml soon) as my sweet coffee perfume fix and no longer have to kick myself OR lust over this one.

[slave1]

PINCHED WITH FOUR ACES

 

In Bottle: Vanilla creamer

 

On Skin: Wow, I don’t see vanilla listed, yet the first thing this scent reminds me of is Antique Lace. Vanilla cream in a cup of coffee with cinnamon sprinkled on top of the delicious frothy foam. The woods are sweet as well, and only slightly earthy. This scent actually reminds me of MonsterBait Underpants now, and I’m thinking the dry woods in here must be sandalwood. The cinnamon offers a bit of spice here, just as the saffron does in Underpants. Yes, this is Underpants more masculine side. After about an hour I don’t smell coffee at all, and this is not what I would call a “coffee scent”. This is a beautiful blend and I’d love to have more of it and am quite sad I didn’t initially order a bottle. Sweet, soft, foody without making me hungry, and so very comforting. I want to bathe in this. I love that it is sweet, without being cloying or overwhelming. Everyone must try this scent, bravo Beth!! Light throw and short wearlength.

[jolarocknrolla]

i wish it smelled on em like it smells in the bottle - because in the bottle i get a creamy sweet nutty sort of scent like i did with Storyville - on me it's all tobacco wrappers and something like cologne w/ a bit of toffee. No coffee (I didn't get any w/ Misc U either though) and only a hint of sweet vanilla.

[mooncityminx]

Pinched reminds me a lot of the original Beaver Moon. It does have a rich creamy nuttiness, and there is the coffee, but then I smell a dry sort of cinnamon like the powdered spice sprinked on top of a latte and after it is completely I dry I could easily mistake it for the Beaver. For me it smells a lot better in the bottle than it does on my skin. This is a personal skin chemistry tragedy that I must learn to live with. Not a lot like Miskatonic U, not as sweet and without the book smells. There might be cardamon in it which may be the 'cinnamon' that I am getting. It is a somewhat similar spice to Enraged Groundhog Musk, but there is a lot less of it.

[The_Merf]

This is definitely more what I wanted Misk U to smell like--the coffee scent is much fainter and much less foody than it was in that blend (GC version) and you can absolutely pick up on the papery-tobaccoy smell of the wrappers (which is a cool scent). This smells like a cigar (with a bit of coffee mixed in) while it's being smoked (sadly, even the nicest cigars don't smell nice on your clothes the next day). I don't really pick up on any cinnamon bark and if there's woodiness, it's really in the background. This is a pretty fantastic blend and I'm really glad I got to try some.

[TrailerTrashPrincess]

dry dusty stale woody cinnamon stick that was briefly dunked in a strong cup of coffee with lots of sugar and french vanilla creamer.

 

an interesting scent, but not *me*

[DangerInRed]

Mmmm. I wasn't planning on liking this as much as I do.

 

It starts off as a sweet coffee, but the coffee mostly disappears on the drydown leaving a woody...tobacco (I think), with a hint of cinnamon. It smells similar to Black Lace almost, but less vanilla.

 

 

I was gonna get rid of my imp, but now I'm having second thoughts...

[Limelight]

Interesting comparisons to Misk U on here. Misk U sucks but this doesn't. Unlike the old, dusty coffee I get with that scent, the cigar wrappers and cinnamon in Pinched really come through for me with a sweetness that reminds me of the atmosphere in a fine spice and coffee shop. Really good! I think this is one of the few BPALs that I could remain enamoured with day after day, at least for a while. If it were a GC, which it should be, I'd consider making it one of my signature BPAL fragrances. Come on, y'all, you know you'd make a lot of money!