Venus Genetrix

[Akurarei]

Black amber and jasmine tea with 7-year aged vanilla bourbon absolute.

 

This one turned out pretty flat for me.

All I smell is a very dark booze - nothing romantic about it.

I was hoping to get a floral tea with resiny vanilla undertones. Sadly this did not happen.

It also has almost no staying power for me, after 20 minutes I can not detect it anymore.

[Greenwoodtree]

As soon as this touched my skin, the jasmine floral amped, and I couldnt smell anything else.

Soon after that, it faded to a very faint floral with possibly the faintest tinge of the amber and tea.

 

So sad...as I sniff my arm again, I barely smell anything. It disappeared in 10 minutes.

[Malaena]

This one is VERY weird on me. I tested it twice to make sure.

 

Wet - Light, soft jasmine. Usually jasmine screams in my face and smells like rot.

 

Drying - The jasmine morphs to violets. The violets smell sugared. This is all sugared violets.

 

WEIRD!!!!

[Ishtar]

Venus Genetrix seems to be getting mixed reviews, but to me it is absolutely gorgeous. I am a big fan of tea-based scents, and this one is no exception.

 

The jasmine in this is very soft, and it melds seamlessly with the tea - an elegant combination. The amber and vanilla blur into a sweet accord that forms a soft, tender base for the jasmine tea to rest on. This is one of these two-register scents, with the florals hovering above a heavier base. In this particular case, it reads as a sugared note that reminds me of a jasmine version of Faith.

 

I very seldom upgrade from decant to bottle as decants tend to last me a while, but I will probably make an exception for Venus Genetrix if I see a bottle up for swaps

[Soupy Twist]

Tea in the bottle, but that's the only place. All I get is a sickly sweet rose, which develops some sour amber as it dries. Not a drop of vanilla.

[freyasfae]

Oh, this is mainly bourbon vanilla on me, but as it dries the jasmine tea comes out and prevents this from turning into a one dimensional (but still delicious) bourbon vanilla. It stays close to the skin on me, and eventually it goes powdery which sometimes happens to me with amber.

[LadyMedb]

This is a ninja in my bottle collection - soft and delicate, but actually secretly sensual. The amber and vanilla are so close to the skin, and the jasmine tea is a soft whisper, though an insistent one. This is calming and sexy at the same time - I love it, especially since I usually prefer very bold and strong accords, and this really provides a lovely contrast. It fades a little quickly, but if I apply a little more than I usually would for a BPAL at the beginning of the day, it serves me well enough. I am a huge fan of this one.

Edited September 7, 2016 by LadyMedb

[Cali]

Once I put this on my skin it's a real life cntrl-alt delete moment. Maybe just a hint of amber left. Not even two minutes have passed..... what?????

[roseus]

Absolutely stunning. Deep rich amber complemented perfectly by jasmine tea. The jasmine is light and ethereal, draped over a deep green tea. Generally in BPAL I find green tea to be a very bright and crisp note (perhaps because it is so often paired with citrus?). But here it is more true to life to me, fresh and green but with an light earthy warmth. I think the vanilla is in part adding some of the warmth and it melds with the amber seamlessly. In love! Hopefully I can find some more.

[doomsday_disco]

In the decant: I remember this one being really strong on the black amber and jasmine tea a few years ago. Now, I get a lot of vanilla accompanying the jasmine tea and black amber.

 

Wet: The jasmine tea is the dominant note, but it's sweetened by the vanilla and backed by the black amber.

 

Dry: The jasmine tea continues to reign, with the vanilla and amber in the background, but the vanilla is more prominent now, and the amber adds more warmth to the scent.

 

Verdict: This aged really nicely. I don't need to hunt down more of it, but I'm glad that I got a chance to try it. While I enjoy this one, I'm going to pass it on to someone that will probably enjoy it more, as I rarely reach for anything with a prominent jasmine note.

[Lucchesa]

This imp must be roughly three years old now, and it has aged beautifully. Jasmine can be a really problematic note for me, but jasmine tea is usually OK, and I love dark ambers and bourbon vanilla. And in fact the jasmine tea is strong while wet, but it takes a back seat as it dries down to the rich amber and vanilla bourbon. It is kind of boozy on me -- I don't think I'd wear it to work -- but I don't want to feel this sultry at work anyway. Rich and lush and wanton, with a little throw. Lovely.