Hunter Moon 2007

[requieminblack]

As the winter encroaches, the time comes to embark on the last Great Hunts of the year. The deer are fattened, the fields have been reaped, and the light of the full moon illuminates the wild creatures that have come out to glean. This scent is redolent of night skies, falling leaves, and the high-pitched tension and release associated with the Hunt. Dry leaves, autumn bonfires, blood red wine, feral, animalistic notes and the chill of approaching winter.

Hrm. I am not sure how to describe how this smells other than GOOD but very different from the last Hunter Moon. This is a wine scent for sure but it's not a grape smelling sort of wine like the last one, it's rather a dry bitter wine. HM '04 was very fruity and this one has no fruit to it that I can smell at all. The feral animalistic notes are very musky and dead sexy, especially mixed with the dry wine. The dead leaves scent is there but it is faint and in the background lingering with the bonfire smoke. This is doing what almost all musk does on me and turning to baby powder as it fades (it's a skin chemistry thing) so it is not for me. However those of you who liked the muskier moons like Buck Moon or smoky scents like Prilia will love this one for sure.

[Rosaleen Dhu]

Oh, but this is lovely!

On me it's musky, a little bit powdery. I don't get much wine, thankfully, but there is a nice smoke thing going on. This will hopefully make sense but it feels to me like night - sitting on my back porch with a glass of pinot when the neighbors are burning leaves in the late fall, and I'm thinking about what I'm going to do to my honey when he gets home. That kind of Hunter.

[copyshopclerk]

In the bottle: Wow, there's a lot going on! Woods, something sweet, red wine...

 

On: Wait, pears? *sniffs skin, compares it against bottle of Perilous Parlor* Yep. Pears. Way to go, skin of mine, you make no sense. (I'm testing this on my right knee, and Perilous Parlor was on my left wrist, so it's definitely not from mixing the oils on my skin!) Anyway, I'm enjoying this one very much - under the fruit, there's musk which is sweet over the darkness of evergreens and woodsmoke. Very sexy, very evocative of autumn.

 

Dry: Unusual for my skin which tends to sweeten oils as they dry, this one actually goes less sweet. The musk & wine are still there, but the woods become more prominent.

 

Overall - a beautiful blend, definitely makes me crave some cold autumn nights!

[porcelina]

spicy wine and smoke, evergreen and really sexy musk. this is so perfect for autumn and really sexy, which i didn't necessarily expect. i really love the way this smells on me!

[miss apple]

Hunter Moon: In the bottle, red wine. I don't have one of my bottles of previous years of Hunter Moon but this seems a little different. Maybe not as musky? It's a little lighter somehow. After dabbing some on my wrist I can really smell the dry leaves and the red wine has softened. I don't know if it's the animalistic notes coming into play or what but this is a very warm blend to my nose. Another great version of Hunter Moon

[dawndie]

In bottle: sweetened flowers

 

On skin: musty dusty flowers. We recently drove to/from Ohio and I picture those big rolls of hay sitting in a flowery meadow

 

Half-hour later: mellow wine has amped up slightly in the background, anchoring the dusty florals

 

In conclusion: this is a beautiful fall scent, a slightly darker companion to Harvest Moon. Disappears pretty quickly, unfortunately, but worth reapplying. The label is one of my favorite Lunacies too.

[Rheliwen]

YUM!

 

I got the first Hunter Moon when I was still a whee newbie and thus my nose was quite unsophisticated and I hated it with a fiery passion. My recollection was it smelled like rotting leaves. I so wanted to love it for the picture its description left in my mind, but alas, I did not.

 

I decided to try this latest incarnation in the hopes that I had become enough of a nose to fully appreciate Hunter Moon. To me this new one smells entirely different than the original but I don't really trust my memory. I do, however, get a lot of comparisons to Buck Moon's fuzzy light musk. This blend is fuzzy musk, a little sharp woods (high in the nose, I hope they age and mellow out), and just a tinge of fruity sweetness. If that's the wine it's a meady, berry, juicy wine.

 

Overall, this is a rather subtle scent but with that tinge of sharpness. It manages to smell both feral and playful, sweet and masculine. It's wonderful and I can't wait for colder weather as I think this blend will really come into its own then. I'm glad I took a chance with this one!

Edited September 13, 2007 by Rheliwen

[Dymphna]

In the bottle: This smells amazing. Soft, sexy musk and a sort of sweet, fizzy berry candy. If the wine doesn't go sour on me, this could be really good.

 

Wet: Definitely smells like candy. A creamy-berry candy. It reminds me a lot of Lush Rock Star soap (and associated products). I've been wanting a BPAL scent that smells similar to Rock Star for such a long time. I'm so happy! Wow, this is amazing.

 

Dry: This goes a bit powdery, in a sugary way, like Aunt Caroline's Joy Mojo. Actually, it smells a lot like Auntie C, only with a light, sexy musk backing it up. I LOVE this stuff! Hmm...goes a bit plasticky on me after a while, but I think that's only if I sniff up close. And the plastic fades after a few minutes and I'm left with this soft, warm, vanilla musk. This is some seriously good stuff. Now that it's dried down, it keeps reminding me of another BPAL scent and I can't remember which one. I keep wanting to say Antique Lace but I know that's not it because I don't like AL and I like this. But it's some sort of non-foody vanilla. I know! Black Opal. Whatever is smelling like vanilla in this is the same sort of vanilla that's in Black Opal. And I love Black Opal!

 

If you like the idea of a sweet, creamy, fizzy-fruity candy scent that dries down to a non-foody vanilla and a smooth, sexy, cashmere-like musk, YOU MUST GET THIS! I didn't get any hint of wine, sour or otherwise, and none of the heavier, more animalistic musks, just sweet, clean, smooth softness. It's fantastic!

 

ETA: I just wanted to add a bit here. I've seen people saying that the musk in this smells to them like black musk, and others have said red musk. I've got to say that I don't think it's either because red musk smells sickening on me and black musk smells like powdery old lady perfume once it hits my skin. However, I just swapped for a decant of Buck Moon and the musk in that smells exactly like the musk in this! I would say that Hunter Moon '07 smells like a combination of Aunt Caroline's Joy Mojo (in the wet stage) and Black Opal + Buck Moon (once it dries). It doesn't seem to have the sweet, grassy note I get from Buck Moon, but its got the same musk, plus the powdery vanilla/cool rain scent of Black Opal. This is a seriously WOW! blend.

Edited September 22, 2007 by Dymphna

[fiddlehead]

This is very much in the same family as Devil's Night. I think it's the wine I'm smelling at first, along with the musk. But the dry-down is mostly soft musk, like Devil's Night but not as sweet or assertive. I compared the two on my skin and they are very similiar.

[naeelah]

I'm SO glad i heeded will call reviews and ordered a last minute bottle of this! I was afraid of how the wine note would work on me (it tends to be a bit syrupy), but I can barely detect it in this blend.

 

It's not much of a morpher, but it seems like everyone amps something different. The main note is a rich, dark musk, a lot like the musk in Brown Jenkins. Blending with it is a lovely, slightly woody dead leaf scent. I can't pick out a specific smoky quality, so I think that just contributes to the autumn notes of the blend, rather than smelling like a bonfire. I can smell the wine note right at first, and it has a fruity, plummy effect in the blend, but it seems to fade as it dries. From a distance, I can catch a whiff of it in the blend, it just isn't as strong as it was starting out.

 

After a couple of hours, it's mostly musk and dead leaves, with a touch of berry or plum (the wine note). Really gorgeous!

 

Throw is very good. A dab from the rim of the bottle on one hand was noticeable. And it lasts FOREVER. I put it on first thing this morning. Now, about 8 hours later, it is still going strong. That was by tipping the bottle directly onto my wrist. If I just dab from the rim, then the wear life is a little more average, about 4-5 hours.

Edited January 18, 2008 by naeelah

[Roses Ablaze]

I haven't actually worn Hunter Moon, since I'm currently testing a different scent, but I like what I smell out of the bottle. It's green, dark, deep and musky. It isn't autumn-y at all (which is what I was hoping for), but I like it. Hopefully it won't go foul on my skin.

[slave1]

HUNTER MOON 2007

 

In Bottle: Powdery musky love

 

On Skin: Oh wow… I am bowled over. This is FREAKING gorgeous and I should have gotten 10 bottles. This is the softest, most sexy yet comforting musk blend I have ever smelled. The feral animalistic tones are dominant, and before you start freaking out and thinking you’re going to smell like a deers musk glands, settle down. It’s soft, perfumey and sweet. With a dark pretty wine note in the background. The wine is much less dominant than the original version. The bonfires add to the dark tone and give a soft smokey base. The leaves are very light, and less woody feeling that the 2004 version. This scent to me feels like soft wool, warm and so very appealing. The chill of the approaching winter is a distant note on the side, causing me to bury myself further in the scent. This is a fall scent for sure, and exactly what I needed. Moderate throw and good staying power.

Edited September 16, 2007 by slave1

[taramarie]

Hunter Moon '07 and my skin chemistry don't seem to be getting along. Wet on my skin, it cycled through all the notes then finally settled on red wine and sugar. Yeah, no idea where the sugar came from. I'll have to pass this one on to someone else.

[forspecial_plate]

I've worn this a few times now, and still can't tell if I'm going to like it enough to wear a lot. It's much sweeter and.....brighter than I expected it to be, greener somehow. Basically the other reviews before mine are accurate. There does seem to be musk here, and it reminds me a lot of Devil's Night. Both scents are musky and sweet on my skin, and light on the booze notes. In Hunter Moon the wine is hard to pick out.

 

Comparing it to the old Hunter Moon, from my decant......very different scent. That could also be because of aging, though. But I like my old-school, dark, incense and woodsy (also heavier on the wine note) Hunter Moon more than this one. This actually reminds me more of Buck Moon (which I've only tried once, but I think someone else mentioned the resemblance and I agree) than the older Hunter Moon.

 

I've had good results with this when I apply very lightly. Too much of it becomes cloying but that's often a problem for me. Oh and as long as I'm comparing, Hunter Moon '07 reminds me a lot of Thunder Moon, like this could be its fall companion.

[lamenteuse]

in the bottle: I don't know what I was expecting, but it wasn't this. Light, powdery and a bit of musk

 

on (wet): um, like a thin red wine and baby powder...

 

on (dry): almost all powder but with a hint of a simple musk. sort of reminds me of warm blankets, in a way.

 

verdict: 3 out of 5. I thought this was going to be an amazing, deep autumnal scent, and what I got wasn't that. It's nice, but not great. something good for when it's raining and cold and i want to stay inside and cuddle. not really "autumn" in my mind, more cozy.

[funkmoppet]

Spectacular.

 

Just...

 

Just...

 

*wibble*

 

Woodsy musk perfection. The comparisons to Buck Moon were right IMHO, except this is a deeper, darker musk with the woods. It's a cool, dark sexy forest. Oh yes it is.

 

I am in LOVE. And my twitchy-finger that ordered a second bottle was wise. This is magnificent.

 

Beth, you winner! What a lunacy. THANK YOU!

[Meshuganah]

I anticipated the arrival of this scent eagerly. Although it wasn't as epic as I'd hoped, it was wonderful and I do love it. in the bottle it was very faint at first. My nose couldn't quite detect what I was smelling. On my skin it was a perfect balance of said Animalistic notes and leaves. Although the chill of encroaching winter isn't as prominent which I was hoping for, it really does smell of a hunt in the heart of a forest. It makes me want to go camping and hang with the plants and animals.

[CrazyPretzel]

In the bottle: an absolutely beautiful soft musk and sweet red wine.

 

Wet on me: This smells like it may contain red musk, but if so it's gentle and silky and I've lucked out (usually I can't wear it!) I can smell green branches as well, which weren't apparent in the bottle.

 

After a few minutes: Berries (not quite sharp enough for my nose to read it as wine) and fir needles against that exquisite musk. This stage is drop-dead gorgeous. It almost makes me cry. After about five minutes the wine seems to come out more strongly and I can detect a slight earthy note as well.

 

Drydown: Mainly sweet musk and fir needles; the berry/wine note has settled down considerably and is very soft. It's similar to Black Forest at this stage, another one of my all-time favourite BPALs (I actually got a bottle of it to accompany Hunter Moon on its way here).

 

I prefer the early stages to the final drydown, but this is still one damn fine fragrance.

[valentina]

My spouse ordered some Hunter Moon for himself, but I had to test a wee bit after I gave it a sniffie! And that wasn't something I expected to do, because I read the description when the scent came out and wrongly assumed there would be the thundering doom of civet in it. And no, not a bit... but I do think that there's a touch of leather in this scent, giving it a musky-leathery quality, along with a low-lying natural, outdoorsy sweetness that's vague and indefinable (at least to my nose). Maybe the leather is all in my head, but I don't think so. I get soft buckskin, sweet grass, indian summer hazy sunshine and late season fruity sweetness. This was a very, very pleasant surprise!

Edited September 19, 2007 by valentina

[akw]

Wet and for the first hour or so, I totally get the description of the scent. It has a wild edge to it, it's green, it's enroaching winter, and it's musky. I really like that stage a lot.

 

However, after a couple of hours it goes to powder, and the only thing I'd be inspired to hunt is a "Charmed" rerun, snuggled up in a thick robe on the sofa with some tea. It's nice smelling powder, but not what I was hoping for.

 

If my skin didn't do this awful thing to it, I would be liking this scent very much!

[QueenFae]

First impressions: Musky, soft, brown, sweet, sexy.

 

This is very pretty, and it smells completely different from the original Hunter Moon. This is much, much softer than I imagined it would be. The musks are deep, sweet and intoxicating; almost to the point where they go a little powdery on me. (but in a good way) There is a hint of spice and autumn toned breezes in the background. This actually reminds me very much of Buck Moon, one of my hubbie's all time favorites. This sounds very manly from the description, but actually it smells like this would be a perfect unisex scent.

 

Very pretty!!

[sedona]

I was a little hesitant about ordering this one due to the 'feral, animalistic notes', but oh boy, am I glad I did!

 

From the bottle I can just about detect the lunar oil base and what's this? A hint of Snake Oil?

 

Wet it's just beautiful. There's so many notes lovingly blended, a touch of mint and forest (I see great similarities between this and Golden Priapus actually) , it's sweet but not foody sweet, and the wine/musk notes don't take over.

 

On wearing the smokiness develops and wafts around the other notes. There's a touch of powder to this Moon but I don't mind that at all.

 

Wear this whilst hiking in the deep forest or star gazing at midnight in the autumn chill. A real winner!

[aine]

Hunter Moon is absolutely nothing like I imagined. It is the softest suede on me, with the gentle almost-coconutty musk so reminiscent of A Bachelor's Dog.

 

I don't smell leaves, or bonfires, or wine, or chill and I certainly don't smell anything feral. I smell suede. And I'm so thrilled to have found that enchanting musk again.

[cranberry]

I ordered 2 bottles of this because it’s the moon of my birth month. I’m so glad that I did. This is just amazing and so delicious.

 

This is a soft, glorious musk – it’s not black musk nor red musk. It’s a light musk or a blend of light musks. There is a touch of power there but it’s not a baby powder – just a bit dry and powdery smelling. Perhaps a bit like how Chanel # 5 or Youth Dew has a bit of a powder or maybe even an aldehyde note. I really don’t get any of the other notes here, just the glorious musk. It reminds me strongly of Buck Moon, A Bachelor’s Dog (w/out the tobacco and leather) or the musky notes in Devil’s Night. It’s deeper and fuller than Buck Moon but so similar that it’s striking.

 

I simply adore this oil.

[Astarte]

This is a delicious scent, if I had to describe it as a colour I'd choose a soft bronze shimmering softly. Its deliciously sweet and more'ish. On me it smells like a more gentle Snake Oil initially, so I'd guess perhaps Siberian Musk is here in this one. I usually find Snake Oil a bit too much to wear but this is spot on.

 

Absolutely breathtaking.