Bonfire Night

[angelfish323]

Beer, woodsmoke, tar, and treacle.

I am ordering a bottle of this. This decant is immediately going into my imp carrier for my purse. I can see this being something I want to wear through the fall and winter. I love it so much more than I anticipated!

It's a beautiful combination of sugar and smoke. It's foody, without being too much so. It's eating treacle (although I confess I've never had treacle, but I imagine this is what it smells like) around a bonfire in the middle of the woods. It's woodsy, smokey, with hints of malt, caramel, brown sugar. If I try, I can imagine there's beer in there, but it's not alcohol-y - it's sweet and malty.

It's a tad masculine, which I don't always want to wear myself, but I definitely want to wear this. I imagine grabbing this on days I want something slightly sweeter than Samhain when the weather is reminding me (like I could forget) that Autumn is here.

I suspect it would be super sexy on a guy as well. Now if only mine would comply with my wishes to test things on him . . .

[Little Bird]

I am strangely attracted to the concept of this scent, but it really doesn't work on me. This reminds me of being 15 years old and at a bonfire party, irritated when some drunk woman spilled beer on my shoes. I really don't like a lot of boozy scents, and beer just isn't something I want to smell like. Bonfire Night has that cheap, dirty, gritty smell to it. I get tons of woodsmoke from this (that smell that clings to your hair and clothes when you spend too much time by the campfire), with an undertone of cheap beer. In the drydown, the booziness fades off and I get a heavy burnt sugar note from this. It's crazy sweet and, like Sugar Skull, ends up being way too sweet for me to handle. I do get something of a hazelnut coffee smell from this, as others have mentioned, but it smells as though its been drowned in burnt brown sugar for me. Bonfire Night is too smoky and too sweet for me.

[tinyvulture]

the combination of woodsmoke and syrup calls to mind Hearth 2005 minus the pine notes. to me, they are very similar. this is a heavy, dark scent, but also sweet and comforting. i don’t smell the beer or the tar, just the thick bonfire smoke and caramelized sugary treacle. there’s a slight nuttiness as well, maybe hazelnut? but i wouldn’t say it’s a foody scent, because the smoke is such a strong element. a quintessential autumn blend for sure.

[cobblersmaid]

I had to get this, as I love anything to do with Guy Fawkes.

 

It does not change too much on me wet or dry.

 

I think it smells like someone burnt caramel popcorn...I LOVE IT. Eating slightly singed caramel popcorn, with a nice beer...

 

It also lasts and lasts and has great throw on me!

[n0thing]

It starts out HEAVY on the treacle, and it's proper..treacly, not that nasty dusty smell that pops up in Misk Uni and a few others.

 

Then the smoke creeps in, followed by the beer (which sadly doesn't last on me - i wish it did, i LOVE the beer note! )

 

It then fades to treacly gunpowder..i like it a lot, has a proper 'bonfie night at a fair' feel to it, but i wish the sweet beeryness stuck around longer.

 

Definately a keeper though!

[porcelina]

my only complaint about bonfire night is that the scent does not last nearly long enough on my skin. this is a dark, rich, sweet, smokey scent- i can't say much beyond that, but it is so good. i only got a decant but i definitely need a bottle of this one.

[annwfyn]

On me, this is scrummy loveliness! This is a lovely thick dark scent. I can definitely catch the woodsmoke and the treacle, and there's a slightly hint of apples to my nose as well, although it's not mentioned. It smells of autumn - of early nights and warm fires. I feel warm just wearing it.

[Elilara]

Darnit! I was sure I'd be madly in love with this one, but it turns out it's the woodsmoke that causes Agnes Nutter to make me cringe, not the gunpowder- The woodsmoke smells sharp, cold, and acrid to me no matter what blend I try it in. Sadness.

 

HOWEVER! I can tell this is just my sniffer/skin chemistry, because the other notes underneath form something really beautiful- nutty, buttery, warm- not even too sweet... If the woodsmoke note would just tone down on me, it would have been awesome. Luckily, my best friend LOOOOVED it, so my decant is in a good home now

[hecate_jones]

In the bottle it's very smoky, woody, and a hint of the treacle. On... roasted chestnuts.

Why it smells like roasting chestnuts, I have no idea, but that's *exactly* what it smells like to me.

After an hour or so, the nuttiness goes away and I'm just left with a sweetish, smoky, musky scent.

This one's really lovely, a perfect 'the weather's turning cold now' scent.

[forspecial_plate]

I found this toasty, slightly sweet and spicy. From the reviews I think I was expecting much more sweetness, actually. But this is comfy and toasty. To be honest it's hard to describe this without comparing it to Possets' Morgan Le Fay, because they smell very similar to me. I think MLF is more on the foody side, and this one is more on the woods/smokey side, although not by much.

 

This is a great scent for this time of year! I was afraid of the beer note but I don't really smell it. And from the other reviews I thought the treacle would be more sticky-syrupy. Bonfire Night strikes a nice balance between the sweet and smokey qualities. To me the smoke is just a whisper.

 

Edit! Wow....I wore this again, and I got almost the opposite of my first review. Very sweet, very smokey. Honestly, this time I had to wash it off, because I think I put on too much, and I think I was overwhelming the people around me! Definitely more sweet and smokey than the first time I wore it, and now I can't decide if I still like it! I'm going to set it aside for a while and try again, because I do think it has potential to be something I really like.

Edited November 10, 2007 by Forspecial Plate

[maproot]

reminds me-just got home,and bonfire night is one of my new faves,and would be perfect to fall asleep with(ok,so I have no life-but the smokiness is comfy;I dont even really smell beer though-some almost caramel perhaps?

 

ADDED Jan. 31:

 

I think I bought it because of remembering Guy fawkes night,and some bonfire nights I'd been to in the UK, and this scent is as close to bringing those bonfire nights back as humanly possible. When I first put it on I get smoke, which is how it should be. IN RL I dont like smoke whatsoever, but this is soft smoke, reminds me of worn tweed jackets, sitting around at folk clubs, library books, and autumn leaves.

 

It has a dusty slightly dirty feel, but is warm and inviting at the same time. It is my new beloved, and I am hoarding my bottles>

It does have quite a bit of throw, and while it is not something I'd wear if I wanted to feel oh so energetic and sparkly, it is a comforting slightly boozy woodsmoke that is comforting, and is my new favorite scent to wear for going to sleep.

 

ADDED 7/21/09:

 

No carrot smell for me; just luscious woodsmoke, and a bit of beer, and a slightly dirty or dirt scent, maybe whiskey smoke if such a thing exists.

 

This is my go to sleep scent most timesand very evocative of Bonfire Night GUY FAWKES night I spent in Camden town, London about twenty three years ago, as well as everyday burning leaves bonfires in mid afternoon, Maybe this is slightly masculine, definitely not clean feeling, but very luscious and warm

[euterpe414]

Oh man, and to think that at first glance I thought this one might not work on me!! Bonfire Night is an incredible smoky blend. It blends pretty equally the smoky, charred scent found in Brimstone or Agnes Nutter with a thick syrupy, molasses like sweetness. The mixture of the two isn't overwhelming, but a pleasant sweet smell that is very reminiscent of fall and winter- chimney smoke and the pelasant odor of baked goods. It almost has a bit of caramel corn feel to it, if I catch it at certain times . This is the perfect blend to wear when going on a walk outside when it's crip and cold and a bit windy, as it's really warm and fuzzy. I absolutely adore it and will treasure my bottle.

[Miss Lynx]

Wow... Can this really be my 450th review? Hard to believe!

 

My first thought on seeing the description of this one was "What? What were they thinking?" But then curiosity overcame me and I ordered a decant anyway. And it's really nowhere near as unpleasant as you might think from the description.

 

First and foremost, it seems to be a foody, sugary scent. The treacle note really dominates it, and while I didn't mind that note at all in Queen Alice, it's a bit strong here, and leans unpleasantly toward caramel, which is usually a complete scent-killer for me. However, it's not too bad - nowhere near the Caramel Death that Red Lantern, Tiresias, etc. turned into on my skin. But still -- the main fans of this scent are going to be people who like those scents, as well as Sugar Skull and other similar ones. This really does smell like something you should eat rather than wear.

 

Not getting anything much in the way of tar, which is probably good, though there seems to be a bit of an ashy, smoky note hovering in the background. Nor beer either, though I'm really not sure how that would be rendered in a perfume anyway. There does seem to be a bit of something dark and earthy counterbalancing the sugar/treacle note, though, which is kind of nice.

 

On the whole I think I sort of half like it and half don't... It's nicer than most of the other sugar/caramel type scents, but really, I'm not much of a foody-scent type person.

 

Grade: B

[steffanina]

Bonfire Night-

 

In Bottle: Whoa! Evil smoke and tar.

 

Wet: Not quite so much smoke but still evil. About 100 pounds of tar with a drop of evil burnt caramel in the mix, and I don't mean toasted, I mean burnt.

 

Dry: Nope, I think the burnt caramel was a sweet fantasy. I feel like I'm nose-down in a puddle of tar, and it's not pretty. It's a fascinating blend, but clearly novel rather than something I want to wear. I wish it really did smell like woodsmoke, because I adore the smell of woodsmoke in my hair in autumn.

 

Overall: Novel but scary.

[ND¢]

Very 'dark' smoky ashen smell combined with what dries down to be just enough molasses sweetness to make this one nice, though not the type of scent that works well on me. Worth trying, I would say, for everyone.

[mawaridi]

In the bottle, I get coffee, smoke and a hint of something faintly acrid and salty that I guess must be the gunpowder. Unusual, but definitely promising.

 

As soon as it touches my skin it morphs into...salty celery? What?

 

This is intriguing in the bottle and absolutely, bizzarely awful on me. I'm so disappointed by my stupid skin chemistry

[PurringPulsar]

Bonfire Night

 

In the imp: whoa! Burning vetiver! Like Djinn but without the spice/resins, sweeter than Agnes Nutter.

Wet on skin: vetiver, vetiver, vetiver…and smoke. And a hint of beer!

Dry: oh yes, this does smell like the 5th of November. It’s not as obviously vetiver now, because the wood smoke is now the dominant note. And it’s an amazingly realistic smoke note-like charred woods on a blazing bonfire, and a hint of peppery gunpowder from the fireworks lighting up the autumn sky. It smells just like the smoke that lingers on my clothes when I stand too close to a bonfire, and I love that scent of burnt leaves and smouldering wood. Of course the vetiver enhances and deepens the smoke. I also smell a hint of sweetness, but it isn’t the heavy treacle I was expecting. I also smell the faintest hint of beer, but it doesn’t smell like ‘student on a pub crawl’ on me, it adds an interesting touch to this smoky, earthy scent.

After a while: the smoke is still there, it doesn’t change much, though I do smell more of the vetiver. it smells very tarry indeed, but in a good way. Normally I’m not keen on the asphalt-smelling vetivers but in here it works well with the smoke. It’s mainly smoky woods and burning though, the perfect bonfire scent, with the faintest touch of sugar to it-but not full blown treacle. For a tarry, burnt, vetiver-heavy scent, this isn’t bad at all. It is very evocative for me.

The scent becomes a surprisingly pleasant and soft sweet burnt wood scent (I think there’s sandalwood here now) with vetiver. It’s like the gently glowing embers, warm and ashy and with smoke lingering. This is growing on me-I’m very surprised. It is the perfect bonfire scent.

Verdict: here in the UK, the 5th of November is a bigger deal than Halloween, and I am so pleased that Beth made a scent for it. I thought, from the notes, that I would hate it, but this is the surprise hit of the Halloween series. This scent is incredibly evocative of its namesake night. It’s the BPAL that evokes so perfectly the scent of bonfires. The charring woods and scorched leaves, the gunpowder smoke hanging in the crisp air, the bang and crackle of fireworks, a sweet hint of sugar gently softening it all. One of the smokiest BPALs, don’t wear this scent too close to a smoke alarm, it’s bound to set it off. That’s how authentic it smells. The beer and treacle are very subtle but add a little more atmosphere to the smouldering scent. And the tar…well, on me, that’s vetiver, a strong vetiver, but in here I like it because it really enhances the bonfire scent. the drydown is almost like an incense-tinged pyre, with the wood notes becoming more aromatic in nature, with a touch of ash to it. This is too smoky for everyday and I still prefer Devil’s Night as my more wearable smoky scent, but it’s the most accurate-and my favourite-autumn bonfire scent from the Lab. This is what I wanted to get from Agnes Nutter and Brimstone. I’m certainly getting a bottle.

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? Yes! Surprisingly good. Need a bottle.

If you like this, try: Djinn, Agnes Nutter, Brimstone, Mad Meg, Devil’s Night

[jewelbug]

 

Imp: A slightly smoky, sort of musty dark sugar.

 

Wet: Yup, very sweet with an odd smoky and almost nutty note. This reminds me of what i remember hearth smelling like.

 

Drying: More pronounced nuttines, along with the smokey very sweet scent. Later into the drydown this takes a bad turn towards plasticy burnt sugar.

 

Overall: Alas, burning treacle is not for me. This is way nuttier than I expected (seeing as I didn't expect that at all!), and while its an interesting scent, there is also something unidentifiably weird about it on my skin. Off to swaps!

Edited October 1, 2008 by jewelbug

[Northernskygal]

This is.. slightly sour on me.. maybe it's the tar.. or the beer.. it also somehow reminds me of.. veggies.. yeah, not sure how but.. it is like a sour salad bar on my wrist..

 

My skin + Bonfire Night =

[mooncityminx]

In the bottle Bonfire Night is smoke and dirt. I like both notes so this was promising. Unfortunately, BN hit my skin it amped agressively with the smoke. This is not sitting around a campfire smoke, this is not bonfires in the distance or the smoke from a wood burning stove, this is more like "OH-NO-MY-HAIR-IS-ON-FIRE!" Those who have read my Agnes Nutter review will note that it didn't work on me either. The smell on my skin is pretty much identical, suggesting that this is a skin chemistry issue. Sadly I don't get any treacle or beer or anything other than burnt. It was a beautiful concept and one day I'd love to smell it on someone with the right skin chemistry.

[QueenFae]

Sweet, thick, caramelized burning leaves. Yup, this baby sure does smell like a bonfire! How does Beth do that?? It's magical

 

This is much sweeter than I would have imagined, like someone threw some cinnamon caramel sticks on the top of the fire. The smoke note is strong and deep, exactly like a log burning. This is very interesting, unlike any other.

 

Not quite my thing, but the hubbie will **LOVE** this in his stocking!

[Czarina]

I can't believe I haven't reviewed this one. This is one of only two LEs that I have ever purchased a bottle of and then immediately ordered a second bottle upon first testing the first bottle.

 

I am fairly new to the BPAL madness, although familiar with the concept of nontraditional scents through companies like Demeter. So the idea of a perfume smelling like a bonfire was very appealing to me.

 

The reality of this perfume is hard to describe. In the bottle it is hard to pick out anything but woodsmoke. As this scent dries, I can pick out the smoldering wood, the hops (my ten-year-old thinks it's hazelnut or graham crackers), the sugary note of the treacle, and the tar.

 

I carry a bottle of this with me at all times and if I am in need of courage or entertainment I dab on a little bit. I shall be a sad girl indeed if this does not reappear next Halloween, because two bottles may not be enough for me.

[Mehitobel]

This is a hoardable scent for me - I adore it. It smells hot and candy-sticky, like smoking wet hay, wet old grass turned underfoot, and slightly scorched caramel. It makes me feel slightly feral and quite powerful, like a werewolf watching a Halloween bonfire from the edge of the woods. One of my top three scents, no question.

[mspixieears]

Smoky with a hint of sweetness. This is one of those fragrances that smells completely different in the vial than it does on skin. I can’t really smell the beer but that’s okay as not really sure I’d like to smell of beer! Great throw. And it really does smell of a bonfire!

[Ajila]

In the bottle –Thick black smoke, that hits the back of your throat, stale beer and a hint of treacle

 

Wet on me – A hint of the treacle, but predominantly thick overpowering smoke

 

Dry on me – Thick smoke, ashes and stale beer. It does finally dry into a sweet, hoppy skin scent, but it’s too little too late

 

Overall – Perhaps if my skin had brought out more of the treacle and not turned the beer sour this would have worked, but how it is