Epic Woman
Eau de Parfum, Amouage (2009)

As others have said, this is a rose-pepper-patchouli-oud. It is STRONG! It lasts for hours, and hours, and hours on skin (basically until I shower it off) and leaves a really nice rose after-scent on any clothes I've worn while wearing it. It is manageable in winter, but I wouldn't go near this in summer. It would be too much in the heat. There is definitely a cumin/BO/something going on in the beginning, but that softens out after a few minutes. It's a lovely scent. But you can probably find something along the same lines for substantially less money. I enjoyed my decant fully, but now that it is gone, I do not imagine I will replace it in a hurry.

This is an interesting one. It's built on a core of rose/sandalwood/patchouli, so it's in the same basic family as Feminite du Bois or Malle's Noir Epices. But there's a thick, overwhelming layer of black pepper on top, which gives it a butch character usually missing from the genre. Eventually, the pepper dissipates enough for a mix of masculine herbs to peek through (I can pick out basil, oregano, and something piney which I assume is juniper berry).

Given time, a rich base of frankincense and forest floor woods comes in underneath the dark masculine herbs, juxtaposed against the sweet, jammy rose/patchouli mix.

I think this is quite well done. This is sub-genre of jammy-rose-attar-meets-herbs was a niche trend on the 00's and this is one of the best, because it really gets the juxtaposition right. Some of these go too heavy on the rose/patch and end up edging into fruitchouli territory. Others go hard on the herbs and smell more like spaghetti sauce than perfume. But Epic Woman hits a perfect stride where it's simultaneously masculine and pretty, dank and luminous. Thumbs way up!

Epic Woman

Powerful spicy rose/incense/oud. This is a style that is endlessly explored; often copied. Once you have it on a blotter, it's really all you will smell. Very high-quality. Very strong. The Oud here is subtle, but nothing else is. If you love Rose and incense, or rose and Oud, but are repelled by the woody aromachemicals overused in most of them, you will enjoy this. Especially if you aren't shy. Me personally, I think I'd feel as if my perfume were wearing me, and not the other way around, so I'd be hesitant to wear this one; Especially indoors. It eventually dries down into something wearable, fluffing itself up with a bit of powder. Perhaps just apply an hour before going anywhere.

Whilst there are clearly some bay leaves and cinnamon in the top notes, the prominent force is a strong and quite bright and spicy cumin note that is very nice.

The drydown is very much a floral affair, with rose and jasmine being evident. Both are not very vivid, and a geranium that is added later is not much more convincing. A faint black tea note with very limited smokiness is present briefly, before it is overwhelmed by an incense note the will define the rest of the development of this creation.

This frankincense, which pushes to the side all the other components in the base, is a rich, somewhat smoky, beau fully textures and ceremonious incense note, not unlike the incense used in temples in Kyushu, reminding me of this Houses Interlude for men, and in a similar impressive fashion it lasts for a very long time. In spite of the incense's nigh-monopolizing power, there is still some development evident at the periphery. Apart from an pleasant orris making a mark, there is an ambery dark musk - a bit generic on me - as well as wood notes: guaiac, sandal and whiffs of cedarwood. Towards the end a somewhat restrained vanilla adds a bit of sweetness in the background. Nevertheless, the incense rules until the last sniff.

I get moderate sillage, excellent projection and a stupendous longevity of fourteen hours on my skin.

A good wintery scent in which the opening shows some originality, and in which the base is characterised by the hallmark frankincense, but with some of the notes being less convincing. Still, overall this is a good fragrance. 3.5/5.

Apart from Honour I reckon all Amouage fragrances are unisex and Epic rams that theory home and for me is much nicer to wear than the masculine version.

Spicy fruit dipped in brine with a hefty dose of frankincense in the base, topped with double cream. I was of a mind to actually eat it. Sounds a little claustrophobic but is surprisingly 'airy'.

You're in Egypt on one of the hottest days of the year, near the desert, standing around in some tall grass that seems to only help you boil under the sun. You're part of your brother's wedding party and you're getting ready to pose for some wedding photos, taking a smoke break. You're reminded of how his bride is obsessed with roses when the florist arrives and starts unpacking them. She hands the rose boutonnieres to you so you can pin them to your suits and she hands the rose bouquets to the bridesmaids, who begin smelling them and breathing in their chilled freshness, hoping it will help them cool down in the heat. Once you're all situated, the photos begin, and you all do your poses for the photographer, trying to stay as still as possible. In that stillness, you notice that there's no breeze, just the heat of the desert, the steaming grass, your uncomfortable sweaty suits, the light cigarette smoke lingering in the air above them, the roses perspiring on them.. but you also notice the sweetness convecting off of the bridesmaids, and you smile. Epic Woman by Amouage.