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Immortal Mine and Halloween Thoughts



My thoughts this Halloween are with the Eastern Seaboard where so many of my customers and fellow perfumers live. After all the excitement for the 3-night Clarimonde masquarade at MiN New York, it is a dramatic contrast to have such turmoil only a few days later. I can only hope that all the people there are safe and warm and from what I gather there is a lot of community effort and people helping each other manage through this very devastating storm.

Life is so tumultuous, and as much as sometimes we'd just want to rest - it is that movement, even at times of violent chaos, that distinguishes it from death. At least in it's romantic perception... While life is ever changing and unstable, death is that one sure thing, the resolution and rest to all. Immortal and glorious, eternal slumber. Silence.

Immortal Mine was created by House of Cherry Bomb - the baby of two New York based perfumers and artists: Maria McElroy (Aroma M) and Alexis Karl (Scent by Alexis). It takes the Goth theme to the extreme with a very rich, oil-based parfum that's bordering on being too much of a good thing. It is reminiscent of hot wax of red candles extinguished by pinch of two fingers and their slightly burnt skin and suffocated wick; dirty oud and sweet, nearly cloying immortelle melded with amber and molten chocolate. It is quite resinous, thick and sweet, yet there is some smoke and vetiver, burning myrrh and frankincense to penetrate through one's consciousness and create a reaction - regardless if this is your taste or not. There is also a tinge of indolic jasmine, and musk for good measure that diffuses and softens it a bit. It ends on a note of agarwood and decaying honey. Still peculiarly cloying, resembling the decomposing corpses, not far off what I would imagine the Corpse Bride would sprinkle on her wrapping sheet in her half-dead wedding.

The authors describe it well:
"Immortal Mine is the soil from an unmarked grave. One single drop of blood from a slayed Wyvern, the sweet elixir of dying jasmine and fading neroli. Amber found in ancient tombs of civilizations lost. Longing. Essence of smoke from the funeral pyre. A cut of material from Bela Lugosi’s cape, the dust from a bat’s wing. Wood resins gathered from the Forest of The Dead, Myrrh scraped from the cliffs of The Dark Realm. Precious ouds unearthed from burning desert sands. Wax dripping from black, white and pink candles, ashes of a Phoenix, words from a dead poets mouth. Rare herbs found in a cathedral’s forgotten garden. Desire".

Immortal Mine can be found on Indiescents and Suendhaft, where it is bottled in a beautiful filigreed mouthblown Bohemian glass bottle.  This week, I'm giving away my "copy" of the roll-on, given to me by the perfumers themselves. And I'm sending back prayers for minimal damage from the storm and returning back to normal life as soon as possible on the East Coast!

All you have to do is leave a comment telling us what your Halloween perfume was, and why you picked it (if such explanation exists). We will do a random lucky draw on Friday.

Immortal Mine by Ayala Moriel
Immortal Mine, a photo by Ayala Moriel on Flickr.

Warm Carrot

carrot seed by Hey! Sam !!
carrot seed, a photo by Hey! Sam !! on Flickr.
Cognoscenti’s No. 19 took me by surprise. The line is decidedly abstract, and insists on using very little if any floral notes at all. Add to this the angular, unisex packaging and numerals in lieu of titles and you’ll find what is usually the recipe for being ignored by my nose. Except that this line is different, and the stubborn shortage of frivolity reveals a true artistry and a mischievous, playful style.

Dannielle Sergent, the lady behind the scents, is an architect by training and profession, and studied under Yosh Han. Cognoscenti debuted in July at the 1st Artisan Fragrance Salon in San Francisco - a unique event, first of its kind that although small and quite underground, will be unforgettable as the launching pads of several indie niche brands on the West Coast and where artists who otherwise work rather reclusively in front of an intimidating organ came together as a community to voice their similarities and differences let their voices be heard as one.

But I digress. I wanted to tell you about Dannielle’s work, which I found astounding. Do not let the architectural, cut-glass look of the line fool you to think that these scents will be cold, emotionless or un-sexy. What is behind these crystal walls is a jus so mercurial and expressive that by the time you found your words to describe its scent - its very essence has already changed and become another.

No. 19 is accompanied by a tagline that reads “warm carrot” – which I can relate to much more easily than a random number (and do not expect it to resemble Chanel’s perfume bearing the same number either). If anything, on first impression it will remind you of another Chanel’s classic which I love even more: Bois des Iles. Cognoscenti’s composition, however, revolves entirely around a much misunderstood, underused and under-praised note of carrot seed essential oil. Although, mind you, it is known for its wonders in skin care, containing carotene and vitamin A – both helpful for anti-aging and anti-oxidants. When I first smelled carrot seed I thought very little of it as a perfumery ingredient. And I kinda left it there, neglected in its little corner on my palette.

Wild carrot seed (Daucus carota) shines in No. 19 and brings forth qualities that I have never thought belonged to carrot: mysterious, sexy, soft. It is warm, woody, musky and a little powdery and skin like.

In the beginning you will smell also hints of ylang ylang’s creaminess, lavender’s softness and the rich almost cloying woody sweetness of sandalwood (and as mentioned earlier - together reminding me of Bois des Iles). Other notes – vanilla, musk, amber, clary sage - weave in and out yet the carrot remains true with its beige elegance and creamy soft attitude of caroty intrigue, until the final dry down: vetiver and lavender, smelling curiously musky in the best of ways.

The energetic yet gentle dance of the notes reinforces the strange characteristics of Cognoscenit: the weaving in and out of notes, the return of the same forgotten notes moments later, and an over all dance that might seem chaotic at first but quickly reveals a pattern and a rhythm, perhaps even a hidden reason. The unexpected has happened – a new perfume structure was invented. Dynamic movement spiraling out of an invisible centre. It reflects the beauty of change and speaks of the intrigue of randomness. Abandon the well-traveled path and you will discover an abundance of wisdom and beauty.

Notes: Carrot seed, ylang ylang, lavender, vetiver, labdanum, amber, benzoin, vanilla

Breathtakingly Beautiful & Very Wearble

"The opening blast of wintergreen will knock your socks off (...) Treazon, which is a natural perfume, softens into a silky, dusky, not-buttery tuberose accented with vanilla and spices. It has an almost wine-y undercurrent".

Visit Now Smell This to read the rest of Robin's review of Treazon - which is described for the 2nd time as "breathtakingly beautiful" (the first one to say it is Gaia aka The Non-Blonde) and "very wearable". I'm also particularly honoured that this review comes next to the wonderful Forest Walk by my friend & colleague Laurie Erickson, and the 7 Virtues Afghan Orange Blossom (which I'm yet to smell).

Drunken Tuberose

"The composition isn’t your usual floral fare – Treazon has an odd mix of infatuation with opulent Tuberose and a nonchalant glamour of something a bit retro".

Visit Beauty Huile to read Nav's review of Treazon, my upcoming killer tuberose. FYI: You can already orders samples online. Everything is already in stock for those of you who pre-ordered - and once we approach the launch date we will also have parfum oil in travel size roll-on (5ml).

Pathouly Indonesiano

Arjuna by timekin
Arjuna, a photo by timekin on Flickr.
Pathouly Indonesiano by Farmacia SS. Annunziata dal 1561

There were a few other patchoulis I wanted to try and close the patchouli series with – namely – Hindu Grass (Nasomato), Reminiscence, Purple Patcholi (Tom Ford), and the Hermessences Patchouli that one day Jean-Claude Elena will come up with (he will, right?). But, alas, I was not able to find a tester or a sample of them in my vicinity.

I stumbled upon Patchouli Indonesiano at Scent Bar, who discovered them in one of their trips to Firenze. It’s by an old Italian pharmacy brand that I’ve never heard of before, and that produces. They have a rather lengthy name: Farmacia SS. Annunziata dal 1561. And yes, the name alludes to its rather archaic historic origin sometime in the 16th century in a Benedictine monastery, which developed into their modern incarnation as cosmetics providers - their preparations range from face and body moisturizing lotions and toners to shaving to sunscreen products. And of course, true to form - they produce the much more sophisticated incarnation of aqua mirabillis: They have a couple of other predictable single notes themes that are not surprising (Ambra Nera, Vaniglia del Madagascar) but most of the names are actually far more exotic and imaginative. And if all are as well made as this Patchouly – then the is truly worth exploring!

Patchouly Indonesiano is a real, hard-core patchouli, that brings to mind upturned soil yet with a captivatingnutty opulence that make stand out. There is a certain sweetness to it – from benzoin, perhaps, and later in the scene you might notice a mere hint of sandalwood... But overall, all you’d smell is patchouli with much depth, redolent of dark red wine with spicy undertones. A must for patchouli lovers and haters alike – you might be surprised. Patchouli at its best is glorious, and the best comes from Indonesia.
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