Bodacious is sweetness upon sweetness, upon even more sweetness. It takes gourmand to the upper limit of how much sweetness you can tolerate - in a nice way. There’s a lot going on, with a lot of notes all shouting out at you, but overall it does smell lovely. It’s centred around this theme of sticky, syrupy morello cherries swirling round a boozy note of delicious cognac. This richness is offset by the dry, nutty bite of almonds, furthered by a dry tobacco in the base. Of course it would not be complete without tonka and vanilla, of which there is more than enough of. There’s a touch of florals, most notably heliotrope which likely boosts the almond accord which is incredibly dominating. Overall this is a lovely scent and definitely one to check out for gourmand lovers, but personally I find it a bit too sweet. Usually I’m an oversprayer but I really have to dial it down with this one lest I get toothache. I will very much enjoy my 5ml decant sparingly, but I doubt I’ll be getting a full bottle.

I have seen a lot of excitement online regarding Casablanca, with some even saying it’s the best Chypre they’ve ever smelled. Would I agree with that? No, I don’t think it comes close to being the best, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t great. It’s definitely a unique take on the traditional style, prioritising the concept of white florals and animalics over all else. A fruity opening acts as your first introduction to the scent; juicy notes of mandarin, grapefruit and blackcurrant in a sweet, hesperidic fashion. Not long after, here comes the white florals - what can only be described as an explosion of tuberose, orange blossom and jasmine. These florals are soapy, gummy and pure, yet with a definite allure of filth in the background. The animalics are beautiful, and when combined with oakmoss bring everything together moderately well. I do think this is a beautiful scent, and the quality cannot be denied, but I feel it lacks harmony. Each note seems to be screaming for attention so loudly that it’s hard to find any balance or clarity among the chaos. I do really like this fragrance, but it’s not a love for me unfortunately - I’m much happier sticking to vintage perfumes.

Phul-Nana or, ‘lovely flowers’ , was inspired by the idea of a hand-picked bouquet of beautiful Indian flowers, and the aroma which filled the air around them. Originally created in 1891, this is a real treasure which had been lost to the cruel effects of time before Grossmith gracefully resurrected it. As you might imagine, of course this is a wonderfully floral scent. A light, airy melody of neroli, tuberose, geranium and ylang fill the space around you, with gentle hesperidic touches which are gentle and fleeting. Surprisingly, a warm, amber base with a particular presence of opoponax and benzoin makes itself known as it settles on the skin - whisking you away somewhere far more exotic and exciting than your current life in society. I can only imagine how exciting materials such as these must have been in 19th century England. This is a truly wonderful scent, a timeless creation which still smells incredible despite the composition being over 130 years old. It goes without saying I have not smelled the original, I’m not lucky enough to have that sort of privelage, but I long to.

Dior Dior is an absolute beauty, a real treasure which seems a world away from the style of perfumery we see today. At its core, this scent is a beautifully smooth and soapy white floral, with elements of lust hiding just underneath the surface. The magnificent trio of narcissus, Lily of the valley and Jasmine is what leads the composition, creating this intensely leafy, soapy and slightly green feel. The flowers feel tangible, as though the petals you are smelling are right there - a pattern I seem to notice a lot with older perfumes. The addition of aldehydes furthers this soapiness even further, whilst a base of moss and woods creates this element of darkness whilst simultaneously inspiring this image of walking through a forest densely populated with beautiful flowers. This is one of the harder perfumes to find when it comes to vintage Dior, and for good reason. This lesser-known scent is to die for, and if you ever find a bottle at a good price do not hesitate to take advantage of it.

Dryad is a wonderfully complex and stimulating fragrance, clearly modelled after the golden days of green florals and chypres. It’s incredibly old school and vintage-smelling, as is often the Liz Moores’ style of perfumery - executed to perfection. An array of bitter-green aromatics and herbaceous notes including a hefty dose of galbanum alongside sage, tarragon and thyme kick things off. Sharp citrus and touches of soapy white florals help to round this off, making way for a creamy base of orris and oakmoss. The combination of narcissus and orange blossom is divine, lending to a subtle innocence amongst the strength of the composition. Primarily, this is a green fragrance. The aromatic qualities are powerful and impossible to ignore, which isn’t a bad thing, as it soon smooths out rather well. I would have liked the oakmoss and orris to stand out a little more personally, but overall this is a stunning fragrance and a must try for any lover of classical perfumes.

I can see why Pulse Of The Night is rated so highly, but only in comparison to the rest of the current designer market. It’s a nice warm amber, and definitely one of the best from Issey Miyake, but overall isn’t anything special or particularly memorable. A fairly synthetic smelling frankincense leads the way, with a warm leathery amber resting on a bed of sweet, creamy vanilla and tonka. It has all the aspects of a good sexy evening fragrance, but falls a bit flat unfortunately. However I’m sure this lack of depth is what appeals so much to the masses, you can’t really dislike it. Overall it’s a nice, respectable scent. I don’t love it personally, but I can see why others do. I think Issey Miyake is just one of those brands I could never get into.

From the name, ‘Concentré’, you might expect this to be a much stronger and intense version of the original Endymion - you would be wrong. It shares a lot of similarities with the original, but seems to be a bit more rounded yet equally as weak. The scent itself is perfectly pleasant, a very easy wear that smells fresh, clean and satisfactory. However, it’s nothing special. It’s a fairly standard soapy ‘blue’ shower gel type of fragrance, which is noticeably better than what you’d find on the designer market, but at the end of the day is the same sort of profile. There’s nothing inherently wrong with this fragrance, if it wasn’t for the fact that Penhaligons’ retail prices seem to come from some sort of dream world. If this fragrance was gifted to you then great, but it’s really not worth more than £50.

Halfeti Black Rose: does it smell like black roses (whatever that is)? No, it doesn’t. It’s a rather cheap excuse for a rose fragrance with little to no creativity or imagination, simply a scent to appeal to the masses and sell as much as possible. The scent is obviously rosy, but not in a nice natural way. The rose is a bit screechy, plasticky and very soapy - almost like a cheap rose water. This is contrasted by some generic citrus and an obnoxious overload of black pepper with some vague woods in the base. Overall I’m not impressed at all with this fragrance, it smells very lazy unfortunately. My initial thought when I put this on my skin is it smells sort of like Cool Water with added rose and pepper.

Magnolia Infinita is one of those fragrances where you think “that’s pleasant”, but 30 minutes later you’ve forgotten you even smelled it. It’s a very pleasant citrusy soapy white floral scent, which smells great, but is undoubtedly rather boring. The scent is primarily focused around the sunny lemon-tinged note of magnolia, with its clean soapy aspects amplified by a generous helping of jasmine. An array of gentle citrus brightens everything up further until you are left with what is essentially a refreshment in fragrance form. It’s not particularly impressive, definitely nothing groundbreaking. But, it does smell good. I don’t think a scent like this warrants the sort of price tag Acqua di Parma puts up, but I suppose it is worth trying if you find yourself drawn to summery white florals.