Dr. Henry Jekyll

[twilighteyes]

Hence it came about that I concealed my pleasures; and that when I reached years of reflection, and began to look round me, and take stock of my progress and position in the world, I stood already committed to a profound duplicity of life.

A discreet men's cologne of juniper, cumin, verbena, bergamot, mint, and basil splattered with dregs from apothecary bottles.

In the bottle: Sweet and herby, yet masculine, cologne. I can pick up on the cumin, mint, and basil.

On my skin: Green jumps out briefly -- juniper I believe, with a strong cumin behind it, which imparts an earthy spice. Odd! The verbena and bergamot keep this bright and the mint and basil impart a sweetness. Very interesting and pleasant mix.

[Gwydion]

In bottle: The bergamot is quite strong. Very perfumey. Wet: It slides towards the masculine on the skin. The juniper and basil come out. It smells a little like leather even though its not listed. Slowly, the verbena emerges. Im not getting the mint, which is all to the good. This is surprisingly brightly herbal, while still staying a cologne. I wasnt sure at first, but its really wearing well on my skin. Dry: The bergamot reemerges, blending pleasantly with the other elements. I think this is the first juniper anything Ive liked and the mint is light enough not to trip my sensitivities. I was on the fence about ordering this, but Im glad I did. Its complex and well suited to my body chemistry.

[Little Bird]

In their bottles, I thought that Dr. Henry Jekyll smelled much dirtier & less appealing than Mr. Edward Hyde. This scent is sort of flat and bland where the other smells sexy & powerful to me. There's also something very unclean about this to my nose.

 

Jekyll makes me think of rest area bathrooms. It smells warm and makes me think of warm water, and then there's a pale mint & light citrus that makes me think of cleanser. It's a weak, sad feeling scent on me, and it also manages to smell filthy, which doesn't help. There's a dirty, gross note in this that smells like feces on me, and it just gets worse the longer I wear it.

 

This scent makes me feel sick to my stomach.

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Pale yellow oil with a light greenish tint. Very fresh, bright, green herbs. Almost sharp. Refreshing, outdoorsy. Mint, basil, cumin, and juniper dominate.

 

Wet: Sharper and sweeter, warmer, less refreshing. The cumin especially is stronger. The traditional cologne base is more apparent. Something quite spicy is emerging.

 

Dry: The cumin has settled into a deeper, musky note, but also smells a little bit like manure, or leather. A sort of horsey, barnyard smell. Still very sweet and herbal.

 

Summary: Fresh, herbal greenery over musky, funky, earthy cumin - reminds me of Thierry Mugler's Atelier Grimal - with light sweetness. Good throw. Masculine.

 

 

[zankoku_zen]

Oh, Dr. Jekyll. There's a very sophisticated, almost cerebral vibe to you. It's the gentleman's cologne punctuated with dust, cumin and a hint of gin. Enough to let me know that despite that raised eyebrow and cold look, there is a man that isn't quite right in the head.

 

The cumin adds a bit of musty earthiness into what otherwise would be cool, fresh greenery cologne. You're a bit odd, but then again, I figured as much.

[HatterRenoAxel]

In the bottle: green herbs with cologne, a bit of a sharp bite to it which took me by surprise

 

Wet: strong, still very much a cologne, kind of comforting though because it reminds me of something my uncle use to wear. Masculine but in a warm way

 

Dry: Getting what smells like a man who's been spending a bit to much time in the labatory but still is warm and friendly when you disturb him. Very Victorian gentlemen like.

 

Summary: Masculine, warm and green. Not as long lived as Hyde (oh the irony) but still wonderful. I find in terribly ironic that both Jekyll and Hyde smell wonderful on me and that was one of my favorite novels and the good doctor was my favorite character in the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. (part of the reason I bought them. )-chuckles-

[rayvn1]

Crap. This went on really well as a gorgeous men's cologne. Couldn't wait to try it on my Mister. Then the worst happened - it went the same way as my uber-disappointment Famine Sour vomit all over the place. Really, really bad on my skin. I'm not sure what sets it off. With Famine I was pretty new to bpal and had assumed my skin had a bad reaction to the lilac note, but now I think it must be some component it shares with Dr. Jekyll. Drat!

[impolight]

 

The Uncapping: A very light scent is revealed which comes as somewhat of a surprise.

Initially, it is quite difficult to pick out single notes, so homogenous is the formula. After a protracted

episode of huffing, which inspires the wife to eye-rolling and greatly disturbs the poor, wee dog, Lilac

became the first suspect. There is either some Mint or, perhaps, some Lime pith that goes to great lengths

to mask the Cumin nestled smugly in the wings. For the moment, all the cerebral whirling and twirling makes

it nary impossible to discern whether it is Vanilla, Tonka, or Sandalwood lending some sweetness.

Applied to the skin, it becomes momentarily indecent! There is a green, woody fragrance that is very nearly

as subtle as a No. 2 pencil forcibly inserted into the left nostril… Well, that may have been an exaggeration,

a pinecone would surely do the trick! In a good way! Seriously!

This is a much loved scent. It could be worn to the ballet or an awards ceremony. It takes on the coloring of pewter, maroon,

and evergreen. While there is some sweetness here, it could not be mistaken for anything other than a masculine scent.

This is a must have scent for gents who want to look sharp. Thank you once again, BPAL!

 

[edenssixthday]

When wet, this smells awesome -- like a dapper men's cologne full of bergamot and sweet basil and other herbs. And then, as soon as it touches my skin, it becomes the god-awful scent of minty vomit....with a splash of bergamot on top. It's so gross I can't even put into words. It's got to be the cumin. I just know it. I love the taste of it, but when I'm cooking with cumin, my house smells like a combination of B.O. and puke, so I'm going to finger the cumin as the culprit in this blend. Without the GDPOS cumin, I have a feeling I'd like this blend a lot.

[voorishsign]

Mr. Hyde is one of my all-time favourite BPAL fragrances, and I've als been meaning to try his slightly less psychotic twin; I finally decided to cough up the money to get a bottle. I'm very excited I love cumin, juniper, bergamot and basil, but am slightly worried about the mint. However, since I liked this cologne as part of the Mr. Hyde blend I'm fairly sure I won't completely hate it.

 

In the bottle - it's amazing how close these oils are in terms of fragrance. I have both bottles next to me and Dr. Jekyll does just what it says on the tin, it's Mr. Hyde without the darkness. Cumin and basil right from the get-go.

 

On wet - very pretty. It's all of Mr. Hyde's gentlemanly demeanour without his dark underside. Cumin is easily the strongest note right now, with a bit of mint and noticeable basil. I really like this.

 

Drydown - Mmh. So light, so pleasant, exactly what I expected Dr. Jekyll is the oil you put on in the morning when you go to work, and then you add a little Mr. Hyde when you clock out and go out on the town Perfectly well-behaved. My beloved cumin at full strength, that sweetness of juniper to cool it down, the depth of bergamot, and that beautiful, beautiful basil! (I love herbs, can you tell?). Barely any mint. I love it, I'm so glad I have it to keep Hyde company now

Edited December 5, 2010 by Shollin
Removed Lab description

[filigree_shadow]

Sweet, green, and masculine. It definitely smells like cologne to me, and not something you'd expect a woman to wear. Plus it smells sort of like green powder on me after about an hour. Initially, though, I liked it, so I asked my husband to try it. He said it was okay, but it wasn't his favorite (he tends to like ones with leather better than ones that smell like herbs). True, it does smell a little harsh for his personality. So I guess this one won't work for us.

[whisperstilled]

I have a love/hate relationship with Mr. Hyde, so I was curious to get to know his other half a bit better.

 

In Decant: A nice cologne, light and a little sweet. I definitely get the juniper, and bergamot. Not sure exactly what's bringing the sweetness, but the verbena brightens it.

 

Wet: Sharp! That sweetness drops off on the skin almost immediately and I get strong bergamot and verbena, a slightly bitter citrusy quality. There's a hint of spice from the cumin, and some of that sharpness must becoming from the "dregs" mentioned in the notes. Not chemically though, which was my concern there. Must be more of a patent medicine kind of thing.

 

Dry: It's become more of a classic men's cologne, now, a touch bitter and more mellow. The mint comes out once it dries, giving it a freshness. I think on a certain kind of man this would be very sexy indeed, but it's not working too well on me.