The Soldier

[LizziesLuck]

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

I've had my eye on this for a while. Recently I was purchasing something else from the Lab's Etsy, and snagged this as well.

Wet: Mmm, red musk, with a lot of sweetness, just like I like it! It makes for an interesting sexy/gourmand combo that I adore. In the same vein as Elephantine Colossus, which is one of my fave red musks, and also akin to Now Winter Nights Enlarge, and even Red Lace to some extent - sweet creamy complex red musk. LOVE.

Dry: I am so happy with this, it's just what I had hoped! The leather hasn't ruined it like I feared (it's iffy on me) in fact, I can't even detect it. This is just sweet, creamy, slightly gourmand red musk. To die for!

[Cali]

Mmm lovely, sweet pie and red musk on the frontline, as the more spicy notes compliment it greatly.

On my skin it morphs to a very sugary mint/liquorice candy cane with a lot of red musk. A great holiday scent!
A bit too liquorice-y for me personally, but otherwise an absolute pleasure to sniff!

[Fish That Swims]

I've been in love with this one for about a year.

 

A very rich spiced cream over a rich deep smooth musk. The tea, pepper, and leather all melt together and I think it's what's making the somewhat licorice-like spice. Not sharp at all. It only occasionally reads as licorice to me, but I know what people are talking about. (I like licorice anyway.) The pie brings sweetness and a bit of a buttery feel, but despite that and the cream, it's not a gourmand fragrance.

 

I do think of it as a holidays/wintertime fragrance but I think the soldier is a delight any time of the year.

 

Rich, smooth, and sultry in a masculine way.

[Spaztic]

The one is Red Musk dominant for sure.
In the opening I also get a strong scent that smells like sarsaparilla and black liquorice had a baby, it's pretty cool

It starts to get a little creamy and vanilla-y in the dry down but remains mostly red musk

I'm unable to pick out the pie

[roseus]

This starts off as a nice creamy red musk, but shifts to a musky red licorice that's not really my speed.

[starbrow]

A scent with a huge sense of humor. I am in love with the concept, the foodie tea classics paired with the masculine soldier elements. In the bottle, I wouldn't guess red musk; I get pepper, pie, a crackle of leather, creamy tea, and then....the anise starts emerging. 

 

Wet, the red musk makes a dazzling appearance before whooshing into a saucy and wholly uncredited appearance by ANISE. No surprise if you've read the other reviews, and I had before I got this scent, but it still is a fun surprise, like knowing spoilers but still enjoying seeing exactly how they're executed in the story. So this stage is all black licorice and PIE. Yes, pie. I get crust, some kind of jammy filling, but what kind of fruit exactly is a mystery because the anise is such a diva. I am okay with it here! It totally fits on stage, it is not clashing with anything.

 

Act II: a couple hours later. Red musk returns. HAAAAA-llelujah! She is beautiful, tangoing with the anise. The creamy tea is a dreamy background, the vanilla a subtle touch of sweetness. The pie is pretty much gone. What a crazy, fun morpher The Soldier is. It really is like a whole ballet in one bottle. If you have any luck with anise, give it a whirl!