Absinthe

[Torrain]

Fall under the spell of our Green Fairy! An intoxicating blend containing wormwood essence, light mints, cardamom, anise, hyssop, and the barest hint of lemon.

In imp: sharp and minty. On skin: something dusty/lemony starts coming out. Lemon drops as opposed to spearmint leaves. Clear, refreshing... I guess the mint isn't as faint as it first seemed.

20 minutes in: It's developed a sort of "pinched" herby smell--the same thing I got out of Vampire Tears, though they don't seem to have any ingredients in common. Pleasant enough, but quite faint.

1 hour: very faint lemon-fresh herby smell.

2 hours: even fainter.

Overall, this reminds me very much of Embalming Fluid. It's got a kind of warmth to it that EF lacks, though, especially as time goes on (noticed it around three hours, I guess). John likes it. I like it. Worth keeping.

Love and coffee,
Frances

[sassycheesehead]

I have to admit that I didn't love this one at first sniff. That "barest hint of lemon" came through like Lemon Pledge in the imp, and I was a little afraid to put it on my skin. However, it was well worth the wait, because the drydown is dead on absinthe: the lemon fades into the background and the anise, wormwood, and herbs come out to play. Fabulous!

 

I also pick up something slightly mineralic in the drydown... it calls to mind the absinthe fountains in the bars of Belle Epoque Paris. When I smell this, I can imagine tapping the yellow-green liquid from a marble fountain... then slowly pouring water over a sugar cube and into my glass... watching the liquid louche to a livid, cloudy green.

 

It is intoxicating and lovely, exactly as I hoped it would be. This fragrance could easily work on both men and women. However, you still have to live through the Lemon Pledge phase... you might want to wait half an hour after application before going out in public. JMO.

 

Lasting power seems to be great. I put some on two hours before I went to bed, and it was going strong when I went to sleep. It was gone from the crook of my elbow when I woke up, but my pajamas still smell of it some 10 hours later. Not sure whether I will purchase a full bottle just yet, but I will use every last drop of the imp.

[jupiternf]

In the Frimp: Faint anise and lemon, strong herbs.

 

Wet: Strong fresh, not sweet or foody, lemon, and dry wormwood.

 

Dry: Here is more of the anise I expected, but it is in no way overpowering. This is masterfully blended- the lemon stays without overpowering on me, and the herbs blend to give me a feeling of picking them fresh in my back garden, and smelling the crushed leaves on my skin later.

 

6 Hours Later: Lingering herbs and lemon, the tiniest bit of anise remains.

 

I have been wearing this while trying to sivler-smith absinthe spoons in anticipation of the drink coming to NYC legally- and I need a bottle of this scent as soon as possible because the imp is disappearing rapidly.

 

I adore this scent, and unlike some of the heavier or foody or dark scents that I love, I can wear this daily, even if I have a headache or feel "meh." It is uplifting and clarifying, and generally .

[Argentwolf]

In the imp: Very lemony. Oddly enough, when I sniffed the applicator, it had that very strong "Lemon Pledge" scent, while in the imp itself the lemon was more subdued and woody...it reminded me of the inside of a wooden cabinet that had been maintained with, perhaps, lemon oil.

 

Wet: When first applied, it was still quite lemony, though not in an obnoxious way; it quickly toned down to more of a lemon-drop sort of smell -- sweet and sugary. As it dried, the anise hints came through, in a very soft, sweet way; and very quickly, these two scents blended together into a very pleasant amalgam.

 

Dry: The scent was delightfully subtle, and yet deceptively strong; I couldn't necessarily smell it on myself, but I would find myself scenting just the faintest hint of it if I would walk back over an area I'd just covered. It lasted all day. I would say that the scent was more 'woody' than herbal -- perhaps that's the wormwood? And around the edges, there was that faint, sweet snap of citrus from the lemon.

 

Verdict: I like this scent! It is everything I had hoped it would be; a sweet, graceful perfume. I plan on making good use of the imp, and will consider buying a bottle of it later on.

Edited December 23, 2007 by Argentwolf

[akiko]

I think this smells like absinthe. I'm not entirely sure.

 

Imp: Weird. Herbal and anisey.

 

Wet: Initially, that same weird anise-herbal smell, then MINT!!!, then back to a weird smell.

 

Dry: Anise-herbal-wormwood (at least I assume that's what it smells like.) Didn't last too long, maybe 3-4 hours.

[Lyrical]

In vial: lemon, aniseed, mint and something bitter which I presume is wormwood.

 

Wet on skin: sharp, headache-inducing lemon with aniseed and cold mint.

 

Dry on skin: very aniseed with a touch of mint and lemon. It's refreshing and pretty, but unfortunately I don't like aniseed!

 

However, my son loves this, and asked if he could have it. It's his first BPAL!

[djsiberia]

too much anise/mint makes my face contort and disagrees with my skin/nose. i wanted to like this one, really...tried in hopes it would be different from everything else i get (musk/patchouli/cinamon/incenses/resins/roses/etc) - i should remember to not order anything that has a food scent. [edit to add: now upon 2nd application, i get anise/mint/lemon notes and fading to a light baby powder perfume scent]. i think i'm going to try and part with this one

[laforetnoire]

Licorice gummy and lemon flavoured jell-o! This is awesome! Too bad the scent only last two or three hours. But it's already one of my favourites.

[alicia_stardust]

This is lighter and brighter than any actual absinthe I have smelled/tasted, but even so it hits the mark. I get a soft, breathy mint and lemon as an accent while the anise and wormwood carry the strongest and most characteristic part of absinthe's fragrance. Since I do find this to be lighter and prettier than my experience with real absinthe, I'd say it makes for a good perfume.

[Honeygirl]

Bottle: Booze, lemon and mint

 

Wet: Ooh, this a very light and summery. The wormwood, anise and hyssop are combining to just be general 'booze' in my mind. But I definitely pick up the mint and lemon.

 

Drydown: I would definitely wear this when the seasons change. It's a gorgeous scent that comes off exactly as described!

3.0 outta 5

[emily2531]

the lemon top note quickly fades, leaving slightly medicinal-smelling soft licorice. I don't smell any mint, and I can't really put my finger on the base notes. Absinthe is strangely compelling. Maybe not for everyone, but I love it.

 

Edit: I'm not sure why I thought I was in love with Absinthe. I do like smelling it, but I don't like smelling "like" it. If you know what I mean. Maybe I'd like drinking it more? Well, not the BPAL version, but the real liqueur.

Edited November 29, 2009 by Soledad

[Browneyes]

Wow this truly smells like anise flavoured liquor! With the added sparkle of mint and lemon. It's not too strong on me, which is good. Hm I like it. Don't know if I would actually use it as perfume, since I tend to go for other types of scents, but I like it

[martiangurll]

Absinthe:

 

Preconceptions: Yum. I have always wondered what Absinthe smells like...

 

In the imp: Boozey and herbal.

 

Wet on skin: The anise wafts up smelling of black licorice. If this smell were a color, the supporting notes would be bright green koolade. Fizzy koolade with black licorice swirls and booze--who spiked the punch?

 

Drydown: Still fizzy, like green electic, fizzy koolade with a hint of anise and a base of woodiness that must be the wormwood. It smells a little herbal too, in a good way. Yummy. It does tend to fade after awhile. Throw is about average.

 

Overall impressions: Definitely bigbottleworthy. I can only imagine wearing this outside of work, as I don;t want to come off as a booze hound. Must hoard. Mustn't drink...

[lilirose]

I'm not honestly sure why I tried this, knowing in advance that I don't like the smell of real absinthe at all and that I strongly dislike anise in general. Of course, I've been surprised by BPAL many times in the past, so what can it hurt?

 

In the imp is was mostly sweeet and lightly citrusy.

 

On skin, wet, it was quite lemony but the anise was starting to rear its ugly head.

 

On drydown it turns to anise and sugar, and the anise gets stronger and stronger the longer I wear it. I can't help but think that I smell like a stick of black licorice.

 

Verdict: this is surely well-crafted, but so very much not for me at all. Ever.

[Czarina]

This is almost pure anise on me. This is funny, because I've been known to wear a dab of anise oil as a perfume (usually layered with something else) in the past. I'd like to smell the sugar cubes, wormwood, and lemon a bit more.

 

Nonetheless, it is quite intoxicating.

[SarahScent44]

In the imp, this is cardamom, anise, and just a hint of mint.

 

On my skin, the wormwood comes out big time - I just get the lightest hint of lemon as well.

 

This wafted big time as it dried - it settles down to the licorice scent of the anise. I like this!

[darharper]

This was lovely in the imp. All fresh and sparkling. On my skin it turned to sour licorice. Not even nice licorice. Just sour and awful. I had to wash it off. Stupid chemistry! Definitely to the swap pile!

[BelleAnge]

Fresh from the imp: I get a big hit of lemon and some mint. Very nice combo.

 

Once this dried a bit I got more of the anise and herb scent. Not a bad scent but not one I will probably wear every day.

[Suu4LC]

This is BOOM, WORMWOOD in the imp! I get little hints of anise and lemon-this really does smell like it should be a drink!

 

On my skin, the lemon comes out really strong...a bit too strong, and it actually gets a bit of that dreaded lemon cleanser smell. Too much lemon and not enough anise for me.

 

I still say this would be an awesome shot at a bar, kinda like Ouzo, but it's not so much in the way of a perfume scent for me.

[mgrazulis]

In the imp: green mint and anise

 

Wet: herb, citrus, a little nutmeg and oh-so yummy cardamom

 

Drydown: the green mint fades down, anise more sweet, sparkly

 

Verdict: Playful, a little bit heady and just a wee bit intoxicating. Athough mostly herbal, it is quite pleasant and I love the coolness of it. I don't know what Absinthe tastes like, but if it smells like this, I would definitely try it!

 

Edited to add: after 4 hours this totally disappears on me. Not that I would mind re-applying it...apparently my skin sucks this up like a sponge!

 

[lucy gray]

Wet, it smells pretty much like absinthe tastes: death and licorice candies. (Or, to quote Ralph Wiggum: "it tastes like burning!")

 

As it dries, it becomes much, much sweeter, but without losing the core of the initial scent. Neat! It's like the liquor being poured over the little slotted spoon of sugar. I can get each of the listed notes, I think, but none of them particularly stand out once the oil's dried entirely.

 

Ultimately, I don't know how often I'd wear this one, but it's a fun, evocative blend.

[vikitty]

After five minutes this has settled into Lemon Pledge, with a bit of herbs. I hope the mint comes out more as it dries.

[inurbanus]

There's a shop where I live that sells little anise candies. My grandparents always bought them around Christmas, and I think the memory of those candies is what drives my love of the scent of anise. Absinthe smells exactly like those candies. It's soft (a lot mellower than I thought it would be), with a little bit of citrus and some herbs thrown in. Mint in perfume scares me, but I couldn't smell any in this. I can't compare this to actual Absinthe, but even without smelling the real thing, I enjoyed wearing this. If it were stronger, I might contemplate buying a bottle.

 

4/5

[charshark]

In the imp: Minty licorice (I suppose that's the anise).

 

Wet: Lots of anise! There's also alittle bit of lemon and something I can't place my nose on (wormwood?).

 

Dry: It mostly dries to smell like anise and cardamom on me.

 

Overall: I've never tried the drink, but I'm curious about it... As for the scent, it doesn't really work on me that well unless I want to smell like anise all day (it lasts a long time!) and I don't.

[skepticism]

Mmmmm, smells exactly like absinthe. The lemon adds a nice feel to it so it doesn't make you feel like you're bathing in anise (read: Jagermeister bath). I feel like I need to drink this. However, I don't think I'd like it as a wearable scent since anise gives me quite a headache.