The Soldier

[Verios]

Red musk, vanilla cream, black tea, black pepper, leather, and pie.

I bought this even though the combination sounded like it could go incredibly odd on me...and am sooo glad I did! I mostly get creamy vanilla red musk with leather...and the pie crust. I don't notice any of the anise some reviewers mention, nor do I detect the pepper. I'm having a tough time explaining in detail what I smell with this--all I know is that I love it.

[midnight_aeval]

I'll start by saying I *despise* red musk dominated blends. Actually, 99% of blends with red musk smell horrid to me. The Soldier was different - I immediately fell in lust with it! Even though it does smell like red musk, the other notes (all of which are complete LOVE notes) must be keeping the bully-red-musk in check. I immediately bought a bottle. This was actually the scent I wore on Christmas Eve, but unfortunately I got a really bad case of food poisoning and haven't been able to 'stomach' wearing this blend again

[Invidiana]

I sing my praises to The Soldier, and not because he's a hot man in uniform. A couple dabs of this easily last the entire day, and I'm not joking. It might be because I amp red musk and the stuff sticks to me for a good 8 hours easily, I was a little worried about the black peppr, and while it's there it stays subdued and doesn't come out screaming like in Ebeneezer Scrooge. It actually strikes me more as black patchouli than black pepper, which is a relief, though that might just be my chemistry. The leather is that same kind of soft sexy leather in Rivet Goth, not the hollering manly De Sade-type leather. I believe the pie here is mince pie, though I can't be entirely sure but that's what it seems to be. Everything blends together really harmoniously for a sexy, musky, sweet and slightly leathery scent. I love it, and with the way it lasts on me one bottle is a lifetime supply.

[captainecchi]

Received this one in a swap with OlfactoryMaven just a couple of days ago. I'm very glad I got a chance to try this before the Yules came down!

 

This one is a reddish-brown oil. When I open the vial, the first thing I smell is something that reminds me of root beer or licorice, i.e. something spicy and sweet. I'm thinking the pepper is implicated in there somewhere - I definitely felt the burning at the back of my throat that indicated the presence of some volatile oil. I guess I could see how vanilla cream or pie are implicated in this. Maybe mincemeat pie

 

My second impression is of that leather + musk combination note that I've come to know well in the High Priest Not to Be Described, one of my husband's favorite blends. Usually it's kind of funky on me, but here it's sweetened nicely by the aforementioned peppery root beer smell.

 

These notes soften in the drydown, but they're still all present and accounted for. Actually, it reminds me a little of Smut in this phase. This one has good throw, too, like most leather + musk scents I've encountered.

 

I like this one. Like I said, it's kind of like a sweeter, more vanilla-y version of High Priest. It's unique, but maybe not compared to the rest of my collection? We'll see.

 

Verdict: 3 or 4 out of 5. I'll keep and use the decant, if nothing else. Just need to be sure to slather on lots of lotion with this one to prevent contact dermatitis.

Edited January 23, 2011 by CaptainEcchi

[porcelina]

holy crap, i should have bought a second bottle of this. this stuff is amazing. it's like antikythera mechanism meets the infernal lover meets pie. sexy vanilla cream, leather and musk with a foodie edge. OMG.

Edited January 26, 2011 by porcelina

[deprongmori]

Wet, this scent made me very nervous because it was so sharp and seemed like it could go any number of questionable ways. However, on the dry down it evolved into a sexy red, musky incense-y scent and I couldn't stop sniffing myself! Hot stuff, this is! (I was surprised!) I don't think I get many of the sweeter notes (pie, vanilla) but that's a-okay with me.

[CiaoBonefish]

On me this starts off as all red musk, black tea, a bunt of creaminess, and a bit of a kind of foody anise type scent which I'm assuming is the pie! Wow. Wet this is absolutely gorgeous! The red musk doesn't dominate and the black pepper is not present at all really apart from grounding the scent. I love that because I'm not a huge black pepper note fan. There is a touch of creaminess I'm guessing due to the vanilla cream which really helps keeping the black tea note from getting bitter and the musk from taking over. Wet the anise type note is very present. At the dry down it remains pretty much the same but the anise type note has blended into the other notes leaving a sweet and only ever so slight anise feel behind. The blend is more grounded and overall just lovely. Smells like red musk, tea, and a bit of amazing creamy and completely unassuming licorice type scent which reminds me ever so slightly of pie... But all in a very NON foody and NOT heavy and NOT super overpoweringly sweet way! I wish I got some leather from this. If I did it would have been dead sexy! But unfortunately I don't get any whatsoever, regardless It's still wonderful! Very evocative and definitely my favorite Yule of the update. After reading reviews I was wary of the anise note, but it works so well here that I'm craving more!

 

ETA: 12 years later, and I still love this one! It's gotten richer and more gourmand which is the main difference from my original review. It's got this syrupy almost honeyed red musk and licorice pie vibe now and less tea. It CAN get a little cloying. I will only wear this in the fall and winter now, but man is it a stunner of a spicy gourmand.

Edited November 9, 2023 by CiaoBonefish
Adding some comments for how my 2010 bottle has aged!

[PurringPulsar]

In the imp: no aniseed, but I smell caramelised red musk, yummy!
Wet on skin: oh yeah, now I smell the liquorice alright, it’s like those black laces.
Dry on skin: caramelised red musk, black pepper and liquorice bootlaces. Despite the strong aniseed scent I get here, I like this. I do think the pie note is a little too caramelised for me, it’s like a treacle tart blended with a pie full of dark fruit filling. Having said that, I love the red musk here! It’s sweet, raunchy, not dry and crumbly like some red musk notes, this is the thick, deeply sexy, almost vanilla-tinged variety from Infernal Lover. There are hints of patchouli to it too. The pepper adds a piquancy that I like, the vanilla sweetens it more, but I don’t smell any leather. I’m still undecided on the liquorice allsorts scent though.
After a while: once the liquorice smell fades, this becomes totally hubba-hubba, oh yeah! Soldier boy tell ‘em! This smells red musk, fluffy vanilla cream and a hint of darkly fruity caramel, almost like cranberry mince pie filling. Mmmm. There’s even a hint of Snake Oil about the musk here. I still don’t smell leather though until the end-it's so understated here.
Verdict: I love foody red musks, but both Winter Nights Enlarge and Elephantine Colossus disappointed, this one on the other hand is really good. The perfect blend of gourmand and sexy! The gourmand notes are cosy and appealing, fruity pie full of sweet red berries and freshly baked pastry with a fluffy creamy vanilla on top, whilst the subtle leather and awesome red musk (think Smut or the Infernal Lover) stop it from being too foody and make it more of a deep, sensual scent. The initial first hour of wear has an odd liquorice whips scent with a little too much caramel, but once that fades and the musk turns to an almost Snake Oil type note, then it’s a total nose-gasm! This is one soldier I wouldn't mind having in my bed...
Is it a keeper? yes! I have a bottle!
If you like this, try: Red Lace, WILF, Elephantine Colossus, Now Winter Nights Enlarge, Smut

[Vega]

Sniffed: Glowing red musk warmed with the foody pie note.

 

On skin: The Soldier was a bit too aggressive when I first tested my circle decant, but aging has mellowed him quite a bit! The dominant note is initially glowing, warm red musk, "sullied" by rich pie (thankfully not nauseating!) and a touch of pepper. The other notes really bloom after drydown: gritty black pepper with a gentle bite, mellow smooth tea, and leather, which flattens the blend slightly but not enough to ruin the complexity and body. Red musk slowly recedes, but I still smell a halo of it surrounding the other notes, especially if I'm not huffing my wrist too closely. Vanilla never shows up to the party, but the party is going quite nicely as it is so I don't miss it too much. This ends up a fine harmony of red musk and the other notes.

Unisex with the slightest masculine bent. Colour impression is black bleeding into dark red.

 

Verdict: I deeply love the Lab's red musk, and The Soldier is a fine variant on that theme! But I'm not a lover of foodie blends, and while this is more wearable than others, I prefer my other red musk blends.

[feline.by.design]

The Soldier was something I worried might smell too foodie/gourmand, as I've had previous experiences in the past with some scents that were just a bit too buttery for my tastes.

 

I bought a bottle of The Soldier during Yule 2010, and hadn't tested it until just now. When I read the description of it, I knew I had to try it, being a general fan of leather scents (Torture King, Severin), tea scents (The Dormouse, Dorian) and vanilla scents (Antique Lace, The Mouse's Long and Sad Tale).

 

On first application to my skin, The Soldier smells like a man who went AWOL in a cookie factory--butterscotch, powdered sugar, a slight hint of a buttery rum? I couldn't stop sniffing my wrist, trying to decide whether it was a pleasant sweetness or if it was something that was a bit too much.

 

About five minutes on, the butterscotch smell faded, leaving a nice vanilla smell grounded by a more solid note or group of notes in the background. Ah, the leather becomes more prominent now on my skin, and The Soldier has become more stern, standing at attention... but there's still a slight sweetness to the fragrance still that tempers The Soldier's stern manner, as if he's still got a few cookie crumbles clinging to his uniform.

 

This is a reminder for me to never judge a scent by the bottle. As it was in the bottle, The Soldier seemed a bit borderline as far as wearability for me goes, but once I applied it and let it settle for about five to ten minutes--leather cookies! Or a sugar-coated whip. Whatever you wanna go with.

[Gold Dust Kitten]

I've had a decant of this for awhile now and never tested it. Maybe because it had leather and I hated leather, until I found out that Fetish.Goth worked for me. It smells very similar to The Elephantine Colossus in the vial, so I'm thinking it might work. On skin, its a sweet red musk with peppery spice. It's so sweet that for a couple minutes it gets "grapey", which scared me. After it dried, its red musk with a whisper of pepper and leather. It doesn't last at all, and I'm not fond of the grapey phase, so I'll be frimping this decant away to someone else who'd love it

[malibusunny]

first impression: rootbeer. Becomes a pleasant, incensy sweetness on my skin. Reminds me of Tombstone.

[valnillarose]

LOVE The Soldier! It makes me think of Smut, but leaning towards root beer instead of grape. I don't get leather, pepper, or any sharp edges from the Soldier. He's just a smooth sweet musky root beer float with perhaps a hint of pie crust.

[Circaea]

I'm not a fan of red musk, so let that be taken into account. To my nose, The Soldier is a lot like Incubus, minus the mint, or Mme Moriarty minus the fruit and tobacco. The tea and leather seem very much in the background, or maybe I'm just super sensitive to the musk notes, but this comes off as sweet buttery musk, and it's making me a little uncomfortable, like I'm trying on someone else's life. In other words, this one isn't me.

[sharkdiver]

This one is good, but nowhere near as good as I was hoping for - I think it's the leather that kills it for me. Leather is one of those notes that is VERY hit or miss with me - so far only the black tower and perversion work, where pretty much every other leather scent fails. The redeeming quality with this blend, is the snake oil and the pie - I can pick up on a crust note mixed in with the SO, and since SO works so beautifully on me, it's really trying to salvage this on my skin, but there is just that weirdness that blatantly sticks out from the leather. I'm glad I tried it, so I don[t have to kill myself trying to find a bottle.

[Ajila]

In the bottle - Sweet smooth red musk

 

Wet on me - A kind of tobacco sort of note backed by the leather and smoothed over by the musk

 

Dry on me - Soft, smooth red musk with just a hint of cream in the background

 

Overall - Gorgeous, but then I do love me some red musk

[Gwydion]

In bottle: It’s an unusual blend. The combination of tea and pepper is about coequal with the pie and vanilla cream combination in strength. The leather and musk are much softer, but distinct, both inclining to the tea/pepper faction. Wet: Black tea moves into prominence with its strong pepper support. The pie and vanilla cream are third, with the musk edging slowly into position with them. The leather accord frays into tatters of components, dancing with stronger elements. The sharpness of the pepper does really interesting things with the smoother elements, adding an unexpected sharpness. The power and distinctness of the pepper is so different than the more typical usage in other blends as accent rather than scent. Dry:Mostly read musk with a hint of vanilla and leather.

[Zii]

Wet: Yummy, yummy musk. The vanilla and pepper are both at play, one lending a stunning sweetness, the other spicy depth.

 

Drying: The leather's much more prominent now and this light slightly caramel sweetness that I can only assume is the pie has come out, but this is heavy on the musk, which keeps any sweetness from the cream and pie from going foody.

 

Dry: This is just the sort of musk I love, in your face, sexy and confident. The notes that really throw are the musk, pepper and leather, in that order, but the other notes lend a sweetness not unlike the vibe I get from Dorian. This is kinda like Dorian's sexy older brother. Totally a masculine scent, even with the sweetness, but the right kind of lady could pull this off no problem.

[Numanoid]

Got frimped a decant of this...been wanting to try it, since I like leather and the only scent that I liked out of some leather ones I have tried has been Western Diamondback, which I LOOVE!

 

In decant: Creamy musk. Kind of afraid of musk since we sometimes don't get along. There is a bit of vanilla there.

 

On skin: OH MY!! This warms up to such a wonderful vanilla/creamy leather! I don't get "pie" out of this, but something sweet keeps it balanced. But it is in no way foody to me.

 

Dry down: This just gets amazing!! Had to buy a bottle from a seller. In my opinion, if you are a fan of Western Diamondback, you will love this! It is like a deeper, richer version of that. Heavenly!!

Edited April 24, 2015 by Numanoid

[vanilla323]

I do like the Soldier it's a fun and foodie scent. Reminds me of my hubby maybe eating pie! The overall scent wet and dry is about the same its a lovely vanilla cream scent with small whiffs of pie and the leather is there. It's a perfect soft leather scent. Not too strong at all. It's just there to add a little touch of masculinity to the overall vanilla sweetness. But that is mainly the only notes I ever get. No musk really for me. Oddly it had low throw but did last a while on my skin with a close sniff. This would be great on a man or woman!

Edited August 26, 2015 by vanilla323

[Missy_killer]

In the bottle: Buttery vanilla! Must be some spices in here too because for some odd reason the buttery vanilla is very Christmas-y. Can't pinpoint what kind of spices either.. It's not cinnamon or ginger.

 

On: Licorice! One dot on my wrist is usually enough for me to test a scent, but this is really faint. I guess the licorice is supposed to be the leather?

It's been sitting on my hand for ten minutes and nothing has changed. Still a licorice/leather and somewhat Christmas spicy.

 

An hour later it still hasn't changed. Something about this gives me a vision of climbing up to the attic and looking through boxes filled with Christmas decorations. No clue why, since it's not dusty or desolate. It's pretty cozy!

 

A couple of hours later it's a soft vanilla leather and a tiny smidge of tobacco. It's actually very pretty and I like it! It hasn't been foodie or heavy and the buttery vanilla thankfully never made an appearance on me.

[stubbornfire]

First on it's, very disappointing. I can't pick out anything, at all. I mean, red musk, a bit vaguely, but mostly because I knew to look for it.

 

No tea, no leather, no vanilla, nothing. And it's incredibly light; my skin is kicking the soldier's ass I guess. It's really just barely anything. A light, hardly feel it, musk.

 

After a little time, some pepper starts to shuffle forward, and something very faint that just might be tea. A while longer, and....that might be cream? Or..or pie??

 

Oh god it's both. Red musk and cream and pie. And pepper close up. Still no leather but that is just fine.

 

This is the weirdest scent I've ever tried. God I keep sniffing myself and it smells so crazy but good also?? Gonna bottle hunt, hopefully will catch a couple. This is so crazy but I think I might adore it.

 

Idk how far back people read reviews but if anyone is reading mine, just make sure you give the Soldier a bit of time. Like twenty minutes or so at least. Definitely a slow start , and definitely an oil I enjoy sniffing away from my arm instead of nose-pressed-to-it position. What a thing though.

 

EDIT--- aaaand there's the leather! It's up close with the pepper and some of the musk. I am confused but delighted by how much I love this.

Edited June 23, 2015 by stubbornfire

[Teaker]

This is a hard one to pin down- I get mostly red musk, something a bit dry and spicy (like cinnamon), and kind of a "generic bpal" smell. Looking at the notes, I think the combo of pie and pepper is reading to my nose as cinnamon. This is very unisex and warm, but not for me. It's much less sweet than the notes would imply and just kind of odd and distracting.

[PeculiarHeroine]

I got this of the labs Etsy, and I'm really glad I did.

Its a creamy, slightly musky blend, with a hint of pie crust. I was worried about the leather, but it turns out I didn't need to worry about that, as its creamy and easy and good.

Its a vanilla/pie scent grounded by the leather and musk, and it doesn't go very far into foodie territory. Recommended!

[BeyondBad1313]

This is another of my favorite blends. I was introduced to this blend because I was told that if Dean Winchester was bottled in a scent it would be this. I am not disappointed. This smells like sexy red musk and black tea, and the pie sweetens the end of the blend. The pie note is not really defined, but just adds the needed sweetness to the blend.