An Encounter of Three

[VioletChaos]

Caramelized white sandalwood, tonka bean, and cassis liqueur.

In The Bottle: The caramelized sandalwood is the first thing- and it's quite a surprise! I expected there to be, well, a caramel note in here. But instead it's this gloriously smoky sandalwood, and I AM INTO IT.

Wet On Skin: The sandalwood is still the dominant note, but there's something a bit...unsettling...under it. I can't put my finger on it, though. At least not yet. Because I'm well acquainted with tonic and it's not that. Perhaps it is the cassis, which I had to look up to find out is a liquor made from black currants!

 

Dry Down: This is BEAUTIFUL. And also really original! The cassis settled down upon drying and the fragrance has become one of mystery and sweet sexiness. It's not quite a resin, and it's not quite wood, but it's lovely and has a dry sweetness and a sophistication that I suspect, as often happens with resin and wood components, that this will only get better with age.

 

I *might* require a backup bottle

[highgarden]

Freshly applied, I can pick out the cassis liqueur and the sandalwood, the former being a bit more dominant. It definitely smells boozy. About 30 minutes in, it's suddenly all sandalwood, all the time. It smells a bit burnt, which I'm guessing is the caramelised part, but it softens about an hour later. The tonka starts to come out then. I'm five hours in and it's this beautifully sweet, complex sandalwood-heavy scent. Aging will likely make it even more wonderful!

[tarotgirl99]

This starts as a very different, surprisingly bitter and sophisticated scent. Mostly I get caramelized sandalwood with the cassis appearing early and disappearing fairly quickly. I think the tonka is what sweetens the sandalwood.

It has little throw and not much longevity (and I slathered).

 

It's not me.

[galahad]

In the Bottle:

Well hello! Not quite what I thought but fascinating so far. Boozy dusty sandalwood with a distinct caramel note

On the Skin:

Strange and unsettling but I can't stop sniffing! Pretty much as above but the cassis liqueur developing. This reminds me of something but I can't think what

On the Drydown:

This quickly smooths out and I think the vanillic muskiness of tonka is to be credited. This is so unique, strange and wonderful it is hard to describe. I love it but I'm not sure if I will wear it. Ageing could change my mind

[LizziesLuck]

Wet: Hmm. First I think "blarg! WTF is that!" but quickly I can pick out something caramelized (though I wouldn't have known it was sandalwood, this doesn't smell woody) and the sweet Tonka. But there is something else going on here that is slightly odd. I thought cassis liqueur was blackberry? (I Googled - it's Blackcurrant). I am getting nothing fruity here at all. Or boozy. It's actually a touch smoky. Like there is vetiver hiding in it.....hmmm. So far this is not my jam.

 

 

Dry: Smoky and also sour. It really does end up smelling pretty similar to vetiver, though maybe less strong and astringent. I am not a fan, sadly.

[zankoku_zen]

Caramelized tonka and sandalwood. This is more 'caramel' than I expected it to. There's a smokiness to this blend. Good throw and wear length.

[ramblingrambler]

I wanted to like this and kept trying to convince myself that it smelled good all day, but finally I had to wash it off because all I could think about was hospitals, doctors offices, and sterile rooms. It smells very much like the scent of a doctor’s office... I have NO idea why. I just kept thinking that I really need to go get my women’s yearly—so it was a great reminder, but not what I want to be reminded of daily .

[AraliaShine]

Caramelized sandalwood, check. Cassis, check. Tonka, check. I should this, but

( gotta watch out for what comes after the 'but' )

underlying it all is a sharp, serrated, green-tinged edge that I'm on the fence about.

I can't guess what it is unless maybe it's my nose interpreting the liqueur component of the cassis portion?

(I was getting straight Ribena.)

 

The green's not as biting as wormwood/absinthe, more along the lines of the green cognac I've noticed

in a couple of other blends. I does mellow as it dries down, but remains unsettling in the opening.

Will retry after awhile hoping for less mysterious green teeth and more smooth, sweet sandalwood.

Not really sensing any smokiness yet either, although I would love to.

[milo]

Extremely sweet and first, definitely getting the caramelized benzoin. The cassis is there, but it's being drowned out by the sweetness. I love black currant, and after a bit, it does rein dominant, and this ends up being a tart cassis. I'm not getting the overwhelming sweet, but maybe it's keeping the black currant in check. I like this, and will probably use up the imp. It's very similar to other dark berry blends the lab puts out, but will be lovely for summer.

[rhonorv]

I'm a sucker for tonka, and this might be my new favorite tonka-based scent! I'm using a 2018 bottle.

 

In the bottle

Woo, liqueur for sure! Smells like wood soaked in alcohol, with a teensy bit of sugar on top. Not bad, but sharp.

 

Wet

I totally get the antiseptic/alcohol swab scent that ramblingrambler notes makes this smell like a medical office! It does, but for me that only lasted for ~10 minutes. And I really liked it! 🤷‍♀️ I think it's the liqueur part of the cassis liqueur coming in strong over the sandalwood. 

 

Dry

This becomes just so beautiful and sweet after about 30 minutes. It's akin to Eat Me (also a blackcurrant scent!) once it's really dried down, but without some of the tartness and just a little more muted. Gah, I love it!