Four Grave Robbers Awaken a Ghost

[Antoinette]

Joseph Werner

A summoning: dragon’s blood resin, olibanum, galangal, bdellium, and myrrh.

Inhaling the scent of this blend brings the biggest smile to my face. (Olibanum does that to me.)

The dragon's blood and olibanum are the first two notes I notice. They blend very well together with the dragon's blood being somewhat subdued. The other notes add to the overall incensey/resin nature of this oil but I have to mention that the myrrh really adds a soft and atmospheric aura to it. I can close my eyes and imagine how it evokes the label art. The resins give it an aged vibe you might experience in a stone cathedral or tomb but the dragon's blood gives it that pop of awakening energy, the myrrh that etheral ghost rising up.

Beth did a beautiful job translating the art for this into scent.

[Little Bird]

This is exactly as advertised and exactly what I was hoping for - a dark, almost spicy dragon's blood note supported by resins and incense. The resins have a dry/dusty quality that reminds me of Midnight Mass, but the dragon's blood makes this darker and gives it more of a bite. It's also verrrry similar to Ketkrokur from last year's Yules.

[surlygurl]

A golden woody scent with some resin. No dragons blood or deep spices that I can smell. It reminds me of Tushnamatay quite a bit. If it last longer, I just might get a bottle.

[zankoku_zen]

Funny, this is kinda apropos to test to compare to the Ghost of Darius. In this one, again, sticky resins but sweetened up by the presence of dragon's blood resin. Touch of galangal. Good throw and wear length.

[gloame]

I think it's the galangal that hits first when you open the bottle. I guess? I don't know that I've ever smelled galangal before. It's green, kind of reminds me of pencil-shavings-but-not-quite in the weirdest way — this is the dragon's blood, I'm pretty sure. It's dry and a bit dusty, toasty, incense-y. Super woody. Will smell A+ on my husband. Going in his stocking.

[sprout]

This could be the resin blend of my dreams. Galangal starts strong with a gingery punch. The olibanum adds the airy mystery of incense. Drying, the myrrh is in evidence with the barest hint of DBR. The resins here are cuddly and comforting, not too Smoky.

 

Low sillage at the present time, although this will likely strengthen with age. For now it's more of a skin scent. Myrrh is subdued here, glowing and warm rather than cloying. This is spicy incense with a hint of blood and sweet. It's full bottle worthy indubitably.

Edited January 9, 2017 by sprout

[VetchVesper]

This smells, at first, like it has a good dose of pepper in it, thought I'm guessing that's the galangal's sharp, gingery bite. The dragon's blood is also very prominent, more resinous smelling, and less floral. The frankincense starts to peek through after a few minutes of wear. This is a nice, dragon's blood/ resin smell with a touch of heat to it. It reminds me of a lot of the "fiery" BPAL smells, like Sword of Surtur, The Sun in Anger Swore, and Aries, but isn't complex enough to set it apart for me.

[Lucchesa]

The one note I was worried about in Four Graverobbers was the dragon's blood resin, which is often sickly sweet on me.  It's rather subdued here, more of an overall sweetening of the darker resins than the cloying fruity floral DBR can be on my skin.  I like the bite of the galangal, and frank and myrrh are always a good combination on me.   It becomes less distinctive the longer it lasts, as the sharp edges smooth themselves out.  

[tinyvulture]

Dark, spicy, spooky. Myrrh is the dominant note, but the dragon’s blood is also strong, entwining with the myrrh, what a pair! The dragon’s blood is sweet, earthy, which suits the dry, sharp myrrh.  It’s not a super bold scent, it’s close to the skin.  I’m not picking out any lemongrass at all, but that’s OK. Happy to have a bottle!