The Marquis de Carabas

[zankoku_zen]

A splash of bay rum, leather, dusty black wool, massoia bark, and opium residue.

Rum, clove and leather. And something that smells like coconut. It's warm, masculine but there's a hint of danger and mystery there.

In other words, what a guy should smell like.

[pixiedoo]

Soap!! I think leather is my note of doom as I get the same soapiness from Krampus and some of the Labs other blends that contain leather.

 

In the imp I can smell rum, leather and woody goodness but my skin turns it straight into soap...and not even an expensive yummy soap...just cheap, generic soapy soap. The boy sniffed me and said I smelt like the hand cleaner he uses at work...off to the swap pile for you Marquis...we are not meant to be!!

[crebbsgirl]

Rum and a swirl of opium. It's deliciously masculine. I really like this. I'm not getting very much in the way of leather. As it dries, it takes on a smoky feel, and something sweet too.

[femmefatale]

This smells just wonderful! I really don't get much leather (at least, not in my decant) but I do get the spice and creaminess and something that almost smells like coconut.

It took me a little while but I think I figured out what it reminds me of: Deathly Pride with just a hint of leather. Very nice.

[ryan]

Old scent, but since this is my first full bottle of BPAL (bought off the forum) I'll give it a quick review. I was looking for a masculine scent without the generic spicy cologne-y smell, and this did not disappoint. The first 5 minutes are almost pure leather (in a good way), but after that it gets more complex - I get cream soda more than I get rum, but then the leather cuts the sweetness just perfectly. I also find it lingers very nicely on my clothes, especially around my neck - the lady is going to like that. Really great, I wish it weren't an LE!

[filigree_shadow]

Nice, lived-in leather and a little bit of something smoky. This is a very, very comforting scent to me, and I am definitely giving this to my husband to try.

[KissleMeNow]

In the bottle, it's dark and complex – probably the first BPAL I've encountered that smelled like a person might.

 

However... I was once sailing on a river in an urban area when my boat capsized. After getting back to shore, I stuffed my wet clothes into a plastic bag, tied it shut, brought it home, and forgot about it for a few weeks. The Marquis De Carabas on my skin smells like opening that bag – strong, mildewey cloth with undercurrents if I-don't-know-what. I am disappoint. :/

[kaberett]

Oh good gods, this is beautiful. I need a full bottle (instead of just my somewhat-used second-hand half-decant) and I want it NOW. ;_;

 

In the imp: Beautiful, BEAUTIFUL spicy musty rum-and-leather. Yes. Yes yes yes.

 

Wet: Spice, pepper, and deep rich warmth, with just a hint of dust. The woods and bay start making themselves known pretty rapidly. This is a gloriously golden scent.

 

Dry: I can't keep my nose away from my wrists. There's something incredibly rich and smoky in here – the opium residue? Having now read a description of massoia bark ("sweet peach and coconut", says the Internet), I can definitely pick it out, and it is BEAUTIFUL. Oh my goodness, this is everything I wanted and then some. I can almost hear the leather creaking.

 

Wow. Wow. Yes. This. This forever, please.

[vthesiren]

When Mom showed this to me, she said, "It smells like a doctor's office." I sniffed it, agreed, and we both left it alone for a while. But I think that was necessary, because it wound up settling into something really, really nice.

 

- In bottle: Leather and booze.

 

- Wet: The leather becomes more prominent, and the opium lends a sort of spicy-smokiness to it.

 

- Dry: Leather, smoke, and spice, and I think I'm getting that coconutty note that other people mentioned with the massoia.

 

I can't believe I was iffy about this before, this is warm and comforting and aaahhhhh. If this were a coat, I'd snuggle into it FOREVER.

[mymymai]

ITB: This is much better. Seductive opium, supple leather, and delightful bay rum mingle together to form something intoxicating.

 

Wet: It's sweet and spicy on my skin, mostly from the bay rum, but a touch from the massoia bark. The opium is still there along with a little leather.

 

Dry: A spicy, decadent, and lovely blend. It stays true to it's form on my skin and I'm so thankful for that! It's delicious and I want to wrap myself in this scent.

[Atrous]

For me, the Marquis is an almost dead ringer for Haute Macabre.

I swear it's the same leather note in both.

Both also have that buttery almond/coconut combo that I love.

 

The difference is that the Marquis is a bit more spicy and smokey.

[BoneBone24]

Wet: Dark wood sweetened with a touch of booze.

 

Drydown: The spicy-cool sweetness of bay rum comes out, followed by something more cologne-y. After that, the wood/bark settles in as deep and grounding base note. A hint of leather tempers the sweetness of the bay rum. Manly and complex.

 

Dry: Dusty leather with hints of spice and smoke. It’s dark but not heavy. The bay rum isn’t immediately apparent, but it’s in there bringing a sort of buoyancy to the blend.

 

 

 

7.5 out of 10 bones

[theredshoes]

My Marquis! I love him, he's my favourite character in the book, I could read a whole other book or two or three just all about him. (I had the same feeling about Silas the vampire.) (I do not have a bad boy thing.) However, after a mere decade or so of BPAL testing (has it really been that long? goodness) I am now a little bit better informed about what does not smell good on me. So I got a for-curiosity's-sake imp from my decant circle.

 

In the imp: Cologne. Uh-oh.

 

Wet: Very spicy, very sharp cologne. I'm guessing this is the bay rum. Not getting any leather, opium, wool, dust, or sweet/cocoanut from the massoia bark.

 

OUR HEROINE, hopefully: Does this smell like a beloved old leather jacket?

 

SPOUSAL OVERUNIT: Sure....

 

(wait for it, wait for it -- )

 

SPOUSAL OVERUNIT: ....if you doused it in bad cologne.

 

SIGH. As in BPAL, so in life, the Marquis and I are destined to remain forever apart, due to my weird skin chemistry. I guess my skin's amping the hell out of on note and eating at least a few others, but heck if I know what exactly.

 

Drydown: This faded FAST on me, I have no idea why. I got something that might be leather? but is also so faint it's hard to tell. It also smells very fake and chemical-y. It was just faint, yet bad.

 

Fortunately, it faded quickly....but for some of us, not quickly enough.

 

SPOUSAL OVERUNIT, a couple of hours later: Could you wash that off? It's giving me a headache. -- With the dishwashing liquid.

 

SIGH.

[VetchVesper]

In the bottle, I get a sweet, boozy leather scent that is very nice. There's a bit of a cologne feel and a tad bit of nutty warmth. Perhaps the massoia bark? This leans masculine to my nose, but I think could easily be worn by a woman.

 

On my skin I still get leather and the sweet cologne feel, but I also get some funkiness creeping in. I think I'm going to blame the wool as I'm not familiar with that note and don't really have issue with anything else listed. It smells kind of... swampy... So I smell kind of like a sexy swashbuckler with nice leather boots covered in muck after he's run around in the sewers, which I guess is pretty darn fitting!

 

An interesting scent, but doesn't shine with my chemistry.

[LizziesLuck]

In my head, I am going to love this, but in reality, that's a whole pile of iffy notes, right there. Fingers crossed anyway!

 

Wet: Blarg! That's bad. It smells like when they put the shellfish and olive sections of the grocery store right beside each other, and you have to walk through the middle. Ick. It's the leather, it's doing this awful chemical thing that registers as very briny to me. Blech.

 

Dry: Not good. Leather...but, like, fish leather. Ick. This would likely be better with aging, and on someone else. Not for me!

[doomsday_disco]

I love Neverwhere (and the Marquis is my favorite character!), so I wanted to try this for that reason alone, even though the notes don’t really grab me.

 

In the bottle: I’m getting black leather, with some spiced rum in the background, and what I think may be the wool note.

 

Wet: There’s an aquatic vibe to this that I wasn’t expecting, but it makes sense that it would be there! I can also smell the bay rum. The leather in this a well-worn black leather (which is lighter on my skin than I was anticipating, and I think I’m getting the Marquis’ dusty wool coat and and some opium.

 

As the scent begins to dry, I start getting more of the leather and less of the rum, and the aquatic vibe is still present.

 

Dry: The leather is a lot more prominent now than it was during the wet phase of the scent. This now smells like an aquatic black leather on me with some wool from the Marquis’ coat, and the light spice of the rum and opium in the background.

 

After a while, the scent becomes warmer and a bit sweeter. I am guessing that’s the massoia bark at play with the bay rum. And I can now smell the dusty aspect of the wool! But the soft leather is still a main player.

 

Verdict: Aww, I was hoping to get the root beer that some of the reviewers mentioned. This is more pleasant than I thought it would be from the list of notes, but it’s not something I could see myself wearing often. Maybe I’ll pair it with Mikado Saloon hair gloss and see how that goes. In any case, I am holding on to my partial bottle, because I am fond of the character.

[Lucchesa]

The Marquis is my favorite Neverwhere character too, and I am in love with his scent as well. First I get a generous dose of bay rum and leather, gorgeous, male, a cozy bulwark against the world. I get some throw too, which is unusual with my chemistry. As it dries down I start to appreciate the wool, which was probably contributing to that snuggly feeling -- the leather and wool reminiscent of Adam -- and the woods. I'm not sure I ever really make out opium tar, but there is a subtle smokiness here as well as a definite sweetness, which I'd attribute to the rum. Add it all together and it's just magical. This works much better on me than the bay rum of Shadow from American Gods. Total win and going on the big bottle list.

[LavenderCoffee]

Oh it is the marquis! This scent is a delight. It really conveys what a person would actually smell like, rather than just a perfume. A very pleasant leather based scent that doesn't become a fully leather scent, with warmth and spice and swagger.

[Ennikar]

I'm a fan of the spicy, bay-rum-ish brand of masculine scents, so I took a shot on a decant leftover of the Marquis. The bay rum and massoia bark are lovely, warm and spicy, and just a little sweet. I don't get much opium or wool, but those aren't notes I'm super familiar with and they tend to play more in the background, so that's not unexpected.

However, I did eventually end up parting with my bottle, because besides the big spicy-masc part of the scent I also get a big ol' hit of leather. I like the smell of real leather, and this is a very good warm-soft-older leather note, but I have also discovered over time that it is easy for leather notes to be "too much" for me. After the leather calms down a bit, an hour or two in, I enjoy it a lot -- but there are other scents, even other BPAL scents, that can fill the niche I want without the hours-long detour through leatherville.

Other opinions (the guy I gave the bottle to): "Oh, that's good. That's really good. Leathery and spicy... that's a sexy smell. That is a smell that says 'I'm here to f***'." He's also a fan of "The Man in Black", even when other people tell him it smells like a shoe store, so it's safe to say strong leather notes don't bother him.