The Scented Hound

Perfume blog with abbreviated perfume reviews & fragrance reviews.

Tag Archives: EDP


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Guerlain Lui

WHAT I SMELL:  Lui opens with a warm, lightly spiced benzoin that’s deeply sensuous and lightly tar like, but without the heavy weight.  Soon enough, a buzzing carnation makes an entrance in the quietest of ways.  And then, a nutmeg and clove spice begins to take shape after a short time adding just a bit of a bite.  The perfume is rather brooding in it’s spicy persona with a mix of benzoin, leather and vanilla spice carrying the perfume on its journey.  In the end, you’re left with a light smoky dry haze of a perfume that hugs close to the skin.

From the Guerlain website:

Feminine. Masculine. Why choose? LUI is a fragrance that likes to blur the boundaries. Not entirely feminine, nor truly masculine, it is both at once. Inspired by a generation that is breaking free from gender norms, Guerlain had the idea of an unmistakably universal fragrance.

Its ambiguous fragrance trail is based on benzoin: floral, spicy and woody in turn, this resin is revealed in all of its complexity as the composition created by perfumer Delphine Jelk unfolds. Fused with powdery and spicy carnation accents, they form an equally unexpected and harmonious blend.

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME:   Autumn in Paris.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE LUI:  reserved, contemplative, semi-spicy

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT LUI:  The Black Narcissus, Colognoisseur

BOTTOM LINE:  I love Guerlain perfumes, but I don’t love Lui.  Truly a fall and winter perfume, the nutty-ish spice almost reminds me of the season’s tragic “pumpkin spice” phenomena.  And weirdly, Lui doesn’t make me feel any emotion as I wear it.  Instead, it just rather bores me.

  • Bone Rating:  2.5 out of possible 5 bones
  • Scent: Spicy Woody Floral
  • Nose:  Delphine Jelk
  • Classification:  Unisex
  • Expense:  $185 for 50 ml eau de parfum


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Gucci Winter’s Spring

Greetings from Mexico.  Yes, it’s been quite a while since I last posted, but it seems that 2020 has been a challenging year at best and that current events, i.e. COVID-19, BLM protests and now Tropical Storm Cristobal encroaching upon the Yucatan Peninsula has brought me back out of hibernation…and in search of a comfort scent.

WHAT I SMELL:   Winter’s Spring first graces the skin with a soft, slightly flat and flaxen lightly peppered cotton.  Rather quickly, a fresh mimosa rushes to the forefront.  It’s fresh, light and just the right amount of soft and pretty.  After a bit, the mimosa warms on the skin with a buttery hue and just a touch of sweetness.  The warmth feels like radiant sun on this skin and the fragrance is incredibly reassuring.  After some time, the warmth makes way once again for the slightly cottoned, but this time with a greenish clean mimosa.  Winter’s Spring is all about mimosa. As such, you won’t find a great deal of development, but it’s just so pretty and comforting you don’t need anything more than what it is.

From the Gucci website:

Representing the first sign of spring at the end of winter, Mimosa blends with notes of Pepper and Musk. A bright and joyful scent, “Winter’s Spring” conveys an immediate rush of energy and light.

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME:  Buttery, summery mimosa.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE WINTER’S SPRING:  comforting, clean, reassuring

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT WINTER’S SPRING:  eauxSILLAGE – Includes a quick review of the other Gucci Alchemist’s Garden collection.

BOTTOM LINE:  I bought this beauty at the arrival of spring this year, partly because I wanted a lovely spring scent and partly because I have been obsessing about the Gucci Alchemist’s Garden collection and the fabulous bottles.  I took a risk with a blind buy and wasn’t disappointed.  And yes, the ceramic bottles are just as beautiful as in the pictures…and oh so heavy.  And of course, this just means I want more from the collection!

A bit more on the Alchemist’s Garden collection from the Gucci website:

Gucci’s first Haute Perfumery line, The Alchemist’s Garden unfolds within an imagined laboratory filled with curious jars and mesmerizing scents. Blended by master perfumer Alberto Morillas under Alessandro Michele’s creative direction, the customizable collection made up of eaux de parfum, perfumed oils and acque profumate (“scented waters”) is inspired by the art of alchemy and fragrance-making, formulated to be layered and blended together to create a unique, personalized fragrance combination. Built around a hero ingredient linked to the distinctive codes of the House, each scent can be magnified, muted or fused with other fragrances from the luxury collection to create a one-of-a-kind sillage.

  • Bone Rating: 4 out of possible 5 bones
  • Scent: Floral 
  • Nose:  Alberto Morillas
  • Classification: Unisex
  • Expense: $340 for 100 ml eau de parfum


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Encore Une Fois by Art de Parfum – Limited Edition

WHAT I SMELL:  Encore Une Fois opens with a wonderfully rich bergamot sprinkled with a sparkling brown sugar sweetness. Very quickly, a swirl of light florals rise to the top along with a tinge of greenish stems. It’s lush without being heavy and it seems to bounce off of the skin. As its journey continues, a cedar note takes the perfume from the garden to the edge of the forest. Here, the sunshine of the golden ambergris makes the perfume radiate with a warmish hue of splendor and security. After a bit, a chalky flattened note begins to tone down the golden aspects of the perfume and moves it to the more woody. After quite some time, a caramelized incense rises lightly off the skin making the perfume more refined and rather mysterious with just the right amount of perfection. From beginning to end, Encore Une Fois is an interesting perfume in the most beautiful and original way.

From the Art of Perfume website :

Top Notes: bergamot, orange flower leaves

Heart Notes: purple, incense, peony, Lily of the Valley, saffron flower

Base Notes: ambergris, patchouli, cedar, benzoin, balsam perals, caramel, white musk

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME:  Sunlit woodscape.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE ENCORE UNE FOIS:  journeyed, semi-bright, mysterious

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT ENCORE UNE FOIS:  Australian Perfume Junkies , Colognoisseur

BOTTOM LINE:  At first spritz you do not expect that Encore Une Fois will transform from the bright and light to the more woody and mysterious. Such a transition might be jolting in many perfumes. Here, the movement in development is so seamless it feels completely natural.  Encore Une Fois is a beautiful perfume that’s worth the journey.

  • Bone Rating: 3.5 out of possible 5 bones
  • Scent: Floral Woody Musk
  • Classification: Unisex
  • Expense: Approximately $200 for 50 ml perfume extrait.