Speick EdC
Essentially Me was the late Alec Lawless's company. He was a botanical perfumer who passed away fairly recently. (He & his ex-wife Julia started Aqua Oleum, a UK-based purveyor of fine essential oils. Julia still runs that company.)
The sandalwood extract I'm wearing today is part of their botanical extraits line. According to their site, their extraits are "20% aromatic material in aged organic grain alcohol." All I can tell you is, this sandalwood extrait smells like a combination of sandalwood and maple syrup. It. is. freaking. fabulous! It's also not that expensive. £10 gets you a 10ml bottle. Unfortunately, they're currently out of stock.
Black Amber
by Michele Bergman
This is better. It started out a tad clean with another "white" note in the opening, which disappeared quickly. There was also what I thought of as a patchouli note in the opening, that I really liked, but I don't think this has any patchouli in it. Or maybe it does, perhaps a little. But the opening was unexpectedly sweet, clean, and earthy, which quickly turned into a rich, warm amber scent. I typically wear ambers in the cooler months but I'm really enjoying this. It's perhaps not my favorite amber (Ambre Fetiche, followed by Amber Absolute and Ambre Nobile - actually, not necessarily even in that order). I can detect a touch of vanilla in this, a little bourbon vanilla bean, something less gourmand and a little more boozy, but just a touch. An excellent amber, but I'm not sure what makes it "black."
By Kilian Taste of Heaven
This sounds like one I would like to, Chris. Is the "white" note you mentioned something like Iris, or maybe more like a white musk (which would be funny having it in "Black Musk"). May not matter since that white note doesn't last long. Amber with vanilla and vanilla bourbon sounds very good.
Today:
by sample
Peau Despagne
View attachment 259109
God help me with this fragrance today,
This is an astonishingly strong/bold leather fragrance
Bordering on offensive !
Makes Knize 10 and Farenheit smell
like beef Jerkey
SMN "Peau d"Espagne"--"Spanish skin." (I am not sure of the nuances of meanings of "cuir" and "peau." First released by SMN in 1901, but built on a long background of Peau d"Espagnes put out by other houses. Fascinating background of these peau d"espagne scents. Apparently intended to be, or literally actually is, what was used to scent chamois. If I had time I would write more. Google it for some really good reads! (Compare cuir de Russie scents said to center on birch tar, and to reflect a different provenance, if I am using that word correctly.)
This scent had more or less escaped my notice (or memory) until just recently. I really like it. A difficult frag. Very strong indeed. I find it hard to pick out the elements. The comparisons to K10 are not far off. Some describe this one as "brooding, cruel, aloof" "ridiculously masculine." I get that, although, as is true for K10, I want to meet the woman who wears this scent. Wish I had some to compare directly to K10.
Anyway, SMN "Acqua di Colonia" for me today. Pretty much Acqua di Parma "Colonia" to my nose. Bright, citrus, no legs at all. High quality ingrediants. Standard kind of scent, well-executed.
Thank you for the feedback Rob., I am relatively new to SMN. A difficult fragrance Indeed. I have SMN Cuba on stanby., mabe monday.
Regards
Yes, Peau d'Espagne is beautiful indeed. I know a woman that wears it and it suits her perfectly. It's the only SMN left in their collection that I'd like to get. Well, Fieno and Ginestra (Hay and Broom) are quite nice too but those two are light and summery.
I'd wait with Cuba for colder days, you might find it to heavy for summer.
Marescialla is best of the lot IMO.
Lubin Daimo is a leather and patchouli skin scent for me and you can read more here. I purchased a decant of this vintage frag on sale at Perfumed Court.I'd like to hear your thoughts on this one. Is it still available? I like Idole and Itasca, but am not familiar with Daimo.