Khôl de Bahreïn
Stéphane Humbert Lucas (2013)

A yummy non-gourmand scent that provokes thoughtful reflection and instills a lovely sense of pleasure.

Stéphane Humbert Lucas 777's Khôl de Bahreïn is a very ambery-resinous scent, loaded with nougat-based sweetness that isn't overwhelming. My favorite note of iris adds a wonderful cooked-carrot powderiness that gets even more of an ethereal touch from ambergris' soft influence. It has a nice musky note in there that caresses the scent gently.

I give an enthusiastic thumbs up to this rich experience!

This goes on warm, resinous & faintly floral with a smooth, rounded iris. It's sweet but not sugary, musky but not animalic, & retro in style without smelling "off". It quickly takes on a powdery aspect like that of high end cosmetics, along with a touch of vanilla or white chocolate. I wouldn't call it a gourmand, though - there's no suggestion of edible baked goods here. It's really a very clever blending of seemingly disparate accords, giving the effect of emerging from a luxuriously scented bath, padding across a deep-pile carpet in a thick, fluffy robe & then applying the finest, silkiest talcum powder to one's warm, clean skin. There's also a distant echo of Camay soap here, even though this doesn't come over as a "soapy" fragrance. It all slowly fades to a soft, resinous base over the course of six hours, & still smells sweetly balsamic fifteen hours in.
I'm really impressed with this one. It feels opulent without being heavy or dense, & it's something I'd wear when I want to feel pampered.

Aaaaahhh! Semi-sweet florals. Resinous, ambery goodness. Musky, wet balsamic delight. Enchanting, decadent, and addicting.

The opening is very oriental and rich, and slightly reminiscent of Coromandel. It doesn't last long in that state, however, which is good for me, as something in the opening caused an instant headache. Within a few minutes it's a very powdery makeup Iris. Like theatre makeup. Pancake makeup, maybe, but nicer and not as oily. At this point it seems rather linear, which I don't mind. It's simple and elegant. It dries down to Amber/Resin/Animalics and this stage is seriously growing on me. But my wallet is relieved that it's not a must-have.

Stardate 20170719:

Starts off like many of the current wood and resin top heavy fragrances. Settles down to a nice amber,honey, vanilla scent.
The heart and the base have similarities with Oud Satin mood and Kalemat.
Nothing original but a good scent done well.
A mild thumbs up to neutral

This is terribly modern smelling, missing a deft touch, relying on sweetness. There is an iris smell in the wall of sweetness. For someone interested in modern, sweet perfumes, this could be one to try. There's a hint of especially sweet graham crackers that could be appealing.

After an iffy opening, it gets worse, still sweet, but with a medicinal note emerging.