Gingerbread, Coffee Bean and Smoked Vanilla

[VioletChaos]

[No additional description provided.]

 

In The Bottle: Mostly gingerbread, with a little of that extra-lemony aspect that fresh ginger frequently has.

Wet On Skin: The gingerbread is, like, REAL gingerbread. I'm getting the lemon, the cake, the spice, the sharpness. It's really different than my previous experiences of the gingerbread single note (like, say, in Gingerbread Snake Oil). I'm liking it- but I also hope that the coffee and vanilla come out to play soon! 

Dry Down: Astoundingly, I am getting ZERO coffee from this. Which is odd, because coffee notes usually sit well on my skin -they don't amp, but they are *very* present. The vanilla has finally made an appearance, but I'm not getting the smoked aspect, either- this is more like gingerbread with a little dollop of vanilla cream plooped right on top. It's delicious, and I'm betting will get better with age, but it's not the scent that I thought it was going to be. If you're hoping for a coffee-heavy scent, check out some of the other 2018 Yule offerings, cause you might be sad about that with this one.

[zankoku_zen]

Gingerbread, spices, touch of vanilla and coffee. It get mainly a vanilla-gingerbread with just a dab of coffee beans. I honestly hoped for a stronger coffee note on this. Medium throw and wear length.

[roseus]

Gingerbread, soft and warm and cookie-like but not overly gourmand. Like dried ginger vs more juicy fresh ginger. The coffee bean seems to be just adding warmth and depth and blends very well with the smoky vanilla. A cozy fireside scent.

[Numanoid]

In the bottle, sniffing, I get REAL gingerbread! Very excited to try this as I love coffee and gingerbread scents, and to have BOTH! WHOO!!

On my skin, I also get a real gingerbread scent with a touch of a lemon-like aspect. So far so good.. 

As it dries, I too am not getting much of a coffee scent out of this, sadly, but it is still very good. If you like gingerbread notes, then get this! I am also guessing with age it will be very good!

[Leah703]

Lemony gingerbread with a dollop of vanilla and perhaps the faintest hint of coffee beans lurking underneath. I don't get any smokiness and the lack of coffee is disappointing. It's still nice though and I'll see what happens with age.

[patina]

Sadly underwhelmed by this one, but then coffee bean isn't my favorite note. It is the standard fruity coffee bean. The gingerbread is softened by the vanilla here.

 

Don't get me wrong, it smells great! It's just not my favorite gingerbread scent.

[frizzlechicken]

I can't believe I didn't review this yet. It's one of my favorites of the 2018 Yules so far. I don't get a ton of coffee to be honest, but I do get a gorgeous warm vanilla layered over an orange-y Gingerbread. It's so delicious from start to finish. 

[Soupy Twist]

 

Is that cocoa in the bottle? Yep, it goes on as a thick, gorgeous cocoa liqueur, like in a really good truffle. This is the chocolate from El Dia de los Reyes, and it’s amazing.

 

And it doesn’t last. In 10 minutes it’s all gone, and all I get is the dry gingerbread note. no coffee, no vanilla.

 

I am very sad that nothing from this line works for me. 😩

[neuilly]

I honestly am not sure I know how to describe this. I do get a smoky note but it translates more to an 'almost burnt' gingerbread. Every now and then there's a waft of vanilla or citrus? I don't really get a coffee note. It's does have a foodie feel without being overly so.

[Lunasariel]

In the imp: If this is gingerbread, this is a fascinating nutty, smoky, maybe even chocolatey gingerbread. Now that Soupy has pointed it out, I do get the El Dia de los Reyes comparison - it's the same kind of smoky, gritty-smooth chocolate-coffee combo. I really, *really* hope this continues on the skin, because El Dia de los Reyes is one of my favorite BPALs of all time.

 

Wet: A candied citrus note emerges, giving the impression of Mexican hot chocolate garnished with a twist of candied orange peel. I think I'm picking up the ginger from the gingerbread as cinnamon?

 

Dry: The candied orange peel fades, leaving a pleasantly dry, smoky vanilla bean/coffee bean (not vanilla extract/brewed coffee). The cinnamon-but-probably-really-ginger is more noticeable at skin-level, but still present.

[Lucchesa]

Gingerbread, Coffee Bean and Smoked Vanilla is mellow and really nice on me, an excellent winter comfort scent.  I had my decanter combine my Yule BPAL and BPTP orders, which held up the former, so my decant has perhaps aged a bit more than everyone else's before their first test.  So let this rest at least a couple of weeks before you decide it isn't for you. 

 

I do get coffee bean.  It isn't strong -- this is a low-key scent in general -- but it's definitely present and highly comforting.  As far as the gingerbread, it's not the dark, sticky, blackstrap molasses type as in Gingerbread, Vetiver and Black Clove from a couple of years ago.  It's more of a light, spicy gingerbread, with an extra dollop of not particularly smoky vanilla.  If you missed Goblin Stampede, this is a good substitute. 

[Juushika]

In vial: Sweet, creamy, spiced coffee that I could almost read as cocoa.

 

On me: Warm, lightly spiced baked gingerbread against a creamy, smooth, sweet coffee. Maybe it's the vanilla which contributes that creaminess? I get nothing smoked, and the coffee definitely leans towards smooth milky Miskatonic University coffee rather than the drier roasted beans I get from blends like The Ta-Ta. I also don't get any citrus from the gingerbread, although I did fresh out of the mail--so it's probably doing subtle work in the background. 

 

Verdict: Lightly sweet, gently spiced, cozy, surprisingly smooth (and smoother than the other Gingerbread Cotillion blends I've tried this year, which have a powdery, spicy vibe); foodie but not cloying. I like it but don't love it.

[doomsday_disco]

I agree that the coffee bean note in this has a cocoa-vibe to it. I got a whiff of it in the vial, but didn't get much of it on my skin. On me, it feels more like a sugar-crusted crispy gingerbread (the gingerbread does have a lemony aspect in the beginning, but that goes away) with a little vanilla bean, which doesn't smell particularly smoky to my nose. The vanilla bean note becomes more prominent over time. There's a just bit of the cocoa-vibe from the coffee bean in the background, which is nothing like the coffee bean in Destructive Vagina of the Fox Spirit (I love that note in that blend). I can still smell it after a few hours, but this one stays close to the skin.

 

I think this smells nice, but I was really hoping for a strong coffee bean like in Destructive Vagina of the Fox Spirit mixed with gingerbread and vanilla.

 

Edited March 12, 2019 by doomsday_disco

[tinyvulture]

I love BPAL's gingerbread. It's complex...notes of ginger, cinnamon, molasses, and a little orange zest maybe? So we have that here, dominating the coffee and vanilla which are having a little trouble standing up to that dank gingerbread. Reminds me of Shub-Niggurath, Gingerbread Poppet, Dia de los Reyes...so spicy and warming!

[wolf_truffles]

This reminds me of fruitloops from a distance?? I like it though. Up close I get a creamy coffee scent. But its as if you get a coffee thats actually 7 shots of sweet lemony gingerbread and bubbling cream. Not what I was expecting but so good! I thought it would be a lot darker and spicier.