Tenochtitlan

[Caitfish]

Yay! I'm from the Southwest, so I am glad that I get to be the first to review this!

 

The greatest of all Aztec cities, and capital of their empire. Amber, hyssop, coriander, epazote, Mexican sage, prickly pear and Mexican tulip poppy.

 

First, I was unfamiliar with three of the notes here, so I went and found out what the are like. I'll share those first:

 

Hyssop: funny, the origin of this is listed as Mediterranean, but I've seen it around. It's kind of a purple weed. Apparently, it's a member of the mint family, and is supposed to be bitter. Similar compounds are found in sage and rosemary. I do actually have some personal experience with this plant, and from what I can recall it is bitter. It's a dusty scent with a bit of bite.

 

Coriander: Oh, CORIANDER! This is Cilantro, it's a spice commonly used in Pico de Gallo, a kind of chunky salsa thing. It's a little like parsley, but it has a fuller flavor. Another ingredient that should compliment the sage well.

 

Epazote: From Gernot Katzer's killer spice page: "Epazote's fragrance is strong, but difficult to describe. People would often compare it with (in no particular order) citrus, petroleum, savory, mint or putty. I think it smells like epazote." Haha, well, that's helpful. This also refers to the pretty purple flowers that grow on the plant. This plant is actually native to Mexico.

 

Okay, now that we've all had a botany lesson, on to the review!

 

In the Bottle:

Dominant notes: I can definately smell the juicy prickly pear, with a bit of something minty (not in the fresh, brisk way - but a wild mint - probably the hyssop). The amber dominates, it's sweet and warm, a good base for these natural smells.

Impresisons: Smells sterile and sweet. Something almost like bubblegum - then it turns green and herby. Very strange.

 

Initial On:

Dominant notes: More of the herbs now. Amber is still on top, but this is much more dusty - it smells very much of wildflowers. The prickly pear makes this sweet and a bit juicy.

Impressions: It just smells natural and real, like all of the myriad life in the desert.

 

After a While:

Persistent notes: Amber, prickly pear, general herbs.

Notes that fade: Anything that could have been construed as minty is completely gone. The bubblegummy smell has faded and the poppy is has replaced it.

Staying power: Decent for such a natural, juicy blend. Several hours with throw. Apparent on arm-sniff after that.

 

Overall Impressions:

This is a beautiful, completely unique blend. I love the addition of all of the plants that grow in this area, and especially in Mexico. The scent itself is incredibly beautiful. Sweet, warm, and herby - all in the most natural way. Like walking through a field of desert wildflowers, munching on a freshly picked (and carefully peeled! ;D) cactus fruit. Gosh, I love this. I love all of Beth's Mexican blends, and this is definately up there with Dia de los Muertos - though they smell completely different.

 

Good Show! Big Bottle!

 

ETA: Seriously, people - try this one. I think Beth's found her niche in the Mexican blends - it's breathtaking, warm, savory, juicy - delicious!

Edited September 15, 2007 by Shollin

[jj_j]

I agree with Caitfish - this scent is wonderful! I don't know if I'd call it Beth's niche, because she's so good at so many different things, but Tenochtitlan gets a rave from me.

 

First on, this is crisply green - very much like crushing fresh herbs with your fingertips. In just a moment, there's a clear, juicy sweetness that must be the prickly pear, and it mingles with a beautiful light floral that's just what tulips put off if you stick your nose far enough into one.

 

I know there's amber, hyssop, sage, coriander, and all sorts of other wonderful things in this blend, but they never really stand out as individual notes on my skin. I get a gentle, distinctive, and lovely breath of warm air from field of wildflowers - and it's one I'd like to have brush past me again.

 

Staying power on me wasn't all that great - but Tenochtitlan is worth the reapplication. I'd definitely consider a bottle of this.

[xoe]

Wow, Tenochtitlan is not what I expected at all. It is a light, fruity herbal blend. Very very delicate. There wasn't much change from wet to dry. Aaand, I put this on last night at about 10:00 pm, it is now 10:00 am and there is still a faint scent on my wrist.

 

Really an amazing accomplishment this one.

[darkling]

I adore the scent of pear so I immediately fell in love with Tenochtitlan.

 

In the bottle: Very light, sweet pear with a hint of flowers and greenery.

 

On my skin: The pear is ripe and juicy with a background of wispy flowers. This is a very warm scent as though the desert air was muting the flowers and ripening the pear.

 

Drydown: This is the most beautiful, natural pear scent that I have ever encountered and I could not stop sniffing my wrists. I love it!

 

It lasted more briefly than I would have liked (only a few hours) and would require reapplication throughout the day.

[rhubarbbear]

i ordered an imp of this as part of my brother's imp gift pack- but once i sniffed it i knew i had to keep it for myself. yes! HAD to

 

i tenochtitlan. love, love, love it. its one of a handful of scents i've put on and immediatly wanted a big bottle. its light, floral (the tulip comes out on me), fruity (definilty cactus apples!), and somewhat honeyed. the herbs are just present enough to keep it from being super sweet on my skin.

 

beth, get down with your bad self!!!

 

[tempete]

Tenochtitlan is very green at first on me - not sharp at all, but very refreshing. I'm not sure if I'm identifying it correctly, but it seems that the prickly pear note dominates the initial wet phase.

 

As Tenochtitlan dries down, the amber note comes out and mixes with the green notes. It eventually becomes an almost pure amber scent on me, although I can still faintly detect the green notes.

 

This scent will be perfect when I'm in the mood for a green, lighter scent, and I plan on getting a bigger bottle of this.

[Ina Garten Davita]

First Impression: Wow! This smells like Pele with a fruity kick.

 

Second Impression: Must. Have. Bottle. This is the stronger, brighter version of Pele that I've longed for. I don't quite know what they have in common, but they are similar to my nose. The main difference is the bright poppy, the depth of sage and the fruit-juicy prickly pear smell. This is a sensual, decadent and gorgeous scent.

 

Final Analysis: Love this. Really good staying power and throw.

[Rheliwen]

Wow! This one is a truly beautiful, bright and cheery scent.

 

Right out of the imp it smells like juicy, juicy pear with a hint of amber. I didn't get overwhelmed by the fruitiness, since pear is a more subtle scent. As it dried, I started to smell the sage and other ingredients. It made the blend into a sweet, spicy pear scent. After about an hour, I smell the wonderful light poppy with the pear and an undercurrent of amber.

 

This smells a lot like another BPAL that I can't remember at the moment. Nonetheless, I love this!! It's green, cheery, fruity and floraly in a non fruit and floral sort of way. If you like subtle juiciness and poppy, you'll love this. The amber is very, very light and I don't get much coriander. It's blended so beautifully, it smells divine.

[pekeana]

In the vial, Tenochtitlan is all sweet, fruity, and gently resinous.

 

On me, well... it's sweet and resinous, and I think this is the first amber scent that hasn't gone powdery on me. It's warm and inviting, like snuggling up with someone you love under a Navajo blanket in the desert, looking up at the stars.

 

EXQUISITE.

[nhough73]

This is a lovely scent - its fresh and fruity without being cloyingly sweet. It reminds me of the scent of Asian pears after you bite into them with the juices running down your hand.

 

Definately getting a bigger bottle of this.

[grrrlennyl]

at first: this was a freebie from the lab. i'm not really sure what's going on here, but i like it...a lot. this is beautiful.

on: i think i'm smelling the prickly pear more than anything else. very different and nice.

half an hour later: warmer. really nice, even thought i can't place the notes.

1.5 hours later: still sweet, but with a warm edge, which i'm assuming comes from the coriander. i love this.

overall: this is such a unique and interesting blend. i may end up getting a bottle of this.

[mmcfa2]

Totally different than I expected but liking this one is a no brainer! It is warm and a tiny bit fruity firts on, but it is a light fruit not a heavy sweet one( prickly pear?)

 

On, again warm and sweet with a touch of a herb smell, quite green and soft but warm which I don't usually associate with the herbal blends.

 

Dry it morphs just enough to settle into the skin It no longer screams out anything but soft sweet skin :

 

ah this is really nice! I think of it as a warm weather scent, it has goos lasting power but almost no throw. Beautiful, just beautiful!!

[paperdoll]

Initial Sniff: Wow. Herbs and fruit and sunlight.

Wearing: Wet, this is all about the fruit. It starts out slightly sticky, but quickly dries into a slightly spicy, slightly smoky, sunbaked herbal fruit mixture. There is something ever so slightly honey-ish about this too. This is so sunny and fresh!

Final Impressions: This is the second blend recently that has reminded me of Queen of Spades. I'm not sure why, because they really only share one common ingredient (amber), but there are definite similarities. While the Queen of Spades rules over the North, this is her younger cousin who rules the South... the QoS is quite solemnly regal and her sheer presence is her power, while Tenochtitlan wears her hair down and has a captivating laugh that makes others do her bidding.

They are both gorgeous blends!

 

And I agree that Beth's Mexican blends have been nothing short of magical.

[requieminblack]

First sniff from the bottle- Golden Pear and something green and herby.

 

After 15 minutes- This is gorgeous! It smells mostly like a big green juicy pear. I can also make out a very clean, green herbal scent. I think the best way to describe how this smells would be Pear mixed with fresh chopped cilantro and a freshly snapped piece of aloe vera.

 

Summery- I like this one a lot. It's very pretty and clean.

Edited April 16, 2005 by requieminblack

[helarctos]

Yum to the nth power. It smells like Fruit Stripe gum (my husband adds: "or even a good, full-flavored plain old bubble gum").

 

But it becomes more fruity and less gummy as it ages. In its most glorious form, it transmutes into a high sweet tropical-fruit smell. It's like papaya and peaches.

 

This goes on the big bottle must-have list.

[Elanya]

I put this on this morning,right before I left the house. Sniffing the imp, my impressions are...

 

Sweet. Kind of like bubble gum... and other stuff I can't discern individually

 

When I put it on, it is really faint. I don't recognize any of the notes really. the bubble-gum is still there, but maybe it is more kind of mint-y? I can smell the amber, and it is still kind of sweet. It's nice, but not amazing.

 

And on me, it doesn't last at all. Ads I said, this morning, I applied it on my way out the door. By the time I got to class, 15 -20 min later, I coldn't smell it at all. I'm so dissapointed, because I was really hoping for a nice savoury sage-y scent, but I hardly get that at all, and it doesn't last. I'll swap it with someone who it will get along with better

[Northernminx]

Strangely I got a light, smooth almost tropical feeling from this, nothing herbal or green in it at all. It smelled amazingly like Tiare flowers on me for quite some time before it got fruity and faded. I really really adored this one, but sadly it's making my father sneeze so off it goes I guess.

[SoapyRN]

Yummers

 

In the bottle/imp, actually as this was a freebie from the LAB!!

 

so, in the imp, I got lip-smackin sweetness. Gum, not your sugarfree variety either.

At this point I decided to look up the blend to see what notes are in it.

The sweetness must be the prickly pear. Goes on that sweet too. Wowie!

 

As it dries, I get sage? and some other herbals. It is a herbal blend that Beth uses in other blends I think. Very nice. Coriander must be that fantastic spice that keeps it alive on my skin.

 

I love this. I would love to get a bottle of this. Skin candy this one.

[shelldoo]

in the vial, something bubbalicious, reminds me of ylang ylang yet i know that it isn't ylang yalng.

 

on the bubalicious smell is still the frontrunner, but theer is a green herbal accompinement, this is sweet, fresh, and clean smelling i actually love it

[Penance]

Preconceived notions:

 

I'll be the first to admit that I don't know what half the notes in this smell like (hyssop, coriander - sounds familiar, but I can't place it, epazote, I'm looking at you) and I don't like florals, but this sounded so exotic that it was hard to resist, although it was the prickly pear that did me in.

 

First sniff:

 

Smells like a mix between pineapple gummy bears and pear, which isn't as bad as it sounds. I also get a tiny little bit of amber and poppy, but mainly gummy bears and pear.

 

Wet on skin:

 

The pear really picks up once it hits my skin. All the gummy bear vibes disappear and I'm left with pear, a bit of sage and the barest hint of amber. The other notes might be here, too, but because I don't know what they smell like I can't say for sure. This is a complete 180 from my normal kind of scent, but I like it.

 

Dry down:

 

I can barely pick out any individual notes right now, but this smells perfect for the name. This is so pretty and so appropriate.

 

The bottom line:

 

Not an everyday scent for me, but a winner nonetheless.

[inkstone]

This was a freebie from the Lab!

 

In the imp: Soft amber.

 

Wet: Amber mixed with something vaguely... fuzzy? What am I smelling? Maybe I should start looking up what the notes are in things before I test them out. Haha.

 

Drydown: Okay, it's amber mixed with pear. I also get a little bit of the poppy mixed with an herbal note that is probably the coriander.

 

Final thoughts: I wasn't sure what to expect due to the wet stage, which is pretty off-putting to me. However, the drydown is very nice. I'll have to try this again before I make a final verdict.

[Sienamystic]

In the vial, I thought this would be way too sweet for my liking - too bubblegummy. But once on, the stickysweet smell fades away, and the frutier notes come out, and it all turns into something very light and fun. I think I want a big bottle of this, to make my own shower gel.

[gdogs]

i ordered an imp of this due to the fantastical ravings of ruhbarbbear. ..

 

oh. my. god!

 

 

this is absolutely beautiful. it is bright and fresh and somewhat floral, but grounded and sexy at the same time. . .it makes me twitch. . . in THAT way. . .

 

i can't pick out the individual notes, because i don't know what most of the listed notes smell like. . .so i'll just call it pretty damn close to perfect.

 

(thanks, r-bear!)

[Phaedra]

I got this as a freebie from the Lab in one of my recent orders. It's interesting to note that a few of the other reviewers also got this as a freebie recently too. Not sure if that means anything or not.... Anyway, wet in the imp this smells like bubblegum. When first on it is sweet, a bit soapy, with a hint of herbal spice. It reminds me of tumbleweeds blowing by for some reason (although it doesn't smell like what I imagine tumbleweeds would smell like). The sweetness of this really does smell like pear but it starts to fade quickly. It becomes a light, clean scent with a faint warmth to it- cinnamon or ginger maybe? This softens nicely on the dry down. This is a very interesting and contradictory blend. It's nice but not really for me so I am swapping it. I am glad I got to try it though.

[elphaba]

I have yet to meet a Wanderlust scent that I didn't like at least a little bit. They're just so evocative. Every single one makes me want to pack up a rucksack, sling it over my shoulder and take off to see the world.

 

Tenochtitlan is no exception. I added it to my wishlist on a whim and ivyandpeony was kind enough to send it along as a gift. I had no idea I would love it so much! This smells like the desert--not the Arabian desert that first comes to mind when I say the word. There are no camels or exotic spices here. This is the southwestern desert and it's beautiful.

 

My mother-in-law is a xeriscape gardener and my father-in-law is a flower photographer. They often take trips to Death Valley during wildflower season to photograph/document the amazing desert flowers in bloom. Tenochtitlan reminds me of the slides they bring back. It's a desert like I've never imagined before - glorious in the way that plump cactuses and bright flowers manage to survive and even thrive in the dryest of dry conditions. The life that flourishes there is made even more beautiful by the barrenness of its surroundings.

 

Tenochtitlan is glorious in the same way. It's the unexpected green scent when you break off a piece of cactus, the scent of oddly delicate-looking desert wildflowers on a warm wind, the herby scent of those scrubby bushes that turn into tumbleweeds in the fall. It's a keeper.