Halôa

[Miss Lynx]

Wine grapes, myrrh, frankincense and olive leaf, and the warm scent of offertory cakes.

This one didn't originally interest me last year, as it sounded too foody, but then I started reading the reviews as they came in, and kicking myself for not at least picking up a decant. So I was pleased to see it made a comeback this year, and of course did decide to try it this time.

And I'm very glad I did, because it is indeed really nice. Yes, it does have a bit of that buttery/cakey element to it, but only a little -- it's a bit reminiscent of All Souls in that respect, and that's one I really love. It's as atmospheric as that one, but less ethereal and more rich and earthy, suitably enough for its inspiration.

The wine grapes are not too sweet -- they definitely smell more boozy than fruity in the usual sense. The incense resins give it a rich depth and a hint of darkness, and while I have no idea what olive leaf smells like, there does seem to be a a hint of something a bit herbaceous or woody in here that might be that.

There are stages to it here and there as it evolves that I'm not entirely crazy about -- moments when the foody aspect is a little too present -- but they're only occasional, and fairly minor. On the whole I quite like it, and the eventual longest-lasting phase of it is mostly a nice warm incense scent, a little like Cathedral.

All in all, probably my favourite of the Yule scents this year, although Diwali does seem to be growing on me with repeated wearings.

Grade: B+

[SeaLady]

I'm really surprised at what this one is on my skin!

 

In the decant it's buttery cakes and wine.

On my skin, it's sweet, aquatic, and sharp. Most of the time, my first thought is that it smells exactly like Dorian, but with a sharp mossy scent and a little extra smooth vanilla.

It's nice, but I have Dorian for my Dorian! I wish I was getting the cheesecake other people mentioned in reviews!

[n3m3sis42]

In the bottle:

Grapity grapes!

 

Wet:

Oddly enough, no grapes, at least not initially. It smells sweet and creamy and cakey, and as it warms up, I start to smell the frankincense as well.

 

Dry:

Frankincense, myrrh, and cakes... this is what I had hoped All Souls would be like. Yay!

[suileach]

In the vial: Grape bubblegum.

 

On my skin, it takes on a complex, sweet, smoky tone. It's still grapey, but in a much less candy like way.

 

After a bit, it becomes really lovely. It's not at all boozy, and there's a delicious tartness to the grapes. I'd say it smells like hot fruit cobbler, serenely grounded by incense. Works much better on me than I would have expected.

[CrazyPretzel]

I have a bottle from 2006, so this is aged a year already. Let me say at the outset that I get no grapes from this...

 

In the bottle, it's a buttery cake scent, but not sickeningly buttery (I had a bad experience with Drink Me and have kind of gone off the butter). Once on my skin the butter scent fades and mellows and it begins to smell more incense-like, but this is very distinct from All Souls', which was warm and bright. This scent seems mysterious and a little bit sacred. I can make out the frankincense and then there's something else, a trifle sweet and herbaceous, that I thought might be fir needle before I read the description. Is that what olive leaf smells like, I wonder?

 

Dry, a little sweet but sombre too, and not foody. It's a lovely scent for a winter's night and from reading the other reviews it seems that this has changed a lot with age. (Or my skin interacts with it in an unusual fashion!)

[naeelah]

I have a new imp from '07. I'm not a huge fan of grape notes -- I don't dislike them, they just don't wow me -- but the incense and offeratory cakes part of this scent won me over. I really got excited when I read reviews saying that this is what many people wanted All Souls to be. (I loved the sound of All Souls, but skipped it because everyone said it was very ethereal.)

 

Wet, this is cloyingly sweet and syrupy. Definitely a lot of juicy, golden grapes. I don't get a wine quality from it -- it's all fresh fruit. The sweetness becomes more palatable as it dries and the frankincense and myrrh come out. I can't really pick out the olive leaf or the cakes, because the grape is so overpowering.

 

Dry, the frankincense and myrrh take center stage. They're by far the strongest notes. Again, I can't pick out the olive leaf, but I think this note is blending with the resins. It seems to lend a slightly bitter quality, which is a good balance to the grapes. They're now in the background, just giving sweetness to the blend. Again, I can't pick out a specific cake smell, but I'm sure it's a part of the background sweetness.

 

I'd call this a sweet incense fragrance, one that's a little bit meatier (less ethereal) than some other incense blends.

 

The throw when wet is fairly strong. Now that it's dry, around an hour later, the throw seems lighter, but I can catch wafts of it from my wrists as I type, so I definitely wouldn't say it's below average. Wear life is good, probably above average.

 

Try this if you like: All Souls, Diwali, Cathedral, Penitence (frankincense and myrrh blends), King Cobra or Asp Viper. Don't try this if you don't like sweet.

Edited December 28, 2007 by naeelah

[ranyart]

Haloa is pretty much keeping me sane today, so I figured it was a good time to post a review.

 

I bought this as a decant mostly as an afterthought - I was really interested in The Snow Storm and figured I'd get a decant of Haloa since it looked interesting. It turned out to be one of my favorite lab scents so far!

 

In the bottle, it smells like faintly sweet baked goods; not like poundcake or buttercream, but more like the lightly-sweet scones I used to make. There's a bit of myrrh there, and some of the grapes, but the offertory cakes dominate when the oil is wet.

 

When I put it on, the sweetness is again the strongest element, but very quickly the olive leaf and myrrh push forward and remain on equal footing with the cakey smell for the rest of the dry period. I wondered if this would be too sweet on me, but the other notes (especially the olive leaf, I think) balance out the slightly sweet cake and make this wonderfully comforting without being cloyingly sweet. I seriously can't stop sniffing myself, and five hours after the initial application I'm wishing I'd brought my bottle to work with me so I could re-apply. The scent isn't close to being gone, but it's been calming me down so much that I'd love to have it wafting about a bit more.

 

I loved this enough that I had a friend pick up a bottle for me at ECWC, and I'm honestly contemplating buying a second bottle even though I can't imagine I'll use this one up for a very long time. It's very high on my list of favorites, though, and I'd hate for this to be the last year Haloa's offered. I'll be kicking myself if that's the case.

[FandF]

On the skin: Smells like gingerbread. Definitely kind of foodie from wet to dry. It then actually gets stronger as it dries and gets less foodie. This is the perfect incense scent on me. It lingers to something warm, earthy and pleasant. Reminds me a bit of what elegba would be during the holiday season! If you like the notes of elegba, you can cross over to this more incensey scent.

 

Also I notice that this is a wine grapes scent which is interesting because other wine scents are bad on me. This one works though. LOVE!

[lady_pandora]

I do pretty well with grape/wine notes, and this is no exception. Haloa was mostly juicy purple grapes on me, with maybe a hint of myrrh and no cake, and may as well have been Purple Phoenix's twin sister. Definitely evocative of the concept and quite a lovely scent.

[Shannihilation]

Haloa 07

 

In the bottle this has a slightly foody smell which of course is the cakes, and there is a boozy sweet smell too. On my skin it immediately starts to morph in a huge way. The frankincense and myrrh just take over, along with the wine grapes. turning it into a fruity incense. It reminds me of smoking an apple/mango hookah. That is exactly what it smells like. It's sweet and smoky and a little sharp.

 

And it's very strong. Definitely not a scent to slather. The throw is like WOAH!

 

It's really a great blend but not at all what I was expecting. I was hoping for more foody and a little softer, but I still like this. It's interesting and I keep sniffing my wrists.

[damiel42]

This is currently my favorite BPAL scent. It's foody and cakey and beautiful in the bottle, and is amazingly gorgeously foody and cakey when you first apply it. It throws really nicely.

 

As it dries, it starts getting spicy and smoky. The frankincense and myrrh and olive just make this come alive. The cakiness stays, but it's more subtle. I like to slather this a little while before bedtime, it's very comforting and homey.

 

One thing, though - my chemistry makes it GROSS during different parts of my cycle, so if it smells nasty and weird on you, wait a week or so and try again. It turns to minty Bazooka bubblegum! Gross!

[Shollin]

Haloa 2006:

 

First sniff: This is seriously rich, cakey and buttery and a little fruity. Yum.

 

Wearing: On me it goes immediately to grapes and green wood, like my arms are entwined with grapevines. The cake-scent disappears completely.

[meaganola]

Le sigh. I had such high hopes for this because foody scents are usually *wonderful* on me (Gingerbread Poppet! Egg Nog! So cake? Lemme at it!), but I just can't handle it. And it's not my body chemistry: I tried it in my oil warmer, and I could smell it through the baggie I stored the pipette in (I finally just decanted the rest of the bottle so I could just toss the pipette and not have to smell it again already), and both ways just set off The Quease. I wish I could figure out what I'm reacting to so I could avoid it in future scents, although it's most likely whatever this has in common with Chanukkiyah since that one does the same exact thing. On the up side, it's an LE, so I should be able to swap this at some point (I feel weird frimping LEs unless it's on someone's wishlist because I want to make sure they're going to a home that really *wants* them, and if I hold them back from the frimps, I will have them for someone who can't get them any other way. Weird logic, I know, but, hey, I'm an Aquarian. We like logic and weirdness equally).

[enderfem]

Imp: A grape smell that isn't like bubblegum! I can also pick up something else I think is olive leaf.

 

Wet: Sweet grapes and frankincense. Very nice. Maybe better for a room though.

 

Drydown: This blended very well and was quite pleasant, but it faded very very fast.

[cassandrakfreaq]

in the bottle this was sweet purple fruit but not really grape...on me I got this crazy sharp green note that hurt my nose for like a full half hour......this does not go foody on me at all its very dark and rich. the wet is almost to nasty to handle though.

[edenssixthday]

Haloa 2007 – The 2006 version was divine on me. A coworker who walked by me said, “It smells like warm, homemade goodness over here!” She summed it up perfectly. This year’s blend is even better. I didn’t think that was possible, but I love it. I don’t get the feeling of religious rite and ritual from this blend. Rather, it’s the scent of a buttery Danish with berry filling. It’s got a lovely level of throw and staying power. I haven’t used this as a room scent, but I can imagine this would give my house the most wonderful, comforting, home-baked-goods scent I could possibly imagine.

[lilacea]

White sweet grape and figgy, honeyed cake. The frankincense lends a slightly lemony feel to the whole thing, the myrrh is barely there, perhaps just making this a touch grounded. Slightly powdery, yet warm. Foody and perfumey at the same time.

[mazaru]

Initially, this is all about the grapes. It fast loses the foody/fruity quality it has in the bottle, and goes through a sweet, subdued phase, with notes that my nose isn't trained well enough to identify yet (I'm guessing frankincense...). And then out comes the myrrh to make my nose tickle and turn the whole thing into baby powder.

[Mamacat]

When I sniff the bottle I do get a hint of grapey wine. Once it hits my skin, however, not much wine is left (which is good for me!) and I get warm, frankincense sugar cakes. Very relaxing and soothing. I'm so glad to have a bottle!

[Nimthiriel]

Initial impression:

In the vial, it's a scent of white wine (not the heavy red kind), incense and something like olive oil. It's... refined and celebratory.

 

First on:

Wet, it's almost eclusively wine on me, with a hint of sweetened bread in the background. Yum!

 

Dry:

After about 20 mins, it's heavy on the myrrh and frankincense, but with the iniest hint of wine shining through.

 

Another half an hour later, it's a glorious, soft mixture of myrrh, wine and something bread-like – it's comforting, joyous and radiant with light, all at once. I'm completely sold.

 

Finally:

This is my new ”Greek” scent for Hestia from now on. It's everything I wanted in a scent for Her! <3 Big keeper. Wish I had a bottle now.

[mgrazulis]

In the bottle: deep frankencense, myrrh and sweet honeyed fruit cakes. I am tempted to drink it!

 

Wet: smells of celebration, the cakiness moves down for the wine and olive The wine is the strongest note with the smoky frankincense. The myrrh adds richness to the lingering buttery wine-soaked cake. The olive leaf there for a touch of oily green.

 

Dry: The myrrh gives this a ceremonial note. Wine-soaked offerings. Still slightly sugared over the wine and myrrh. Fruited cake soaked in wine. Later the powdery incense sets in, followed by raisins and grapes.

 

I was petrified this would be extra foody, but it’s actually more of a wine-soaked cake. The wine is very strong here, especially at first.. It is very unusual and incredibly ancient in feel. I find it a comforting scent and festive. I am enamored of the wine-myrrh note at the base of this scent.

[vegasblueblood]

2007 version:

 

I am getting a delicious, almost gingerbread-y note from this with the wine grapes underneath. I've had it since Yule of last year and it has aged beautifully, becoming more foody over the months. It is quite spicy and very decadent and reminiscent of an ancient festival. The description of wine-soaked offeratory cakes that others have given is pretty accurate. So warm and sweet! I can only imagine how much better this will get as it continues to age.

[MaidMirawyn]

My husband really likes this one...

 

In the bottle, I smell mainly incense. Bits of something fruity and something just a touch sour come and go.

 

Wet, the incense is barely there. The smell is unusual, and a touch sweet, a touch foody. (I'm guessing that's the cake.)

 

The end result is faint to me, but my husband could smell it even a couple of hours later. It's soft, and it's hard to define. The fruity note blends with the others to develop into something nice and complex. It's not clearly foody, clearly fruity, or clearly incense.

[pinkstardust420]

Meh. My skin is amping the notes I was hoping weren't going to show up at all. I'm getting the frankincense, myrrh, and the olive leaf. No cake, no wine grapes. Oh well.

[rawgirl75]

I dug this one up from the bottom of my tester box today... Its over a year old now... and WOW what a difference a year makes! Last year I liked this but found the olive leaf note to be a little too odd and overwhelming. But this year the olive leaf has mellowed out significantly and adds a nice little zing to the blend that Im really enjoying.

 

Foody lovers will likely be disappointed as the cheesecake is there, but only as an afterthought. I think this is more suited for those of us who dont like the purely food scents. In the imp, this reminds me of my favourite non-foody Pumpkin Patch blends like the PP IV 2005 and PP IV 2007.

 

I think this smells EXACTLY what it was intended to smell like: A buttery cake and a chalice of white wine served on an altar with sticks of incense burning as an offering to a goddess.

 

Gourmand incense.

 

I think the incense in this is the same sugared type that's used in Midnight on the Midway (but without the florals of course), so fans of that blend might also like this as well...

 

[edit* Ive recently aquired a bottle of the '06 version which appears to be more incensey than the '07 imps which are more foody wine]

Edited February 27, 2009 by rawgirl75