Chai

Chai by Spyros Drosopoulos for Baruti 2015

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 10 Comments

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Post by TinaG

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Hi APJ!

Tea fragrances excite me. It is the anticipation of finding a fragrance that captures that wonderful mix of invigoration and relaxation experienced through the ritual of making and enjoying a great cup of tea. Many types of tea are reflected in fragrances, and usually done very well – Oolong, rooibos, black tea, mate, mint, lapsang souchong, ginger, fruit tea, floral tea, you name it , chances are it’s out there. Today I’m reviewing a Dutch perfume line Baruti and their fragrance Chai.

Chai by Baruti 2015

Chai by Spyros Drosopoulos

Chai Baruti FragranticaFragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Cinnamon, Cloves, Ginger, Cardamom, Pepper, Black Tea, Steamed Milk, Cocoa, Roses, Vanilla, Musk, Leather

Chai opens with a waft of coca that disappears into the aether as a troupe of spices claim their olfactory territory. Cinnamon, cardamom and clove are supported by a background milkiness and a tannic black tea. A light spray and I’m instantly warmed and feel relaxed. We are just at the tail end of winter here in Australia, and I have enjoyed wearing this fragrance on bright and cold Sunday mornings, pulling on an oversized knitted jumper and snuggling into a sunny sofa corner to read a book. Such a great way of spending a few hours. Chai is the perfect comfort fragrance.

Myrrh Casati Mona di Orio Laura D'Alessandro Comfy Couch Nook FlickrFlickr

I do need to put in a warning note here – keep this to a light spray only. An over application makes it a massive spice bomb with the milk note turning waxy on skin. I made this mistake in an office environment – it was OK, my colleagues loved it! Two of which were craving a chai tea after smelling it, but it was too much for me in close proximity to fragrance ground zero (my arms).

This black tea/spice/milk combo has a great staying power and lasts at a reasonable strength for around 3 hours. At this time, during one of my first trials, I had noticed a rose scent in the room but couldn’t work out where it was coming from. I thought one of my colleagues had possibly put on a rose scented hand cream, but no! The rose scent was coming from me! Chai had opened up to a gentle pink rose which was remarkable. It reminded me of Perfumers Workshop “Tea Rose”, and it definitely was not a skin scent, had a sillage of at least a metre.

Chai by Baruti tea and roses pixabayPDI

This fragrance lasted at least 10 hours, the spices eventually fading and leaving a musk rose on my skin with the faintest ghost of vanilla. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed giving Chai a run through, it is a wonderfully comforting fragrance and the rose note was an enjoyable surprise. And – a quick shout out to Annindriya Perfume Lounge, my source of Baruti samples. Yes they ship to Australia.

Annindriya Perfume Lounge has €98/30ml

Do any of the features of this perfume appeal to you?

Thanks all, have a great start to the week.

xx Tina G

Indus (oil) by Dawn Spencer Hurwitz 2012

/ australianperfumejunkiescom / 27 Comments

Hey Hey Stink Monkeys,

Every now and then I like to try a fragrance for a while before I read any notes. I enjoy the thrill of wearing the fragrance with no preconceived ideas of what it may smell like and the freefall of having it surprise you as it grows and develops. I have given this particular perfume 3 days wear at different times through those days and my mind kept telling me what a wonderful and spectacular iris perfume I was wearing, so powdery soft and fluffy with that woody, earthy base. Then when I decided to write this post I had to check the notes as I put together my story. OH WELL! Can’t be right all the time.

Indus by Dawn Spencer Hurwitz 2012

Indus FragranticaPhoto Stolen Fragrantica

Fragrantica gives these featured accords:
Top: Bergamot, black pepper, cardamom, cinnamon and cloves
Heart: Black tea, ginger, honey, beeswax and jasmine
Base: Amber, patchouli, musk, tolu balsam, vanilla and milk.

Now that I’ve read the notes list I find it hard to remember why I thought what I thought. There is a definite burst of spices and pepper (black not bell) though they all conspire together to be cool rather than warming, an aloof opening that slowly warms into the heart.  That powdery opening must have been the sparkle of bergamot over these cool spices. The heart is almost exactly like a spicy chai had on a train in India, the cool spices warm and ferment with the honey, ginger and milk. How could I have missed these things. HA HA HA! Just goes to show that the moment you start getting cocky about stuff the world comes along to remind you of reality and bring you back to earth. Hilarious.

My mind was getting comfort scent but couldn’t make the connections. I will tell you though that Indus is a crazy good perfume. A couple of the girls at trivia last night were raving about it and because it’s an oil you have to sit with people for a minute or two before they notice it, it slowly fills the space around you and leaves terrific sillage while not being overpowering or obnoxious.

ChaiWallah mitchellktravelphotoPhoto Stolen mitchellktravelphoto

Honestly, even after all that I still get beautiful moments of powdery, rootish iris and sandalwood and it transports me away to years gone far by and my Grandma, who was a rock for me, and her big cuddles and cooking.

The DSH site:
The great sub-continent, India;  a  land filled with treasures of spice and tea.  Chai tea brings these elements together in an elixir of true comfort, warmth, sensuality and vitality.  Perfect for Fall and it’s inevitable chill, Indus is soft enough to compliment other spice and amber perfumes and rich enough to be worn alone.  We love this for both men and women!

Further reading NowSmellthis welcomes Indus but doesn’t review and I couldn’t find another
DawnSpencerHurwitz has a super sample for $4 or I bought the 1 dram oil essence for $30

With loads of love and below I’ve added a video on how to make chai. I’m off to make some right now.

Portia xx