Montresor

[minnalavender]

The black fruit and vanilla oaken notes of fine Medoc and De Grâve, but not a hint of the elusive Amontillado.

My skin must amp anything incense-y like whoa because I'm not getting anything resembling bubblegum or cough syrup from my Montresor.

In the imp it's a deeply sweet berry cordial, like the kind inside dark chocolate liqueor candies.
On my skin it darkens further and combines a sharp, slightly boozy berry with spicy vanilla incense. It's luscious, warm and smoky, like a fire on a cold autumn morning.

I'll be wearing a lot of this during the fall and winter months, if I'm lucky enough to find more of it. I received this as a decanted frimp (!) when I first started collecting bpal and didn't know it was an LE! Sure wish I could remember who sent it so I could thank them properly.

[storme]

In the imp: fruit! really rich ripe blackberries and blackcurrants! And some booze.

 

On me, wet: whoa, that's like... man, it's Kir, that's what this smells like. Wine with blackcurrant liquor.

 

On me, dry: booze and berries and a hint of warm sweet vanilla beneath it. But mostly booze.

 

Verdict: It's a striking scent, I'll give it that, but so totally not something I will ever wear. Swap pile.

[likie]

In the bottle: Wow. It smells... black - like smoke, maybe even tar. Very rich with this scent, and I don't even know what else to say about it. 'Black'!

 

Wet: Now I can detect a bit of fruit. Black is still an accurate description (hence "black fruit," I guess); smokiness is gone.

 

Dry: No vanilla, a hint of the wooden, and a ton of the "black fruit" smell. Not unlike an old pipe, but something sucked out all its sweetness.

 

A couple of hours later: Less of the black fruity thing, still rather smoky. More tolerable than I initially thought, but not great.

[pitseleh]

Oh man, first review.

 

 

I really wanted to love this scent because I'm doing my thesis on unreliable narration in Edgar Allan Poe's short stories ("The Black Cat", "The Tell-Tale Heart", and of course, "Cask of Amontillado"), I figured giving this a whiff would inspire me.

 

As everyone else said, it smells like wine in the bottle. Wet on my wrist, it smells like wine and fruit. And then... when it's drying, it turns into chocolate + fruit. I hate chocolate + fruit mixed together. At this stage, I was sorely disappointed, especially because that scent combination with my skin makes it go sort of sour.

 

However, after it fully dried and was barely noticeable, it smells like a sweet wood. I guess I just have to wait it out the next time I wear this.

 

I do have to say that when it gets to the dry stage, it's a rather calming scent for me, so maybe it WILL get me relaxed about my thesis, afterall.

[nancybridget]

When I was little I used to get a lot of ear infections. The doctor would give my parents this thick, pink antibiotic sugared up for children. This is the scent of bubblegum pennicillin.

[azhure]

In the imp: Boozey plum and berries. Beautiful, rich plum wine.

 

Wet: It goes even more boozey on me, and the rich berries come out. I smell like a very rich, expensive liquor.

 

Drydown: The berries hang around, but there's something else lurking in the background - maybe the oak?

[steffanina]

Montresor-

 

In Bottle: Ooh, sherry-cherry and boozy...

 

Wet: Cherry cough syrup! But not in a bad way! There really is eucalyptus-y cough syrup here.

 

Dry: What a dark rich berry bit of eeeevil this is. I can't help but like this one, it appeals to the wicked side of me that I wish I had. The cough syrup smell dissipates but there remains cherry booziness. It's nifty.

 

Overall: Not an everday scent but very cool.

[supremegoddessofall]

Wow, very fruity! This smells like blackberries and grapes, more specifically like blackberry wine. There's definitely a touch of something herbal or wooden - oak? Little bit of vanilla in the background, but the fruit notes have definitely taken charge.

[lanablade]

This is a very wine/berry smell on me. My grandfather (who drinks a ton of wine) would love it. Yes, on me it goes through that godawful cough syrup phase. That takes about ten minutes to wear off, and then it's just berries and wine.

 

Very pretty and tasty, but not something I'll ever wear, I don't think.

 

Lana

[Loligo]

Sticky, sour cough syrup -- I had to wash it off.

[fiddledragon]

In the imp: umm, yeah, that's wine alright! Rich, sweet red wine. There's a hint of a "cough syrup" aura, but not enough to bother me yet. Maybe a hint of the oakwood as well.

 

On me: juicy berries and wine. Like some kind of really good real-fruit berry candy, then some of the sweetness tempers until it's almost a berry tea sort of scent. Berries often go rather strange on me, so I'm happy to discover one where they work! It's not something I'd wear every day, but this'll be a lovely happy pick-me-up some gloomy winter day. It's warm, sweet, and comforting.

[spelmermaid]

in the imp: ooh, rich berries, reminded me of some blackberry-flavoured chewy candy.

 

applied on me:

when just applied, smelled very thickly of berries, then slowly the overpowering berries tempers down, i start to smell the wine more. it becomes less sweet, but a very comforting smell. there is a wiff of something else mixed between the berries and the wine -- made me think of un-lit tobacco cigarettes, with that sweet but also smoky scent -- kinda manly? i guess that must be the oakwood.

 

in my excitement to test my sample decant imp i actually spilled a few drops on my floor and stepped in it. now i must resist from smelling my toes! definitely getting a bottle of this.

Edited November 23, 2006 by spelmermaid

[darkophelia]

Sadly, this scent went straight to herbal cherry cough syrup on me. It didn't evolve or blossom into anything other than more herbal cherry cough syrup. I was so hopeful, and I have no idea what went wrong unless my skin chemistry just doesn't like certain fruits----it definitely smelled of booze on me, but it was also like sharp, bitter fruit. I could even taste it in my mouth.

[alliekat13]

In the bottle: booze! Fruity wine, some woods. It almost smells like incredibly strong fruity rum drink.

 

On skin: blackberry? The booziness goes away on my skin and the scent of blackberry emerges, the same note from monsterbait closet. I don't really like blackberry on my skin because it gives me this wierd cat pee scent after a minute or so. After about an hour the cat pee smell dies down and it fades to a fruity sweet scent, but it's not something I would wear as perfume. I don't really like this.

[lushlovely]

I was sooo looking forward to my bottle of Montresor because it sounded right up my alley. I was hoping it might be a twist on my beloved Bordello.

 

From the bottle: Fruity medicine

 

Wet: Even stronger fruity medicine but with a very strong herbal kick. I'm getting really scared at this point.

 

Dry: Finally it becomes like fruity blackberry wine with just a hint of the herbalness. I love this stage!

 

While Montresor finally dries down to a lovely fruity-vanilla wine, I simply can't handle all the herbal mediciney booze stage that it goes through on me for the first 30 mins. Makes me so sad.

[lightgatherer]

Lady Macbeth with a hint of oak instead of berries and a lot more duration. I want to wear these two at the same time for a side-by-side comparison.

[porcelina]

in the bottle, to me, it smells exactly like wine. on me, it's dark, chewy, sticky fruit and a little vanilla. this is yummy!

[forspecial_plate]

I got this as an extra in a recent swap (thanks, this machine!). I love this scent, more than the other 2 that I actually swapped for. I need more!

 

Very deep, somewhat dark, wine and fruit, hints of wood, deep vanilla. Just like the description says. I don't get 'grape' specifically. For so long I avoided this and most other wine scents. I can't remember what but some other bpal scent gave me a bad experience with wine. Well, I'm so glad I put this on my wish list, because it's wonderful. I can really imagine wearing this on a chilly autumn night. The warm vanilla balances with the other notes, beautifully. A real winner, this one.

[gloom bear]

This smells exactly like a blackcurrant pastille! There is almost a licorice or anise note in it after drydown too which makes it even more perfect for me. It isn't really sweet and is my favorite fruity BPAL scent to date. It reminds me of some good times in Denmark. I'll really have to use this imp sparingly since I'm not sure I'll ever be able to get more!

[Styx]

Montresor (dark yellow oil)

 

Imp: Medicinal, alcoholic and very sweet berry.

 

Skin: Obvious blackcurrunts. Think boozed up Ribena with faint hints of wood. The vanilla isn't strong, almost undetectable, but its there. The scent smells deep red, almost purple, and bruised. The drydown is soft currants and very light vanilla (no booze or wood).

I am curious what this smelled like when it was fresh. Now, it is a sweet and mellow blackcurrant scent with a vintage edge.

Very nice! A definite bottle if it was still available.

 

Middle weight, room temperature, All year blend (a tad on the Autumn side).

[Trish]

I was so sure this would work for me, what with red wine, vanilla, oak and black fruit - all things I love and love me. In fact they've never failed me - except if black fruit = black cherry.

 

Alas it broke my heart and I do not know why. But from start to finish it had a sour wine note to it, almost medicinal, but more like red wine vinegar. I tested it several times and resisted the urge to wash it off just in case but it wasn't to be. Maybe it's the type of red wine? Who knows?

 

Needless to say, the bottle's not a keeper. In fact, it has already left me.

[metaldog32]

This 5ml is from the original 2006 release and it belonged to my sister. She had tried it a couple of times and hated it so she gave it to me. She told me it smelled of cat pee. I wasn’t so convinced that this would be awful because of the black fruit..I do have a soft spot for anything black cherry or blackberry but my track record with these notes in BPAL has been awful. STILL.…I kept the bottle tucked away in the dark recesses of my cold closet.

 

I have sniffed it a couple of times but never dabbed it on and did a full review. Yesterday I decided to go for it.

 

Initial sniff from bottle: Umm…it’s kind of like MB: Closet and MB: Bloody Mary but witout the clotted cream. Smells like blackberry brandy or cherry cough syrup. This isn’t boding well for me at all I am afraid..my heart sinks.

 

Applied wet on skin: This is where it gets ugly; yes..it’s most definitely like blackberry schnaaps, cherry cough syrup, and a not so faint note that kind of reminds me of..you guessed it urine tinged wood. I’m sorry to sound so disparaging..but my evil skin chemistry turns this into something foul.

 

This is the second time I am wearing this; the first time was awful enough but for the sake of making sure I was right about what I registered I braved this again..just as an FYI.

 

Couple of minutes on skin: It’s lost a bit of the medicinal/boozy slant..but not entirely. Urine note has left the building thankfully but the oaken note is still there. It’s still very muck akin to the MB’s Closet /Bloody Mary on me which is disappointing. Anybody who loves the those two would probably like this.

 

Ten minutes later: This fluctuates between medicinal cough syrup and boozy blackberries with a touch of damp and sour wood to just boozy berries with a flashes of a vanilla type of sweetness. I’m sure on other people this will be divine; on me it’s just awful. Too medicinal..too boozy..yes…a bit sour and just plain FUNKY on me.

 

Half an hour later: Same party going on…

 

Drydown: Settles to becoming similar to the drydown of MB: Bloody Mary ; there is a base of sweetness and wisps of that boozy medicinal fruit.

 

Lasting power on me is 7+hours with throw soft to average.

 

I think it must be the cherries or blackberries or maybe the wine note that does me in.

 

Bottom Line: Montresor did unspeakable things to me..and not in a good way. If you like boozy fruity scents, this one is a winner. This definitey goes to the sale/swap pile. Alas.

[suileach]

Montresor has a lot of throw in the vial -- I put it in a box with the rest of my untested scents, and now the entire box smells like it! It's a very sweet, fruity, gummy smell; it reminds me greatly of Gummi Worms.

 

As soon as it hits my skin, something strangely earthy and a touch dusty springs forth. The gummy/fruity note becomes boozier; then it becomes sour. It somehow remains sweet at the same time. It smells like I imagine a very sweet fruit wine (apricot?) might, served in the very cellar in which it was aging. Unfortunately, it also smells like a mouse has died in the corner of the apparently unkempt, musty cellar. Juicily sweet, intensely fruity...slightly off.

 

And yet, I can't quite say that I dislike this. It's interesting. I think I might actually find myself reaching for this again, if only the sour tang didn't remind me of cat pee. Alas.

[zankoku_zen]

I agree with the sweet fruit gummy comparison. This is sweet blackberry/black currant wine jam. It's a dessert wine that has become a scent.

 

In fact, it makes me want to break out the raspberry wine I have at home.

 

Tasty, esp. if you love fruity, sweet and boozy scents.

 

ETA: The prototype v9 is very very close to the released version. Less cassia, more vanilla, and for me there's more of a cherry overlay to it.

Edited September 14, 2009 by zankoku_zen

[ravenfeathers]

in the bottle cherry cough syrup. i'm having serious flashbacks to fortunato and kunstkammer with the saccharine syrup smell. boozy.

wet on skin extremely tart and slightly dry or bitter black grapes.

dry on skin an almost elusive sweetness starts to build, a sort of vanilla-y tobacco that underlies the fruitiness and turns it into something that's quite dark, sultry, and sullenly decadent.

 

this is in a great addition to my favourite cherry berries, including monsterbait: bloody mary and the phantom calliope. very different from either and strong in its own right.