The Scented Hound

October 28, 2015
by The Scented Hound 11 Comments

Palo Santo by Carner Barcelona

WHAT I SMELL: Palo Santo opens with a milky coconut, boozy rum accord. It’s sugared without being sweet, but it crackles with a wonderful gourmand and slightly earthy goodness. The sugared aspect begins to retreat as the perfume starts to become a bit more woody. Add on top of that a light burnt hue as if the woods and rum have attracted a lit fire which singed the sweetened wood. The guaiac wood starts to become prominent as it begins to dominate the perfume. Thankfully, the guaiac is tempered quickly by the addition of a woody vetiver which helps to bring the perfume into a more sharpened tonality. After around 30 minutes or so, the perfume begins to blend with hints of incense and tonka bean sitting on top of a woody base that is full of cream. Palo Santo is at first rather big, bold and in charge, but with a rather sweet demeanor. In the end, all those elements are still there, but they settle down to more of a whisper.

From the Carner Barcelona website:

A ‘’sacred wood’’ steeped in magic and mysticism for thousands of years, releases an enchanting aromatic essence that swirls to life in a spellbinding blend that infuses earthy hints of wood and incense.

Coveted by shamans for centuries, it is believed that this spiritual wood has the power to protect and usher in good fortune. A faint misting will cleanse the mood and raise spirits, invoking the true purifying virtues of Palo Santo

top notes: Indian Davana, Rum Accord

mid notes: Warm Milk, Paraguayan Guaiacum Wood, Venezuelan Tonka Bean

base notes: Moroccan Cedar Wood, Vetyver from Haiti, Dominican Republican Amyris

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Don’t ask me why, but for some reason this brings to mind a very happy and content brown bear.

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE PALO SANTO: milky, calming, peaceful

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT PALO SANTO: Chemist in the Bottle, Colognoisseur, Kafkaesque

BOTTOM LINE: Palo Santo is smooth and creamy and full of guaiac wood which unfortunately never seems to work on my skin. However, if you do like guaiac wood…this might just be a good fit as it softens to a nice woody glow in the end.

Bone Rating: 3 out of possible 5 bones
Scent: Woody
Classification: Unisex
Expense: $130 for 50 ml eau de parfum. Available at Twisted Lily Fragrance Boutique and Apothecary.

October 26, 2015
by The Scented Hound 7 Comments

New Release: Voyage by Hiram Green (Limited Edition)

WHAT I SMELL: Voyage opens with a Sweetart candied sweetness that very quickly moves to a soured and spiced citrus that has a undercut flattened note of what I can only describe as shoe leather that is met with a bit just a hint of rubber. I know that my description doesn’t sound so appealing, but the combination of those ingredients are rather interesting and exotic. After around 15 minutes, the flatness disappears to give rise to a spiced amber that seems to buzz with vibrant energy as well as helps to bolster the perfume’s projection. The perfume at this point is rather prickly and reminds me of a large sack of exotic spices in a large burlap sack located in a hidden gem of earthly delights in an Indian street market. As the perfume develops more, there’s a floral component (I am guessing because the notes don’t list any florals) that helps to smooth out the spice and which helps to give the perfume a more dream like quality. The real magic with Voyage for me is after about an hour into the wear when the florals, spices and vanilla begin to blend, taking off any sharp edges to create this creamy and wonderfully exotic perfume that’s perfectly fitted for the fall weather.

From the Hiram Green website:

An ode to the exotic mysteries of India, our new fragrance is as atmospheric and thrilling as a Mysore street market and as opulent as Octopussy’s floating palace on Lake Pichola.

Voyage is an intoxicating blend of fresh citrus top notes, a heart of warm amber and luscious suede over a smooth vanilla base.

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Hiram has chosen the peacock as a visual representation of the perfume. He made the perfect choice.

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE VOYAGE: spicy, exotic, mysterious

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT VOYAGE: Kafkaesque, Chemist in the Bottle

BOTTOM LINE: Some perfumers have a very distinctive signature to their perfumes and once again with Voyage, this is easily identifiable as a Hiram Green perfume. I asked Hiram if there was a note that was central to all three of his perfumes (Moon Bloom, Shangri La and of course Voyage) and he said that there was not. Given that, all I can say is that on my skin there is a common thread…so I’ll just say that each perfume has a very distinct “Hiramism”….and that’s a good thing!

Bone Rating: 4 out of possible 5 bones
Scent: Oriental
Nose: Hiram Green
Classification: Unisex
Expense: 135 Euros for 50 ml eau de parfum from the Hiram Green website. Limited edition of 250 bottles. Pre-orders ship November 2, 2015 and come with a 5 ml atomizer of your choice of Moon Bloom, Shangri La or Voyage.

Sample courtesy of Hiram Green. Opinions and observations are my own.

October 21, 2015
by The Scented Hound 9 Comments

Semi-New Kid on the Block: Blocki Perfumes

Almost two years ago to the day, I attended my first Sniffapalooza in New York City. At the infamous Bergdorf Goodman breakfast, there was a lovely couple that was sitting next to our table. This too was their first time at Sniffapalooza, and like me, they were just as excited to be participating in this fun event. Unlike the group of perfumistas at our table, their interest extended beyond a love of fragrance. Instead, they were working towards resurrecting a family perfume business….one in which had an incredible American heritage. Two years later, the couple; Tyler and Tammy Kraemer have made their dream a reality by re-introducing Blocki Perfumes to the world.

John Blocki

As hinted to earlier, their story didn’t start merely two years ago, Blocki Perfumes has an American pedigree that goes back to the mid 19th century when Tyler’s great-grandfather, John Blocki, considered a pioneer in American perfumery, started creating, selling and distributing his own collection of perfumes. In fact, Blocki was the first to open a perfume boutique in Chicago in 1903. After his death, in 1934, Blocki Perfumes faded into American perfumed history. But in celebration of the 150th anniversary of the first Blocki & Son perfumery, Tyler and Tammy have launched this new collection in homage to their ancestral American pioneer.

The three perfumes in the newly released Blocki Perfumes collection “for walks,” “in every season,” and “this grand affair” are inspired by and are meant to embody memoir passages penned by John Blocki’s wife and Tyler’s great-grandmother, Emma Blocki. Of the collection, “this grand affair,” a wonderful full-bodied floral, is my personal favorite.

WHAT I SMELL: “this grand affair” opens with the most beautiful floral citrus combination that is warm, full of juice and full of life. The opening is joyous and rapturous and everything you want with a big floral perfume. In a bit, a lovely subdued lavender joins the mix creating a rather majestic and proper feel as the perfume tones down from a full and rounded floral bouquet to more of an old world garden. It feels as if you’re being welcomed into the manor house by an open door on a beautiful summer day. After some time, a mandarin note comes to the front as if the ripened fruit and flowers are being carried by the buzzing bees. “this grand affair” opens big and beautiful and like a grand party, carries itself with beautiful but simple opulence. And like the party, it quietly retreats to a lovely warm and lightly powdered beautiful memory of the magic of the night.

“this grand affair” notes from the Blocki Perfumes website –

Top: citrus duet of grapefruit and neroli, sweet woody davana oil

Middle: Bulgarian lavender, rose d’orient, petitgrain of lemon and mandarin

Base: vanilla, musk, tonka bean and patchouli

“this grand affair”

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: The perfume is like a grand affair, or rather like a grand party of the Gilded Age.

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE THIS GRAND AFFAIR: majestic, radiant, proper

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT THIS GRAND AFFAIR: It’s not a review, but Tyler Kraemer penned a wonderful article at CaFleureBon about the history behind Block Perfumes past and present.

BOTTOM LINE: The wonderful backstory of the resurrection of this classic American perfumery is reason enough to check out the new line of Blocki Perfumes. The fact that these perfumes are beautiful and wonderfully modern with a classic sensibility is just icing on the cake.

Bone Rating: 4 out of possible 5 bones
Scent: Oriental
Nose: Kevin Verspoor
Classification: Unisex
Expense: $165 for 50 ml eau de parfum. Available at Twisted Lily Fragrance Boutique and Apothecary.