Doc Constantine (2006)

[MisterShrapnel]

Sheer musk, cedar smoke, fir needle, black amber and leather.

A lighter scent... (it might just be my skin sucking everything up though). There's a breeze of fir and the leather is more gentle than I had expected... *sniff* The subtle musk is tasty at least. I'm horrible with notes, really. It does fit the "doctor" concept, but if I wear this outside, people might think I just naturally smell this way rather than asking me what I put on. Clean cut, fresh(ly showered?) and a tad medicinal... though most of the time it just feels so light.
ETA: What I get seems rather different from earlier reviews... maybe it's my skin? Shrug.

ETA 2: This smells... similar to Aelopile actually. More astringent and house-cleaner-esque than I like. =( Oh well. Edited March 20, 2009 by MisterShrapnel

[unlaced]

In the bottle I smell a sort of... lemongrass-y kind of smell? I guess that's the fir and smoke combination...

 

Wet on my skin: yeah... that's the fir. and oooh there's the leather. Like the last reviewer said, it's lighter than expected but it's nice.

 

Dry: It's kinda medicinal smelling (I guess that's to be expected) Some amber lurking in the background and a teeny bit of smoke but mostly fir and leather. Very nice. I'll definitely use up my bottle.

 

Also, I think age will probably bring the amber to the forefront somewhat...

 

Edited November 12, 2009 by unlaced

[topaz]

In the bottle and wet: Lemon? Pure lemon sours.

 

Dry down: OK, now the Doc has been drinking lemon sours while wearing a leather jacket.

 

I bought this for my son and he dislikes it because it smells like lemon Pledge on him.

[sirensea]

Doc Constantine

 

In the bottle: The fir needle is strong. Very strong. I'm thinking that this one will smell much better on skin.

 

On my skin: Oh, this is glorious. I have my nose buried against my wrist because it's so perfect and I can't stop huffing myself!

 

The cedar has a damp note to it, not too dry or smoky; and the leather is sexy, masculine, mysterious in a laughing sort of way.

 

I would invest in more of this!

[Babette]

I don't get any smoke or leather -- all I do get is the scent of lemon candy, the bitter and sour kind. I probably might need to layer something with this because I don't want to go walking around smelling like cheap candy. Maybe it needs to drydown a little bit more before something magical happens, but right now, I am not loving it so much. And I had such high hopes for it.

 

Still keeping the bottle though. I mean, come on, it's Doc Constantine, Major Hottie. Heh.

[crebbsgirl]

Wet there is a sharpness to this blend. The fir needle and cedar notes are definitely prominent here. As it dries, the smoke comes out more, smelling a little campfire-ish, and the musk provides a really great undertone. The leather is at the forefront about 15 minutes in, but during the drydown it fades and blends in with the other notes beautifully. A couple hours in, this is close to the skin, light musk and sweet leather and smoke. My fiance smelled my wrists about an hour in and said it was too herbal for him, but the final product was nice.

[angelicruin]

Wet, this is sharp lemon and leather. I begin to notice the smoke shortly after application. This is a lovely clean light musk and leather scent after dry down. I may need to consider a bottle of this as well.

[arianna77]

I don't generally review because my nose is stupid and generally only gives me yum! or Ew! as feedback. This time, it's giving me some very specific communication.

 

Wet: Hmm, this smells like Lemon Pledge.

 

Drying Down. Yup, still pledge. I have a sudden urge to dust everything in sight.

 

Dry: Where the hell did the pencil sharpener come from??? Now it's Lemon Pledge and pencil shavings, with an undercurrent of yummy men's cologne. Weird.

 

I wanted to love this one, but it seems it wasn't meant to be.

[HatterRenoAxel]

Got this through a forum seller and shat a brick of joy because I had been looking for this one <3

 

In the bottle:Wood, fir needles and cedar I'm guessing.

 

 

 

Drying:

warms up almost immediately. Smokey sweet and warm leather

 

Dry: the amber is coming out so it softens everything. Its warm and oddly comfort to the point if I had a blanket (or person) who smelled like this I would just wrap my self around it (or them). A masculine smell but not with a capital M. My skin likes this time of smells because it sucks up the musk so its not as male as it could be. More unisex for me.

 

[Coldfire]

 

 

imp: fir, cedar and faint leather

Wet on Me: start adding smoke to the mix not too bad.

Drying down: More of the woods and smoke than anything. I am a fan of the woody.

Dry: Love this. Wood and smoke and leather and love. smells like a man! Love the smell of a man.

 

[stellans]

Right off the bat, a heavy citrus note hits me in the nose (and I think this is what might have influenced my take on a newly-purchased bottle of Dead Man's Hand from an eBay seller too), and I wonder if I've made a mistake in buying this bottle unsniffed. But the citrus (lemon, I think) fades to a dull roar and then a really nice leather note comes out and shushes the citrus into submission, a bright counterpoint to the smooth leather. I don't get much cedar (which can go to pencil shavings on me) and no wood. I like this leather blend, and will probably buy a backup bottle before the Carnaval folds its tents and leaves town. 3 of 5 stars.

 

UPDATE: This blend has been elevated to one of my favorite leather blends status! Now I just hope I have enough backup bottles to last me once the Carnival goes dark for the last time.

Edited August 4, 2011 by stellans

[starfish327]

frimped from a forumite. hunted down on my quest for a torture king stand in.

 

in the imp: this is a good sign. same blast of nail polish as torture king gave me (it's citrus, probably cedar and leather. didn't know that a month ago when i got torture king)

 

wet: much more citrus than torture king. it's the lemon from crib girls over something vaguely herbal, a touch of leather and something ... moody. guess that doc's not all that happy of a guy and has a thing for lemonheads.

 

dry: this is better. the lemon fades off slightly and it's all leather and musky masculine, with a hit of herbs. the only thing that gives me pause is that i kept catching whiffs of something that smelled a little too...musky, or rather the musk was a little too spot on, and the only other musked blend i was wearing was the protection blend i had made for me yesterday. none of my friends could smell it on me so maybe it was a just a fluke and honestly i really don't care that much, it was just startling.

 

so. this is like torture king but with a different (but still yummy) leather and heavier citrus. it's related but more cousins than brothers (and that would be one hell of a family reunion, just saying). it's a good enough stand in though. will be eventually getting a bottle when my finances can handle it better.

[fairnymph]

Deep golden/light amber oil. Deep. Woodsy, smoky, musky. The fir needle is definitely 'woodsy/evergreen' but not like any other evergreen note I've smelled in BPAL. I get a bit of chemically/cologney leather and the musk is light. The cedar is well behaved - interesting and pleasant and not too strong or smoky. A little bit of perfumey sweetness from the amber.

 

More distinctly woodsy; I get a slightly refined lumberjack feel. This is a sexy man who spends a lot of time in the forest. Muskier, and sharper from the leather. Smokier. Overall stronger, though I find this almost a touch sour (in a nice way, pleaseantly astringent), and it's definitely less sweet/ambery. The elements here work together beautifully and while this scent has potency, it's not overwhelming and it's both simple and yet not at all simplistic - it has that high-quality, well-blended, luxe feel.

 

Drier, smokier - that smoked cedar has amped and is taking the fore, though it's not overwhelming. The leather, which to me smells like De Sade-style, has amped as well and I'm not totally crazy about that. It's definitely a sharper, almost sour scent now - it's not that hazy, comforting manliness, now it's like a little bit of nastiness has come out - I'm seeing the dark side of Doc C.

 

Smoky musk and woods with a dangerous of edge of leather. I think this would be stunning on a man, and this is absolutely a manly scent. It smells nice on me, but I couldn't 'wear' it. Low throw and it fades quite a bit, but then holds nicely after the initial fading.

 

A pleasantly sexy surprise!

[tailoredshirt]

Wet: Musk. Gorgeous, clean, sweet musk. Oh god, I want to surgically attach my nose to my forearm. <3

 

Dry: Still a lot of musk, and it's beautiful. So deep and well-rounded. I also get the sweetness from the amber. As it dries, the leather comes out, and it's strong but clean and not scary at all. I get some woods too, but it's so well blended that it's hard to pick out individual notes.

 

Overall: I just really need to own several dozen bottles of this. I think this is very much a unisex scent. It's sweet musk, leather, and woods. Nnngh, I want to bathe in this. Love it.

 

ETA: The dry down is a gorgeous, buttery sweet resin with a bit of leather underneath. It did not go powdery on me at all. I've had it on for 7 hours now and it's still wafting up around me. Seriously, several dozen bottles in my next order.

Edited April 27, 2010 by tailoredshirt

[voorishsign]

Sheer musk, cedar smoke, fir needle, black amber and leather.

 

In the imp - musk and cedar smoke, very foresty and manly.

 

On wet - Oddly sweet - probably the amber plus fir needle. Not what I expected so far - barely any musk or leather.

 

Drydown - This is so strange. The complete opposite of what I expected. I thought this would be butch leather, deep musk, with a solid wood base, but instead this is . . . for lack of a better word . . . cedar air freshener. Mind you, a very sophisticated, complex air freshener, but still air freshener. Stupid, stupid skin chemistry. There was a time I thought about buying a bottle blindly for the leather, musk and fir notes, but now I'm glad I waited for a decant.

 

Sorry guys

 

ETA: I just retried this today and have to say that after it has sometime to dry down (well, okay, a lot of time), it turns into a very nice piney, cedar-y, leather-y musk. It just takes too long to get there. But the final dry stage is really nice!)

Edited June 2, 2010 by voorishsign

[MelesMeles]

(my first review, so apologies if it comes out all wrong!!)

 

In the bottle: engine cleaner, lemon antiseptic, a pine forest at midnight, juniper, shining leather

 

On the skin: muted, short throw, lemon zest, lemon sherbert

 

Drying: Lemon thyme, thin strips of leather in the breeze, a slight muskiness,

 

Overall: I got the notes others saw in the bottle, but as soon as it hit my skin I was in a lemon factory. Luckily, the drydown transformed it. Surprisingly manly for something with such a strong intial lemon character on my skin. The throw is very very short though, I basically have to nuzzle my wrist to pick it up. Would make a wonderful scent to dab on neck and chest before an evening for when She gets very close as a surprise. Can't stop smelling my wrist...this is suprisingly good.

 

Edit:

A few hours later, it became really gorgeously subtle with musk, leather and the smell of a woodshop (not smoke or cedarwood, but that very masculine scent of a high-speed saw cutting through wood planks leaving a "hot" smell in the air.) That evening, the lovely Lady of the house made clear that she liked the scent an awful lot...

 

Definite favourite.

 

 

Edited May 27, 2010 by MelesMeles

[raisin]

The hell? This goes on pure lemon candy. No other notes. Even drying down I just get lemon.

 

Might come back to edit this in an hour or two, but wow... not at all what I was expecting.

 

ETA: And it winds up as lemon verbena. Not sure what happened with this one!

Edited August 5, 2010 by raisin

[Teaotter]

Wet: Cedar and smoke, with the leather and something metallic coming quickly on its heels.

 

Dry: Cedar smoke still dominates, but there is definitely leather and something that reminds me of ground szechuan peppercorns and graphite pencils embedded in the smokiness. It's far enough outside my usual that I'm not sure yet if I love it or hate it, but I'm fascinated.

[DeltaCat]

Noooooooooooo!!!!!!! This was supposed to be full of TEH awesome! All I get is straight up lemon house cleaner... No other notes..just lemon house cleaner...

[Lydialove]

I bought a 5ml of Doc Constantine and Mme. Moriarity at the last Seattle Will Call. I wanted something for both me and my husband - the Madam was definitely doing it for me... but I knew whatever I got for my fellah was going to be a gamble. I won the gamble, big time.

 

 

In the bottle I can only pick out a pleasant citrusy sharpness that I'm supposing is the fir. My husband, however, sniffed the bottle and said, "Wow. Smells like a cowboy in a forest." This is how I found out that my husband is going to be much better at BPAL than I am, the wretched show-off. Luckily he's willing to sniff and try everything with me.

 

On me Doc turned to straight perfume. In this household, the Doctor won't be a unisex scent. On my husband, though... Oh my.

 

I don't pick up the leather, though obviously my husband does. I can pick up the sharp fir and smokey cedar distinctly. The musk becomes one with the scent of his skin, enhancing instead of masking it. It is gorgeous on him, absolutely delicious. It makes me want to sit in his lap with my nose up against his skin. It was the perfect first 5ml purchase.

 

I may have to get a backup bottle...

[milo]

Wet, lovely citrus and fir with a touch of musk. Very unisex and refreshing at this stage. After a bit, the citrus and fir fades and the musk is now dominating. It is rather bland and unassuming now, and I wish it had stayed the same scent as the wet phase. There's also a faint hint of pickle juice here which makes it more unappealing. Damn, I was looking forward to a new fave, as the notes seemed to be made of 'win' for me. Oh well. Maybe this would be better on a guys chemistry, but it's certainly not meshing with mine.

[CrazyPretzel]

I've actually never tried this scent on myself. What I remember of this scent on my boyfriend () is a sweet amber musk with definite forest and leather notes. It's the most lickable non-foody scent that I've ever encountered, and really, really good. I think we'll be getting a bottle once the decant is finished.

[RhinestoneHousewife]

This started out very lemon air freshener. Then it turned into pine air freshener in a smoky room, with a touch of leather. It was very strong and masculine at this stage and I didn't care for it. About an hour later it was almost gone with just a soft pretty smell left behind. Crazy!

 

I'm going to put my bottle away for a while and let it age before I try it again.

[imaginepageant]

In the Vial: Oh yeah, that's fir needle. But it's nice fir needle. I typically don't like evergreen scents, but this one's not bad. The leather and musk are also definitely there. I think I smell the cedar smoke and amber, but I'm not entirely sure... it's a very well-blended oil. And very masculine. The Doc is one sexy guy.

 

Wet: LEATHER. Seriously, this is single note leather for a few seconds before everything else comes creeping back in. The cedar, I think, is making it just slightly sweet, and the fir is keeping it rugged and outdoorsy. But it's still predominantly leather.

 

Dry: It's dry and smoky now, and getting musky again. I'm also getting a vague resinous quality from the amber that I wish would get stronger. The leather? Still strutting about with a cocky swagger.

 

An Hour Later: Happily, the amber continued to gain steam, and gave this blend a beautiful resinous background. Otherwise, it was a smoky, spicy leather.

 

Overall: I love the smell of leather, so I like Doc Constantine... but I think it's a bit too masculine for me to wear. If there had been a dribble of vanilla, or something else to sweeten it up, I think I would have loved this for myself. I can't wait to try it out on my boyfriend, though!

[Verios]

right now, all I'm getting is whoapine...I was hoping for way more presence from the other notes. However, as it wears, if it changes I'll update this post...but if my skin keeps this straight pine, it's going to be off to swaps, i'm afraid. It's a nice pine scent (not like a piney air freshener or anything) but not my thing.

Edited July 17, 2011 by Vashtya