Perfume Reviews by landshark321

Chypre Fulminare by Naughton & Wilson

Naughton & Wilson Chypre Fulminare is the third release of the house (2022), the follow-up the fresh/spicy gems Gravitas (2020) and Bon Viveur (2021), the former being spicier and the latter being fresher, both excellent. Chypre Fulminare is darker than both, a chypre, yes, but dense with notes of frankincense, leather, castoreum, and pepper that add a lot of intensity to the more standard chypre/fougere-type formula of citrus, florals, and oakmoss. It’s not quite as versatile as Gravitas or Bon Viveur but is similar superb in sophistication and seems very thoroughly-conceived; it’s just a bit more apt for cooler weather and evening wear than it is for warm weather and daytime wear, in general, in my opinion. But it’s just as much of an achievement as the other two. I do like the spicier, borderline-animalic take on the chypre concept, a bit experimental and daring while still quite classy and not too over-the-top, arguably a bit restrained in its edginess.

The house’s UK website does not seem to list Chypre Fulminare but it is still sold in the US by Luckyscent, priced at $125 for 100ml, very reasonable in the current market. So perhaps it’s been discontinued? I’m not sure. Look into it, I’d say, if you haven’t yet. The current deals on the house site for Gravitas and Bon Viveur are quite exceptional, also, if you’ve not tried either of those.

8 out of 10

Torino23 by Xerjoff

First sampling of Xerjoff Torino23, similarly inspired by Xerjoff21 and 22 by the ATP Nitto Finals held in Turin, a well-blended freshie that reminds me of 21 more than 22, certainly, a floral bouquet crossed with a fresh spicy blend, an ensemble of tuberose, rose, ylang ylang, and jasmine playing with bergamot, cardamom, and nutmeg, over a base of amber, musk, and woods. It has an air of sophistication and is quite unisex, floral but pleasantly and sophisticatedly so (think Fox in the Flowerbed, by Imaginary Authors, as a comparison). This is an easy winner for anyone, though the floral-weary might have some difficult sifting through the bouquet to find something they prefer, but I think its almost restrained use of the medley of flowers works so very well against a bit of spice. Overall, I quite like it.

Torino23 is EDP concentration, priced at $215 for 50ml, and sold via the house site as well as US retailers like Perfumology, certainly not the cheapest house on the market but in line with a lot of higher-end products.

7 out of 10

Join The Club : Torino22 by Xerjoff

First try of Torino22 in the Join the Club collection, Xerjoff’s second annual release (after Torino21) celebrating the Nitto ATP Finals, which, starting in 2021, has been held in Turin. Whereas Torino21 is a fresh, minty, ozonic blend, Torino22 is a bit deeper but, in one sense, similarly multifaceted and defying categorization. To my nose, it has a bit of the funky cannabis/Arabica coffee bean smell that’s so powerful in the Coffee Break collection (Golden Dallah/Green/Moka), which, in this case, is a mix of clary sage, mate, and saffron, I’m guessing, based on the listed notes, along with guaiac, bergamot, and musk. It’s a little dirty, green, fresh, funky, and raw. It’s a challenging one to describe but for anyone that’s smelled any of the Coffee Break scents, there’s at least some vague common ground, even though the notes seem to be quite different, and it’s surely a huge departure from Torino21 despite being the same series.

Torino22 is EDP concentration and priced at $215 for 50ml, on the more modest side of the house’s pricing, but still not cheap, but it’s a really robust scent with a lot going on, relatively high in uniqueness and creativity, apart from some of the connection that I sense to the Coffee Break collection. It’s sold on the house site and through US boutiques like Perfumology, which has among the best Xerjoff selection I’ve seen. I’ll seriously consider picking up a bottle after doing a side by side with Golden Dallah or Moka.

8 out of 10

Labdanum JB by Perfumology

Finally doing a proper sampling of Labdanum JB from the Perfumology Accords series, a 2022 release and fittingly labdanum-focused fragrance created by John Biebel, perfumer/owner of January Scent Project. It involves primarily labdanum itself, showcasing a great marriage of its balsamic and smoky qualities with slight pinches of beeswax and spices, a bit reminiscent of the resinous aspects of Ambre Loup by Rania J (off of memory) but still a bit different. It’s an excellent, rich resinous treat that fans of resinous fragrances will surely love.

Currently it’s out of stock and I’m not sure if it’s coming back, but its pricing, when in stock, was $65 for 30ml, very reasonable for a high-quality, rich fragrance. Certainly I’d recommend that anyone interested in resinous fragrances seek this one out.

8 out of 10

Vivid Flame by Dua Fragrances

Vivid Flame is the Dua inspired expression of Clive Christian 1872 for Men, a spicy blend featuring black pepper, rosemary, lavender, nutmeg, petitgrain, citruses, neroli, resins, and woods. The spiciness is quite intense at the opening but gradually subsides. Still, the fragrance is strong and gentlemanly while also having a sense of restraint and well-roundedness, a spicy blend that’s classy in the way of Montale Arabians or Parfums de Marly Nisean, clearly more apt for cold weather and the nighttime but perfectly acceptable in the daytime with restrained sprays. There’s some sharpness and vague resinousness and smokiness but I think the black pepper is the main player, anchored by some of the supporting elements that give it some color and shape. A little dark but also peppy and zesty, it feels like a good all-day option both in terms of character and performance, particularly when trying to stand out slightly but not obscenely.

Really an underrated gem in the Dua collection but for which I do not have a good comparison to its inspiration, which I’ve not smelled in some time, but I love the Dua and it suits me perfectly well. Its retail pricing is $55 for 30ml, so slightly lower than most of the main collection, but sometimes quite a bit lower with discounts.

8 out of 10

Juniperus by Pineward Perfumes

Pineward Perfumes Juniperus is a very recent release from this Colorado/Utah-based house, a bold green mossy woody sharp blend featuring juniper, lavender, rosemary, patchouli, and sandalwood. It has a vaguely savory background with the rosemary but mainly a bold center of that smells like rich spring outdoor experience in the woods, full of plants and life and a mossy greenness that seems to come from the juniper and lavender, a little sharp but not too sharp, and not really floral despite what I figure to be a good use of lavender. It feels like a relatively full masculine-leaning fresh cologne, perhaps something that might’ve appeared in the last 25 years in a designer lab but with a little more grace and authenticity. A very interesting release that I’m nonetheless unsure I would wear a lot. Overall, though, I like it very much.

Juniperus is EDT concentration and is priced at $135/80/50 for 57/37/17ml and performs quite well, so it’s a great value, perhaps better so than the line’s higher-concentration options at higher price points.

7 out of 10

Greymist by Pineward Perfumes

Sampling Pineward Perfumes Greymist, a lovely pine/spruce/fir-centered blend that has raw supporting notes of tobacco and vetiver that together are a bit dark and green, with citron for freshness. It’s has a slightly ozonic quality to it, also, but it’s a coniferous experience first and foremost, with the other elements in support, and, like most of the house’s exploration of woods, feels high-quality and thoroughly-considered. This could easily be an everyday fragrance but nonetheless feels quite specially crafted and very much up to the high standard that the house has set these past few years.

This is EDT concentration and has consistent pricing with the rest of the line, at $135/80 for 57/37ml, which I find very reasonable in the current market, particularly for niche/independent perfumery, and it performs very well for a modern EDT, with great longevity and projection.

8 out of 10

Faerie Queen by 4160 Tuesdays

First proper wearing of Faerie Queen, the latest Queen from 4160 Tuesdays as collaboration with Cafleurebon, initially a Perfumology exclusive in the US, and a similarly sweet, powdery, sharp inspiring blend like its four predecessors (White, Red, Dark, Pirate). Its center is a powdery sweet iris accord, flanked by rose, violet, vanilla, and musk. It’s borderline candy-sweet, a feature that is expressed more over time in the dry down, whereas the opening is fittingly a bit more strident, in which it boldly announces itself florally, after the creamy vanilla and musk announce themselves over time.

There are connections to the Clouds family of the house, for sure, in the iris and vanilla pairing that’s so prominent in both, but Faerie Queen is surely a bit sharper, more powdery, more violet-leaning than anything Clouds. I prefer Clouds mostly but like Faerie Queen as a sharper, more floral cousin, particularly for those whose preferences lean that way.

Faerie Queen performs very well and is priced at $180/130 for 100/50ml, in EDP concentration, and is sold both via the UK house website as well as (in the US) Perfumology, which has (by far, to my knowledge) the largest selection of 4160 Tuesdays fragrances in North America.

7 out of 10

The Big Smoke by 4160 Tuesdays

This is my first try of 4160 Tuesdays The Big Smoke, a dry smoky woody resinous blend that is big in terms of smoothness and well-blendedness but not overly loud or spicy or ashy. I get a bit more patchouli and birch and vetiver in the opening and more pure labdanum and frankincense in the dry down, but there are traces of all of these key notes throughout, with a sort of general muskiness during its lifespan, also. I instantly love it as a great option for cooler weather, especially, that is nonetheless not overwrought to the point of being unwearable on a mild summer evening, even. For those that like layering, I could see this being layered with a diverse array of floral, fruity, sweet, etc. fragrances, as Sarah herself suggested layering it with the rosy chypre Court of Ravens, for example, which I wore for the first time yesterday.

The Big Smoke is sold via the UK house site and US retailers like Perfumology and Olfactif, in EDP concentration, priced at $190/130 for 100/50ml, and it performs quite well. I’d certainly recommend that everyone check this out, as I could see it working well for just about anyone.

8 out of 10

Court of Ravens by 4160 Tuesdays

First wearing of 4160 Tuesdays A Court of Ravens, a floral, resinous plenty with fruity and musky accents, described a rose chypre on the website, which to me is the perfect encapsulation. There are jammy, fruity accords on the periphery but this is, at its heart, a chypre with a prominent rose note, sharp but not as sharp as, say, Salt Rose, which I sampled yesterday, with a bit of bright greenness on top, over a bed of resins. It’s quite outstanding and elegant, a great chypre that dries down quite rosy and cozy, predictably losing some of its sharpness. This feels a little more traditional than, say, My Eau My!, while still sharing a core chypre DNA.

Court of Ravens is (I believe) EDP concentration, priced at in the US at $195/145 for 100/50ml, and sold both via the UK house website as well as official US retailers like Perfumology, from whom I obtained my sample, as well as pretty much every other sample of Sarah’s creations. It’s also quite a strong performer, and as usual with the line, is very reasonably priced in the current market, in my opinion.

8 out of 10

A Flame in Your Heart by 4160 Tuesdays

First wearing of 4160 Tuesdays – A Flame in Your Heart, a fragrance I’d not heard of until relatively recently, a spicy, resinous, potential gem with healthy does of labdanum and benzoin at the center, along with styrax and cistus, accented by pink pepper, cocoa, rose, and kumquat, though I really would not have put together the supporting notes on my own, not by a long shot. It’s primarily an elegant yet robust resin-led experience, not dense to the point of being prohibitively wintery or animalic, but rather, a smoky, semi-sweet, beeswax-esque expression of resins that’s really a pleasant experience, both for fans of resinous fragrances like me but also for those who are new to genre, it’s accessible but nuanced.

It's priced $235/145 for 100/50ml in EDP concentration, sold in the US via great boutiques like Perfumology, and it performs outstandingly. It’s immediately one of my favorite discoveries from the house recently, and I think I’ll need a full bottle at some point.

8 out of 10

Gateau Blackout by D.S. & Durga

This is my first try of Gateau Blackout, one of the most recent releases by the Brooklyn-based house of D.S. & Durga, a limited-edition “studio juice.” Its semi-gourmand blend includes notes of black cherry, cocoa, vanilla, pine, incense, jasmine, iris, musk, and a fireplace accord and the perfume very much smells like a blend of all of these notes. It’s sweet, woody, and a bit smoky and resinous and floral, a bit of a fall/winter delight that’s gourmand enough to satisfy gourmand fans but not so overwhelmingly sweet as to turn away those that just want a cozy holiday-type scent. It delivers in terms of the well-blendedness and sophistication and is something I could see myself either wearing a lot or saving for special occasions.

Gateau Blackout is priced at $210 for 50ml, actually a bit lower than most of their studio juice offerings of late (generally $250for 50ml), in EDP concentration, and performs pretty well, though not nearly as strongly as some of their mainstays like Amber Kiso.

8 out of 10

Penguin by Zoologist

Sampling the second most recent Zoologist release, and the first from 2024, Penguin, a perfume that opens as an icy fresh, citric, green, semi ozonic mix that dries down interestingly with spices and resins—namely, juniper, pink pepper, saffron, labdanum—so while it starts out icy fresh, it quickly finds more interesting footing in its more profound dry down. I really enjoy this quick evolution, frankly a bit of a bait and switch, from the icy blast to the spicy dry down, particularly in that where it ends up isn’t overbearingly intense but rather still nuanced and year-round pleasant. I think this leans toward the more crowd-pleasing, say, half of the Zoologist catalogue, while still being quite interesting and innovative. The spice/resin ensemble just clicks very well with me, and as usual, performance is quite good, albeit not as strong as the latest entry, Rabbit.

Penguin is sold at the brand’s standard pricing, $175 for 60ml, in 20% concentration (usually between EDP and extrait), by both the house website and boutiques like Perfumology. Like many of the house’s new releases, it’s sold out quickly via a number of points of sale. And the house sells a travel size, too, as it does for most of its scents.

8 out of 10

Rabbit by Zoologist

Sampling the latest release from Zoologist Perfumes, Rabbit, which is a fascinating medley of sweet, green, and fresh accords, mainly, with just hints of dirtiness, a blend of carrot (of course), soil, vanilla, clover, fruits, nuts, and florals. I get a bit of carrot cake with green notes and soil, mainly, myself, which makes this one of several fragrances from the house to dabble into soil as a note, and, as with many others from the house, it does a great job interweaving a habitat with a bit of flair and fantasy. Overall, the floral/vegetal/sugary aspect that prevents it from being something I would douse myself in, but like so many others from the house, it’s a fun wear and like most of the house, performs quite well.

Rabbit is priced at $210 for 60ml in extrait concentration, available via the house website and great boutiques like Perfumology, Ministry of Scent, and others that carry the line, though it quickly sold out at Perfumology and other retailers in both the limited and standard editions. The house site also sells a travel-size spray.

7 out of 10

First Sight by Bath & Body Works

First Sight is one of the more recent men’s releases from Bath and Body Works, designed as a wedding-themed option that’s paired with a women’s, Dressed in White, that smells quite different. First Sight, as B&BW employees have openly stated, smells a bit like MFK BR540 but for me, it’s a much more pared down, thinner, fresher, more agreeable alternative to even the original BR540 EDP (or, frankly, the clones that it inspired). It’s described has having primary notes of soft bergamot, rich woods, and sugared musk, and a sort of sugary fresh musky citric experience is very much what I get out of it.

Priced at $60 for 100ml at full retail, but sometimes available at 50% off, it’s a perfectly nice cheapie option at $30. It performs moderately but not particularly well, which is a nod to those that do not want to be overwhelmed or like being able to over spray a bit.

7 out of 10

Sandalwood in Oak by Scents of Wood

Scents of Wood Sandalwood in Oak is an appropriately more woods-focused blend that nonetheless has a boozy aspect from the aging process in barrels that inspires the scent and many others in the house’s now-rather-extensive catalogue. Sandalwood mixes with guaiacwood, sage, burnt sugar, pepper, and vanilla. It’s a bit resinous, slightly sweet/smoky/spicy, all while having the blend of woods as its main centering characteristic. There’s a vaguely syrupy, peppery gourmand quality to it even though it’s far more a woody/smoky/resinous blend. As with the rest of the house’s creations here, the quality is very high and the performance above average, even at this price point and for a generally cool-weather-leaning scent.

Like the rest of the line, the current full bottle 75ml pricing is $240. The 10ml size that I bought is now priced at $55, formerly $38, so a sizable increase, albeit now with a nice box, but I still quite prefer the option of buying the smaller size as a form of both an extended test as well as travel size, particularly if the only other option is a bottle that’s $200+.

8 out of 10

Melon Masu by Cult of Kaori

Cult of Kaori Melon Masu is one of the brand’s first two releases (in late 2023) from Chris Undi along with Onsen Minerale. It smells like a fresh mixed-melon-with-sake blend seasoned with hinoki wood, similar to Onsen in that it creates a rich environment and experience but instead focusing a bit more on a beverage than a bath, albeit quite pleasantly. Melon-scent/flavored products seem to be in abundance in Japan, far more than in the US, as best I can tell, and the floral, cocktail-like experience in Melon Masu is accessible and reminds of some of those candies and other products I’ve tried over the years. It’s restrained, also, in the sense that it’s not over the top floral, fruity, boozy, or sharp, rather a blended, smooth, easygoing experience that I expect even those who aren’t usually fans of melon scents (myself included) might appreciate.

As with Onsen Minerale, Melon Masu is extrait concentration, priced at $220 for 50ml, sold via the house site and Perfumology, and performs well.

8 out of 10

Fruits of The Tree of Knowledge / What Katie Did On Friday Night by 4160 Tuesdays

Sampling 4160 Tuesdays – Fruits of the Tree of Knowledge, a 2014 release that fittingly involves a blend of fruits (cherry, raspberry, lemon, orange) that are contrasted by a mix of rose, violet, and sandalwood, blending the sweet, juicy fruits with a bit of floral sharpness, overall being slightly sweet and green but mostly fruity and a bit floral.

It leans a little more sharply floral and feminine that what my personal preferences are, but the quality is nice and I think that many people would enjoy it. In the US, it seems to only be sold at Olfactif, from whom I acquired my sample, at very reasonable brand pricing of $110 of 50ml, and it’s also sold via the house site. Definitely worth checking out if it sounds up your alley.

6 out of 10

Ingenious Ginger by Goldfield & Banks

Ingenious Ginger is one of the more recent release from Goldfield & Banks, a fresh, spicy, invigorating blend fittingly featuring ginger, which I can sometimes find to be overdone in heavier offerings, but this rendition is fresh, with additional notes of citruses in the top, jasmine and rose in the heart, and a base of vanilla, sandalwood, and patchouli, giving it a bit more subtle depth as it dries down. It lands in a comfortable middle ground between the provocativeness of the ginger and (eventually) patchouli vs the familiar comfort of citruses, flowers, and woods.

Ingenious Ginger has the current standard pricing for most of the brand, $190/130/36 for 100/50/10ml, and is sold through great boutiques like Perfumology, from which I’ve now sampled the entire line to date. I love the option of 10ml travel sizes in most (all?) of their scents, a great way to try extensively before committing to a larger bottle, or just to have a more travel-friendly option. This fragrance does not perform too loudly but is satisfactory and inoffensive in having moderate performance and being a largely agreeable scent.

7 out of 10

Amore Caffè by Mancera

This is my first wearing of Mancera Amore Caffe, a 2023 gourmand that has gotten a lot of buzz in recent months, this year’s Tonka Cola, in that respect. Right off the initial spray, it’s sweet and even a little syrupy, but not overly heavy, a quite pleasant coffee scent that, while not having a ton of coffee in it, nonetheless does not fall into the category of smelling like a bakery or other desserts. It’s lightly spiced and boozy, with notes of amaretto, speculoos, and brown sugar, without too much evidence of non-gourmand notes. It genuinely smells like something that could be part of a dessert.

I find it much more wearable than Aoud Cafe and as such it’s the best coffee scent under this brand. It’s not terribly innovative or different but hits the mark very well. I could see this being a great option for gourmand fans that are generally turned off by too much coffee or too much sweetness, and even non-gourmand fans can probably appreciate its pleasantness. It’s not a particularly loud performer but satisfactory for its genre.

The retail pricing of Amore Caffe is the same as most of the house, at $180/105 for 120/60ml via the house website, department stores, and some great boutiques like Krystal Fragrance.

8 out of 10

Montabaco Cuba by Ormonde Jayne

First proper sampling of Ormonde Jayne Montabaco Cuba, a fresh, spicy, slightly sweet blend that’s smooth and easygoing and highly pleasant while having just a bit of provocative sharpness at its opening. Its main notes are a blend of citruses, florals, and spices—most notably bergamot, juniper, jasmine, magnolia, and tea—with a base of tonka and tobacco. It has a great blended effect that defies categorization somewhat; it operates at the intersection of a handful of different genres and themes without being too over-the-top in terms of being a freshie or tobacco scent, but somewhere in between, with the abovementioned ensemble of citruses and florals providing a bit of a laundry-fresh aspect in contrast to the tobacco or sweetness in tonka. This is an easy one to love and I can easily see how its reputation has gotten so strong so quickly.

This particular release from Ormonde Jayne, a limited edition, is on the pricier side of the brand, at $275 for 88ml (sold via boutiques like Perfumology), but its utility is extremely high, as this could easily be an everyday type of fragrance that is nevertheless very sophisticated and special.

I quite love it but I’m not sure I’ll ever spring for it, a comparable situation for me to the Lubin Aristia collection—especially Sinbad and Galaor—that I undoubtedly regard as excellent but perhaps just do not need a full 100ml of, given the price point.

Still, this Montabaco Cuba is very special and I would highly recommend checking it out, as it could be extremely useful to some.

8 out of 10

Mahni Cassonade by Navitus Parfums

This is my first proper sampling of Mahni Cassonade, one of the most recent releases from Navitus Parfums, a mostly-gourmand with a prominent toffee note that comes off as syrupy to me, reminiscent of breakfast syrup and waffles or pancakes, even. It’s quote smooth, creamy, resinous, a bit dark, and super strong, with supportive gourmand notes of brown sugar and vanilla ice cream as well as amber and amberwood.

The robust toffee component is reminiscent of Absolutio, part of the initial collection from Navitus in late 2019, and still my favorite of the line, though it has other aspects that distinguish it from Mahni Cassonade. Still, there’s some commonality to be considered, and I probably ought to do a side by side comparison,

Overall, this is excellent and very enjoyable, especially for a gourmand fan that enjoys the syrupy, resinous, toffee intersection that it’s in play in Mahni Cassonade. It’s high-performing, as the line generally tends to be, in high extrait concentration.

The pricing is the highest of the brand both in terms of overall bottle price and cost per ml, at $295 for 125ml, but I imagine it’s sometimes on sale. As with the rest of the line, it’s sold via the house site as well boutiques like Perfumology, where I bought my sample.

8 out of 10

Oakmossery by 4160 Tuesdays

This is my first proper sampling of 4160 Tuesdays Oakmossery, a revival of chypres (with a hint of fougere) from the mid-20th century, greenly loaded with fresh oakmoss, with additional notes of lavender, labdanum, patchouli, sandalwood, and fruits, though the experience is not sweet. It’s fresh, green, floral, resinous, with nuance and some density, but it feels balanced between some opening brightness and murky depths. It manages to be smooth, not sharp or screechy, from opening until dry down. There’s also a familiarly fresh DNA to it that vaguely reminds me of other 4160 Tuesdays offerings, but not in the sense that it’s redundant with any I’m familiar with; I take it more to be a signature of its quality. Overall, it’s one of my favorite recent releases from the house.

Its concentration is EDP and pricing is type of most of the line, $195/145 for 100/50ml, via US boutiques like Perfumology, where I obtained my sample. It performs quite well, particularly for a fairly fresh fragrance, also.

8 out of 10

The Language of Glaciers by Imaginary Authors

Finally doing a proper sampling of the latest release from Imaginary Authors, The Language of Glaciers, a sharp, dry, woodsy blend that has a sort of iris-adjacent, cashmere-led sharpness that’s quite powerful, seasoned by juniper and white pine with a florality that is attributed to lilac, a note I’m not too familiar with. There are some familiar aspects of TLOG elsewhere in the IA catalogue, so it smells familiar, in a way. It offers the sharpness of Telegram with the sweetness; the dry woody quality of Every Storm a Serenade but without the musky semi-animalic semi-sweet raw quality; the dryness of O, Uknown! without its tea. Evolution-wise, it’s predictably quite a bit sharper in the opening and dries down a bit smoother and ever so slightly sweeter. I like it, but as with O, Unknown!, I think it might take a little time for me to warm up to it further.

This is priced at $105 for 50ml in EDP concentration, now the standard pricing for the line that had only increased finally after more than 7 years, which is really remarkable, and is still quite reasonable around the $2/ml mark. Like the rest of the line, it’s sold via both the house website a number of US retailers like Perfumology. The house site also offers a travel size at $42 for 14ml.

7 out of 10