Cerberus

[AnaisSatin]

... A deep, rumbling scent, warm, soft and as cozy as a dog by a hearthfire, but with a fierce and feral soul: deep chocolate, deeper musks, with a dash of fig, bittersweet walnut, and the wild essences of juniper berry, cubeb and rum.

CERBERUS IS MY HOLY GRAIL!

I don't think I have suitable words for this. Cerberus is what I had been looking for in a scent, since I came across BPAL. O was nice, but Cerberus is the most amazing combination of sweet, spicy, and fresh that I'd ever smelled. The chocolate and bitter walnut is probably the best part.

The only downside is that it does not last more than two or three hours. I placed an order for 2 bottles. Soon, as in... in a few months, I'll have to find a substitute. As if that's possible.

Anais

[wickedgoddess]

This smells delicious in the bottle. Wet, it smells of lemon pledge. Slightly spicy lemon pledge. I'm not getting chocolate at all, unfortunately. It's sweet and juicy and shows promise.

 

As it dries I am getting more of the juniper and fig. Unfortuanately, I don't really like juniper or fig.

 

About an hour in I finally get a whiff of rum. The longer I wear this the more I like it, but I don't like it enough to buy a bottle. I probably will hang on to the imp though.

 

It's now about 5 hours since I put it on and it smells great! Rum and musk. If it could only smell this good all the time!

 

24 hours later....okay this smells awesome now. Gah..why can't it smell this good when I first put it on!!

 

On the wickedgoddess scale of 1 to 5 (with 5 being the best) 3.

[Phaedra]

In the bottle this smells like lemon to me. When first applied, it smells like lemon menthol. After about an hour it smells floral and a bit nutty. I don't get any of the fig, chocolate or rum notes- just lemon mostly. Oh well. I ended up swapping this one.

[amberlox]

I don't like it. I can't think how to describe it either. It is EXTREMELY familiar. It is apricot gone sour. Apricots gone wild. Bad, bad apricots that need to be spanked. It is orange sticky white-cream filled popsicle laying on the ground attracting flies to it's sicky sweet smell. It is the smell of a bathroom cleaner attempting not to smell chemically. And my skin said "I think I'll vamp this up a bit" and it totally jazzed it up to the highest volume possible so that anyone could smell me from across a crowded room. It's like shredded coconut laying in a grave of the blood of angry oranges. I can see why it is doggified. There is a certain "Woof! Woof" to this smell. I can't explain it. I'll bet this is the most confusing review anyone has ever written.....

 

My last impression: Ick! Not buying a 5ml!

[Lit Chick]

I will be trying this again - but my first pass:

 

100% Bassett's Licorice Allsorts

 

I love those. But I'm not sure how I feel about it on me. I had the teeensiest little dab on, and whhhhoooooosh! It overwhelmed me. Totally took care of my candy craving, though.

 

I'm giving it a week for so for my body chemisty to alter - if it stays Allsorts, then off to swaps!

[Little Bird]

Cerberus is a favorite of mine because it is so complex and changes so many times throughout the day. It is as though there are a dozen different scents and they are all swirling and dancing around each other. At first it smells like lemonglass, then gets sweeter and more of a lemon drop and fig scent. *How I love BPAL oils with fig in them.* After about a half hour of lemon-y fig goodness, the chocolate and walnut begins to come out on me. It slowly morphs into a spicy bitter chocolate and fig. Then, in the end when it is settling down, it smells like delicious warm chocolate biscuit cookies - but still with a bit of wonderful lemony zest and berry lurking underneath it all.

 

At least... that is the best way that I could attempt to describe it at the moment. Everytime that I wear Cerberus gives me a different experience... but it is always a wonderful experience and it always dries down to a chocolatey biscuit scent that I adore.

 

[Northernminx]

Cerebrus didn't much like me, but not being a dog person this didn't totally surprise me. The cherry chocolate sweetness turned plasticy on me, and then faintly sickly and medicinal. I was rather dissapointed as I was dieing to get some of the combinations in this blend but oh well. Off to swaps!

[scourgeotheseas]

Cerberus - from the Oblation Caravan circular swap.

 

In the bottle: Eu de wet, stinky hound dog mixed with gin. I kid you not.

 

On me: I'm not sure I want to put this on. Well, ok. It's nowhere near as bad as I'd feared on me. First, a whiff of lemon, still with the undertone of juniper berry. Every so often, I get a little hint of cocoa. But mainly lemon.

 

Drydown: This is starting to morph a little, as sometimes I get hint of chocolate and fig, and sometimes it's all lemon, and sometime I swear I'm getting whiffs of dog. Intriguing, but odd. I'm kind of glad I don't own this one.

Edited May 19, 2005 by scourgeotheseas

[cuervosueno]

I got this in the Yule batch, loved it, didn't wear it much, then decided...huh...maybe I'll swap it, so decided to try it again.

I so wanted it to work, both for the cause and because I adore dogs (and now...umm....have three), and because I'd thought of naming devil dog #2 Cereberus, but really, I think two syllables is as much as you should go with a dog name.

So on to the scent:

In the bottle/wet: I ADORE this! rum and cocoa and the slight bitterness of walnuts....I want to eat it. There is the other slightly bitter note which I associate with the juniper, which I also like, surrounded as I am here in the NM mts by juniper trees. It is glorious, and very comforting, and when I wore it (which was rarely, gloriousness aside) I usually put it on just before bed, so I fell asleep as comfortable as the fireside dog (usually with one dog curled up beside me).

Alas, wearing it longer today I discover again why I stopped wearing it. Because it turns to lemon on me. I'd think I was crazy if I hadn't seen Brownbat and other's note on this. Yup, lemon. A slightly boozy, foody lemon--like a nice rum soaked lemon pound cake. Tasty, but I don't want to smell like this.

Oh, how I wish it stayed in its wet beautiful scent....but it doesn't.

so since I'm clearing out my stash, off it goes.

[gingersnapp]

This was a very interesting blend. In the bottle, it was the overwhelming scent of chocolate, cherries and... pine. It smelled very medicinal, like some kind of bizarre cough syrup.

 

On, it mellowed more so that the juniper and musks were the most dominant notes, with a gently whiff of the chocolate (which was very dark and dry) every once in a while.

 

I definitely need to test it again before I make a final decision on the fate of my bottle, but it is definitely a very interesting and unique blend.

[Em-]

This was one of the very first BPAL scents I tried, thanks to purchasing a decant here on the forum, and I was *so* hoping to love it.

 

Unfortunately, while I like it in the bottle, it goes sour on me quickly. I cannot pinpoint why exactly - I think that perhaps chocolate may not agree with my chemistry, but it smells very astringent both wet and on dry down on my skin.

 

So sad.

 

Edited to add later impressions

 

As noted above, Cerberus was one of the very first (as in the second) BPAL blends I tried, and I swapped it away quickly and never really thought about it again.

 

Then, just yesterday, I received a decant if the pooch as a frimp from a forumite and decided, what the heck, it's been several months, perhaps my palate has matured a bit.

 

I am really glad that I did. Whether it is a matter of me being more prepared to appreciate it, batch differences, age, or what, I really enjoyed Cerberus this time around. I can smell the fig and the cherries and the cocoa seems to be similar to the more unrefined note that I like in Freak Show (as opposed to the fine chocolate notes of Vice or Bliss that I'm less fond of). The darker nutty, woodsy notes really base this and it is, frankly much more lovely than I was able to give it credit for.

 

Cerberus would still not be in my regular rotation, but I think I will be holding on to this little impsy after all...

Edited November 29, 2005 by emzebel

[paperdoll]

Initial Sniff: Fruity, sharp, and boozy. Like cough syrup - the prescription kind with the good stuff in it.

 

Wearing: Thick and syrupy, the fig, rum, cocoa and juniper all come out to play. It sweetens as it dries, losing some of its bittterness. This starts out really strong, but fades very quickly into nothingness.

 

Final Impressions: Not so much my thing, but then I've never been a dog person.

[tempete]

I received an imp of Cerberus as a gift in a swap, but forgot to review it before I passed it onto someone else. Doh! Fortunately for me, I got another chance to review Cerberus because of the Oblation Caravan.

 

Initially, Cerberus is mostly deep, dark wood notes sweetened slightly by fig. As it dries down, the wood notes soften and I can detect something herbal-smelling (probably the juniper berry?) creeping in. The final drydown is a very warm mix of chocolate and wood notes, with a very faint sweet note in the background (which could either be the fig or rum notes).

 

Cerberus conjures up not the fierce three-headed dog of Greek mythology, but rather a faithful companion dozing contentedly by your chair in front of the fireplace.

[karlajean]

In the bottle: smells very astringent and bitter

 

On me, initially: similar to in the bottle, but now I can smell lemons.

 

After 1/2 hour or so: I can smell the chocolate and walnut now, and I think what smelled like lemon before was the rum. This is yummy! I would SO buy a 5ml if this was still available.

[Aredhel]

Rating (on skin): 2/5

Summarised in a word or two: Chocolate!

 

In the imp: Deep, dark chocolate, cherries and rum. Very odd.

 

On skin, wet: Very boozey, this one, and foody as well. An alcoholic chocolate-covered cherry.

 

On skin, dry: As chocolate notes are wont to do on my skin, this becomes very dry, dusty and almost chalky. The booze, for its part, is very... thick, and warm. It's not a good smell, booze fan that I am not.

 

Conclusion: This is very interesting, and not really what I'd have expected Cerberus to smell like. Not bad, but not my thing.

Edited May 20, 2006 by Aredhel

[Aurelius]

In the bottle: rum and berries. Vaguely NyQuil-ish, in the sense that I smell berries, alcohol, and something vaguely antiseptic. Very strong, very bold.

 

Wet/Drying/Dry: Wow. Once Cerberus touches my skin what I smell completely changes. The berries are still present (yay!), and they calm down a bit. The rum mostly vanishes. I can smell a hint of chocolate. It seems to almost thicken the blend, if that makes any sense. Every so often I can smell the bitter walnut jump out a bit. While I don't tend to like bitter notes, the walnut is amazing is this. It totally surprised me. My nose would also like me to point out that it smells clove, even though the note is not listed. There's something spicy in there.

 

Overall: Such a fantastic scent, and something totally unexpected. Sadly, I'll need to swap it because the initial application makes my stomach mad at me (it doesn't like rum). Off to swap, but I'm thrilled I had the chance to try it. A decidedly odd and evocative blend. Incredible drydown.

[OriginalWacky]

Bottle (Imp): Some sweetness, maybe a little spice here.

 

Just On: Yes, there's a hint of some kind of spice, and the sweetness is nice, but mild. It smells like candy of some sort, but not overly sweet. As I'm trying it on, The Mate comments that from across the room it almost smells like nail polish remover.

 

An hour or two later: I did detect a hint of the acetone scent he meant for a bit, but it's faded and just barely there now. Covering it up is a sweet, mildly spicy scent that I'm really liking.

 

Around 6 hours: This tickles the back of my nose, and I can't decide if it's in a good way or a bad way. Still some of the spicy sweet scent I was getting before.

 

12 hours: Now it's more of a sweetness and spicy scent again, leaning heavily to the sweet side.

 

Overall: I like this scent, but I don't know that I would have wanted a big bottle of it. I'll keep the imp around unless I can find a *really* wanted imp to swap for.

 

After reading other reviews: I didn't really get chocolate, and I certainly didn't get fig, although maybe my mind was playing tricks, and the sweetness was the fig. I'm guessing the cubeb is the spicy thing I'm getting. I really didn't get any citrus, or juniper either.

[slave1]

In Bottle: Juniper and spice.

 

On Skin: Very strong and masculine. The musk and juniper are the strongest notes. The fig and rum sweeten it and the walnut adds a beautiful nutty undertone. I don’t smell any chocolate… sadly. This is such an intersting complex scent. Wow!

[coulrophobe]

This one was decidedly odd on me.

 

In the bottle, I could pick up the cocoa/rum scent... but the minute it hit my skin it morphed. Limes and baked goods... I'm thinking key lime pie. A little while later, a sticky sweet tone - almost maple syrup combined with the lime, which was strange.

 

Do I like it? Well... I don't dislike it. Probably a little too sweet for me, but it didn't reach the levels of cloying that Hellcat and Hearth do. I think I'm going to wait and try it at a different point in my cycle and see if that changes the random-kitchen-ingredient effect I got from it. Cerberus is one weird puppy.

[lady_pandora]

I'm doubly disappointed to have discovered BPAL just after Cerberus was discontinued. First, because it was for a very good cause, and second, because it turns out that I really like this scent. Fortunately, a friend was generous enough to decant me an imp of it. Yay! I just wish I could have bought it from the lab and benefited the doggies.

 

This smells like cough syrup in the vial. It didn't worry me much--I've come to realize that almost all berry BPALs smell like cough syrup to me in the vial, just like the amber ones tend to smell like baby powder in the vial.

 

I put it on and the first note was cherry, not an annoying cough-syrup or cleaning-product cherry, but a subtle and very yummy cherry. Underneath that was a note of honey.

 

After wearing it for 2 or 3 hours, the cherry fades and leaves it smelling mostly like honey for about an hour. For that hour, it reminds me a lot of O.

 

Then the honey begins to gradually give way to a chocolate note. This is a subtle chocolate note, more like hot cocoa than like a big hunk of chocolate. It creeps in over the honey so quietly you barely notice it at first, and then after a while it's all hot cocoa scent. It stays that way the rest of the day, on me.

 

This is a very warm and comfortable scent. I need to remember to ration it so I have some left in the winter--something tells me I'll love this even more when it's cold outside.

 

And, amusingly enough, my dog loves this scent.

Edited June 20, 2005 by lady_pandora

[binkyboots]

ok... chocolate, yes, but more like taking a deep sniff of unsweetened cocoa powder, you know, the deep reddy brown stuff.

 

I also get figs, walnuts and a little lemon sneaking in there too.

 

 

really lovely scent, deeply soothing and comforting on.

[telesilla]

Wet -- smells weirdly tarry.

 

Drying down --it's better but it the rum is still a little too heavy and something underlying it (the fig maybe) is giving it a kind of unpleasant molasses undertone.

 

Dry -- it's settled down some, but I still think it's a jumble of notes that just don't work on me. I should like them all, but something about the combination and my chemistry is keeping it from happening.

 

Overall impression -- this would probably be really yummy on someone else. the gf's gonna try it; hopefully it'll work on her.

[Ajila]

Wet on me this is an amazing cacophony of gorgeous scents, cherry, dark chocolate, coffee, wine, almond, cola, spices, all there, all holding their own as very seperate scents, but not clashing. Sadly this faded rapidly and left me with a slight coffee aroma, which was nice, but not as exciting as the original scent, I think I'll try putting this in my scent pendant.

[aurore]

Cerberus - In the bottle - Very peppery with a cloyingly sweet undertone, I want to say honeysuckle or something of the sort, sweet but green.

 

On application - EWWW, it smells like soap. Very biting, nose-tickling soap scent, like I've walked into a small local head shop and picked up some lemon soap to sniff and we're not talking Lush, here. This is cheap health-food-store lemon soap. And, oh yeah, there are some incense-y smells under the soap, that's the head shop/health-food-store scent. Definitely not for me.

[pensive]

On me: overwhelmingly booze and a mixture of not so great smells, mixed with woodsy. I like the woodsy, the rest is about to give me a headache.

Verdict: Erm, not for me