New Sniffs: 27.12.2018

/ AustralianPerfumeJunkies

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Portia

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Hey Hey Perfume Junkies,

The idea is that anything worthy of comment, either good or bad, that’s passed under my nose through the week will get a short write up. Up till now I have kept APJ positive comments only, those days are gone. If I think something is terrible, shamefully lazy, greedy or stupid and you should know about it, it will be said. Not everything works for everyone and it would be pretty boring if it did >>> YMMV. I’d love it if you all agree, respectfully disagree, have any thought-out opinion and want to share, do so in the comments below. The point is starting a conversation.

New Sniffs Aug 2018

New Sniffs: 27.12.2018

Black Amber by Agonist

Opens warm, resinous and very lightly salted. Ethereal yet fully present fragrance. Patchouli and vanilla shine through but not overwhelmingly and a hint of green/minty something. The most beautiful representation of ambergris I’ve smelled in perfumery and so wearable. I’m surprised at how affordable this fragrance is and it’s shot to the top of my must-Have list.

Copal Azur by Aedes de Venustas

Thunked my decant of Copal Azur. There was about 1ml left and I pumped till it was air.  Incense on a salty beach breeze. If you’ve ever been to the temples throughout Asia situated on the rocky cliffs next to the sea then you will have an instant fragrance memory hit. The incense is cold and charred with a whisper of smoke left.

Cuir by Carner Barcelona

Thunked the last ml or so of this baby too. Yep, it’s leather. Smells very nice.. A woodsy, bro kinda leather. I have leathers I prefer that are a bit sweeter or rougher. Carner’s Cuir is not so good on my skin, a little flat. I bet it wears 100% better in a cooler climate.

 

Have you tried any of these? How did they work for you?
Portia xx

45 thoughts on “New Sniffs: 27.12.2018”

  3. I love the non-churchy open-air incense of Copal Azur. Once I’d drained my sample, I hunted down a travel spray of it pretty much straight away. Slightly annoyed when I accidentally mucked up my order and didn’t get 3×10 of that, but the discovery set instead. But, it was about 40% off AND it meant I got to discover Iris Nazarena which is bloody lovely too. Bonus!

    I’ve been lucky enough to discover another total beauty this week courtesy of Sandra: O Hira. The amberest amber that ever did amber. What a gorgeous resinous smoky rich growly creature this is. (THANK YOU, Sandra). It’s also a beautiful monster, so your generous sample will last me well.

    The Orchid Man by Frapin (thanks Portia!) was also a treat. Going to stash this until the summer, though, as I think it will sing on warmer skin, or in less chilly humidity. A lovely leather cologne.

    And Bogue MAAI. I had one passing sniff of this a while back, but I’ve just got a decant (last one from my xmas 2017 bloom subscription.) Oh YES. All of the lurid prose that gets written about this? True.

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    • Hey Crikey,
      Yeah, Copal Azur is a winner. I am now lemming a bottle quite hard.
      The Orchid Man is interesting, I don’t remember falling madly in love though.
      MAAI!! Oh yes, freaking amazing
      What a cool week of sniffing you’ve had.
      Portia xx

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  4. I’ve not sampled any of Portia’s new sniffs. Leather doesn’t usually suit my skin for some reason. When I wear any fragrance with leather, all I can think of is the inside of a handbag? The only fragrance I can speak to is Crikey’s mention of Bogue MAAI. it is all it’s written about. Stunning in my opinion and on my wishlist.

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      • I love your scent memory Portia! No doubt leather handbag scent is special to you, especially with fragrance notes. I can appreciate the excitement of exploring your Mum’s handbag (I did that with my grandmother’s).

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    • Kathleen, I am the same. I adore leathers on paper, but on my skin… Yeah, nah. Cuir d’Ange and the two Tauer ones are three I’d buy with no hesitation, but I know I’d be itching inside to scrub them off. Sad, sad face.

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  5. I think I’ve smelled Black Amber at some point, but I have no recollection of my reaction to it. I own and love Copal Azur though, great stuff. Carner Cuir was just okay on me as well, I prefer the Mona di Orio, plus several others (Cuir Ottoman, Cuir Velours, Cuir de Lancome).

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  7. I don’t know if I am on record as loving this new weekly, Portia! I can attest that CB Cuirs is better in the cold. I was smitten with it for a while and used half of a 50ml bottle on cold winter nights, but I’ve gone off it now. A little too synthetic maybe, and I love other leathers better now.

    The other two sound fab.

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  8. Haven’t tried any of these. Agonist is available locally, so should try to test that one out. I need more amber scents. Otherwise, there’s too many bottles on my wish list, so trying not to splurge on any perfume in the sales now. And unlike most people, I prefer sometimes to wait, rather than making do with a small decant.

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  9. I think I have Copal Azur though not sure. I have 2 from Aedes, one is Palisandre d’or and the other one I cannot recall clearly though I have a feeling it is this one. About Carner Cuir, I have read it smells like Black Afgano, do you think so, too?

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    • Hey Fazal,
      I’m sure there are some parallels with Black Afghano but I definitely did not get the meaty heft of it. Or the slightly dank resinousness. It’s been a long time since I had BA on my skin though, the memory is from my very early perfumistahood.
      Portia xx.

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  10. I’m not familiar with any of these new sniffs, Portia, but Copal Azur sounds great. Anything with incense sparks my interest.

    Today I’ve received a few decants I won a couple weeks ago so I’ve tried them all: Traversee du Bosphore, Portrait of a lady, Myrrh Imperiale, Choeur des Anges and Superbia (never heard of Memoize before but hey, perfume brands pop up like mushrooms nowadays). Too bad that Black Orchid leaked and there’s nothing left in the decant 😦 I’ll give them all proper amount of skin time but one thing’s for sure: I like sweet scents a lot less than I used to.

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      • You’re right about the evolution of our olfactive preferences, Portia. It really is important to smell new scents as often as possible. I guess time will tell whether I still love sweets or go for something completely different. Anyway, I’m enjoying the process so much 🙂

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        • If I read between the lines, I think you are telling me to continue with my wild and woolly sampling ways.
          A comment on tastes evolving. I’m not convinced that it’s an evolution, rather, more a change. I used to love gourmands and woody pudding scents. Right up until last winter.
          Now, it’s all about smoke, green, animatics, florals and chypres. Which is pretty much where I started my sniffing journey some 45 years ago. Very strange.

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          • Well lately I’ve been craving chocolate and coffee scents and purchased three! What’s that all about anyway? No idea where this sprung from! Hormones?😂

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          • Sample away, Marcella!

            Our mileage varies 🙂 I didn’t mean to offend anyone: saying that gourmand scents are a sign of undeveloped taste would be far from the truth. Hypnotic Poison, Angel, Gaulthier Classique, – they all are masterful creations no matter how many beautiful perfumes one gets to smell. That said, what I meant is that fruity and gourmand scents might be easier to understand, to decipher, if you will.

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            • Oh my gosh! No offence taken! I think a lot of what we want to smell comes down to personal taste at a certain time in our lives. Certainly, gourmands can be incredibly complex. Exposing oneself to a variety of genres is probably useful in identifying what one likes. But your nose will tell you in the end what smells good. And, of course, over the course of years, this will change.

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  11. Hello all. I’ve never smelt any of your ‘new scents, Portia. The MAII I’ve read about,and would be keen to try. I received a bottle of 1922 from one of my sisters. It is the perfume created by the Queensland Country Women’s Association to mark their 95th ‘birthday’ And oops…. sadly a waste of time for all involved.

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  12. Thanks PortIa, have not tried these but they sound delightful and all worthy of being added to my ever growing sample list. New sniffs and big likes for me recently was wearing the Frapin Orchid Man you sent. Damm that was wicked!

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  13. Nope, not sniffed these but I could give any of them a whirl. They all bring something a bit different from the sound of it. I haven’t smelled anything new to me this week either. But. And it’s a big but, just now ordered samples of First Cut and Casablanca. My nose got the better of me, it could be said. I don’t know how long it will take to wing across the Atlantic but it’ll be my happy new year to me.

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