Cairo

[roisnoir]

The essence of holy Kyphi, beloved incense of the Egyptian Gods.

I reached into my pile of imp's ears and pulled at random.. this came up, but I decided I wanted something else. Pulled again, and got it again. It was very insistant about being worn.

In the bottle: Very incensey. Almost a dry smell.

On: Chocolate!? No, but it's a similar tone. And citrusy incense. Bergamot or lemon or something tart and yellow. Sunlight and stone.


Drying: This is starting to smell like some sort of cleaning fluid. My chemistry isn't agreeing with it much, which is a shame, since I like the scent wet. It'd be good as a room scent, but not as a perfume on me.

Later: It's still not for me, but now it smells almost exactly like Padmini's Lyrics incense, with a little champa or something thrown in. (I'm convinced I have something around that is this exact smell, but I'm not finding it.)

[autumn24]

Old Cairo is a scent truly devoted to its sacred origins as a Ra-temple night-drawing incense. Wet, it smells strongly of honey, raisins, and wine. The middle notes reveal the dry woodiness of cypress, and then the headclearing scent of bright lemongrass. Upon drydown, the sweetly resinous myrrh approaches, and it is then that the perfume becomes truly sacred, evoking visualizations of pathways though the mind.

[Belladonnastrap]

Old Cairo smelled like incense and figs in the bottle but once I put it on me it smelt strongly of...lemons. Once it settled it turned into this wonderful sweet kir smelling scent that invoked images of relaxing on a boat while muscled young men fed me grapes as lightly tanned women with kohl lidded eyes fan my hot body.

 

 

Staying power is sort of middle ground, arund hour 5 I had to reapply. Not entirely sure if this will be a repurchase but its moving on up.

[Koumori]

Very fond of this one. Dries down to a soft, full, resiny scent. I don't get the strong citrus note that others seem to; it's mostly resin and wood on me, with maybe a hint of something floral (jasmine?) Not much staying power on me; definitely a subtler scent. A possible purchase.

[jj_j]

Wine, faint honey, and definitely lemongrass. Maybe just the teeniest touch of apple blossom.

 

This is nice, but it isn't for me - definitely sweet, no resin notes when I wear it, and I smell more and more like Tom Kah Kai soup as the day goes on.

 

Love the visual of the name, but not what the scent does on me.

Edited May 23, 2004 by jj_j

[Nadirah]

The moment I put it on the smell of lemon grass or something like that hit my nose. AS my skin absorbed it I could really smell a luscious incense. Like a really hard to find resin of some sort. I wish this was a bit stronger, since it seems to fade away.

[Reinaluna]

When I first put on Old Cairo it smelled just like streight lemon. Thankfully in 5 min The fig and honey apeared. I used the imp up for a "lounging around the house not doing anything special today" fragrance. This Is one that needs more time to grow on me.

[Dulci]

This was one of Elizabeth's gifts to me, and as I lived in Cairo for 5 years I was very pleased and excited to receive this one.

 

At first: Lemon/lemongrass? something citrusy on top of other notes I'm not educated enough to identify.

 

As it matured, I smell hot stone and taste incense smoke in the back of my throat. Not exactly incense smoke like cone or stick incense, but like the loose incense mixes made of mysterious sticky lumps of rosins and bright red seeds that the goodwives of Cairo would burn in their brass braziers on Friday mornings.

 

After about an hour it faded to a lovely soft sweet scent with some citrus in the background if I breath deeply enough. I like it a lot!

[magpiedee]

I am utterly unable to pluck out different notes in Old Cairo. It is honestly one of the most exotic scents i've ever known, and I can't find anything familiar in it. If I had to paint it, it would be a desert whose dunes are made of bright yellow couscous studded with sparkling little carrots, secretive little dates and swirling precious herbs. It is curvaceous but dry to me, like the belly of a cobra. It is sun on stone, 100-year-old smoke, fragrant ashes on a cat statue. I would wear Old Cairo to the Met to sit by the temple and meet a mysterious man of my dreams. If I wasn't married, of course.

 

Unusual, subtle, exotic, warm, dry, brilliant. Love it.

[savage_carrot]

I grew up in the middle east...and this reminds me strongly of some ittar..(the oils are called ittar/attar there). Can't really place it, but it's very resiny/woody...It starts off very strong...can't detect any citrusy notes at all...and dries down to a powdery, resiny, dryish scent...Not for me.

[Becky]

I have this on one wrist now and I'm loving it! at first it was pretty incensy, but with some honey too. now its becoming more citrussy, softly lemony, not a sharp harsh lemon. but still incensy and honey. I love it!

[shriekingviolet]

Initial Impression:

Very sharp, spicy smell. Maybe with a hint of green. There's definitely some musk in here, but I'm not sure what else. I need to wear it to really get a feel. No sweet scents here, but I like it all the same.

 

After Wearing It:

You know I could have sworn I reviewed this scent before, but alas I did not. It took me a while to write a review even after I wore it so my memory of the scent isn't as good as it could have been so bear with me.

 

Wet this reminded me a lot of Old Athens. It has the same smoky wine flavor though it doesn't remind me so much of marinade this time. There must be a blend of honey, myrrh and red wine like there was in Athens. As time progresses, Old Cairo smells more smoky in an incense way rather than a "kitchen of a fine restaurant" kind of way. It's thick, resiny and sweet, richer and denser in texture than molasses. It definitely smells like incense made the old fashioned was with gummy resins and perfumed oil burned in lamps rather than the scent produced by a stick or cone. Decadent yet reverent and oh so mysterious.

 

Final Thoughts:

Great as a perfume, but even better as a room scent. Great for inspiring a spiritual, pious atmosphere for deep meditation.

[Ishtar]

This is truly beautiful.

 

I was a bit worried at first because incensey smells can sometimes be too smokey and overpowering for me, but this is a lemony, floral incense, with none of the headiness that I usually associate with incense or resins.

 

In the vial and wet, I smell fig, lemongrass and honey more than anything else. It then mellows out to a wonderful spicy floral that, amazingly, is deep and light at the same time.

I love it. Big bottle, please!

[paperdoll]

Initial Sniff: Honey, wine, dates, and amber. That's what I smell, regardless of what the ingredients actually are!

 

Wearing: Like every scent that contains wine, that is what I smell more than anything else. The drydown is almost identical to Old Athens.

 

Final Impressions: Wine = yuck with my body chemistry. I was so looking forward to a yummy incensey scent, but this isn't it.

[Ina Garten Davita]

First Impression: I have no idea what I'm smelling but it gave me an instant headache. This is the very first time I've gotten a BPAL induced headache.

 

Second Imperssion: Burning sand and sickly, rotting lemons.

 

Final Analysis: Utter disappointment. But I suppose it's good for my wallet that I don't adore every scent I try.

[Astburygrrl]

First Sniff: Lemonheads candy..pure sugar! I detect a note of musk hiding behind this..

 

Wet: Still quite lemony & musky..sun-baked sand & clear blue skies w/ fluffy white clouds

 

Afterhours: The lemon has faded into the background and i now smell a sun-drenched sandy temple w/ asst. fruits on the altar tray as an offering..theres also the slight smell of papyrus scrolls..

 

Hrmm..overall I like this but it doesnt have a very good staying power

I think this would be great layered w/ Black Lotus or Blood Lotus though!

[Eris]

I got an almost grape-like smell when I first applied it, but that faded very quickly. As it dried, it became sweet, thick incense, and then I realized it was almost identical to the Nag Champa my former employer used to burn in the office. It also reminded me of the Blue Nile incense a man with a beautiful smile used to sell on the streets near my alma mater. I wouldn't mind burning this stuff, but I'm not sure I want to wear it on my skin. It is extremely long-lasting, however.

[Astra]

Old Cairo is a very complex and unusual blend, which isn't surprising since original Kyphi incense is a complicated mixture of about 20 ingredients. Consequently it's hard to separate individual noted from the effect of the creation as a whole.

 

Lemon is the first to emerge; it's not a pert, refreshing lemon, but rather a dessicated, archaic lemon floating above wine, raisins and resin.

 

Eventually hard, sere wood emerges and I picture honey-soaked wood burning slowly on the brazier of a great stone temple.

 

I really love this scent. I like to wear it on the hottest summer days, because it ultimately evokes the dry dusty heat of the desert.

[renaissancerouge]

This is just beautiful! As far as a mood this evokes, I can't really add to my sister's lovely description above.

 

If your skin scent does a whole lotta changin' through the course of the month, like me, Old Cairo is a kaleidescopic fragrance that morphs with every wearing.

 

Today it's pretty simple on me-lemony sweet and freshly spicy, like the smell of a little kitchen garden in the sun. On the drydown I'm smelling something smooth and buttery...

 

The very first time I tried it, however, it was bursting with spices and resins and took me straight back to last summer when we spent a lot of time putting together loose incense and reading up on rituals and goddess lore. In fact, I was reading Great Cosmic Mother last summer, and the mystical indignation (it's possible) I felt is easily summoned by this oil.

 

[Nepthys]

Kyphi is my all-time favorite incense - it's a rich, exotic, voluptous fragrance that is pure magic made properly, but my own attempts at making it haven't been able to duplicate the right scent. This oil creates that smell exactly in the bottle & it is pure enchantment. Unfortunately, it morphs on my skin into a flat resin smell, like gum arabic. I've had to content myself with burning it as a home scent but that's not a bad thing -- burned it evokes the wine, honey, cinnamon, sandalwood, frankincense, raisons, myrrh, etc of Kyphi. This is lovely.

[VelvetSky]

Straight out of the imp, Old Cairo reminds me a lot of Black Lotus. Very sweet and fruity, but with a smokey sharp figginess underneath.

 

A few minutes later, I'm getting lemon. No honey, but golden raisins mixed in with the citrus.

 

The lemon stays pretty sharp on my skin all the way thru to the drydown.

[nephthys_lvx]

I fell in love with this one the minute I opened the bottle. Sweet and smoky at first, it dries down to a spicy, resiny scent. I'd love to use this as a room scent as well as wearing it. Looks like a 10 ml bottle of this for me...

 

ADDED Sept. 19:

 

I love this one. Wet, I can smell wine & figs, with underlying resins and spices. Dry on my skin, it's a rich, sweet, resiny scent. In my oil burner, the wine and fig scents really come out. This would be a wonderful scent for meditation or ritual work. It will live in the box where I keep my temple oils. Already ordered a 5 ml of this!

Edited December 9, 2004 by Shollin

[serafina pekkala]

I was pleasantly surprised when I got this one, a freebie, because I had just been to Egypt a few weeks before.

 

In the bottle: bubblegum found at the bottom of plastic icecream cones. Bubblegum with a smoky spicy undercurrent, that is.

 

This becomes sweet candy with a lemon sherbet twist, but I also get currants.

 

Then it dries down to a crumbly incense, which is alright. The wine is much clearer in a burner, with the incense smoldering behind, but I got kind of nauseous of it.

 

This is too heavy for me. Me and wine scents just don't mix well, I've noticed. I'm sorry I didn't take to it, because it *does* remind me of Egypt, I just can't pinpoint why.

[Miggins]

My imp of Old Cairo was a gift from the lovely Pookstrell and I am so grateful - not knowing what kyphi was, I'd totally overlooked it.

 

Wet, I can smell red wine and a touch of myrrh (which actually smells wonderful on me for once). Into the drydown, I get a cool, herbaceous edge - cool on my nose like eucalyptus. Once settled, it is beautifully sweet, but not sugary - like a whole bowl of figs and honey and raisins. Good natural smelling sweetness. It's slightly buttery as well.

 

I've read that kyphi is very relaxing and calming. I will wear Old Cairo to work tomorrow to see if it helps. An absolute definite keeper. I adore the wanderlust range!

[leapylees]

This scent has convinced me that there's somehing far wrong with my nose. On sniffing the imp, my first thought was 'ugh! Parmesan!' (much as i like eating parmesan I don't want to smell like it). However I tentatively gave it a go, hoping that I wouldn't go around smelling like strong cheese all day. Luckily, it quickly mellowed down to a smell reminiscent of rose and lemon Turkish Delight. This lasted for an hour or two before becoming slightly more spicy and incensey, though the Turkish Delight is still prominant. Overall, quite a strong, sweet, long-lasting scent but also warm and comforting.