A spicy bold oriental and my first taste of the Masque house is a unique one. The first thing that strikes you is a complex mixture of florals with cinnamon and cumin which quickly settles to a thick amber heart and dense woody notes. It's a hot fragrance in the same way Tauer's L'eau epices or Serge Lutens Arabie but Tango is smooth and doesn't have the sharp edges of some of the other ambers. Drys down to a dusty amber much like a mild version of the old library book style but still with retaining enough of the spicy notes to be pleasant and balanced. It settles really close to the skin and becomes warm and long lived but certainly nothing that stands out.

As soon as Isis opens you get a sickeningly sweet accord of fruity flavours and loads of coconut. I'm surprised it's not listed in the notes to be honest smells a bit like cocoa butter or malibu with that hint of booze in there. As this oriental gourmand dries down it reveals the benzoin and peach vibe which I seem to instantly associate with more feminine vibes. It's not all peaches either, more a mixture of fruits which make it seem exotic like a cocktail complete with chopped fruits & umbrellas. This caramel business is serious in this fragrance, If you don't like gourmands I'd steer well clear of this one. The dry down is lovely, not exactly loud but it's not shy either, a definite sweet vanilla/amber which is fairly pronounced and has a smooth high quality feel to it. I'm a sucker for scents like this despite my grown up sophisticated side wanting to brand this as too sweet or not my thing. Isis plugs directly into my primitive brain which in essence is a big child that just wants comforting strawberry shortcake type aromas. In all honesty I couldn't wear it, the sweetness would even become cloying on me after a while. Agonist make really interesting juice though and some of them beyond classification.

Comme des Garcon are so impressive with their range of fragrances and Dover street market is no exception. Started out with thin top notes which deceive you into thinking this will be a linear citrus scent but then after the bergamot comes juniper and cedar. Then an aromatic mixture of pine/incense in the heart with a overiding amber accord from ladbanum. It's a quality outing, fresh and clean juniper/citrus vibes with woods & resin in the base. Minor criticism is that I didn't get the performance from DSM that I was expecting, longevity was not great on my skin but again I will need to test it out properly. Lovely smelling stuff though.

This is Paul Smith's best fragrance by a million miles! So different to much of what is on offer in the designer game. In my humble opinion, Paul Smith has some pretty horrendous (or just boring) fragrances both for men and women but this stands out. I've never heard of Barnabe Fillion before but (a quick google search reveals he's a pretty french man with a beard) he must be a really talented perfumer because Portrait is unique. The resinous incense type combo of the fizzy, brightness of olibanum and mastic and the depth and heft of myrrhe, labandum and tolu balsam is sweet and intriguing but never warm almost cold and a little metallic. The main thing that stunned me was the fruity/floral top notes of what is listed here as black currant blossom but if I'm honest I had no idea what it was? This fragrance is interesting on a few levels drydown is good more of the same but kinda musky. It's quite an enduring perfume too, you can tell it's not massively high quality but Longevity is not bad, it's certainly not weak. The smell is the sort of thing that doesn't project but that's fine. A rare thing then...I'd almost entirely written off Paul Smith but this stuff is great and I want a bottle.

Frapin are so close to cracking it you know but just fall short everytime! The general 'theme' running through the fragrances is good and cohesive to support the brand but at the same time varied enough to create interest. I've certainly enjoyed many of their creations but they're average longevity wise. In actual fact this is not a major criticism really, longevity is important but making a quality scent is more important and they certainly do that. Passion boisee is again a wonderfully fruity little number which in the opening at least to me is instantly feminine. I hate using that definition but it's what springs to mind when a perfume is so fruity. The tangerine note is apparent and without knowing the specifics of what it was I'd have said a mixture citrus/peach like vibe? So I wasn't far off. A definite booziness here which is a bit of a signiture of Frapin fragrances and a warm woody fragrance at heart with definite clove and nutmeg accents. I found passion boisee to be a really interesting outing, the drydown is great, so easy and a pleasure to wear. I had it on in very hot weather the other day and although it has warm qualities it's perfectly suited to the heat. If I had to get a fragrance from Frapin it would be 1270 as it's just so good. I also like the unique Paradis perdu but this comes in a close third. Longevity and projection are average.

Stunning!!! What a majestic piece of work this is, truly gorgeous juice. The nutmeg opening is a welcome top note then it gives you the hint of a rose/oud fragrance but with only the tiniest hint of rose. The oud tends to come on as it settles. It's mainly an almost gourmand, creamy type accord throughout. The resiny benzoin, sandalwood and leather combine to make a sublime drydown. Few words are needed to describe this fragrance, it flits between lots of different things I love but comes together in the end as one cohesive fragrance. Reminds me of many fragrances too but still has it's own thing going on. I love it! Minor criticism is that compared to the other 3 I've tried in this new 'Gold' collection Bayswater didn't have the mind bending longevity...but I'll let it off because it was still excellent and worthy of kings! Boadicea have yet another hit on their hands!

So sorry to say...I recognise the sheer quality of this fragrance but it's too much for me. It has that urinal cake thing about it and insane amounts of rose and powdery iris notes. It opens with a mass of rose, oud, stinging sharpness of saffron perhaps? Then becomes smooth but beggers the question...what kind of sadist wears this juice? I don't know why but it makes me think of something a strong Historical woman would wear like Elizibeth I or something? I've tried this several times and application is the key. In small amounts (and I mean the tiniest of amounts) I can pick up very pleasing nuances but I can't imagine that a sprayer on the bottle would be subtle. One spray of this is all you'd ever need, it's HUGE! The drydown takes so long that eventually Kings road warms up but mainly it's an intense floral, woody affair. There's no way I'd wear it but I appreciate the craftmanship and materials used. It's a rare Boadicea if I don't really like it.

Either my original review has been thumbs downed out of all recognition (If that's possible?) or I just imagined writing it. In any case Nasomatto Absinth has peaked my interest once more so here's what I think. Opens strangely, quite subtle and understated but then hints of an earthier, dirtier patchouli type of a vibe comes into play. It doesn't smell 'like' patchouli but that herbal, green slightly grubby smell. The absinthe element is distinctly lacking if I'm honest, I do get it a hint in there of something a bit aniseedy and at times a bit like licorice. It's an interesting outing from Nasomatto I wore it to bed last night and found it struck up the right balance to be calming and natural. I like this but prefer L'Artisan's Fou d'Absinthe to get my fix of wormwood. Also compared to Duro (which I have) and other Nasomatto's I've tried like Hindu grass, Absinthe didn't seem to last as well for an extrait de parfum. You certainly get a good few hours from it but they're usually so enduring it was a bit of a disappointment.

I've Kinda warmed to 4160 Tuesday's after being very cynical at first about the name of the house and some of the creations. Well...actually...the quirk factor has drawn me in to try more and what other place to start than sunshine and pancakes. This to me opens with a very strong lime zest and curry smell similar to some caraway or cumin? I'm so surprised that those notes are not listed because they are so apparent, positively pungent in the opening. This bizarre to me. I don't know about pancakes but S&P reminded me straight away of LIME PICKLE! That's right the condiment you get in curry houses with your poppadoms! As it dries down it becomes less invasive and quite close to the skin retaining some citrus but not impressive enough at this price point. Just to give some insight into my reviews I write them in lots of different ways. This one was one I wrote in draft form a while back and then re-wrote now. I sometimes write a review over time after sampling heavily, sometimes I don't need to. Sunshine and pancakes is so out of wack I think I need to resample it incase there's been some huge mistake.

Before anyone kicks off...I did the note votes and yes I have tried this fragrance. I have to say Chelsea is insanely high quality juice you can tell from the moment you apply it that it is industrially strong. As such the opening is a mental mixture of dense woods, the first of which is Oud and it hits you straight away. Baring in mind I had no idea what to expect or what any of the notes were going to be and oud and vetiver became instantly apparent. Such an unusual combo along with a little citrus spices of cardamom and resinous ambery vibes Chelsea is nothing short of exquisite. Opens quite harshly and remains that way for a couple of hours or so, then becomes more gentle and addictive in the heart then deep into the dry down it's warm & woody. Longevity and projection are epic. Despite the praise this still isn't quite my cup o tea but I would definitely wear it. The quality is undeniable and it was an olfactory experience I will not forget in a hurry. Perfume lovers you need to try this!