Now this right here is a fragrance for life!!!. Sweet but also somewhat salty. Not overly sweet as you might think based of the notes. Very well blended and sophisticatedly smooth. This is date night self made in a bottle. Point, blank, period!.
I have to say I was completely blown away by this perfume and trying it several times makes me arrive at the same conclusion....Black Phantom is great. I wouldn't go as far to say it's a triumph or anything too gushy but what I like is that BP marries some good concepts in what could've been another massively over priced damp squib, like many others from Kilian. The thing is when he hits... he hits and the creativity in this one is akin to the ones I enjoy like Straight to heaven, Apple brandy, Back to Black (I don't like but I appreciate the originality) Incense Oud etc... The opening is immediately gourmand, gorgeously cocoa like, warm, sweet but also bitter, it's well balanced. Then there's a woody vetiver type vibe, smoky, evoking the colour grey and a charcoal like texture. The alcohol edge which is a By Kilian signature is definitely there and next to make an appearance before drying down to a sugary, coffee infused caramel and tonka a bit like tia maria or kahlua. The dirty vanilla drydown is soft but lasted very well on my skin in fairness. Okay so I don't know how much this perfume costs but I have bought Kilian's before and they ain't cheap. This is mainly due to the packaging and this one has a fancy box, so I'm thinking a lot. I'll give it the benefit of the doubt on the name and the perceived 'Darkness' which I actually thinks comes from the smoky wood and the rum element rather than the chocolate. I suppose chocolate can be dark as well so hey? What I like about Black Phantom is that it could so easily have been another boring gourmand, jumping on the Feve delicuese hype but what this and the Dior have in common is that you (or at least I) could smell the quality. You can smell literally smell the money. As much as I love Mugler AMen Tonka and can see the similarities this is a league up in terms of quality and for the money so it should be. I'm not talking strength or longevity here or snobbery just that Je ne sais quoi. This perfume has distinct phases too, the opening the heart and the drydown and I thought progressed well through each one. I enjoyed it but I'm not looking to add it to my wardrobe.
