Dead Dreams of Days Forsaken

[strahlend]

15- year aged patchouli, Egyptian cumin, white frankincense, labdanum, and bitter almond.

In the bottle I detect a thick and syrupy patchouli (not the rooty, bitter kind), more than a hint of almond, and just a hint of the frankincense and even less cumin.

On my skin the cumin charges straight to the front and center, backed up by a patchouli almond fusion.

Cumin is an interesting spice, with the other sweet and resinous notes behind it I get more of a spice shop feeling rather than a savory or animalistic vibe.

It takes about five minutes for the cumin to back down and for the patchouli almond resin hybrid to resume being the dominant notes in the blend. The cumin continues to maintain a presence, but the sweet patchouli mix does eventually beat it into submission.

The longer the scent has to settle in the more atmospheric it becomes. It's the kind of scent that swirls around you and it's hard to pinpoint exactly what or where it's coming from. Late in the dry down it has become a soft, incensy, sweet and resinous dominantly patchouli blend. Not for the faint of heart, but a marvelous masterpiece for those who enjoy unusual patchouli experiences.

[RiverPoet]

Wow. This goes on a bit sharp and unsettling. The patchouli is front and center, with the bitter almond goading it on. But after about 15 minutes it calms a bit and the other players join in. The patch is tempered by the labdanum and frankincense, and the bitter almond dies way back. The cumin warms it all a bit, but tends not to stand out at all on me. After 30 minutes it really settles in, and has a bit of sweetness about it. Well-blended, it still has that edge of disquiet that really befits the name.

 

I wasn't entirely sure about it in the wet stage, but as time went on I liked it more and more. And then - it faded out rather quickly. I think because of the sharpness in the bottle I was a bit stingy putting it on. I will definitely put more on next time, knowing that it'll settle down and turn lovely in short order.

[tziporra]

This was my "stretch" decant. In that "I want to smell more things so my nose gets more experienced" kind of way.

 

It's soooooooooooooooo dry right out of the bottle (which evokes funny imagery of shaking some dust out the imp)

 

It's the driest of dry things. The patch is dry but not funky. The frankinsence (iffy note on me) is dry, the cumin is so dry!

 

After fifteen minutes or so I get a whiff of almond (well, it smells like cherry, but I assume that's almond) and I have hopes that it will sweeten up and I won't smell like I am sitting in a vast plain of wood chips and dry bones.

 

Alas, the scent vanishes very shortly after.

 

Too bad, the cumin was actually something not-to-be-feared on my skin. I think if the almond had managed to put in a full appearance on my skin it would have been close to spectacular.

 

Tzi

[BoneBone24]

Wet: Dark and earthy, sweetened by almond.

 

Drydown: Spicy, sweet, and sort of glimmery in the way that frankincense can sometimes be. For a couple of minutes it sort of smells like peanut butter and cherries, or maybe peanut butter and cherry scented incense, if such a thing existed. Then the cumin and patchouli step forward and tone down that silliness. It becomes smokier and drier and oh so good.

 

Dry: Smoky cumin over dry, crumbly resins. Very dark and very dry. At first I really dig it, but as time passes the cumin continues to amp and becomes too much. Damn, that’s some spicy stuff!

 

 

 

 

6.5/10

[OctoberGwen]

Dead Dreams of Days Forsaken

 

...how I love that name!

 

In the bottle this smells like sweet cough syrup; on my skin it starts out very heavy on the bitter almond note - almost to the exclusion of everything else. After several minutes the almond fades way back and this becomes a gorgeous symphony: deep, earthy, and spicy. I can definitely detect the cumin and maybe a bit of the labdanum, which I believe is what's adding the very faintest of tingles to my nose. I'm not getting a ton of frankincense, but I bet it will come out more with time. The patchouli is sort of magnificent.

 

I love Dead Dreams; it is unique to my collection and I believe it will age beautifully. I'm so happy I chose this as my one Proserpine bottle.

Edited October 5, 2013 by OctoberGwen

[Magycmyste]

In the bottle: Heavy on the incense and the patchouli, but I am getting a it of cumin off of there.

 

Wet on skin: Sweet incense

 

Dried down: Patchouli and incense. The sweetness (which I think might be the labdanum)I think this is actually a little too patchouli-heavy for me. It's too bad, though, I'm still looking for that scent that brings out cumin on my skin. AndI didn't really get the almond at all.

 

Throw: This has some decent throw on the patchouli and incense. I'm not sure why, but I'm also getting the faintest whiff of Snake Oil. Unless there's labdanum in that, I'm not sure where it's coming from. I keep wanting to sniff past the patchouli and incense to the Snake Oil.

 

Verdict: *** Great if you love patchouli, a little overwhelming if you don't. Me, I don't mind it most of the time, but I really prefer it not to take over (I think my skin might amp patchouli a bit) I might keep this on my second chance pile, but I think it may be destined for the swaps.

[Floria]

This is a strange one. Not quite as headshoppy as I'd thought it would be when I ordered it. The resins have a kind of syrupy quality that synergizes with the bitter almond in an interesting way, to give a dark, rich, bittersweet effect that's almost chocolaty. It doesn't really smell like chocolate as such, but it has a similar kind of bitter/sweet/aromatic/rich balance, if that makes any sense. And then there's the cumin. Which doesn't really synergize with the almond-resin-chocolate accord, but stands on its own as kind of a contrasting element. (Unless the patchouli is backing it up - if I sniff closely, there's something a little bit woody behind the dusty-savory spice.) I keep sniffing this and thinking of something like chocolate with chili powder. Mole sauce? Dark chocolate in a dusty spice and import shop?

I'm not entirely sure I enjoy smelling like cumin, but it does make the perfume more complex and distinctive.

[milo]

Gritty, manly patchouli, with an extra jolt of woodiness. I rather like this, it's dark, and I'm in a dark mood right now. I don't think I'd ever wear this out in public, however, and this kind of smells like a GC out there, can't think of which one. Maybe Coiled Serpent? At any rate, I probably wouldn't refuse any more, but won't be seeking out any more than maybe a decant.

[Zii]

This is a patchouli orgasm for me. The almond is doing something amazing to this and what I assume is the patch and the frankincense are making this a heady and spicy incense that is just unexpectedly stunning.

[zankoku_zen]

Patchouli, cumin and frankincense.

 

This is down and dirty, earthy, and dry. The frankincense adds just a bit of resinous sweetness to the blend.

 

To me, this smells manly. And by manly, I mean it smells like a guy that can rough it out for a week in a desert, take down stampeding buffalo, and maintain a perfect yoga pose for hours.

[lookingglass]

Go ahead and kill my dreams- this stuff's amazing! Sweet patchouli wins my heart every time! Almonds are nearly always welcome, too! The cumin is spicy and kiiiinda skanky, but isn't overwhelming. The resinous notes add a bit of a golden glow, but this is all about the patchouli: woody, grounding, dark, round, roll in the vardo sexy!

 

(If you missed it, get thee to some Goblin for a similar sweet patchouli fix....ooh, layered with some Hecate!)

Edited November 21, 2013 by lookingglass

[JazzieCazzie]

Received as lagniappe from a wonderful forumite.

 

IN THE IMP: Almond and patchouli. More as two separate entities than as a combined scent.

 

Dabbed on wrist and in crook of arm.

 

WET: Something totally different and complex and rich and rounded. I think for me, the labdanum and frankincense are more notable when they hit my skin, at the beginning, anyway, than the almond or patchouli. The patchouli and almond tend to be lingering in the background at first.

 

DRYDOWN: Once it dries, it gets a lot less interesting to me, oddly enough. It's like the notes -- all of which I like individually -- mingle so much that they become just ... okay. It's not a washoff but it's not something I'd reach for in the imp box. It's a little too cloying from the sweet notes and too pasty from the patchouli.

 

OVERALL: It's just aiiight. Not a purchase, not a keeper.

 

On a scale of 1-5, a 2.5

[Gael]

Patchouli is kept at bay by cherry. Nice patchouli, nice boy. I have gone through this bottle. It's one of the atmospheric BPAL scents which creates a mood and perfect for dark and dreary winter days.

[Gael]

Patchouli is kept at bay by cherry. Nice patchouli, nice boy. I have gone through this bottle. It's one of the atmospheric BPAL scents which creates a mood and perfect for dark and dreary winter days.

[mymymai]

ITI: Oh, that's deeply earthy, rich, and "brown" from the patchouli and bitter almond. What a striking first impression!

 

Wet: Odd. I'm getting something that reminds me of cough syrup, but then it gets covered by the patchouli, labdanum, and cumin, which lends a delicious warmth to the scent.

 

Dry: The patchouli clams down a bit to allow the frankincense, which is gorgeous, to come out, which pairs so beautifully with the labdanum and cumin. This is a winning scent, especially if you enjoy earthy, resinous tones.

[tinyvulture]

Patchouli and almond, such a great pairing! Bold, sharp, a tad bitter, but so addictive. I need to be on the lookout for more syrupy "aged" patchouli blends. I'm always a fan of patchouli, but this is made so unique because of the almond. I love it. I don't notice the cumin at all. Big bottle list. Would make an excellent room spray, too.

[savage_rose]

So cumin-y! Very earthy and rich-smelling.

[VetchVesper]

Huh.  The cumin note in this mixes with a smooth, woody patchouli and almost gives me a cedar effect -- except a cedar that actually works for my chemistry.  It's sort of a raspy warm wood.  The almond smells very cherryish.  I'm not getting much frankincense or labdanum, but that's ok.  Overall, this is pretty, but a lot lighter than I was expecting with all those rich notes... 

 

Lol.  Ok.  Wait.  I just needed to give it a very good shake.    Now I'm getting the rich earthiness everyone else mentioned, along with a bracing hit of cumin, which I am aaaall about.  A good reminder that some of things bottles need a bit more than gentle rolling.  Very nice fragrance and the cumin makes it distinctive from my other patchy blends.  Yay!