Nero

[niter]

The pinnacle of power, poisoned by sin and indulgence - this is our homage to Classical Roman debauch. Rosemary, bay, pine and a touch of lemon.

Loving basil and rosemary I just had to get this one. For the first minute I smelt lovely rosemary, albeit astringent but that is the rosemary I love. Then, it smelted like someone ground peppercorns in my nose. Every time I sniffed it, I really wanted to sneeze. I had to rub my nose!

I really should try this on the man, esp since I got it for him, but I kinda am afraid to smell it again.

[ayelienne]

Ok - I've officially enabled my husband, K, thanks to Nero

 

NERO

 

I say: In the bottle, strong and piney.

 

On K it smells: Starts off with a strong pine smell, then over time transforms into eucalyptus (maybe that's the rosemary?), then a clove smell, then fades into a somewhat light clove/lemony smell.

 

K thinks it smells: like summertime camp

When pressed for details, he said: like being a kid, hanging out alone in the wooden cabin in the middle of the pinetree forest at summer camp.

 

They say: The pinnacle of power, poisoned by sin and indulgence - this is our homage to Classical Roman debauch. Rosemary, bay, pine and a touch of lemon.

 

K loved it; was doing the compulsive wrist-smelling thing on throughout the evening, exclaiming, "oh! it's changing into something else now..." then offering his wrist to me. So, we'll probably end up with a big bottle of this, which is fine, because it smells really nice on him. Also, I'm pleased because at least now he understands why I'm so fascinated by the little olfactory journeys some of the scents take me on.

[BlueStar]

If Magus is my all time favorite this is a very close second. So far my all time favorites all started as gimps from the lab. "You're spendin' all me money boy!"

 

Funny anecdote warning

 

I was walking to the store last night after just having applied this lovely, distracting, haunting scent. I had my wrist pressed to my nose like the whole way. Anyway I am walking and sniffing and turn the corner too early and *SMACK* right into the wall.

 

In The Bottle: Rosemary and pine, very woodsy and just awesome. Conjures up images of Yosemite Ntional Park and scaling half dome.

 

Wet On Skin: Mmmm smells so good I smacked into a wall sniffing it. (See above) The notes take on a very naughty exhuberance. "It's evil. It's diabolical. It's lemonscented" -- Plankton

 

Drydown: The bay in this is amazing and the pine smell kind of reminds me of a christmas tree (I love christmas tree smell) the lemon really accentuates the lemon and offsets the bite of the bay. Oh man oh man oh man, hummina, hummina, hummina this is good.

 

Verdict: I guarantee this scent will get you laid so guys buy it!

[Shollin]

First sniff: WOW, that’s sharp. And cold. I can’t tell if rosemary or pine is the predominant note, but it’s sharp. And cold.

 

Wearing: This is seriously one of the sharpest scents I’ve ever tried. It’s all rough pointy edges. I keep waiting for the drydown to smooth it out a bit, but no dice… prickly pine needles and prickly rosemary needles and prickly lemon. It’s not as cold on me as in the vial, but still haughty and aloof… content to busy himself with other matters while… well, y’all know the story.

[judas_kiss]

This is an AWESOME male scent. All men should have this one stashed away for a particularly wicked day of office politics. That said...

 

Imp: Sharp! Oh, this cuts like a knife. I can tell I'm going to love this on the DH already.

 

On (DH): This is a very herbal, yet not totally clean, scent. It is evocative of a very wicked, wicked man. Not the bad boy with the heart of gold...no! This is the good boy with underlying evil. So evil he is eveeeil.

 

Drydown: Oh yes, this is fargin' sexay. There is a creamyness to this scent that was not apparant before. I can see Nero smelling of this as he played his violin.

 

Overall: Big bottle for DH, no doubt. ALL men should have a small bottle of this for days when they are feeling black-hearted, mean-spirited and downright evil. Beth, you have done it again!

[spidersinmyhair]

This blend is extremely pungent!At first sniff from the vial and on my skin it is very strong rosemary and the other resinous scents are very prominent.

It dries down very quickly,thank goodness,but i never did find the lemon.Alas,my search for the perfect citrus scent continues!

If you revel in the smell of very strong smelling herbs and trees,this is for you.

[QueenFae]

A very very strong, masculine blend with a lot of throw. This is an in your face masculine blend, but the kind that might be worn by a very serious, authoritative man. (Like that strict male math teacher you ALWAYS hated, but had to admit smelled clean.) The pine is very strong, but not as strong as the rosemary! Wheww, we're talking burning nostrils here people. I'm sure for the right person this would be nice, but definitely not for me or my man.

[Voleuse]

This is almost overwhelming bay and rosemary when I first put it on, though there's a faint note of citrus in the background. On first sniff, I perceive this as foody, because those three items are typically what we include in our marinades at home. Throw in a touch of olive, and I'd be tempted to use this to cook!

 

As it dries, the pine becomes stronger, but the bay and rosemary stay dominant. A lot of reviews have categorized this as a masculine scent, but to me, it evokes the chaos of our kitchen during the holidays, as my mother, my aunts, and I dance around each other to prepare meals. This brought a huge smile to my face, and I'm tempted to get a bottle just for memory's sake.

[mudtusk]

From the bottle I get a strong eucalyptus-like smell, that must be the pine. Ok, so this is not going to be for me because that's an avenue I can associate with Vicks Vapour rubs and so forth, not sexy.

 

I put some on anyway, for the sake of experiment.

After about half an hour the pine had died of sufficiently to let the rosemary note through, much nicer.

 

Final verdict:

Unique fragrance, love the rosemary, detest the pine.

 

I Score It: 5/10

Edited January 23, 2006 by Mr K

[Brianne]

In the bottle:

Wow. VERY powerful rosemary and bay, it smells like an herb cabinet

 

On me:

Hmmm... this is an odd blend to me. Nothing really particularly stands out and I don't find it offensive, but I don't really like it either. I definitely couldn't see this on a woman to be honest, it's got a very masculine vibe going on. But it smells more like an herb cabinet to me than a cologne. It's all bay and rosemary on my skin with a tiny bit of zing from lemon and a bit of pine to make this all the more in-your-face green.

 

Final note:

It's very pungent, but I think clean smelling in it's own way. I could see this really working for some people, but it's not for me.

 

ETA: It's been on me for a good 45 minutes and I kept whiffing the air thinking, "Why do I keep smelling cloves?" and I sniffed where Nero was and sure enough, it smells like cloves. Well, cloves mixed in with bay and rosemary.

Edited February 8, 2006 by Brianne

[filigree_shadow]

This was a frimp from the Lab and was a "No" on my spreadsheet. Still, everything is worth a try...

 

In the imp, it's VERY strong. Lots of pine, and the rosemary is definitely there. On, it smells like VapoRub, in a not-unpleasant menthol way. I don't know what bay smells like, but I know rosemary, and I can smell that, too.

 

1) I don't like rosemary. If my food comes with rosemary on it, I pick it off.

2) I have strong associations with VapoRub and Vicks inhalers from way too many years at way too many raves.

 

So, in a word: No. This is not for me. And I don't want my husband to smell like this either. However, I would have killed for this blend about 10 years ago when I went to raves all the time.

[AliBabble]

out of the vial this is very clean and aromatic, in a way that reminds me of a sunny kitchen windowsill with pots of herbs growing. The bay leaf is the most dominant note, followed by the rosemary, and i could actually do with a bit more lemon, as i get only a hint.

 

on my skin, i first get a "cedar closet in a wood cabin" vibe, which is quickly taken over by the pine and the dreaded "pine-sol effect". this pine-takeover does calm down a bit, allowing the lovely bay leaf to reappear. nero sweetens on my skin the longer i wear it, becoming rather pleasant. but somehow, i'm "so-so", overall on this one.

 

i could see this maybe working better on a man, but unfortunately i have no willing males to experiment on, at the moment!

[smelly]

I ordered Nero because I love the smell of fresh rosemary (although I'm not crazy about it in food) and the smell of pine.

 

This seemed very faint to me. But, having worn it on my wrists and the tips of my hair for a day, I've got a headache. Wonder which note is responsible for that?

 

Overall I like the scent of this, although I can't wear it again (that wouldn't be smart, would it?). But there is a faint note of something in it that I don't like. Maybe that's the bay, because there's something I really dislike in Delphi, and that has bay.

[yeahbutnobut]

Nero

 

In the imp: herbs! I smell rosemary and bay here, and a bit of lemon. Mmm, Mediterranean cooking…

Wet on skin: still herbal, but now with a bit of pine coming through.

Dry: a warm, herbal mixture with a hint of pine and lemon. It’s a scent that’s almost culinary, almost savoury, these are herbs that are good for cooking delicious dinners with, but as a perfume, the scent isn’t too bad, but it’s a bit masculine for me. Having said that, the scent brings to mind being on holiday in the Mediterranean, maybe in Greece or Italy, and smelling all the wonderful herbs and pine trees nearby in the heat of a lazy August afternoon. There’s a nice outdoorsy feel to it thanks to the pine (which isn’t a winter pine or cleaning-fluid pine), and a feel of warmth that makes me think of summertime in herb gardens.

After a while: the pine note strengthens over time. The herbs haven’t moved away but the resinous, sap like scent of pine is much more noticeable, and it’s a sweet pine scent. It is sweetening the somewhat savoury scent of the herbs.

After a short while, it fades very fast.

Verdict: I was really surprised by this. Whilst not a scent I’d wear much as perfume-this will be better on a guy-I really like the images the scent brings up. Hot summers in the Mediterranean, herb gardens and pine forests in the heat of the afternoon sun, filling the air with their delicious aroma. Delicious scents of hand-picked rosemary and bay wafting out of a kitchen as you await an al fresco dinner in a Tuscan garden. It’s a warm, balsamic scent which has real outdoors feel to it, and the pine note is not ‘pine-sol’ or Christmas tree like in the slightest. I might keep this for those times when I want to be whisked away on a nose-vacation to Italy (or Greece, or any other Med country) even when the weather outside is far from summery.

[fiddledragon]

Scent in bottle: Yup -- rosemary, bay, pine, and lemon! Why is this the scent of sin and indulgence? It smells wonderful and clean to me.

 

Scent on me:

Wet -- Pine and bay and very sharp lemon. I hope this dies down, because it's kind of nose-biting now.

Dry -- After flashing out with its sharp little teeth, the lemon goes away utterly, leaving a nice soft rosemary-bay-pine scent.

 

Conclusion: Yum. This would be a wonderful scent for relaxing. It wavers between smelling like a kitchen cupboard and smelling like a forest. Either way, lovely. I don't need more than an imp of it, though.

[draconix]

In the bottle: Very pine-y and Rosemary-y... actually, it smells exactly like Vic's VapoRub. It's one of those really odd smells that isn't entirely pleasant, but difficult to stop smelling.

 

On my skin: Wet, it's Vic's mixed with sap. No... wait... just Vic's. Dry, it's the same, but it gets a little spicy and lemony. It softens up quite a bit after a few minutes.

 

Final Thoughts: The jury is still out on this one. I'll have to try it a bit more before making a decision...

[provocateur]

in bottle: sharp and spicy, very peppery

 

on skin, wet: pepper, and something akin to burnt aqua velva (must be the bay), lemon and rosemary

 

on skin, dry: the pine starts to emerge with a more traditional, yet subdued bay leaf. The rosemary gets very sharp and punctures the lemon. Unfortunately, like with most lemon blends, it finally rests as being rosemary and lemon pledge.

 

overall: it reminds me more of cooling italian, or my mom's roast chicken dry rub. 1/5

[Diana]

Wet: very sharp & astringent; smells like eucalyptus.

 

Dry: the eucaltypus-ish scent fades and becomes more herbal and also a bit medicinal. The bay is an interesting note, but not one i'd want to really smell like. It kind of makes me queasy in this instance.. Then it fades quickly into a very faint-almost-totally-gone scent.

 

I am not a big fan of this blend. Not something I'd really ever wear.

[edenssixthday]

Nero - Peeeuuuwww!!! This oil hates me! It’s the strong and pungent scent of bay and poo. The bay is far too pungent and odoriferous for me, and the poo… well, it smells like poo! Honestly, I have looked at the scent description over and over as I’ve tried to smell my skin and detect which note is the one masquerading as poo, but I can’t figure it out. The imp I have is fairly old and aged, and perhaps that is the reason for the astonishingly crappy scent. Fortunately, although the scent is very strong initially, it fades quickly, has little throw, and disappears within a couple of hours.

[Caltha]

Nero

Nero starts out with a real blast of evergreens, but in a good way, like sun-dry, sun-hot Meditteranean cypresses or brown, dried pine needles trampled underfoot, not a bit like christmasy Glade or Wunderbaum evergreens. Or is it really rosemary? I seem to recall rosemary from the description... If so, there ought to be more rosemary scents.

I also get a whiff of sweet incense smoke, but not too much, it's still a masculine scent. And something slightly metallic or bloody which might be the unsweet aspect of incense smoke.

Overall, Nero is warm, woody, spicy/herbal and cosy in a masculine way. Definitely brown rather than green but still with an evergreen vibe. I really enjoy it.

[Babylon]

Mr. Babylon tested Nero out.

 

Wet: It smells like sage, resting on a bed of pine needles. We think the bay and rosemary are combining to give it the sage-y scent. Boyfriend says it reminds him of an old aftershave he had, but better.

 

Dry: Black licorice and pine. Odd, but comforting.

[fairy]

I can say it with confidence now, as I've noticed the pattern, Rosemary is not for me. It becomes very bitter and sour on my skin. Nero had that response to me unfortunately. Aside from that this might be nice on those of the male persuasion as it smells more like cologne to me.

[mountainwitch]

Bay. Bay, bay, bay, bay . . . And then rosemary. These two herbs just march all over me. Eventually the other notes come out, making for a more rounded fragrance, but overall not for me. I'll pass this on to the boyfriend, who already wears one blend of bay rum; that in mind, I think it will work.

Edited August 16, 2006 by mountainwitch

[Victory]

At first, Nero was really horrible. Bitter, sickly sweet, obnoxious. I liked Nero better after it dried down into an incensy blend, but this is still not for me. But I'm glad to have gotten the chance to try it, because you just never know.

[Ohmaude]

I just got this as a frimp from the lab.

 

It smells very peppery and herby, rosemary with pinesap and woods with a touch of basil. It mellows out with the wearing.

 

I don't think I want to smell like this, but I want to try it on the boy because I think it would be good and he would smell like a happy lumberjack. yum.