Twenty-One

[maijasu]

A tribute to New York’s 21 Club on West 52nd, formerly the speakeasy Jack & Charlie’s Puncheon Club. This is the scent of the perfect martini.

This is indeed a true martini scent. Not as long-lasting as I'd like, but otherwise great! True to the description and very refreshing. I'm not sure I need a whole bottle, but I may reconsider if I use up the imp.

[Pachelbel]

This was a frimp!

 

I like it. It reminds me of a jazzy night club in the 1930's, once the juniper/pine smell settles down and plays with the other notes. Then it's clean, sweet, a little cold, and just fun. I don't think I'd wear it all the time--just for parties or when I'm feeling nostalgic

 

4/5

[sookster]

straight sniff from imp is hello juniper berries

 

oh yes, this is most definitely a boozy scent with some serious nostalgic qualities

 

lasting power is meh...not so good with my chemistry as it turns way too dusty

 

edited to add....this is very, very similar to "the hamptons"

[tinyvulture]

The unmistakable smell of gin (juniper berries). Crisp and sweet. I’ve never had a martini, but this actually makes me think of drinking a gin & 7-up because it has a slight citrus note to it. I would describe it as effervescent and refreshing, a good pick-me-up scent.

[steffanina]

Twenty-One-

 

In Bottle: I smell pine! Pine, and there's something a little boozy.

 

Wet: The pine-and-booze smell stays true. It's nifty!

 

Dry: This stays very true to itself, one of those few scents that does, from bottle to dry-down. A little bit of mustiness but only the mustiness of a boozy scent, which I can happily bear. Even like.

 

Overall: Conditional, but I like.

[supremegoddessofall]

Yes, it smells like a martini. Which means vomit. Ugh.

 

My girlfriend says: Oh, God, that's horrible! It smells like booze alright!

 

Straight to the sale/swap pile.

[sofiaviolet]

Dear god, all I smell is gin. Which, okay, a) not what I want to smell like and I'm an underage college student who lives in the same suite as the RA. One of the last things I need to smell like.

[slave1]

TWENTY-ONE

 

In Bottle: Gin

 

On Skin: Wow, yes a martini! I didn’t know it was going to be so literal! This has gin, a very junipery scent, as it’s dominant note. I prefer vodka martinis but don’t hate me for it! LOL! This scent is very sharp and very boozy. But it doesn’t make you smell like you’ve been up drinking all night, don’t worry. It’s very clean and clear, with a ripe, crystal feel. I also sense a little citrus zest, like the little curl of lemon or lime they use to garnish a martini. It’s a nice scent, not one for me really… but if you enjoy piney scents, try it for sure. Medium throw with an average wearlength.

[astridclaire]

Holy Mother of Juniper and Pine!

 

This one is waaaaaaaayyyyyy too strong on me. Really overpowering, and I can't help but think of Pine-Sol.

 

Off to swaps.

[Ciircee]

Got this is a frimp on my last order and it's not one I'd have ever picked for myself. That said...

 

Omg love.

 

This is, start to finish, a clean, crisp scent on my that never really changes as it dries down. Juniper berries and gin is a good description. It's very effervescent--it reminds me of neon-lights and jazz. And there's this great, dirty edge to it.

 

It's not a sophisticated scent, but it's a good scent for when you want to feel sophisticated without being uptight or upscale, methinks. Not an everyday scent but it's great for a night out.

[RaeiNarcissus]

This is an odd one. Thankfully it doesn't actually have the alcohol in it, that would just dilute it, but, it has an element I can't put my finger on that's a bit sour. *Shrug* I dunno if I like or dislike it.

[melrose]

I'm drinking the perfect martini while walking in a forest with a light breeze blowing. Wonderful.

[em_h]

Got this as a frimp.

 

At first I get quite strong juniper (my husband says, "It smells like some kind of tree"), and then surprisingly strong lemon; I seem to be amping whatever hint of citrus others perceived in this one. Bright, effervescent -- probably very nice if that's your kind of things, but it's not really mine. Not very long-lasting.

 

Probably an excellent scent for someone else.

[forspecial_plate]

Smells like gin, maybe a little something fruity as well, or maybe that's just juniper. I don't know....not doing much for me, really....I don't drink any more, and I wouldn't want to wear this as a scent. It reminds me of a Demeter scent, I guess because of the alcohol, and the lightness of it. Just not my thing.

[anshara]

Note: I finally realized the "boozy" note in "Swank' is supposed to connote Gin, rather than Vodka, I smell the same note in Twenty One. Also, this blend morphs very quickly, from (heavy) application to final drydown, it took all of five minutes, but, it has great longevity, and, moderate throw.

 

In the imp: The cool, crisp slightly medicinal tang of juniper mixed with pine. The pine mellows the juniper, rather than strengthening it. I can actually put the wand of the imp under my nose without flinching the way I did with the first whiff of Azrael, this is so well blended that my first impression that the pine and juniper were one note, rather than two. The pine also has the added benefit of clearing my airways. Gods, I love BPAL.

 

Wet, swiped on wrist- innitial drydown: Innitially true to the imp, but quickly the pine makes its presence known, and dominates the blend, with the juniper acting as a warming presence throughout the lightening fast innitial dry down.

 

Mid-drydown: The role reversal of notes is begining here, the pine is retreating, and a surprisingly fruity and moist juniper is coming to the fore. I actually think that there's a mint varietal in this blend, as there's no actual fruit (that I know of) to account for the sweetness coming through on my skin. Mint would be the perfect explanation, as my skin loves to amp up any sweetness in a fragrance, and this is fruity, and, moist without being rich, like an obviously sweet note would be.... So yeah, mint.

 

Final Drydown: I'm now getting absolute harmony. A pleasantly cool, light fragrance. Clean with out being soapy, with the right touch of fruity sweetness to make it feminine. I'm so glad I have a bottle of this. I have no idea why people would shy away from wearing this to work. It's so clean and the perfect scent to wear to a job interview, you'll bring a breath of fresh air into an all too often musty corporate environment, and once it morphs, no one but you will know that it's a scent based on a cocktail.

Edited December 31, 2006 by Shollin

[zankoku_zen]

I have to be a bit daft because I don't really like martinis since I don't like gin... I prefer the vodka martini variations and I didn't read the reviews for this one either.

 

In the imp: Gin... which apparently is the juniper berries.

 

On Skin: Juniper explosion. I get no pine. Simply... gin. I have gin on my skin. I've sloshed a number of drinks before and I know what gin smells like on skin. And this is gin!

 

On Drydown: Still gin. It's sharp, effervescent, bitter and I can see how it could be refreshing once you get past the bitterness. I never could.

 

Verdict: I can't drink or WEAR martinis apparently. I'm not a fan of the gin, in either form. It was a great learning experience since now I know juniper and I aren't necessarily friends... or rather juniper loves me and I don't love it back.

 

A bravo to Beth and the Lab though. This smells like a drink.... and alcoholic at that. Bravo!

[alliekat13]

Well, I've never had a martini, but I have had gin and tonic, and if you ask me, it smells exactly like gin and tonic with a wedge of lemon. In the imp it's very boozy, the juniper from the gin smells clean and fresh. On my skin it stays pretty true to the imp, and after an hour or so the boozines burns off and leaves a clean, lemony juniper scent. I like it, but wouldn't buy a bottle, my mom likes it even more, so she is going to buy the bottle and use up my imp.

[theseagrows]

i got this as a frimp from the lab- smells like gin with an alcoholic edge/slight citrus. smells almost piney at first. not very me, but very evocative indeed!

[The Perfumed Ferret]

Oh my god Beth, beth oh my god.

 

This is heaven in a bottle! I don't like gin martini's but damnit a person can learn to.

 

 

 

This is aquatic, ozone, grapefruit, and juniper. Seriously, it's all I can do to keep from licking my arm.

[hypatia]

I like a good martini. But apparently I don't like to smell like one, because Twenty-One is one of only a very few BPALs I've had to scrub off my wrist. On me, it turns into something that smells like tonic water (or maybe I'm thinking that because of the gin and tonic associations) with a sickly-sweet lemon note on top of it.

 

I left it on for about half an hour, hoping it would morph, but eventually I gave in and washed it off because I couldn't take it anymore. I wish I got the juniper note that other people get! Oh well. There are still plenty of other juniper blends to try.

[Iceblink]

I don't know what it says about me that I love all the martini/gin blends, but I do. This is like The Hamptons minus the cranberries. Crisp and light and...boozy. (Strangely, I'm not a martini drinker IRL. I guess I just love the smell!)

[Miss Lynx]

Oh dear. This smells very green, and very soapy. Like very green soap, basically. Maybe Irish Spring. Which might be all right if I like that sort of soap, but I don't. There's something cloying and fake about it, like bad chemical perfume or air freshener.

 

Worse, it has a really strong throw and managed to make every other scent I tried at today's meet'n'sniff smell like itself. Or maybe that was the fact that I got some on my hands while opening the imp.

 

I think, for me, martinis must remain in the "to drink, not wear" category.

 

Grade: D

Edited March 11, 2007 by Miss Lynx

[maribouquet]

It's been a while since I've had a martini, so I may be wrong, but to me this doesn't smell much like I remember them to. That's okay, because I love it anyhow - very effervescent, juniper, alpine scent. I would really enjoy this as a soap or bath oil.

[stellans]

oh, how I love BPAL's evergreen scents! They never turn to Pinesol on me, quite the contrary... they put me in mind of mountains, Christmas, and clean snowy nights.

 

In the imp: juniper, with a bottom of citrus. I don't smell lemon, though. I can't really identify the citrus off-hand, just its presence.

 

Wet on skin: Juniper still, but now with more of an aquatic presence. I still get citrus too, and if it's lemon, it's not unpleasant nor amping up on me as lemon usually does.

 

Dry: The juniper has faded, though not entirely, and now there's no citrus at all. The aquatic notes are uppermost, and still very nice to smell.

 

Verdict: There isn't a strong throw to this scent, but it has pretty good stay. I don't mind getting up close to smell this wonderful oil, not at all. I want a bottle of it, as this imp is not going to last me very long.

4/21/09 UPDATE:

Almost 2 years to the day since I first reviewed this blend, and I have to say the love is still strong. After writing that 2007 review, I did buy a bottle, and have enjoyed wearing it now and then ever since. In fact, this is one of the few blends I'm actually finishing a bottle of within a couple of years! This is a great warm weather scent, cool and refreshing to the senses, and yet not overpowering. I get no overly strong alchohol, nor citrus nor juniper: just a lovely blend. I will be buying another bottle. Oh yes, I will...

Edited April 21, 2009 by stellans

[bombus]

That is a martini alright a good junipery (is that a word?) gin martini, I love it. I think I could get drunk of the smell of it It is so clean and fresh with out being sweet. My wish list is starting to get quite long, this one is most definitely going on it.