Arielle Shoshana | The Scented Hound

July 5, 2017
by The Scented Hound 7 Comments

New Release: Arielle Shoshana Eau de Parfum

What’s the next thing you do after you’ve opened the first perfume shop dedicated to niche perfumery in the Washington DC area? Well, if you’re the petite dynamo, Ari Weinberg, proprieter of Arielle Shoshana, you team up with perfumer Cécile Hua to create your very own branded perfume.

WHAT I SMELL: Arielle Shoshana opens with a blend of zesty, fresh grapefruit and ripe passion fruit. It’s citrusy (is that a word??), completely refreshing and applying it gives you the sensation as if you sprayed the most delightful summer cocktail on your skin. After a bit, the initial zing of the perfume settles down, but the tangy and slightly sour fruity and citrus aspects still remain, as if the sun has evaporated the cool juice off of your skin. At the same time, a very interesting cardamon note lurks underneath, giving it a more mysterious feel…almost as if the tangy and juicy passion fruit holds a bit of poison. A dulled rhubarb note then arrives along with a slight soured sandalwood which gives the perfume a dimension of carnality. In the end, the perfume quiets, but leaves and indelible wake of fruited passion.

From the Arielle Shoshana website:

Perfumer Cécile Hua used a proprietary CO₂ extraction technique to create the first natural passion fruit extract in perfumery history. Cécile’s gorgeous passion fruit material was already practically a perfume in itself, but the unexpected tang of saffron elevates Arielle Shoshana Eau de Parfum into a fragrance worthy of the Arielle Shoshana mission statement: “fragrances as interesting as you are.” Sandalwood, ambroxan, and vanilla give the drydown fullness and warmth.

Notes: Passion Fruit, Grapefruit, Rhubarb, Mandarin, Peach, Saffron, Pink Pepper, Cardamom, Magnolia, Sandalwood, Ambroxan, Vanilla, Vetiver Bourbon, Iris, Musk

Forbidden Fruit Dinner Party by Chris Antemann

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Forbidden fruit.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE ARIELLE SHOSHANA EAU DE PARFUM: zesty, refreshing, naughty

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT ARIELLE SHOSHANA EAU DE PARFUM: Now Smell This, Colognoisseur

BOTTOM LINE: Ari and Cécile have created a wonderful perfume as an initial launch for this brand. It’s the perfect antidote for the hot summer months. And even better, the perfume could have been a simple take on citrus and passion fruit, but instead there’s an added depth making it more interesting than a summer splash. I have no doubt that this will be the debut perfume in the Arielle Shoshana line….with, many, many more to come.

Bone Rating: 4 out of possible 5 bones
Scent: Floral Fruity
Nose: Cécile Hua
Classification: Unisex
Expense: $125 for 3.4 oz. eau de parfum via Arielle Shoshana.

November 10, 2016
by The Scented Hound 10 Comments

The Random 10: Ari Weinberg of Arielle Shoshana

pic: Arlington Magazine

Running your own retail business requires long hours and hard work, not to mention a real dedication to providing the utmost in customer service. Many businesses struggle after opening, but I’m happy to say that the Washington DC’s one and only shop dedicated to niche perfumes is thriving and continuing to grow. In fact, Ari Weinberg and her store just celebrated their first anniversary! Of course, carrying lines like Neela Vermeire, Arquiste, Maison Francis Kurkdjian and many others is good enough reason enough for visiting the store, but it’s the personalized knowledge and service provided by Ari that keeps you coming back. In addition to celebrating this momentous one year celebration, it was revealed that there are some big things planned for the future which are truly exciting. I’ll keep any knowledge close at hand…but trust me, Ari’s “passion” for perfume will be front and center.

So what makes this proprietor such a force to be reckoned with in the perfumer world? Maybe her responses to the Random 10 will reveal a little about that inner spark!

The one skill I wish I could master is …better handwriting. Making chalkboard signs for the shop has made me acutely aware of just how awful my handwriting is.
If I could meet any living or deceased famous person in the world it would be…Mel Brooks. I deeply admire his gift for turning pain into comedy.
The fragrance that I can’t ever imagine living without is…L’Artisan Parfumeur Safran Troublant. And I never have to, because I’m hoarding nine bottles like a crazy person.
In 50 years the world…will have perfected cryogenic freezing. Friendly warning: I fully intend to freeze each and every loved one.
My idea of fun is…playing video games with my brother.
In 10 years, I see myself …frantically begging a cutting-edge researcher to cryogenically freeze my cat.
My best friend would say the following about me…“I had no idea a human being could eat that many Nerds.”
My fragrance preferences over time have…are even more deeply entrenched. A good 75% of my collection fall under the category Michael Edwards calls “soft orientals”.
The first job I ever held was…Subway, at age 17. You went home smelling like meat. The smells of my current job are quite an improvement!
You can never own enough…books.

Ari’s sense of fun is infectious and is another reason that Arielle Shoshana is shining bright. Happy Anniversary to Arielle Shoshana and thanks to Ari for participating in The Scented Hound’s Random 10.

And you don’t have to live within the Washington DC area to purchase some great perfumes from Arielle Shoshana, there’s also a fantastic website to make all your perfumed dreams come true. Check it out!

www.arielleshoshana.com

August 17, 2016
by The Scented Hound 6 Comments

Cocktails with Carlos – Arquiste’s Carlos Huber Visits Arielle Shoshana

Thanks to Arielle Shoshana, Washington DC’s welcomed answer to the niche perfume marketplace in the Nation’s Capital, we now have some fun events and offerings that weren’t available before. Just this past week, Arielle Shoshana sponsored a Cocktails with Carlos event featuring the founder of Arquiste perfumes, Carlos Huber. The event offered a chance for attendees to get to know the Arquiste line of perfumes directly from Carlos himself. As an added bonus, we were introduced to the two new perfumes in the line, Él and Ella which just launched this week. I do have a problem though, I can’t decide which is my favorite, Él, the masculine fougere which harks back to a 1970’s Acapulco with a sexy twist, or Ella which is a full on floral lovers perfume with just a hint of a dirty!! In either case, I can’t lose with either of these two fantastic new releases.