Incubus

[valentina]

Spectral white musk and the heart-stopping chill of sheared mint, fanned by caramel-touched body heat, and the diabolical sensuality of black musk, nicotiana, and sage.

Incubus reminds me of Tiresias, except with musk instead of patchouli-sandalwood, mint instead of black currant and sage instead of muguet. I suppose that sounds like a rather significant "instead of" list, and I guess what I'm getting at is that Incubus is, like Tiresias, a scent where the sweetness of caramel is wonderfully juxtaposed with contrasting fragrance elements, such as resins, musks, tobacco and green, herbal smells.

On my skin, Incubus starts out with the white musk that I associate with scents like Dorian and the spicy, sweet, yet not foody, tobacco-caramel smell. The mint does bloom after a few minutes, causing me some concern, as mint can be a monster on my skin, but the black musk also kicks in with its dark, dry, almost peppery smell, and everything balances out wonderfully. The balance of the Incubus holds very well on my skin, and it's very long-lasting without being obnoxious.

I'd say that the musk gives Incubus a crisper smell than Tiresias with its patchouli, but I wouldn't call Incubus a light fragrance -- it's very, very true to its description, for there is a sweetness with a distinct dry, almost sour edge underneath. I just love scents like this, they have such dimension and contast. A bottle of Incubus may be in my future!

[Jenesis]

This is... hard to describe. It has this dark, smokey vibe about it, while there is a sticky sweetness underneath (the caramel). It's not really me, sadly.

[Musicmaid]

Wet: The first thing I noticed was the caramel, which smelled very sweet in the imp, but unfortunately, not so much on me. I smell like minty maple syrup, which, while not a bad smell, just doesn't work on me. Alas, and I was so excited by the description.

 

Dry: Oh, now the sage is coming through...hmm, much better. I can catch glimpses of the nicotiana, and now the maple-ness is a bit more subtle.

 

I'll give it some time.

 

After time: Mmmm....now the sage is really coming out.

 

Meh, it's nice, but not for my body chemistry. Sweet scents tend to go straight to my sinuses. Perhaps I'll try it on the boyfriend. I could see it working better on him.

[ChloeKEvil]

Incubus is almost pure caramel on me, but it's so delicious that I don't really mind. I hate eating caramel, but love smelling it... mmm...

 

The caramel is blended with the mint and musk at first, but over time it arches into a pure caramel zone for a long time and then back into smoky, musky caramel goodness.

 

I need a bottle.

[forspecial_plate]

This smells mostly of caramel on me, and yet it's a dark scent, very heavy on my skin. Suffocating, almost.

 

Actually the first time I tried this, I loved it. I thought I had found a new favorite. Then I wore it again yesterday and it creeped me out somewhat. Hard to explain but I got such a sinister feeling from this scent. I don't get it. Caramel seems like it would be somewhat cozy and warm, kind of sexy, right? This scent is like burning red eyes peering at me out of darkness. I can't see the figure these eyes belong to, and I'm not sure I want to.

 

Something else I don't get, I read all the other reviews and nobody else smells lemon in this? To me there is something very tart underneath the caramel that reminds me almost of lemon.....almost but not quite. I think this contributes to the foreboding atmosphere of the scent. I don't smell mint at all, and the tobacco is very well concealed too. Usually tobacco stands out to my nose a bit more. Maybe the 'lemon' is coming from the other herbs, somehow.

 

Overall.....I'm just not sure what to make of this. I want to love it, I really do. But I may have to wait a while before I can try it again.

[Rovylern]

I got this as a frimp from the lab, so I decided to try it without looking at the notes beforehand.

 

This, on me, smells like vomit and cigar smoke. My arm smells like a bar bathroom at closing time. I don't know what happened between this and my body chemistry but oh, my dear gods. This is definitely going in the swap pile.

[mhickle]

In the imp, this smells so familiar, but I just can't place it. It's sweet, but with a sharpness to it.

 

Wet, it's sticky sweet with smokiness in the background. As I drove to work, it kept making me think of eating bacon with maple syrup. Of course, I was also hungry!

 

As it dries down, it loses the stickiness and becomes more complex. I never really get mint out of it, or rather the mint is well-blended and no one note screams out from the rest of them. It's a smokey, musky, sweet scent, and I really like it! At first I wasn't sure, when it was still in the wet phase, but now I'm really into it!

 

ETA: Hours later, it has sweetened again! It is like pure pancake syrup now!

Edited January 8, 2008 by ViolaVanWilde

[ranyart]

In the imp: strong, very sweet mint.

 

Wet: the mint dominates, but the caramel is present as well, making this very sweet. At this point, my partner smelled me and said "you smell like waffles covered in lots of syrup."

 

Dry: the caramel seems to be stronger than anything else in this one, sadly. I love smelling sweet but I wish the lovely musks came out more. This dries down to a faintly musky caramel; the mint is almost entirely gone once the oil has dried. I told a co-worker the waffle story a few hours after I put the oil on, and she smelled me and said she thought I smelled pretty waffley as well.

 

I'll probably try this one again, but while I like how I smell, it wasn't quite what I was expecting. I wanted something sweet yet dark and dangerous/sexy, and this wasn't it.

 

ADDED Feb. 13:

 

On two separate occasions, I've worn this and people ask me why I smell like waffles. I honestly don't think Incubus smells that waffley or mapley on me, but that's the reaction I get.

 

It's very sweet, though; as soon as I put it on I'm hit with a sweet, caramel-drenched mint. To me, the black musk helps to cut the sweetness as the oil dries, but it seems like people around me perceive me to be much sweeter-smelling than I think I am. I'm not sure if this odd sweet/musky combination works for me, but I really love it so I'll keep trying my imp. I'd certainly recommend this to someone who wants to try a sweet scent that's a bit unusual.

[erraticprophet]

Initial Impression: caramel, vaguely floral

 

On Wet: mint, caramel, sage, the tobacco smells more floral/herbal rather than leafy

 

On Dry: tobacco, caramel, mint

 

Final Impression: Yum! I love this! It's not too sweet, not too anything. Perfectly rounded.

 

Rating (on a scale from 1-5): 5

[Ajila]

In the bottle – Caramel with a hint of sage

 

Wet on me – Mainly the caramel with the crisp clear mint behind it, odd

 

Dry on me – After going through a mint humbug stage it finally settles into the warm caramel skin scent I hoped for, touched by just a hint of greenness that I presume is the nicotina

 

Overall – I dunno, the dry down is just what I hoped for and on paper I should love it, but in reality it just left me a bit cold and I just don’t understand why

[gchris]

In Vial: Smells like baked goods with a fresh green scent

 

Wet: Yep, still the same. The mint gives a bit of tingle to the nose when sniffing.

 

Dry: Foody scent, sweet, with a hint of refreshing mint and sage..

[Magda]

My first impression is of burnt caramel, which I'm sure is the mint/caramel mix.

 

It calms down into a cool, syrupy sweet scent after a bit, but my hand is burning where I applied it. That never happens--I can wear the heaviest cinnamon and not even turn pink.

 

It's a strange scent. Not unpleasant, I just can't decide if it's crisp or foody, if it's cold or warm. It gets better as it goes on, morphing into thick caramel, then pulling back down to sweet, smoky warm goodness with a herbal edge.

 

I'm going to need to try this a few more times before I can decide what I think of it.

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Peppery-spicy-foody, a wee bit sweet.

 

Wet: Less peppery-spicy, more foody. Like spiced caramel apple cake.

 

Dry: As it dries, hints of mint, sage, and some light spicy floral are emerging, as well as the musks. But the caramel is still largely overwhelming.

 

Summary: Musky caramel with wisps of sage. Good throw and wearlength.

 

Not my thing.

[Miss Lynx]

Wow -- this is a really unusual and interesting scent. Looking at the notes, it was hard to imagine what it would smell like -- they're all so different! But they actually blend together really nicely.

 

It's a musky scent more than anything else, but it's nowhere near as earthy as that might imply -- the "spectral" aspect of the description seems quite appropriate. It manages to be both sexy and kind of ethereal at the same time. The mint does add a touch of coldness to it, and there's a slightly dark herbal undercurrent from the sage.

 

It does smell a touch more masculine than feminine, and would probably be great on a guy, but it's certainly not overwhelmingly so, and I have no doubt some women could easily wear it too. It's a fairly gentle scent, not at all overpowering.

 

The one note in it that kind of throws it off a bit for me is the caramel. Caramel has killed several other otherwise likable scents for me (Red Lantern, Tiresias, and at least one Salon scent), because on my skin it somehow smells kind of like rancid movie-theatre popcorn butter, with an added edge of cloying sweetness. In this blend, it's not as strong as it could be, which is a mercy, but it still keeps me from being able to like it as much as I otherwise might.

 

Still, for someone who could wear caramel, this could be great. On me... Not so much.

 

Grade: B-

[ImperatrixMundi]

I think my nose must be from another planet. All I can smell from Incubus is celery?? WTH? Wheres the mint, and tobacco? I don't wanna smell like celery

 

No, I get that too.

 

It was only in the middle though. Wet it was minty caramel, on my skin it morphed slowly into celery (I think this is actually the sage, mint and tabacco making trouble. I tested it against my husband's nose who HATES celery and he didn't smell it at all). The dry down started mellowing, so I'm going to age it and see if it settles...

 

 

I get the celery too! Ack!

Incubus - how cool and sexy does that sound? And what do I get? Celery and caramel. Duh.

[taramarie]

Wet on my skin, Incubus smells like just caramel. Before it's even dry, it smells like just honey. I'll keep this imp and try again at some point to see if the other notes show up.

[Clammmms]

Wet: Uhhhhh maple syrup. To the max.

Dry: Still smells like maple syrup, and I'm getting pretty nauseous. Thank god I only tested it on my wrist. I've gotta wash it off post haste.

 

I know this has musk and sage and mint in it, but holy crab apples all I can smell is maple syrup! This is definitely going right into the swap pile.

 

0/10

[savage_rose]

This smells like a lighter version of Gluttony, sprinkled with evil. There's a sweet syrupyness, tempered by astringent sage and tobacco, topped by mint. This is really interesting, but...it's not me. It's a fascinating scent.

[akiko]

I'm also getting lots of caramel, but I know I amp sweet liek whoa. It's somewhat more complex than straight caramel, but I can't pick out any other notes. I like it well enough that I'll keep the imp.

[greenranger]

This is another one that I tried at work, far away from the scent description. I thought I was smelling anise or caraway...with a slight celery scent that came and went, all overlaying a base of tobacco and maybe musk.

[galahad]

In The Bottle

Mint and tobacco with a touch of caramel

 

On Application

Caramel and mint. I was afraid to put this on as the caramel, butterscotch scents turn rancid on my skin.

 

Dry Down

I can catch the sage as it dries down on top of the carmel and mint. Unusual. 5 minutes in the mint is really amping which is a good thing. The caramel is smelling rancid and almost like maple syrup. 20 minutes in and the whole thing becomes drier with the nicotiana taking centre stage. At the moment not a keeper but will give it another go.

 

Rating (0-5)

2.5

[LadyLuckless]

I tried this on my fiance, and it turned into a bizarrely sexy stack of syrup-slathered pancakes enriched and twisted by the tobacco and musk. I couldn't stop sniffing him, I half wanted to take a bite!

[brsis]

Initial thoughts: There is a DAMN GOOD REASON why this was in my very first imp order (Which, okay, didn't turn up for a very long time >.> Damn Royal Mail >.>)

 

I think I will actually cry buckets if it doesn't work on me. I REALLY want this to work on me. Concept wise, it should be right up there in the top five - notes wise, I'm really not sure what to expect. Something herbal and darkly sweet?

 

In the imp: Burnt caramel, a hint of something almost tobacco (That's the nicotiana, then), sage, musk... this is definately diabolical. It's sweet, almost, but it's got a smoky darkness to it and a chill herbal edge. I've never come across something that smells that much like the description.

 

On the wrist, wet: Mint. Blinding white freshly cut mint, with the sombreness of sage creeping in. The barest hint of musk and caramel. This is delicious, but it's very different from what I expected from sniffing the imp.

 

Twenty minutes later: Mmmmmm... This is hypnotically good. Smoky, dark musk and caramel make this smoulder, while the herbs - much less discernable now, just a vague white herby haze - floats over the top, giving it a breathless edge. It's dark and langurous, which is what I normally look for in my sleep scents, but... I don't think I'm going to be wearing this to bed ^.^

 

Verdict: Keeper, and a bottle please.

 

Tl;Dr: Smoulderingly dark and sweet caramel, nicotiana and musk, with a breathless murmur of herbs.

[CocoaLissette]

Celery. Kid you not, this deliciously described scent smells like a bombast of celery and sage on me. WTF is wrong with my skin chemistry? People speak of warm caramel, bright mint...those notes flee from bottle to the air. Oiy. Maybe some alchemy will work its magic after a longer drydown.

[aquazoo]

Starts with butterscotch and spice. It's a warm scent.