Cassis
Aftelier (2008)

This is honestly one of the most unique perfumes I've ever tried. The topnotes remind me of a Moscow Mule, a mix of ginger beer and rum in a copper cup - with the ginger dry and sharp enough to smell almost medicinal, kind of like ginseng tea, but paired with the alcoholic smell as well as the tinge of copper.

Given time, it fades to the smell of A-1 steak sauce (meaty prune and vinegar) mixed with paint fumes. This is the smell for most of the life of the perfume, though a dark green forest smell comes in underneath for the base.

I honestly expected to hate this, as I'm very much not a fan of cassis in perfumes (there's usually an undertone of cat pee or bile that's mercifully not there in this). I love that it doesn't smell like any other perfume I know, but in all honesty, the steak sauce/paint mixture is a bit awkward in terms of everyday wear. But I HAVE to vote thumbs up for creativity - definitely worth sampling if you're looking for something different.