Vega

Sniffed: Smooth, rich and red, but also limpid and resonant, almost juicy in its clarity. On skin: What strikes me most about Corazon is how red it is, and how clear it is. This must be the red musk/amber and mango playing together to make this deep yet full-bodied, liquid-clear, glowing, smooth (the way fruity blends are smooth) scent. However, the amber isn't dusty/powdery like I know it to be, and red musk is either very discreet, or it's not the red musk in Scherezade, Mme. Moriarty et al, that I'm familiar with. There is a faint whiff of herbals from the sage and lavender, but overall Corazon is truly more than the sum of its individual notes. It is gently glowing and comforting, simple yet deeply profound despite (or because of?) this simplicity. It really does remind me of a pulsing heart and its cavernous chambers, through which pure, living blood flows. Colour impression is a liquid, dark crimson with a gently glowing, pulsing centre. Verdict: I'm so glad I have a full decant of this rare blend, because it's a scent of real beauty, a wonderful example of BPAL artistry and how a simple scent can be so evocative and profound. A similar scent is Copper Phoenix -- it's a bit lighter, fruitier and creamier, but methinks it'd make a passable dupe. Lovers of Corazon should check out Copper Phoenix. In my case, I'm definitely not letting my decant go.

Sniffed: A chill, dry-dusty scent touched with pale flowers. On skin: The first thing I smell is the sweetness from white flowers. Flowers that would be high and bright if they weren't anchored and obscured by an unusual note that I now recognize as the Lab's stone note. Here, it is dark, dusty, inorganic stone and cold, wet, foggy air. I have been out in heavy fog before, and have noticed that fog has a distinct smell -- Niflheim does smell a bit like cold fog! This deepens and warms over time, and finally becomes a fine blend of profound, shadowy stone, lightened by mist-blurred pale flowers. Colour impression is a blurry mix of blue-black stone and pink-tinged grey-white. Verdict: I really like Niflheim! How unique, how beautiful and evocative! the Lab description describes it to a tee. I haven't smelled anything else quite like it, and while I'm quite sad that it's been discontinued, that means I will treasure my imp ever the more.

Sniffed: A mélange of cooking spices. Despite using them a lot, I'm not familiar with the smells of spices but I can pick out cinnamon and perhaps nutmeg. On skin: Deep spices laid over a smooth base of tea leaf and other notes. This blend is quite well-mixed; most unfortunately, cinnamon is just taking centre stage and I can't quite smell anything else. Verdict: This is quite disappointing. I can discern whiffs of lovely notes in Plunder, and it does promise to be a fine blend... but I simply can't get past cinnamon to smell them better. The same thing happened to Silk Road, so it looks like I can't wear cinnamon-containing blends, alas!

Sniffed: Deep incense and cold water. Oh my -- this is just like Kumari Kandam. On skin: Huh, this is exactly like Kumari Kandam. A mellow, full-bodied blend, made watery and chill by the snow/frost notes, and sweetened by the berries and dragon's blood. Perhaps The Phoenix in Winter is a tad more berry-sweet, a tad more evergreen, but I skin-tested both together and can't smell any difference. Verdict: Well, well. Kumari Kandam is one of my favourite blends, so I like The Phoenix in Winter too. But I can't help but feel a bit nonplussed that they're so alike!

Shimmering white amber, voluminous vanilla, white musk, zdravetz, and summer flowers. Sniffed: Fluffy and sugary-sweet, but also with the clarity of gentle white florals. On skin: An odd scent that isn't entirely harmonious. On one hand, The First of the Three Spirits is fluffy-sweet, slightly "dusty" in the way vanilla and amber feel "grainy" to my nose. (No other way I can describe it.) On the other hand, it is also cloyingly sweet in the very smooth, almost liquid way that fruity blends are smooth. Perhaps this is the zdravetz/geranium, or the unnamed summer flowers? Unfortunately, while the vanilla and white amber are creamy and nice, the smooth, tooth-achy sweetness dominates, and this I really don't enjoy. These two parts of the blend stay in this juxtaposition and never really blend together, ever. Colour impression is milky white with the texture of liquid sap. Verdict: While The First of the Three Spirits is not unwearable, there's something about it that just clashes and doesn't please my nose. Sadly, it won't be staying.

Sniffed: Cold herbal softened by a whiff of florals. And minty, even though no mint is listed in the notes. On skin: A thin and cold blend. The ozone here is indeed thin and dry, not the humid, wet ozone that I love in Lightning and most other ozonic blends. A tendril of dry, gritty, black smoke runs underneath. And surrounding this are notes of a herbal type, all dry and thin and cold. I still smell something like mint, although this may be the other notes blending together. Overall, There's a Certain Slant of Light is one of the driest, coldest blends I've encountered. It is light but also shadowed at the same time, and absolutely no body or sweetness or warmth. Well -- perhaps there's a hint of incense depth, the barest whisper of florals, but those are just beyond my nose's reach. It does have a hollowed, expansive feel to it, like what the air of a huge frigid vault would smell like. Colour impression is, indeed, a shaft of yellow-white light through dark gray shadows. Verdict: There's a Certain Slant of Light successfully evokes the mood of the poem -- it is sharp, cold, and thin. Successful, but I don't really like it, and prefer something with more body and sweetness and warmth!

Sniffed: Cloying, thick cream. On skin: Oh dear. Even though I can smell sugary vanilla lurking in the backdrop, Boo is predominantly cloying, thick cream that smells almost plastic/artificial -- the heavy gourmand cream that I can't wear. Simply 100% fluffy, sugary and creamy-sweet -- and slightly nauseating. Verdict: Boo would definitely appeal to heavy-gourmand lovers, and is too heavy and weirdly artificial for me. So sad that I can neither appreciate nor wear this!

Sniffed: Evergreen, but sugary. Odd juxtaposition, not sure if I like it. On skin: Is there such thing as "evergreen sugar"? If not, I've found it. Winter-Time is fluffy sugar overlaying a cold, fresh evergreen base. Very similar to Waltz of the Snowflakes, but it's gentler and definitely much more blended. Some reviewers mention white musk; if so, it must be softening and warming what would be otherwise quite a discordant scent. Even so, the blending can't hide the fact that evergreen and sugary vanilla are really disparate notes that just don't harmonize. Colour impression is a real clash of dark hunter green and pale, powdery pink. Verdict: Between Waltz of the Snowflakes and Winter-Time, I realize that the evergreen/sugar combination is just not for me. Swapping this.

Sniffed: A weird mix of slushy, sweet snow and astringent, slightly bitter evergreen. On skin: This is a discordant mix of sugary, slushy snow mixed with sharp evergreen. A very weird combination to my nose, and while the evergreen and vanilla snow would be great on their own, put them together and you get something quite unpleasant. It's especially unpleasant in Waltz of the Snowflakes: these two notes really are not blending at all, just sitting next to each other being severely out of tune. And they never, ever harmonize. Verdict: Oh dear. Between Waltz of the Snowflakes and Winter-Time (which contains the same notes, albeit gentler and more blended), I realize that I really dislike this mix of evergreen and sugary snow. It's just clashing and discordant to me. This is going straight to swaps.

Sniffed: Sweet and a bit watery: coconut with a milky-aquatic base. On skin: Obatala is exactly its scent description -- creamy, sweet and balanced. All the milky/creamy/coconut notes are smooth and rich, yet not too sweet or foodie. The aquatic notes give it a watery clarity, plus the very slightest of perfume. A well-crafted, simple blend, summery and cheerful. Colour impression is slightly translucent milk-white. Verdict: While Obatala is a bit too simple and sweet for me, that's what makes it such a perfect milky-creamy blend!

Sniffed: Jasmine is the most prominent note, over musk and other florals. On skin: Jasmine tends to dominate a blend, and it does that here, overwhelming Rapture with its hazy, thick floral quality. But I can also smell the musks, something fruity, and a clear floral note that must be the rose. Over time jasmine stops hogging centre stage, and the musks and myrrh start making their voices heard, although they never really overcome the jasmine overtone. Overally, Rapture is full-bodied, deep yet brightly hazy, a sensual fruity-floral-musky blend. Colour impression is a coral red, lightened now and again by streaks of pale haze. Verdict: Rapture would be a keeper if not for domineering jasmine. Thank goodness it eventually plays nice, but I wish the other notes had more air time, especially the Arabian musk, myrrh and roses. Ah, well, I have better blends...

A scent of hedonistic, uninhibited joy: bamboo reed, plum blossom, persimmon, magnolia, black pine, sweet osmanthus, flowering cherry, mandarin orange, wisteria, and yuzu. Sniffed: A lush, green fruity-floral that reminds me of the fruits in Aizen-Myoo. On skin: I think this is the best fruity/floral blend I've smelled! Tanuki is light, bright, clear and zesty, a bounty of well-blended tart-sweet fruits that manages to be both green and orange at the same time. It has the smooth, liquid depth of similar Asian-themed blends (such as Aizen-Myoo, Holiday Moon, Kumiho), but is also sparkling and light-hearted. The scent tones down over time and loses some of the zest, but doesn't morph much. Colour impression is bright, sparkling orange, maybe touched with green and yellow. Verdict: I'm so pleased that I've found a fruity-floral that is so complex, bold and filled with character! (Most fruity-florals tend to be too simple or too vague and uninteresting.) Tanuki is complex yet well-blended, extravagantly fruity-floral yet also grounded and persistent on my skin. If you like the "Asian" blends mentioned above, this is a fine family member and is totally worth trying.

Coyote is one of my favourite animals so of course I had to try this! Sniffed: Warm, cozy musk with a glow. On skin: A mix of musk/doeskin (a bit pungent in a fur/skin way) and grassy hay; the woods and amber are imperceptible. This is a smooth, very glowing scent, fully deep and mellow, overlaid upon warm, fuzzier musk. In fact, the "resonance" of Coyote gives me a visual impression of a golden prairie in the height of summer, suffused with hazy, noontime sunlight and the deafening, full-throated song of insects. Coyote is definitely in the same family of skin/fur musks as Fledgling Raptor Moon and Ivanushka, both of which are more complex and fuzzier, but have not the wonderful summer glow of Coyote. Verdict: Coyote is a fine skin musk, cozy and warm and pleasant to wear; it really does evoke the animal and the deity! Sadly, I realize that I'm not that interested in skin scents, so I don't think I'll end up wearing this much.

I love birds of prey, so I was over the moon (yes, pun intended) that the Lab released a raptor-related Lunacy blend! Sniffed: Fuzzy and warm with a spicy bite. On skin: Even though there's no musk in Fledgling Raptor Moon, it is very much like a light skin scent, airy and feathery yet cozy in feel. It begins mostly musky and what I can only describe as "feathery", but over time the other notes, clove in particular, open up and make the blend spicy and slightly green/lush in a "freshly broken green stem" kind of way. Quite a complex blend, I can't quite pick out individual notes, but they are all playing together and making a very distinct, intriguing blend. Fledgling Raptor Moon certainly resembles a raptor chick, fuzzy and warm, but already with a spicy bite. It also resembles Ivanushka in terms of soft, cozy musk, and Coyote (albeit a bit more distantly). Colour impression is indeed the downy, brown-grey feathers of a young raptor. Verdict: If I liked skin scents more, Fledgling Raptor Moon would definitely be in my permanent collection! Even though I don't think I'll wear it much, it's a fascinating, well-crafted blend that really does resemble its namesake.

I bought a bottle from the Lab right at the end of its limited run. (I also remember being rather nervous, as it was my first unsniffed-bottle-purchase from the Lab!) When I tested it upon receiving, I indeed wondered if I'd made a good choice: the Harp of Cnoc i'Chosgair was mostly high, spicy, dusty florals smothering out the other notes, not all that balanced or pleasant to wear. So I decided to let it age, and I've been sniffing this every month or so since. Now the Harp has aged beautifully! Skin-testing it almost a year after purchase... Sniffed: Dry, slightly sweet, bright florals/woods/amber. A "golden-yellow" scent. On skin: The once-high pitched florals have mellowed out significantly, and all the notes are now blending together into a harmonious whole: lightly powdery-sweet from vanilla, dry from amber and sandalwood, and bright from the amber and florals. A grounded yet light blend, gentle, dusty-sweet and cozy. (I happen to like dry, dusty blends, so this is good.) The vanilla gradually emerges as the florals settle even more. Colour impression is a very pale golden-brown with a golden glow. Unfortunately, the Harp is so light and vanishing that I can barely smell it on my skin -- it definitely needs to be slathered! Verdict: I'm so glad I didn't write off the Harp of Cnoc i'Chosgair early on, because it has become a scent of beauty, a unique floral-sandalwood-vanilla-amber blend. There's nothing else in my collection quite like it, so I'll be hoarding my bottle for sure! Update Jan 2014: Just an update on how the Harp has aged over the years. The sandalwood, amber and vanilla are now the core of the scent, touched with a breath of spicy (but indistinct) florals. A very dry, light, gentle spiced wood; a perfect skin-hugging, comforting perfume for a quiet day in. Even though I miss the florals, I still think the Harp has aged well.

This one? I found it on someone's eBay sales and saved it for my own reference, unfortunately I don't remember the seller's username. (If this is yours, please post here so you can get the credit! )

I just put on The Phoenix in Winter. Is it just me, or does it smell exactly like Kumari Kandam? Completely different notes list, but they are both identical aquatic-incense to my nose!

For those who miss Tempest, I found it to be identical to Lightning. I honestly could not tell them apart both sniffed and on my skin.

The oddest scent I've ever tested was Visiting the Temple of Auspicious Fortune Alone on the Winter Solstice. Stone, dust and rain... BPAL's stone note fascinates me, and this was the most inorganic of stony blends. It reminds me sometimes of steaming wet bitumen after a summer monsoon, sometimes of brand, spanking new car leather.

No one has brought up The Obsidian Widow yet? The pinot noir dominates for sure. It's not listed in the notes, but I could pick out cider/mulled wine in Samhain. These Marchen blends also contain booze: Beer from the Marsh Woman's Brewery and The Witch's Repast.

My skin tends to dampen volatile top notes, but the most effervescent blends I've tested are Nostrum Remedium and Slippery Poppy Tincture, both GCs in the Pharmacopoeia. The wasabi (yes, it really does smell like the real thing) in NR gives it a zesty, almost fizzy verve, and the acai berry does the same in SPT. I won't be surprised if all four Pharmacopoeia blends are like that.

Sniffed: Bright, luminous pale florals, coolly herbal. On skin: A cool, pale herbal-floral scent that also has a bold presence. Bright and limpid but also full-bodied, sweet in a herbal-floral way. Too well-blended for me to pick out individual notes. It morphs a little -- now a bit more sharp, now shimmering from discreet mandarin (and/or possibly other notes that give it the slightest fruity tartness), now threatening to be a bit shriller -- but overall doesn't gets too unbalanced. This is an ephemeral, spectral, swirling blend, intense in an understated way (as most herbal-florals tend to be to my nose), but it never even approaches the frenzy of its namesake. Colour impression is a glowing pale light as seen through a fog. Verdict: A fine specimen of a glowing, ghostly, cool herbal-floral that pleases my nose, but it doesn't quite stand out to me. Perhaps it's a bit too balanced... Like another reviewer said above: quite fitting for the grandmother of ghosts, but not so much for the goddess of madness.

Sniffed: Spiced pumpkin with a bright berry streak. On skin: Mm-mmmm! Blue Pumpkin Floss is exactly its name: nothing more, nothing less. But oh, this is AMAZING pumpkin-and-berry floss. Simply nutty, fluffy pumpkin laced with mellow spices and streaks of bright, juicy berry. Warm, cozy and sweet; perfectly walks the line of light gourmand, neither too heavily foody nor excessively sweet. A simple, no-nonsense, non-morphing blend that has above-average throw and persistence on my skin. Verdict: I can't wear most gourmand blends because they make me nauseous, so I'm ecstatic to have found the goodness that is Blue Pumpkin Floss. It also has the honour of being the blend that converted me to BPAL's pumpkin note. And it's still my favourite pumpkin blend! (Not that I've tested much. I mean, I found the perfect pumpkin. What could possibly top perfection? )

Sniffed: Sugary black tea with a splash of citrus, obscured behind fuzzy musks. On skin: Thickly sweet sugar tempered by the contemplative, non-sweet depth of black tea, and blurred by furry, pale musks. There's a hint of citrus (lime? lemon?) in here. Not sure what notes are in the fougère, but they must be the slightly obscure, unfamiliar notes in the blend. A cozy, simple blend, a bit "flattened" by the musks and sugar. Quite a light scent that fades quickly into vague sugar. It certainly puts me in mind of looking at the world from behind a languid haze, or perceiving one's reflection through an obscuring veil. Colour impression is a furry smoke-gray, touched with faded, indistinct colour. Verdict: Meh. Neither impressive nor repellent. I can understand why Dorian is well-loved, but I'm indifferent at best. I have better scents in my collection.

Reviewing the 2008 version. Sniffed: Warm, mellow, spiced gourmand with a brighter, glowing cider touch. On skin: Samhain is truly beautiful and evocative of the Autumn season. Pumpkin and nutty spices form a rich, warm, deep base, while apple cider in conjunction with patchouli (and perhaps the woods) add a brighter, smooth, almost alcoholic high note. At one point after drydown, the clear cider/wine notes threatened to overwhelm the scent. That had me worried for a bit, but to my relief, the pumpkin/spices morphed back, and the blend eventually settled into a harmonious mix of apple cider laced liberally with nutty spices. Overall, Samhain is a lovely, well-blended light gourmand blend, radiating glowing warmth and comfort like a woollen blanket. Colour impression is a a mix of deep apple-red, pumpkin orange and russet brown. Verdict: I'm not one for foody blends since the heavier ones make me nauseous, but this is lovely and evocative (and wearable), and I'm glad that the cider/wine and pumpkin/spices aspects of the scent ended up complementing each other. Indeed, Samhain really does embody the essence of Autumn -- that is, the traditional, human rituals and activities associated with the season. It is the scent of civilization in harmony with nature, instead of a scent of pure nature itself. BPAL at its finest!