Pumpkin Latte

[JLH]

Espresso, pumpkin syrup, smoky vanilla bean, milk, raw sugar, and a dash of cinnamon and nutmeg.

On me this was very buttery creamy pumpkin. As it dried the spices and coffee came out more. This is so realistic it's actually a bit creepy! I'm not enough of a foody scent lover to ever use more than a decant of this, but for those who are into that kind of thing this scent is a gold mine.

[zankoku_zen]

This is a softly spiced pumpkin. Sadly, I don't really get a coffee note out of this.

 

BOO.

[boomtownrat]

This is the 2011 version.

 

When I opened the bottle for the first time, it smelled exactly like pumpkin spice syrup that would go into a foofy coffee drink.

 

Nutmeg screams out for attention when I put on this oil. The first time I wore this, it smelled like nutmeg with maple and a hint of cinnamon... until it died out into a sort of dusty spice scent in less than three hours. Today I'm trying it again and getting a little more of a pumpkin smell in place of the maple, which is good, as I'm not particularly a fan of maple. It's dying out into the dusty spice scent after a little less than two hours.

 

I get no coffee and only a little pumpkin out of this. The smell isn't bad, it's just not what I wanted it to be. It would probably be better in a scent locket or an oil burner, but I'm going to keep trying as it ages and hope that the pumpkin or the coffee will awaken.

 

ETA 23 November 2011: So far this is the only BPAL I can slather without getting a headache or migraine. The more of it I put on, the more the pumpkin scent emerges, but I never get a coffee smell from it. Yesterday my DH said he could smell pumpkin latte when I got in the car, but he said it smelled more pumpkin than coffee. It smells delicious, but I'm going to go through a bottle pretty fast at this rate. Since I got it, I've probably worn it three times. 4/5

 

ETA 29 January 2012: This has already aged beautifully into a creamier blend and I can finally smell the coffee, both in the bottle and wet on my skin! Now I would give it a 4.5/5.

Edited January 29, 2012 by boomtownrat

[elka_knits]

I got a decant of this from the generous Gateau for which I am ever so grateful. In the bottle it was everything I could possibly hope for~ buttery spicy pumpkin ala my beloved pumpkin patches. I was woot woot woot I don't have to worry about the dreaded running out since I have an equally delicious pumpkin spice offering. The first half hour on my skin it was so delicious I was nom nom nomming my arm. Unfortunately it then turned to sour apple jolly rancher ice. I guess that apple smell that some stuff morphs into is the milk or cream turning sour I hear so much about but have never noted before. Admittedly my nose, or chemistry, has been wonky lately and I will definitely give it a few more goes before the 13th.... I mean patchouli is being amped to the point where my beloved SO smells rank... so something is off at the moment. I will amend this review if my skin stops acting weird and this scent becomes luscious goodness.

 

Editing to add my husband says all he smells is cinnamon and nutmeg but then I read the ingredient description to him and he never tells me I smell bad. Even if I say something like don't you think it smells soapy he will say oh now that you mention it maybe a little but it smells good. He is a big BPAL fan even tho he won't wear scents

 

Okay its getting close to the 13th so I am still testing this imp and not liking it muchly. Today I put it on my child since I accidentally sold off her gluttony imps along with a bunch of other D/C scents {no sense in being tempted by stuff ya can't get ya know} It faded so fast I was astounded. 30 mins max on her.

 

I am very very sad. I really had high hopes for this one

Edited December 10, 2011 by elka

[thekittenkat]

In the decant: Smells like a good pumpkin spice latte, only not so spicy.

 

Wet: The bitterness of the coffee cut through all the other yummy notes, sad to say.

 

The dry-down: Still mostly mildly bitter coffee, with only hints of all the other yummy notes. Not as much bitter coffee as last year's version. If this got made with the coffee bean note instead of the espresso note, I would be totally in love and would wear it all autumn. As it is, there's always the scent locket to save lovely scents from my wonky skin chemistry, thank goodness!

[nome]

At first: After a couple minutes of VANILLA!, no wait, PUMPKIN!, hey there's a whiff of coffee, then CINNAMON, PUMPKIN PIE, this settles into a creamy vanilla-hot-chocolate-and-pumpkin-pie smell with only a faint hint of coffee, that's probably the bit making me think hot chocolate. All I know is, I am strongly tempted to lick my own arm.

 

1 hour in: vanilla and pumpkin pie, still. It's a strong, spicy vanilla, though, like Stephen's vanilla hot chocolate, if anyone here is familiar with that brand. Delicious. If there's any coffee, it's a bare wisp I smell only pressed up against my skin.

 

Due to an accident with the imp, this was tested only an hour or two before bed, so the end of the review is the post-sleep scent, about 7 hours after application: Now it's coffee, but a sweet, vanilla coffee with cinnamon and nutmeg. Delicious.

[Sateki]

2011:

 

This starts off with delicious pumpkin and a hint of coffee. Very yummy! I can smell the spices underneath it all too. Then, about 10 minutes in, cinnamon makes a rampaging appearance, and refuses to leave. It dominates all of the other notes too, unfortunately. This, unfortunately, ends up blasting cinnamon from my skin. Very sad. I won't be keeping this one.

[TheMistWalking]

Source: 2011 Version. Bottle straight from the lab, aged about 11 weeks.

 

Wet on skin: Cinnamon! It smells like I was baking and spilled the canister on my wrists.

40 minutes later: Other notes have emerged. I'm getting whiffs of pumpkin, vanilla, sugar, and milk.

1 hour later: The cinnamon has pretty much burned itself out. It's all sweet, creamy vanilla pumpkin goodness.

2 hours later: More of the same. It reminds me of creme brulee, but with a dash of pumpkin.

4 hours later: The scent is still pretty strong and has a decent throw.

10 hours later: The perfume has been rather faint for a few hours now, but a sweet, caramel scent is clinging to my skin.

 

When I first tested this, the bottle was only a few days old, and it was all CINNAMON for hours and hours (and hours). Happily, the spice has mellowed quite a bit. Un-happily, I never got any coffee out of it (or nutmeg for that matter), but I can live with that.

 

Verdict: Yum! (I was expecting pumpkin latte, but pumpkin creme brulee is just as good.)

[romarin]

First impression - Pecan praline! Lots of toasted nuts, sugar and cream, with a touch of acrid caramel and bitter coffee to keep it grownup.

 

Later - the bitter/acrid note mellows and a faint fruity (pumpkin?) note comes in as the whole thing settles down, becoming more "what does that remind me of?" and less "time for elevenses!!!!!"

 

It's wearing my food, but it's warm, friendly, mischievous yet sophisticated food... I'm not sure WHY it also comes across as sexy on me, but preliminary results suggest that this would be a good date night scent that would still not raise any eyebrows at work.

 

Definite keeper!

[theredkilt]

It evokes Coffee smoked roasted pumpkin seeds to my nose

 

I retested it these days and i have to say that the oil has sweetened up and some of the smokiness has subdued. Much more bearable and wearable.

[sabrebabe]

Why is it my favourite holiday is rife with foody scents (of which smell terrible on me)?

 

In the bottle: Definitely latte. And vanilla and nutmeg, in that order. I’m almost afraid to put it on, as it’s a very, very sweet scent. Just a hint on pumpkin.

Wet: Lots and lots of latte, vanilla, nutmeg and a bit more pumpkin. I smell like a Halloween candle.

Dry: Oy! There’s the pumpkin. And the milk. Now I smell like a pumpkin latte. Still don’t like it much, though.

Later: more and more vanilla/pumpkin, less and less latte. Some nutmeg and cinnamon, not much. Still milky. Still Halloween-candle smell. Trade Pile

[sunlitgarden]

Pumpkin Latte (2010 Version)

 

I've been culling my stash and realized I never reviewed this one...

 

I love the way this smells - but I can't seem to wear it. I normally like foody smells, but this just smells like something I want to drink, not wear. It's very realistic. And we know that BPAL is for external use only.

 

Ugh! Now I want a Starbucks pumpkin latte and it's April! Fortunately, I do have a can of pumpkin in the pantry that I can use to make some yummy pumpkin bread... Did I mention that this scent makes me hungry?

Edited April 23, 2012 by sunlitgarden

[Turtledove]

(2011 version)

 

A bottle of Pumpkin Latte was my first experience with BPAL, and I gotta say, the first time I tried it after I got it, I was really disappointed. There was a fleeting whiff of wet coffee grounds mixed with a weird sweet & salty burnt/buttery quality that I guessed was supposed to be pumpkin, then all I could smell was CINNAMON all the way through, like red hots. It didn't smell like pumpkin-spice anything, it was actually pretty bad, so I stuck it in a drawer and forgot about it.

 

Then I read about aging perfume oils, and I decided to give it another chance. It's almost a year later now, and wow, has it changed. I was a little leery, it definitely had that off-putting buttered-popcorn quality to it in the bottle, but it wears much better, it's SO much smoother now it's ridiculous.

 

It does still start with a 20-minute blast of pure cinnamon, but it has a slightly more foody cinnamon-stick quality, and it actually mellows out after a period of time, which it didn't before, it was just CINNAMON CINNAMON CINNAMON and then gone. Now, after it dries down a little, it is DELICIOUS. The cinnamon is still present in a gentle way, like cinnamon sugar, but I can actually smell the other spices, I didn't get even a hint of them before. The pumpkin has toned down enough that it actually smells like pumpkin and not mutant zombie caramel. It has a pleasant buttery/creamy quality, with a hint of smokiness to it as it dries down, it's very mellow and stays in the background, complementing the spices perfectly and giving it a rich, warm bakery feel. The coffee is pretty much gone, which is ok with me, it's more like a decadently spiced pumpkin chai than a latte. At the very end, the spices fade off and it's mostly sweet pumpkin and vanilla, with almost a caramel or maple-syrup smell to it.

 

This is SO cozy and comforting, I keep going back to put more on. I guess I can see why people like BPAL after all.

Edited August 8, 2012 by Turtledove

[Dovahkiin]

This review is for the 2010 version.

I had SUCH high hopes for this. I love every single one of the notes in this blend. LOVE them. And if they had come through on my skin, I'm sure I would have loved the blend itself too. However, I might have to come to terms with the possibility that BPAL's pumpkin note and I do not get along.

 

I did not smell anything except a very generic, potpourri-esque "spice" smell in this blend. Not even pumpkin! Just overwhelming, artificial spice. I left it on for at least an hour, hoping something would make an appearance - coffee, pumpkin, vanilla, anything! - but it never changed. It pretty much smells identical to Pumpkin V (2009) on me. I don't get anything but spice from that one as well.

 

Such a shame.

[venusinfurs]

In the bottle: strong coffee with some sweetness.

 

Wet on skin: holy pumpkin. Just bright fruity pumpkin. Reminds me of jack, which was my worst fear as I don't like it. this was an attempt at a pumpkin scent I would like.

 

Dry: where did the coffee go!? I just smell the sweet pumpkin plus the cinnamon and nutmeg. It remains sweet on me but something smells artificial and off to me. Maybe pumpkin doesn't work so well with my skin. Kind of a bummer! Oh well, I'll keep trying!

[alyelle]

2011 version. Food scents are a bit hit or miss for me, and this one was sadly more miss than hit.

 

Bottle: Coffee. Dark, black, bitter coffee.

 

Wet: Still coffee, 200% coffee, with a very light - but bright and buttery - pumpkin afterthought.

 

Dry: After three hours or so, it actually does smell like a pumpkin latte. Or pie. It's warm and rich, and full of toffee. And had it stayed like that, I might have been happy, but after a few hours, my skin also decided it was indeed going to react to the cinnamon in this, and came out in its usual red blotches.

 

I feel like people who enjoyed Sugar Moon and Sugar Cookie would like this - the eventual sweetness reminds me very much of both of those scents. It's definitely going in my sales pile or up on ebay.

 

Stars: ★★★

Edited March 31, 2021 by alyelle

[milo]

I seem to find pumpkin kind of fresh smelling, and so it is here. I'm getting fresh pulpy pumpkin, and lots of spice at first. After a bit, a touch of espresso, but just a touch, which is good, as while I like to drink coffee, especially the good stuff, I don't like to smell like it. The spices really seem to dominate here, and the pumpkin is pretty much non-existent now. Still, this is a great fall blend, but there is so many similar blends out there, that I don't need to track any more of this down.

[Xue_Bai]

2010 Version

 

ITB- COFFEE! With hints of cream and spice.

 

Wet- Initial wonderful scent of a perfect pumpkin latte...and then it morphs into Red Hots! Eep!

 

Dry- Still Red Hots, but less intense with the scent of coffee underneath. Not what i was expecting, but wearable now. Cold weather pick me up for sure!

 

Later- After an hour or so, no more Red Hots, just spiced coffee and lots of vanilla cream with a slight hint of pumpkin. Finally it smells like a pumpkin latte again, though not as strong as the initial skin scent.

 

Red Hot stage gets a far throw, with it settling down to a more reasonable throw afterwards. So, yeah, it's nice. It's a warm wake me up scent which I'll use come cold, wet weather, but I'm looking towards the Weenie update to see if I can find something more pumpkin and less spice to put on later in the day after this one disappears from skin.

[Mechanical Death]

Saigon cinnamon warmed up with creamy vanilla bean on the forefront, buttery pumpkin and the depth of espresso

Nutmeg lingers underneath, and gets a little sharp when you smell close to the skin.

Huge throw! The tiniest bit goes a long way.

 

I would call it gourmand without being straight up foodie. It has sophistication that a lot of foodie scents lack. The raw sugar brightens the scent and keeps it from being too bitter from the espresso-nutmeg combo.

 

It reminds me a bit of thanks giving gatherings. Spiced pumpkin pie right out of the oven topped with whipped, and freshly ground and brewed coffee with cream and sugar, but yet again, it's not 'foodie'. It's deep and rich.

 

5/5

 

Even better than I expected!

[tinyvulture]

The coffee/cinnamon combination of El dia de Reyes, but with pumpkin taking the place of cocoa. I love the lab's coffee bean note, it's strong and has a lot of depth. This blend is more spicy than sweet. The cinnamon note outshines the pumpkin, which isn't super noticeable (but it's there.) I wish I had an imp of Pumpkin V (2009) on hand to see how Pumpkin Latte compares, as they sound very similar.

[vanilla323]

2011: Pumpkin Latte is mainly all espresso in the bottle and on the skin, there's also a little bit of pumpkin and spices that comes out too but not enough for this foodie lover. It had little throw and didn't last long on me. I have a lot of other coffee scents that I enjoy much more then this one.

 

2016: This is what I wanted the first time!! This is the perfect balance of pumpkin and latte! So yummy I want to drink it up. So glad I gave this another chance! The throw and staying power is much improved as well! 🎃

Edited September 17, 2018 by vanilla323

[Soupy Twist]

Like so many "pumpkin" things this time of year, there's no actual pumpkin discernible here. Caffelatte in the bottle. Goes on as a great coffee with smoky sweet vanilla notes, which dries into nutmeg. Ends as the cinnamon which didn't dissolve in your drink and clings to the side of the cup, tasting a little too bitter and dusty without the coffee and sugar to leaven it. Not bottle-worthy, but a nice scent. 2010 version.

[JTobias]

Cinnamon and pumpkin; when the fall scents combine pumpkin with cinnamon, some wacko chemistry change happens and I only amp cinnamon, followed by pumpkin, and everything else is overshadowed. Very disappointing. For me. Because the blend is gorgeous.

[Haltija]

In the bottle this is a dead ringer for the PSL at Starbucks and it's mouthwatering.

 

On the skin it's the exact same except the more it sits the more the milk and raw sugar notes come out and changes it only slightly and I am not complaining one bit here. It's festive and delicious and I want to drink it

[roseus]

2011 version.

 

I definitely get a nice base of roasty coffee with lots of sweetened pumpkin. The spices take over in the wet stage but back down dry, giving a nice toasty feeling to the blend and keep it from being too sweet. Didn't think I would love this so much but I am happy I was frimped some and may have to snag a bottle this year!