Horreur Sympathique

[CynicalPink]

The perfume of a hellbound soul, gleefully lost to iniquity: blood musk, golden honey, thick black wine, champagne grapes, tobacco flower, plum blossom, tonka bean, oakmoss, carnation, benzoin, opoponax, and sugar cane.

Imp: ooo! Like a sweetened Bess, my all time favorite

Wet: Dessert wine! I love complicated "So many notes have fun guessing what's what" scents!

Drydown: Wine! Honey! Flowers! Musk! Sugar! Smoke! This has SO much going on at once and I really like it!

Overall: This scent is like a mosh pit with all those notes trying to knock eachother out to get top note. A Boozy Bess. The grape notes are very strong, but there's so much more to it. It's a sweet, energetic scent that I really like. Not sure I need a bottle but this does get a big thumbs up

[femmefatale]

Wow, this is a morpher. At first it was a very rich, thick smelling wine with a touch of sweetened fruit. As it dried though it lightened up quite a bit and became a bit more candy-like. Mostly sugared grapes and tonka, with perhapsa little honey and plum blossom (I think, this is going very faint on me). I get the feeling there is something a bit smokey and resinous under it all, beginning to offset some of the sweetness. This is where it begins to grow up a bit, though I would never call it womanly. The throw seems to get a bit stronger at this point also.

Surprisingly, I like it a lot more than I expected. It's a far more youthful and playful scent than I expected, though it does have a hispering of darkness underneath.

I am definitely keeping the imp and this may end up on my bottle list.

[jewelbug]

Wet: Incredibly grape-y and sweet. Cloyingly sweet on me.

 

Drying: Still super sweet grapes, with a bit of a green powdery/floral/resin under.

 

Dry: Processed fruit. Like a grape fruit roll up, actually! Fades to more of a pleasant honey scent.

 

Overall: This smells tasty, but is too sweet for me.

[vegasblueblood]

My imp is quite aged and over time this has become more and more wine-y and grape-y. It is now a very boozy scent--the wine is indeed thick and black. The honey makes this very sweet, almost cloying but there are a lot of sweet notes in this like benzoin and the sugar cane. I like this a lot. It's quite dark, so when I say it is sweet I don't mean in a lovely, foodie, light way. I'm surprised at how boozy it got as it aged. Not only that, it lasted about 10 hours on my wrist, finally ending with a sweet fruity honey scent.

[amanderinorange]

Got this one as a frimp and I'm glad that I did.

 

Outside of the imp: normally I can't smell a scent outside of the imp, but this is one imp where I get a honey scent on the outside.

 

In the imp: WHOA! A lot going on, but mostly dark wine, plum and sugar. A sweet, thick scent with something darker lying underneath. The honey note has disappeared completely.

 

On me: the wine lightens up and the tobacco seems to come out more. Also, I know that there is no rose in here, but I am smelling it. Maybe it's the carnation. Also, the blood musk is starting to appear, but it's not that strong.

 

Overall: I wonder how well this would age. I think I'll do that with this imp and if the wine and musk develop more, I will get a big bottle of this.

[Aldercy]

LOTS of wild Concord grape (with dusty, twisted vines and brambles) and a brittle, antique metallic note. Those are definitely the two strongest things about Horreur Sympathique. The grape scent is like an unsweetened jam, very concentrated and very black. The rusty metal is a little coppery... is that a tinge of dried blood? There's some aged flowers, none of them distinguishable from one another to my nose.

 

This is a sober, haunted, witchy oil to me. Seems like a late autumn scent. It's not quite like anything else. Horreur Sympathique is a clever blend, especially the very natural grape note, but it makes for a very unusual perfume, and I'll have to see how I feel about it over time, I think. It has potential.

[catatonic1242]

In the imp: Holy moly. Strong red wine and fruity honey.

 

On, wet: Unsweeted red grape juice.

 

On, dry: Pretty much just plain grape juice on me. It smells like snacktime in preschool.

[devilot]

In the Vial: Fruity! Plummy. Grape? Just a purpley sweetness. (Ah yes, black whine and grapes and sugar cane would all be contributors.)

 

Wet: Still a purple fruity feel. But now something a little tart. Mebbe it's the champagne part of the champagne grapes? I dunno what's making it seem a bit sharp.

 

Drydown: Mm, lovely! This is a bit reminiscent of some of the lab's other winey blends but somehow darker, while still maintaining a kind of wearable "lightness" but it's definitely darker feeling than Athens, Delphi, Lady MacBeth or Fairy Wine. (Yes, I've tried all those winey blends )

 

Verdict: I'm really loving this blend on its own, but I'd gotten it in hopes of it satisfying my tobacco craving and this just won't do for that. But on its own? A gorgeous blend and I'm glad there's yet another GC I love. Not ready to buy a bottle just yet, but definitely keeping this imp! And will quite likely eventually wind up w/ a bottle.

[mineralgirl]

It's very sexy. Fruity and sort of smoky (I think that is the honey). I think this is a really nice honeyed wine scent that would probably make men go wild!

 

wet: honey drizzled over grapes with a very slight muskiness.

 

dry down: it mellows out and ends up a sweet & smooth honeyed wine... it's just really sexy.

 

This is very different from anything else I own. Plus, if anyone is hellbound, it's probably me. (even tho I don't believe in hell.. it's still funny)

 

[topazphoenix]

I get tangy wine, then tangy grape wine, then honey, in that order. There's also something darker holding it all together. Really interesting!

[sarajane]

I get lots of wine off of this, along with hints of honey and what I think is the blood musk.

 

It's gorgeously blended, and I love it.

 

I might have to buy a bottle soon.

 

I got this as a lab frimp, and I'm so glad or else I don't think I would have tried it!

[Apple]

This one was a huge surprise for me. I'd read reviews of Horreur Sympathique a couple of years ago while searching for some imps to enable my mother-in-law, whose signature scent is Dior's Poison. She described the scent of Poison as being akin to "spicy grapes," and I found the description of Horreur Sympathique after searching for BPAL blends containing grape notes and after browsing the "Looking for a BPAL that resembles a favorite perfume?", "The Most Commonly Discussed "Smell Alikes", a list of BPAL comparisons to favorite commercial perfumes", and "Something like Dior Poison?" threads.

 

Now, personally, I detest Poison and strongly dislike grape-scented and grape-flavored things (although I like real grapes just fine). I can't remember if I got an imp of Horreur Sympathique for her at that time, but if I did, I very much doubt I bothered to smell it. Since that time, every once in awhile I would run across the description of Horreur Sympathique when searching for something else, and I would always wrinkle my nose and think, "Grapes? No thanks. And isn't this the one that's supposed to smell a bit like Poison? Double no thanks." The case for Horreur Sympathique was not helped by the fact that I'd had my heart broken by BPAL's wine note on numerous occasions, I'm mildly allergic to benzoin, and oakmoss has been doing unpleasant deeds on my skin of late. I had pretty much relegated it to the "There Is No Way in Hell this Fragrance Will Ever Work on Me and I Feel No Need Whatsoever to Even Try It" category.

 

When the Lab included of a frimp of this with my most recent order, I sniffed the imp out of sheer curiosity, fully expecting to recoil from a blast of grapey '80s power perfume. But instead of recoiling, I found myself unable to stop sniffing... despite the fact that it was indeed quite grapey (thankfully, it didn't smell anything like the way I remembered Poison smelling). Intrigued but still tentative, I applied a tiny dot to my arm. Yes, that was definitely super grapey-grape... but there was also something mysterious and tantalizing lurking beneath the popsicle facade. It dried down to a pleasant honeyed sweetness (I like the Lab's honey notes a great deal, and the honey was very much in evidence here), and I thought, "Well, that wasn't so bad. It was even rather nice, but I think I'll still send the imp along to my mother-in-law." And so I left the imp on my desk at home, to be packaged up and mailed.

 

And every time I worked at my desk, I would catch little whiffs and wafts from the imp... that artificial grape scent on the surface masking something far more complex and delicious and interesting underneath... something richer and darker and sweeter and sexier and real. I'd find myself wondering what that fascinating fragrance was, only to realize that Horreur Sympathique had hooked me yet again. I couldn't resist; I had to try it again. Still grapey, still intriguing and elusive... and becoming a bit addictive. I was stunned to realize that I actually liked this scent, grapes and all. In fact, I think I might really like it.

 

I know this isn't much of a review ("It smells like grapes. And honey. And not like Poison."), but I hope it will serve as further testimony that the Lab makes magic with their blends, and that just when you think you know what notes work on you and what notes don't, you can be proven delightfully wrong.

 

Now, do I send the imp to my mother-in-law, or greedily hoard it?

 

ETA: I did end up sending the imp to my mother-in-law, and she really liked it. And for you Dior lovers out there, she said that it did indeed remind her of Poison.

Edited August 4, 2009 by Apple

[wldhrsjen3]

In the bottle: ooh, a luscious dark wine and seductive florals. On my skin: a rich purple fragrance that envelopes me even though I tested just a bit on my wrist. It's sweet and sexy and I love it! As it dries, the grape notes fade and a wonderfully complex golden tone emerges. Rather than being overwhelming, the honey, musk and tobacco flower blend in a warm, earthy base and ground the grapes, wine and plum blossom. The other notes add a layer of sweetness, making this an intriguing fragrance with incredible depth. Although it tones down a bit, the throw is still fairly strong compared to some of the others I've tried. For a few brief moments I was afraid the musk was going to become overpowering, as it tends to do on my skin, but the other notes hold it in check and I love the result. I almost wish the wine and grapes were a bit stronger as I loved that full-bodied fruitiness when it was still wet, but I am unexpectedly delighted with this. I might try layering with Blood Rose for a stronger taste of wine, but I will definitely be keeping this. I love the sweet seduction and can't wait for Husband to come home and smell me.

[Gin]

Horreur Sympathique sounded like something I would not like at all, based on name alone. However, it's amazing. In the vial, it's strongly wine + red musk. Afraid, I dabbed it on. Oh my. The wine was still strong at first but it dried down into the most fabulous fruity honey wine. I kept sniffing myself, amazed at how good it smelled. Good throw, good longevity, this is a winner!

[kerikeri]

There are so many notes here that I think my untrained nose gets a bit overwhelmed at first-- it's sweet and musky and boozy and fruity and floral all at once. But on the drydown it's almost all rich dark wine and grapes, maybe with a touch of musk and honey. Such a strong grape scent in a perfume is a bit odd, but it's a grown-up grape, not Popsicle grape.

 

This is a vampy sort of scent, dark in a flashy glamorous way. It's not quite me, and there are other scents in a similar vein that I prefer, but it's nice.

[Dark Alice]

Sweet. That is the only thing that comes to mind with this perfume. Sweet, perfumey floral. Bleh. To Generic for me.

[aquazoo]

Too many notes — they're fighting with each other. Sometimes it's a great bit of spice, then something else jumps in. It does end up good as it dries. I thought I hated it, and now I'm not sure!

 

ADDED Feb. 23:

 

Starts with really icky alcohol. It's a mix of almost everything — I catch a whiff of floral, then herb, then champagne...Interesting, but on me not exactly wearable.

[lucy]

Blerrr! vinegar and honey in the imp...vinegar and honey on my skin. sweet and sour..totally horrendous scent on my skin. I couldn't wash it off quick enough. me thinks honey does not work for me at all! and wine is for drinking only!!

[symphonyinsilence]

Wow, this one reminds me of Athens. I was afraid it would turn to grape soda or something. But I get wine, honey and dark florals. I even get champa, not sure why. This is similar to Urd (where the grape soda was too prominent on me) but with the honey note. Overall, gorgeous! I'll absolutely need a bottle!

[reynardine]

In imp: musk and sugar

 

Wet: musk, sugar and some grape/rum/boozy scent

 

Drydown: Now, we're getting into the honey. Wow, this scent morphs, doesn't it?

 

An hour later: almost a grape-juice scent, but made rich by the honey and musk flavors.

 

Not sure if I'll get a bottle yet, but I will use up this imp!

[Lethran]

In bottle: That is a lot of grape and plum. Underneath lie musk and honey, mostly. It’s very complex and a little overwhelming. Wet: The carnation and sugar come out more. Soon, the other elements follow, lightening what was a heavy grape/wine/plum combo into something sweet and carnation floral. It’s like stepping around a turn in the hedge and a whole mixed garden opening up into sunshine. It’s still not right on my skin, mostly because I amp grape, opopanox and wines really don’t work for me, but I can smell the possibilities on someone else’s less difficult skin. Dry: Pleasant womanly perfume.

[fisharescary]

In the bottle: Grape, very grapey-with maybe an afterthought of booze. I guess that might be the dark wine and champagne grapes and probably the plum blossom, which tends to go boozy in a grape/wine or at least generally fruity way on me.

 

Wet on skin- Oh dear god I cannot think what it is, it is sharp and horrible and stinky and do not want and afraid it's going to give me a headache or allergies. I can't even tell what cause I don't want to smell it long enough and it's like an attack on my nose.

 

I would have ended there, but for whatever reason (laziness?) I didn't wash it off. About a half-hour later, it's so pretty! A lovely less-intensely fruity fruit booze with florals and a sweetness (ok, boozy for me means there is a sweetness there, I should clarify, it's not alcohol like sharp and astringent, because I drink thick sweet fruity booze) and there might be a non-annoying musk in there, and I think I remember this one note from a pumpkin with benzoin, so maybe that's shown up. I know that's kind of a long rambling series of 'maybe's but how about 'oh, it's so very softly pretty."

 

Unfortunately, I still don't think I can keep it. I hate that first phase so very much. Average throw. Will come back and edit if the durability is anything un-average.

[Victory]

In the imp, wet, and in the early dry phase, this is grape. No, not grape, O HAI THAR GRAPE! Fake, fake grape. And while I am one of those unfathomable people who likes fake grape- grape soda pop, grape gum, you get the idea- I apparently don't like it in perfume. This isn't black wine, it's fake grape. As it continues to dry, I think the plum blossom must intercede, because the grape becomes a little less fake and a little more wine-y. Then some florals start to fade into the picture, but they never move up from the background. There's a musk (not what I would consider blood musk, especially since I have Blood Moon's oh God no almost metallic-ness in mind when I think of blood) providing support for the background florals. Maybe it was because I was reading reviews as I was smelling, but the oil began to smell a little power perfumey to me, which I HATE, so I stopped sniffing for a while. When I smelled again, all that was there was a spiced honey. The spiced honey doesn't smell a lot like Mead Moon, but it makes me think of it all the same. Honey is my undying note of love, so I'm happy that it ends with this. The honey sticks around a long while, which is win, but I'm just not sure that I'm willing to go through all of the other phases to get there when I have other honey perfumes.

Edited December 8, 2009 by Victory

[lensflaaare]

Wet: At first it smelled a little like BO from the musk and honey mixing together, and I was about to give up right away, but then all of a sudden it mellowed out.

 

Dry-down: Now it's all wine and grapes and honey and awesome. Wow. This smells damn good.

 

Dry: Wine, honey, and then everything blended into the background. Wearing this and listening to Benny Goodman is throwing me into a dancing frenzy, haha.

[fairestrocza]

In the Imp: I think I am mostly getting the champagne grapes and the sugar cane; too sweet

 

Wet on Skin: I like! Bare hint of florals, but in a good way; good balance of scents

 

While Drying: good balance; I think I can smell the 'spiciness' of the carnation

 

After a Little While: this might be a floral I can wear; slightly incensey, slightly floral, slightly sweet; golden; wafts up nicely

 

Later: a little headachey… try with a lighter touch; The Boy says "potpourri"

 

Final Thoughts: I'll have to try this another time or two before I make a final judgment.

Horreur Sympathique earns a 3/5 on my skin.