A Vision of the Courtesan

[zankoku_zen]

Tobacco leaf, rice milk, and frankincense.

[Missanneshirleyofgg]

This is so so so yum.

 

The rice milk is the star here, and it reminds me really of a True Horchata. Not that fake extrait that smells like a cinnabomb. The real deal. OMG. I was so happy and kept sniffing and never ever did this go cinnabomb and spice isnt listed but i smelled spice, the nicest light spice. The tobacco isnt the star here, its a supporting player just adding a rich depth to the rice milk. Maybe the frank is the spice. I asked starbrow to sniff it cause it was so lovely and she immediately went and got the only bottle. 🤣It really is nice and sort of puts the NAVA rice milk blends out to pasture. Its not unisex but its not feminine or masculine. its defying category for me. Its yummy but not gourmand, its spicey but not oriental, its .... well, it is Magic.

 

Did you read that?

 

Once more for those in the back....
 

Magic.

 

 

[starbrow]

Simple perfection. Three notes that braid together exquisitely into a gorgeous plait, one that was instant love for me. Imagine the softest, prettiest tobacco leaf picked when it was just budding, with just a hint of spiced smokiness, combined with the warm comfort of sweet rice milk and the calm tranquility of frankincense. It's so classically Shunga, and exactly what I hope for in a Shunga blend, yet somehow the sum of the parts is so much greater than the individual notes might belie. 

 

A Vision's throw is intimate, as you might expect, but up close it has beautiful presence and is incredibly soothing. Not quite foody, smoky, or incensey, but the perfect Venn diagram center of those three categories. I will wax more poetic about it as it ages, I'm sure, but fresh, it's the standout of all the Lupers I've tried so far. Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous. 

[tsentsitivenose]

I don't have anything to add except that I love this perfume.  As they said--this is gorgeous.  I blind-bottled this hoping it would have the same tobacco leaf as Ante Luciferum Genus, and if it isn't it, it's very similar.

[LadyLuckless]

Mmmm sweet, creamy, just a touch of spice and smoke. Like drinking a delicious warm, creamy beverage while burning incense. So calming and pretty, I love it!

[VetchVesper]

This one is gonna be popular.  It's really gorgeous.  Smooth and gentle, but still manages to have depth and presence, which seems quite appropriate for a courtesan.  I get equal parts creamy rice milk and frankincense up front, with the frankincense having almost a lemony edge at first.  I don't get much tobacco, but after this has been on a while - going on 5 hours now - I'm starting to get a rich, but dry vanilla note. Perhaps part of the tobacco?  It reminds me of something in Edith Cushing and Pediophobia, though the overall fragrance is quite different.  Anyway, this is beautiful, and I will be needing moar.  

[AirimirOfGondor]

Ugh this is going to age so well!

 

At first sniff for this, I get deep, rich, reddishy tobacco - juicy, sweet, cherryish, and almond-like, and chewy. SO CHEWY.

 

As it dries, the rice milk starts to shine, adding a delicately pale note.

I think the frankincense comes out more too, with a hint of powder.

 

In final form, everything combines into a kind of different, but very lovely blend. Rich juicy tobacco and warm incense, with subdued smoky notes, and a creamy rice porridge-y quality.

 

Gotta get me a full bottle! 

[zankoku_zen]

Tobacco, incense, and a whiff of rice milk. Its more subtle, the rice milk tames the chewy fumes of the tobacco. It's a very subtle tobacco blend on me. Stealthy sexy. Good throw and wear length.

[doomsday_disco]

This wasn't initially on my radar at all, but all of the glowing reviews made me want to try it. Luckily, a good friend scent me a partial.  

A Vision of the Courtesan is going to be wildly popular. And that is because it has the same tobacco found in Hag Grey HG and Zorya P, mingling with the sheer rice milk. I am not getting much frankincense from this. It's mostly about that wonderful tobacco note on me.

 

I am currently undecided if I need to obtain more of this because I already own the scents I mentioned above, but I'll give it a full day of wear before it departs before deciding. In any case, the partial is definitely a keeper. 

Edited April 12, 2020 by doomsday_disco

[sixthsentinel]

I also came here to say I originally had no interest in this particular scent, but caved due to the rave reviews. And I am so glad I did! I get a lot of nice mellow tobacco, sweet-ish but not cloying. This might be backup worthy.

[Casablanca]

I had initially passed on a decant of this because of the tobacco, but also caved because of rice milk love and reviews.

 

Thankfully, the rice milk is the star and the tobacco is soft and subtle for me.

 

This has a bit of a perfumey-musky thing that I didn't expect. I'm glad that it's gentle, nothing like the potent milk-musk combo of Harlequin Milk, but it's just enough that I might put them next to each other in the box.

 

A little golden frankincense peers out eventually. It's scarcely there, though.

[galahad]

In the Bottle:
A creamy very nice tobacco

 

On the Skin:
The rice milk is immediately evident, slightly creamy and sweet.  The tobacco is a very fine one adding to the sweetness.  

 

On the Drydown:
A simple blend but this has depth and sophistication.  The edges of the frankincense can be detected but it is a subtle supporting note.  Overall, a lovely scent.

[Lucchesa]

A Vision of the Courtesan went on brighter and more lemony than I expected.  It settles down into creamy rice milk, soft sweet tobacco and a touch of frankincense.  It has terrific throw, something I'm not used to with my skin chemistry, and good wear length -- in fact, I could still make it out this morning after wearing it all day yesterday.  Really beautiful -- I see why it is getting so much love!

[Jenjin]

This is so delicious, like a spice cabinet filled with fresh tobacco and sugared vanilla. I love the warm, seductive vibe and the tobacco is almost rum-boozy at the beginning, which burns off into a golden spice brown sugar. Why am I wanting to drink a White Russian? Almost a creamy candy overall, like those hard, milky coffee candies except the zinger is resinous tobacco.
This is what angels smell like 

Edited May 30, 2020 by Jenjin

[feyofthefellwood]

This is sweeter than I expected (I'm starting to think I amp tobacco a bit), but very elegant. After the initial blast of vanillic, sweet tobacco, the rice milk is the main feature. And like the rice milk in Rendezvous With Her Lover Behind the Rice Straws, the rice milk note here is creamy, lightly sweet, and vanilla-musky. These two scents have my favorite rice milk note I've tried so far, hands down. The tobacco leaf gives the scent an intriguing, non-foodie edge that I agree is similar to the tobacco flower note in Zorya P. I don't notice the frankincense so much, but I'd assume it's what keeps this scent from being too sweet. Maybe it also helps with the floating scent cloud I'm getting in terms of throw.

 

Overall, this is lovely and I'm glad the glowing reviews got me to try it. Tobacco, rice milk, and even vanilla fans should definitely give this one a whirl.

[HerbGirl]

This is light but stunningly beautiful. Not much frankincense (it should develop with age, I'm certain) but horchata is a pretty good comparison. I love this!

 

Eta: This no longer reminds me of horchata. There is a slightly foody quality (the rice milk, I'm sure) but this is all about the tobacco and the awesome way it blends with the other notes. Gorgeous.

Edited February 21, 2021 by HerbGirl
Aged for a few more months

[Dancing Raven]

Wet this is sweet and spicy. As it begins to dry, I get a bit of orange. Not the sharp, citrusy kind, though. Almost like candied oranges. I agree with those who are describing it as creamy. This stage lasted about 30 minutes for me, and it smelled like someone drinking orange pekoe tea next to some clove potpourri. I mean that in a good way. I think this will bloom and be gorgeous in the autumn and winter months. Once dried, it's a sweet floral backed by cinnamon. The tobacco is very light and is vanillic. It's almost like benzoin to my nose, but retains some of the dryness that tobacco leaf can have. I wonder if there is heliotrope in here. It's definitely a soft, vanilla floral. After about 3 hours, it sits close to the skin. 12 hours in, and I can still smell soft vanilla tobacco and a warm clove (very light), and if I move my arm it wafts up, so it has some staying power. Frankincense didn't make an appearance. If you dislike tobacco scents, I think this is a safe one to try. It really is just adding a light, sweet backbone (with my skin chemistry anyway).

Stunning and delicious!

4.5 out of 5 stars. 

[paperflowers]

I get mostly tobacco leaf with the rice milk underneath.  The frank isn't overpowering, and this blend is more subtle than I originally thought it would be.

[torikitty]

Smoky and ethereal. Based on the reviews I read for Liz, this is what I was expecting. But I feel like that's giving the wrong impression. There's no smoke in this. I think the tobacco leaf is evocative of a smoky room with someone laid out on a chaise lounge with sweet, creamy skin musk that is really amped with desire.

Edited August 27, 2020 by torikitty

[theseagrows]

right off i smell the tobacco and rice milk. prettier than expected! the tobacco seems to change somehow as the 2 notes seem to blend more seamlessly, after a couple minutes. i think the frankincense is a background note adding depth but is not overly obvious. it gets smokier/spicier over time. very nice, not as creamy as expected, much more tobacco heavy. luckily i like tobacco a lot so i am enjoying this.

Edited August 29, 2020 by theseagrows

[Little Bird]

This was my favorite of this year's Lupercalia blends and the only bottle that I'm keeping from my orders.  A Vision smells surprisingly mainstream, like a fluffy, pretty, sweet, pink fruity-floral and vanilla celeb scent from a department store.  There's something pink, almost fruity, and vanillic about it, and something like a cuddly, slightly powdery, creamy, vanilla musk scent.  It smells a lot like bpal's Pediophobia as well (one of my favorites).  I wonder if they share a similar tobacco note that doesn't exactly smell anything like tobacco, lol.  It has a warm, spicy quality to it as well without smelling exactly like clove or cinnamon or anything of the sort.  A sophisticated yet comforting scent that I really like for the current chilly fall weather.

Pink florals and a hint of sweet, pink fruitiness with creamy-powdery vanilla musk.  A bit reminiscent of cosmetic powders.

[murqmaid]

a strong tobacco at first that mellows out with a smooth back drop of rice milk. im *in love* with rice milk and wish it were stronger here, but im glad it made an appearance. i dont get any frankincense, but im totally okay with that. this scent is elegant, feminine, and just makes me feel so luxurbrioussss. 

 

so glad i held onto my bottle 🥰

Edited May 9, 2021 by murqmaid

[aphrodisms]

Something about this combo reads very perfume-y to me, but underneath that it’s a sophisticated sublty sweet scent.