Countess Willie

[Ajila]

Chocolate plum musk, red musk, amaretto, candied fruits, and red ginger.

In the bottle - Dark musk and a hint of something citrusy

Wet on me - The musk softens, but there's a bitter green scent that overwhelms the slight hint of vanilla that tries to come through

Dry on me - A sweet, light musk, sensual, but very personal

Overall - I like the dry down but not enough to overcome the bitterness of the earlier stages Edited March 7, 2010 by Shollin

[lilwhiterabbit]

I have really liked everything that's come out of the District I've tried so far....

 

Except Countess Willie.

 

Don't get me wrong, it doesn't smell bad, but it's very bitter in the imp and smells like dark chocolate and musk on me, which is a little too dark for my taste. I was hoping for some of that 'candied fruit' action, but I can't smell any fruit at all. It's just a little too subtle, a little too dark, and a little too close to the skin to really impress me. I think I'll be passing this one on.

[Rouge]

In the vial - This scent is luxuriant and rich, with a little heat behind it from the ginger. It's delicious!

 

Wet on the skin - Mmmm. Sweet and spicy, like a box of candied ginger and liqueur chocolates. So far this feels like a very comforting rather than sexual scent.

 

Next stages - I take it back about this not being sexy. The red musk note springs out within less than a minute, demanding attention. The Lady of the House has drawn me in with sweet talk and sweeter liquor, and now she's demanding payment before she goes any further.

 

Dry down - The musk soon mellows and softens, but the scent actually seems to be growing in strength and intensity.

 

Other thoughts - I really like this blend but I'll be happy enough with just my half-decant.

 

If you like this, try - Penny Dreadful (Not a similar scent, but it gives off the same vibe of slightly languid sensuality to me), Saw Scaled Viper

[donnatron]

Imp: All ginger. Maybe a hint of this mythical chocolate plum musk. But there is also something dirty about this and not in a good way. In an unwashed sort of way. Odd.

 

Wet: SO MUCH GINGER! It reminds me a lot of War (primarily) and Siren. Just a really strong, screaming ginger on me. There are background notes and there is definitely red musk here but it is almost always ginger all the time. And the ginger is so... dischordant from the rest of the notes. Like ginger single note layered over a really light red musk and a little whisper of fruity perfume. It almost smells like that general "throw" scent those of us multiple testers will get wafting around us after trying on three or four (heavier) scents.

 

Dry: Once dry this is quite lovely on the skin. However, it is almost an exact dupe for War, which I already have a bottle of. It's a bit sweeter and there's a warmer tone all around. The scent is mainly a red musk/ginger blend with a hint of chocolate sweetness/warmth and some of that warm, almond-y amaretto scent. The longer I wear it the more it grows on me. Maybe not something I need a bottle of now but after I'm done my bottle of War.

 

Throw: Moderate.

 

Overall: It's pretty. The ginger prevents it from being fully sexy on my skin because it makes it just a little bit too feral and dischordant for my tastes. I think this is something I'll want to try after letting it age up a bit.

[TulaMontage]

In the bottle this has a slight feel of Mme Moriarty combined with shango and bengal, but it's completely subdued!

 

Wet on my skin it's a dirty earthy scent, certainly NOTHING like I expected. I don't understand where the moss like features and aquatic feel comes from. There is a slight edge of spice, clearly the ginger. And a powdery overlay which has to be the candied fruits.

 

Drying down this just smells wrong. It doesn't smell seamless or blended to perfection, which I was hoping for. I wanted it to be deeper, a little more foodyesque and certainly richer. Instead it's bland and really not that exciting.

 

I will test again in a few days. I have had a stressful day at work, so perhaps thats why it smells of nothing very exciting

[Pepperminx]

This became an instant favorite of mine, after I ordered a bottle from the lab on a hunch and it's such a winner.

 

The chocolate is present but tempered by the plum and the musk. Sometimes red musk goes too sharp on me but there is enough sweetness, from the fruits and the amaretto, to balance it out.

 

Good stuff.

[Geminirubyshoes]

Yet again, something I thought I reviewed a long time ago but didn't...

 

I got this for Christmas in '09 and I actually did not like it at first. It was too sickly sweet, too gingery....which is a weird thing for me to complain about as I typically like really sweet scents. But there was just something about it I really didn't care for.

However, a little over 6 months later it's sooo much better. Sniffing from the bottle it is juicy, candied fruits with a little bit of musky plumminess. Pretty much the same on my skin when first applied plus a little bit of gingery kick and then it dries down to a soft, sweet, lightly fruit musk. I don't really get chocolate ever, I think the other notes overpower that on me. All in all, glad I waited for this one to mellow out a bit because I like it much better now

[devilot]

In the bottle: Chocolate, plummy, MUSKY.

Wet: Amaretto coming forth, still musky, but the chocolate's mellowed and is almost dusty now.

Drydown: The plum sort of disappeared for awhile and is reappearing (or maybe it's the "candied fruits"). The slight kick of the ginger. And now almost earthy.

Verdict: I see why people love this blend, but it doesn't do a whole lot for me. Luckily, I've found a new home for this bottle.

[likie]

This seems, from the description (and the other reviews), like it would be a really strong, dark sort of scent that isn't for me. However, I found that I liked it a lot, and it fits well into my draw toward "spicy/fruity" oils. I did not find it to be very musky, which I often do. I like it even more than I originally liked Snake Charmer (which was a lot), because I find it to be lighter and more wearable. Also not chocolatey, despite it being the first word in the description.

[yakiguri]

Due to the notes I was expecting Countess Willies to be smoldering, sexy yet sweet concoction. Especially since most of the notes are win on me, and I typically amp plum and almond (and I LIKE that). Alas, all I get is a dusty old chocolate smell, like an ancient tootsie roll fused to the bottom of an old purse you forgot about.

 

Midnight Kiss IS actually what I expected Countess Willie to be like, so I suppose I should be grateful I have a bottle of that and a decant of Willie, and not the other way around.

[cinnamonster]

I feel I must first mention that this is burning my skin. The first oil to ever do so (if my terrible memory serves me correctly here).

 

I smell a Jolly Rancher type boiled sweet smell, under which is a kind of ginger you only really smell at the end of your inhalation, almost in your mouth, like when you sniff powdered ginger. I get zero amaretto,I can almost imagine I smell chocolate, but it's more a thought. Rounding it out is a kind of muskiness that gives the whole thing a familiar smell but I am lost as to what it might be.

 

This is NOTHING like I expected, but totally nicer on skin than it smells in the bottle. I expected AMARETTO, followed by those chocolate covered prunes from Poland spiked with maybe a little ginger later. Since I don't want to smell like amaretto, it's a good thing.

 

5 mins in Jolly Rancher is leaving the building, slowly, but he's going That Polish plum might be sneaking in the back door...

 

Could maybe get into this, bar the burning...I have faint purpley red marks appearing all over my arms, like a faint scent-meningitis. Eeeek.

[dawndie]

In bottle: green veggies (?)

 

On skin: supercharged purple plum

 

Half-hour later: melding of Shubby ginger, plum and cocoa musk

 

In conclusion: like others, this reminds me a lot of Bordello (one of my top 5 GC favorites), it's that delicious amaretto and plum. The big difference is the chocolate musk, which veers between dark & delicious and plastic & fake on me. Not a replacement for Bordello, but a pretty good variation.

[Vega]

Sniffed: Dark, rich and fruity, plum being the most prominent.

 

On skin: A heady, berry-fruity-musky blend! I can smell the plum, amaretto and red musk all blending to create this voluptuously sweet, almost syrupy blend, with a slight ginger bite. Full-bodied, direct, with a large scent presence, certainly not shy or discreet. When I first tried Countess Willie I immediately thought of Bordello -- both have the same plum and amaretto notes. However, Bordello is boozy and bawdy and relatively simple, while Countess Willie is the madam of this bordello but refined and classy, with an additional layer of complexity from the musk and ginger. The scent doesn't morph much (which is perfect, I don't want this beautiful berry-sweetness to change!), and remains much the same over time. Colour impression is plum-purple touched with red, so dark it's almost black. Kaidan and Mme. Moriarty have the same plum, but are lighter scents.

 

Verdict: One of my favourite blends! For a long time I couldn't decide between Bordello or Florence for my favourite berry blend -- but now Countess Willie has trumped both of them. She has become one of my permanent collection and is definitely bottle-worthy.

[stellamaris]

I was kind of surprised that on smelling this from the bottle it seemed kind of nasty, like bad fruit. However that went away in like a minute on the skin and then it was all red musk. Kind of meh. I am just going to put this one at the back of the cabinet and let her "age" for a bit.

 

Edit! OK, OK, I know, just let the bottle age for a hot minute, and I did, now after a few weeks (a really really long time in my world) she's calmed down quite a bit and is now quite friendly. That smack of bad fruit is tamed down to a nice plushy plummy note that turns into a soft but full red musky kind of thing. I woke up this morning wanting to wear it. This has happened to me before with some oils, notably Hungry Ghost Moon.

 

I pair the Countess with Josie, then I am a veritable fruit salad.

 

OK you win, District. I love the District, just two more to go for a complete set.

 

The Countess has that nice plush red muskiness to it without being too Red Lace sexy. That said it does conjure up images of skin for me, as in I could smell it "as a person" if that makes any sense.

Edited August 8, 2011 by stellamaris

[boxinghelena]

Countess Willie:

 

 

OMG! This is Yum!! I definitely get the chocolate right away. The musk comes out a bit, thought for a second it would ruin it for me but it all mellowed out. Sadly, I did not detect plum. Will let this age and try again. Love it though!

[lohengrin]

In the imp: Musk and a faint hint of sweetness.

 

On skin, wet: Musk with maybe a touch of chocolate and fruit lurking underneath.

 

On skin, dry: Plum. A little musk, but mostly plum.

 

After an hour: Stays mostly plum, with subtle hints of musk and mmmmaybe chocolate. Never got any amaretto or ginger, much to my disappointment.

[Incendiare]

Extreme ginger in the vial with an added touch of candied fruits. Wet, this is loads of fresh ginger. After a few minutes, I can detect a bit of plum musk. About ten minutes in, the ginger has calmed down but is still the dominant note, while the plum musk has gained a bit of confidence and stepped up a bit more. I really like ginger but not really this much, but I would still wear this occasionally. Glad I found a decant so I wouldn't have to bother with a bottle.

[Mechanical Death]

Rich and decadent. Ohlala! In the bottle it smelled very foodie chocolate, but on the skin the plum musk comes out, sugary delicious and heady. The sugared fruits add some tartness to the chocolate plum deliciousness and there is definitely a boozy hint there. The ginger adds a perfumy quality to it all and balances it, keeping it from being too sweet and foodie. Absolutely sexy and decadent! I need a glass of red wine to go with this.

[aphrodite]

I first met the Countess in sniffie/tester form as a frimp. Which makes sense, because based on the notes list I never would have sought her out.

 

Chocolate plum musk sounds intriguing and delicious, but chocolate tends to be something I like but never reach for, while a lot of plums go too intensely sweet on me. I'm generally not a fan of red musk, and find it overpowers most blends. I really dislike smelling like almond, so it would take a pretty amazing notes lineup to make me give amaretto a shot ( ). I wouldn't necessarily shy away from a blend for containing candied fruits, but it would be the sort of thing that would make me say, "hmm, hope that behaves." I really like the smell of ginger, but I don't normally want to smell LIKE ginger, and it can overwhelm many blends for me.

 

In short, there is no reason in the world I should like Countess Willie.

 

Dear gods, I love her so much. Top ten, for sure. I finally have a full bottle and can slather her on, and holy hell, it's just -- I love her. Everything behaves. It's dark and fruity, a bit creamy, and the ginger adds just the right amount of spice and character. I can't pick out the red musk or amaretto, but I can get a sense of them deepening the blend and helping everything meld seamlessly together. I just absolutely love this oil.

 

I remember trying Bordello and thinking that it was very beautiful but a bit too accurate and evocative. If I still have an imp around I'm inspired to retest it after reading all of the comparisons to CW, although I also think the spicy element of CW might be providing the perfect balance that Bordello was missing for me. This is a blend that will boost my happiness and confidence, and is both sexy and comforting. I just love it.

Edited February 1, 2014 by aphrodite

[Allumina]

I was hoping aging would fix my skin chemistry's problems with this, but no go. I don't know if it's the ginger note, which never works for me, but this was gross on my skin. What I think was the chocolate plum note was cloying and fake, and the whole thing just smells like cheap, strong old lady perfume. No amaretto, no candied fruits, no red musk. I'm trying to hold out for a miraculous late drydown, but I may wash this off.

[RubyWoo]

It's a little cough syrupy in the bottle.

 

Wet: Super warm and sweet. The chocolate comes out.

 

Dry: It warms down. It's a very mild pretty scent. Not too harsh, and not dark or seductive at all. Sophisticated warmth, with a touch of spice.

[lady_pandora]

Countess Willie starts out with the chocolate note and something kind of...minty?

 

It develops into chocolate and a red-fruit haze and red musk. This smells just like Midnight Kiss, except better and more stable; Midnight Kiss was prone to randomly amping the chocolate or the patchouli beyond reason. Countess Willie seems to have a better balance between the notes on me.

[LiberAmoris]

I've had Countess Willie for years and wear it happily from time to time. As others have said, this is a lot like chocolate Bordello. My bottle is six years old and well aged, but goes on as red musk, candied fruits, and ginger, with a shot of amaretto. The chocolate plum musk is all around and soaked into those other notes, like some kind of amazing rumtopf. If I get close to finishing my bottle, I will definitely replace it...a clutch part of my permanent collection, just as Bordello is.

[LizziesLuck]

This has been on my wishlist to try for some time, and I was frimped a decant, so I am pretty stoked to try this out!

 

In the Imp: The Lab's plum note that I can't wear....uh oh!

 

Wet: Chocolately plummy musk. It's nice for a second, then it gets really bad. This is indeed the plum note that I can't wear. So sad! Plastic rancid, awful. My skin destroys this. I may have to scrub it off.

 

Dryish: The same. This isn't going to miraculously recover on me. So sad! I was really looking forward to this.

[Myrrha]

The red musk is screechy and a little soapy at first but once it settles down:

Hmmm..lovely chocolaty musk!

Plum usually goes all grape-juice on me but not here. I am surprised how much I like the chocolate note.

The plum, amaretto, chocolate are all blended together with a warm edge from ginger.

 

As others have said this would be a great date night scent. EDIT: i had originally written that I didn't think this could be wearable for me other than a date night or sexytimes, but it really isn't that loud once it dries completely. It feels warm and possibly sexy but also fun and playful because of the sweet notes, and somehow comfortable, safe.

 

I need to look for some more chocolate BPAL!

Edited January 29, 2016 by Myrrha