parfum extrait | The Scented Hound

June 22, 2015
by The Scented Hound 16 Comments

Afrika-Olifant by Nishane

WHAT I SMELL: Afrika-Olifant opens like an interesting incense and smoky mystery. I can’t help think of a wrestler walking through clouds of smoke at a WWE event as they walk in the arena. It’s spicy, rather sour and in your face without being heavy-handed. However, there’s a primal male sexuality that’s powerfully overt. The perfume screams SEX. After a few minutes, the leather makes it way in, but as if like a stranger snuck in through the back alley, come up behind you and you feel their presence but can’t see them. That initial rush of smoldering sex, starts to tone down after 10 minutes, but that doesn’t mean the perfume is any less provocative or subdued. The animalic, smoky, spiced and civet laden creation smolders like burning embers. The heat is there and if you get to close you’re going to get burned. After 30 minutes, the musk comes to the forefront, adding another layer of pure sex. Yes…this perfume is all about sex. And as I try to find in my mind descriptors, I just end up back with “damn this is pure sex.” In the end, Afrika-Olifant dries out to leave this layer of burning ash hinting at the power that came before but is now subtle, subdued, but still all that magnetic.

From the Nishane website:

Stimulates hidden desires… The fragrance opens with frankincense and myrrh. As animalic notes castoreum and civet settle down, leather and oud dominate the battlefield. Timid and audacious at the same time…

TOP NOTES: ambergris, frankincense, myrrhe, labdanum

HEART NOTES: castoreum, civet, leather, oud

BASE NOTES: muscenone, thibetone, muscone, civetone

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: As you can see from above, this perfume is all SEX. So many images conjure in my mind, but I’ll go for the G-rated version: the power, the leather, and the viral men of 300!

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE AFRIKA-OLIFANT: smoldering, sexy, primal

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT AFRIKA-OLIFANT: Fashion Lifestyle, Pierre de Nishapur

BOTTOM LINE: Afrika-Olifant is not an office scent and it’s not a fragrance for going on a picnic. It is for wearing when you’re out on the prowl or if you want to create an aura of mystery. In the end, the perfume leaves just enough of a trail to leave those around you wondering where that incredibly sexy smell is coming from. This is my first introduction to the Nishane line, a niche brand from Istanbul, but it won’t be my last because they have some incredible varying perfumes in the line. Duft Bluhten, an beautiful magnolia and gardenia creation is the polar opposite of Afrika-Olifant, but equally as wonderful. Actually, the pretty floral is probably more my style than this perfume which would be on my full bottle list if I was still single and needed to add a layer of testosterone to my Saturday night bar hopping wardrobe.

Bone Rating: 4 out of possible 5 bones
Scent: Oriental
Nose: Jorge Lee
Classification: Classified as unisex, but to me, this is completely masculine.
Expense: $230 for 50 ml parfum extrait. Sold exclusively at Twisted Lily in the U.S.

May 7, 2014
by The Scented Hound 11 Comments

En Avion by Caron

WHAT I SMELL: En Avion opens with a spiced Neroli that feels like it’s covered in a light wax. It’s not too orange, and it feels slightly weighted with a light incense and an inner warmth. En Avion isn’t a fragrance that morphs and changes, but rather it holds its own by daring you not to like it’s subtle but somewhat detached beauty. However, let me counter that after about 1.5 hours, En Avion becomes the beauty I crave as it develops into this incredibly creamy and wonderfully smooth floral composition with just the right amount of spice. I would also say that it’s a girly fragrance for non -girly girls as it feels semi-fresh and floral without being obviously pretty even though it is. En Avion is one of those fragrances that I love to wear to bed only to awake with a lightly spiced carnation that hugs the skin.

From the Caron website:

In 1919, to mark the dawn of women’s liberation, Caron made the bold move of dedicating a deliberately provocative fragrance to the beautiful androgynous women, nonchalantly holding their long ivory and mother-of-pearl cigarette-holders.

A subtly ambiguous fragrance, which takes the leathery top notes normally associated with men’s fragrance, and combines them with an infinitely feminine floral bouquet.

En Avion Notes: neroli, spicy orange accord, jasmime, opoponax

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Girls who don’t give a damn!

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE EN AVION: tempered, worldly, non-judgmental

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT EN AVION: SmellyBlog, Perfume-Smellin Things, The Black Narcissus

BOTTOM LINE: En Avion keeps calling me back and I seem to be wearing it a lot as of recently. This review is based on the current version of the parfum extrait, but I would love to get my hands on some vintage as I have the feeling that there might be a slightly darker edge that is missing from the current version. My love for Caron just keeps growing!

Bone Rating: 4 out of 5 possible bones
Scent: Oriental Floral
Classification: Feminine, but can be worn by a man.
Expense: $100 for 7.5ml parfum extrait

March 18, 2012
by The Scented Hound 3 Comments

Pardon by Nasomatto

My oh my…this will be a short review. Yesterday I tested Pardon by Nasomatto and things went terribly wrong. I am trying to find the words to describe this and am having a hard time doing so. As a parfum extrait this went on incredibly strong. I’m not sure what I was smelling because something came to light very quickly and then became the dominant note…metallics. I have experienced this metallic smell before, but I couldn’t define when and where. After about an hour it hit me. When I was in my twenties, prior to my tonsils being pulled, I had many bouts with sinus infections. Whenever I knew that I was getting a sinus infection, I would experience this really unpleasant metallic smell. That’s what I experience with this scent (and no, I don’t currently have a sinus infection). What was making this reaction? The oud? The tonka bean? Whatever the case, I washed it off, and then washed it off again. Before going out last night I put on my favorite Pour le Soir, knowing that it be strong enough to mask this mistake. It didn’t. And the effect it had on me made me slightly nauseous. Incredibly bizarre. Please note that I only put a dab on my hand, and yet this morning I can still detect this on my skin. Funny thing is, my husband says he likes it, but he too detects the bite in the scent. He’ll be happy to know that I’m giving him the rest of the sample. I’m usually forgiving of a scent and am typically willing to give it another try. This is one of those times that I won’t be doing so.

Pardon Notes:

magnolia, oud, tonka bean, unsweetened chocolate, cinnamon, sandlewood