Fire Phoenix

[VioletChaos]

Enterprise, adventure, restlessness, impulsiveness, and dynamism: Chinese musk and red musk with hyacinth, cactus flower, cubeb berry, galangal, tobacco, pink pepper, and sarsaparilla.

in the bottle: sweet, spicy and just a little bit of a citrus note.

wet on skin: same, but with a slight cream in it, like lemon curd, not like whipped cream.

dry down: this is quickly becoming a combination of lemon, gingery-spice and a touch of curd.

in all: this is my second wearing. the first time, i got more spice, less citrus. this seems to morph, and i wouldn't be surprised if a new element came out the third time i wear it. one thread that is consistent is that all the notes *totally* relate to Fire as an element. i personally will be using this in spells where i need some Fire energy present, but at the same time, i think it's a "toned down" enough Fire that it can be worn whenever you just want a little more warmth and energy in your daily routine. my favorite so far of the Phoenix oils i've tried.

[femmefatale]

Oh wow, this is freakin' amazing! It starts off very spicy but it quickly becomes greener and somewhat sweeter. I do get something vaguely like lemon, but not (if that makes any sense LOL). The pink pepper is there, but not overwhelmingly, just enough to add a bit of kick to it. I do get a little floral, but it doesn't scream girly flowers. Instead it reminds me of huge, bright firey looking flowers. The musk (which isn't amping like it normally does) is adding a sexy vibe to it. As it dries further it becomes just a bit smokier and warmer, not so spicy.

Really this is just very wellblended and each time I think I pin this down, something else pops up. It's really really beautiful. It makes me feel like I can take on the world and look hot while doing it.

[jehrichardson]

Crazy! I was worried about this one - sarsparilla = root beer = gedditoff gedditoff!!

 

Wet and dry, this is lemon. Rich soft lemon. This is what lemons dream about when they are babies. This is the lemon that lemons want to be when they grow up.

 

Do I get any of the other notes? Musks? Nope. Cactus flower? Nope. Cubeb? Nope (I don't think so, Google tells me this should be peppery). Galangal? Nope. Tobacco? Nope. Pink pepper? Nope. Sarsaparilla? Nope.

 

Luckily I love it! Yummmmm

[hkhm]

bottle: musk with a spicy citrus note and that pink pepper buzz.

 

wet: i don't get any sort of root beer scent, i'm getting a crazy-strong pink pepper and hyacinth scent. it's nice but insanely strong.

 

dry: this does not seem to fade at all. good thing i love the pink pepper because that's all i can smell now.

[damiel42]

Ooh, but I've been looking forward to this one! I love gingery scents, so the galangal sold this for me.

 

When I first sniffed it, I thought, "ok, I'm in for more bottles!"

 

To my nose, the musks are just a *roundness* to the smell, and not as up front as they sometimes seem to be. I really, REALLY get the galangal - Win! That's really the BOOM smell for a little, then a sweetness starts to pull forward, maybe the cactus flower? I don't specifically smell hyacinth, but I think it's contributing to that Round smell.... It's really lovely. Not necessarily something I'd normally choose, but ooooooooh, I'm glad I did.

 

In my head, this is all sunrise colors- yellow, pink, lavander...it's warm, but not nearly as "fire" as red phoenix, I'd say. "Dawn Phoenix" is how it smells, for me!

[angelicruin]

In the bottle: Very spicy herbal scent

 

Wet on skin: Spicy cinnamon and a touch of lemon with pink pepper

 

Drydown: Still spicy, a bit of floral, and now more musky

 

Glad I took a chance getting the bottle right away. Smells amazing with nice throw.

[greenranger]

This starts off well blended, and I can't discern the individual notes.

 

It almost smells like there is cinnamon in this, barely, but there's no cinnamon listed. It's probably the kick from the pink pepper.

 

One of the flowers is amping a bit, or the cubeb berry is. I'm not so familiar with any of those three notes, but, the scent is becoming sweeter.

 

Sweet, spicy, firey and complex.

[forspecial_plate]

To me this is incredibly similar to Great Sword Of War, except Fire Phoenix doesn't have cocoa.

 

I love the big burst of citrus, and I would swear this has lemongrass, or some kind of orange or mandarin note. It's a little bit like Antonino, also (in addition to Great Sword). Anyway, enough comparisons.

 

Something about Fire Phoenix is nearly buttery.....which is funny, because someone else said the same thing about Metal Phoenix. But there is a richness to Fire Phoenix that makes it nearly a foody scent to me. I think of orange when I wear it, the color, that is. But there is a spiciness and heat to it, as well. Overall, it's pretty complex. I think I can smell the red musk but not the Chinese musk. But that doesn't surprise me, judging from the other Phoenixes, the Chinese musk is very light and I'm not sure I can pick it out of any of them! I'm sure it's contributing, though.

 

What I don't smell here are the floral notes. I suppose the cactus flower could be contributing to the 'oranginess', but overall this isn't a flowery blend to me. It's mostly spicy and musky. I'd love to smell more of the sarsaparilla, but that could come out more with a little age. I do really like this, and out of the Pheonixes, this is the most likely bottle candidate.

 

Edit: I've decided I like Wood Phoenix a lot better than this one. I will still wear it, though.

Edited December 30, 2008 by Forspecial Plate

[iiinterstate]

Lots of ginger and citrus to start, but not in a potpourri kind of way. The sarsparilla and galangal make this really interesting... almost foody but not quite. It's fresh and spicy at the same time.

 

I like this a lot, and I'll probably get a bottle.

[Little Bird]

I was excited about all of the notes listed for Fire Phoenix, but all I'm really getting from this blend is lemon. It's like lemon verbena and maybe a warm bakery type note in the bottle, and then it's all lemon balm on me. I don't get any spice - just soft lemon that disappears after an hour and leaves a hint of a clean scent on my skin.

 

I'm disappointed that I don't get any spice from this. It's just soft lemon that fades quickly on me

[Delirium1009]

In bottle/imp: Very juicy red musk with a strong dose of sarsaparilla and spicy pink pepper.

 

Immediately on skin: This smells cola-like on my skin with a twist of something almost citrusy. The sarsaparilla is very strong and mixed with the red musk it’s almost candy-like.

 

After a little while: This blend is juicy red musk (sort of a fruity/dusty musk scent on me) with a touch of sarsaparilla and an undercurrent of floral notes. It’s rather strong and feminine.

 

Overall Impressions: Red musk just doesn’t work on me, and this blend is no exception. It’s dusty, fruity musk with cola-like hints of sarsaparilla and just this odd spiced scent to it. It reminds me a lot of an Asian import store I visit sometimes. This scent is very dusty on me, and very red, but I don’t really get fire out of this blend.

[starwild]

I'm very surprised this blend is not getting more press, because whoa Nelly, it's insanely good.

 

On me, it's a bit like the red musk of Mme. Moriarty with a kick of pink pepper and tinge of lemon and cinnamon. When my mother smelled me, she got mostly cinnamon, even though that's not listed in the notes.

 

I never get tobacco out of this, nor sarsaparilla or flowers.

 

Yet unlike Mme. Moriarty, which I can't wear often because of its thick heaviness, Fire Phoenix is very wearable and not overpowering. A deep scent without being too rich or heavy. After a few hours it morphs down into this medium-depth, sweet-spicy scent that is simply delicious and lasts forever.

 

It's everything I love about BPAL and nothing I don't. Multiple bottle purchase for sure, and in my top ten.

[blu°]

I'm surprised to see there's no almond in this, because I thought from first sniff all through its wearlength that the main note I smelled was almond.

 

It's probably the red musk together with something. I hadn't identified red musk at all before I saw the notes' list.

 

So much for my notes identifying skills, lol.

 

Sniffing it from the decant this was the most pleasant scent among the phoenii, but on my skin it is a bit cloying, I fear. Not totally unpleasant, but too much not me for me to be enjoying it. It's a golden-orange yet not intensely coloured scent in my mind. Pretty sweet and quite a bit sticky, although there are dry-er, spicier ingredients mingled into it.

 

It most reminds me of Sagittarius 07 for some reason.

[Iceblink]

Sexy-spicy-musky-WARM, and a bit herbal. This smells a bit like good-quality potpourri. I can pick out the red musk and a LOT of pink pepper but otherwise everything in here is blended together very nicely. I like this--not sure if it's bottle-worthy but it's good.

[jade_starlight]

It's musky and herby and very peppery. It gives off the feeling of something being on fire without anything even close to smoke. Definitely not for me.

[akiko]

I was worried about the tobacco in this, because that always turns to stinky ashtray on me, but I had nothing to fear!

 

In the vial, it smells sweet & spicy, cinnamony (enough so that I said, "oh, damn, this is going to irritate my skin," but there's no cinnamon). On my skin, this morphs: from the cinnamon-sweet smell to a slightly tobacco smell to a soft, spicy resin.

 

I love you, Fire Phoenix!

[PurringPulsar]

Fire Phoenix

 

In the imp: oh, this reminds me of Red Phoenix, but spicier, and with a hyacinth note.

Wet on skin: pink pepper! Lots of it, and it goes well with galangal and red musk.

Dry on skin: this is nice! Really nice. It’s a hot, dry, pungent spice scent composed of fiery and unconventional spices over a delightful red musk and tobacco base. The hyacinth/cactus flower is a really interesting addition, it adds an uplifting greenish floral aspect to the spicy musk, but doesn’t smell at all soapy. This also has something a little citrus-like, highly reminiscent of bergamot or verbena. Sometimes galangal can smell a little curry-ish but in here it works so well with the pink pepper and musky tobacco.

After a while: not as wonderful as that initial spicy blast, but still quite nice. The scent is not as fiery and now is more like embers, glowing and smoky. I smell a lot more tobacco now and also a lot more floral, the crisp greenish-lilac scent of hyacinth more apparent now. The musk has also turned a little more animalistic (in a good way) and I smell less of the pink pepper. It does smell a tiny bit burnt now.

The musk does come out a bit more at the end and it smells sweeter, and more pleasant. Very sexy as well, I must say!

Verdict: I’m a fire sign (Western zodiac) so it’s no surprise that this elemental phoenix works very well on me. it’s got my beloved red musk in it and it smells a bit like Red Phoenix, but I think this is nicer than RP. The spices are unusual and lean towards the savoury, but don’t smell like something I’d eat for dinner. Pink pepper is wonderfully dominant for a while. The tobacco adds a dry smoky scent and it’s one of those tobacco notes that I like. But the floral notes add an intriguing and unique aspect to this otherwise red, spicy, hot and musky scent, they add a fresh and spring-like scent which contrasts all the other notes but miraculously, doesn’t clash and doesn’t smell soapy or loud. I had a feeling I’d like this but it’s even better than I expected. Must get a bottle.

Emoticon rating:

Is it a keeper? yes! I will get a bottle.

If you like this, try: Red Phoenix, Great Sword of War, War, Hermia, Trick 2 (if you can find it)

[dawndie]

In bottle: lemon cola

 

On skin: root beery sarsaparilla (does anyone pronounce "sarsaparilla"? I say "sasparilla" like the old-timey drink)

 

Half-hour later: a bit of spice warms up, but remains mostly sweetened cola

 

In conclusion: it was *hours* before the distinctive red musk appeared, which I love and look forward to. By that point, this seemed to be masculine cologne on me. I wanted Fire Phoenix and added Earth Phoenix as a "maybe," and it turns out I didn't like this one as much as Earth Phoenix. Better on a guy, I'll bet.

[lainevierge]

In my decant I was getting cinnamon, and then I got the cola mentioned above as I was applying the oil.

 

But once it was on my skin it was nothing but LEMON. My skin totally amps the tiniest hint of lemon in a scent, and not in a nice way. I feel like there's other fiery notes underneath, but the overwhelming lemon note is throttling everything else.

 

Oh Fire Phoenix, I wanted to love you.

[fairnymph]

Sniffed in imp: Deep chesnut-brown oil. Sweet, musky, spicy - and almost foody. Red musk, pink pepper, and sarsaprarilla jump out. The first and the last make the think of cola and root beer, syrupy sweet. Hints of fresher florals and citrusy galangal.

 

 

[sookster]

 

straight sniff from imp is the most elegant aisian blend....gorgeous florals...

 

once applied this does not disappoint...a slight lemon and musk with flower notes peppered

throughout....very impressive ... a beautiful blend for beautiful woman

[nekogrrl]

In imp: I almost get a cinnamon out of this. Wierd, since it's not listed on the notes.

 

Wet on skin: Hello pink pepper!

 

Dry on skin: The note which became most dominant on me was the cactus flower; on my husband it was the hyacinth. Underlying both was still the pink pepper.

 

10 minutes later: The florals in this have mellowed down the pink pepper, and it has become a nice skin scent. Not a lot of throw, but you can still take a sniff and know it's there.

 

I think this might be worth a bottle.

[gchris]

in vial: warm, smells a lot like buttered popcorn and herbs. Interesting.

 

wet: mmm. warm and lemony. Buttered popcorn still and lemons. Interesting combo. This is turning out to be almost pure lemon candy.

 

dry: Yep, lemon candy perfume.

[nellieburger]

In the decant: Spicy musks.

 

Wet on skin: Fruitier scent – berries become prominent in the musky blend.

 

Dry on skin: A bit more floral now… Flowers and musk.

 

It's a lovely scent! Not my favorite of the Anniversary collection, but may be bottle-worthy!

[Nidaba]

Wow, I tried this without remembering or looking up what the notes were in it, and I am way surprised it has no cinnamon. I wonder if it is the pink pepper I am smelling.

 

On me this is actually a lot like Chimera, which is odd since they do not share a single note. This is all hot and sweet cinnamon on me, very spicy and nice, which is not bad, but not really what I was hoping for. I want the lemon and fruit others are getting or else the rootbeer from the sarsaparilla. Haha.

Edited January 12, 2009 by Nidaba