Chanukkiyah

[inurbanus]

Olive oil, beeswax, glowing amber, sweet sufganiyot, pomegranate, and fig.

Mmm...this is good stuff. Chanukkiyah is the most sophisticated foodie blend that I've tried -- it's like Monsterbait: Bloody Mary's grown up cousin from the city. The amber and beeswax create a base that glows with warmth. The fruits are full and tart without being sour -- they add some sexiness but don't take anything away from the base. Luckily, I don't get any butter from this one, but there is spice note that is very inviting. Chanukkiyah is so wonderfully blended that you can smell the individual components without them competing with each other. It smells kind of commercial, but in a good way, like you've bought something from a distinguished perfume house. I think this one is gorgeous and can't wait to wear it in the future.

4.5/5

[dawndie]

In bottle: sharp honey, almost acrid

 

On skin: very nice soft honey, tempered by the olive oil

 

Half-hour later: STRONGLY sweetened up on me, that "burnt sugar" smell like in Sugar Skull

 

In conclusion: I liked the softly sweet beginning very much, and I have to be in the mood for the ending. It's a blast of funhouse cake while I was hoping for something more serene. Maybe that sugar high will calm down as it ages.

[arabella]

First Impression: Sweet, hot, sugar syrup.

 

Dries down to: A chemical note settles over the syrup and turns it into a rancid "get it off me right now" scent.

 

Additional Comments: I have no idea which note or combination of them is causing this blend to turn horrendous on me since none of them are normally dealbreakers but I definitely won't be wearing this one - ever.

 

Lasted: Way too long.

 

Rating: 1 out of 5

[Ishtar]

Chanukkiyah is a thing of beauty!

 

I waffled over this scent longer than I care to admit... the beeswax and olive oil notes were intriguing and amber usually smells great on me, but I could see that this blend had the potential to go acrid and/or disjointed on me. In the end, curiousity got the better of me and I am very glad it did!

 

In the bottle and wet on my skin, the beeswax and olive oil are the most prominent notes, underscored by the richness of amber and the juiciness of the fruit notes. A very complex scent with a lot of throw.

As the oil dries down, the jelly of the sufganiyot becomes more noticeable, yet there is no butteriness or cloying sweetness to this blend. The pomegranate and fig, both of which I love but which can do strange things on my skin, are very well-behaved and impart yet more depth to what is already one of the most layered scents I have smelled in a long while.

After complete drydown, Chanukkiyah settles into a warm, comforting yet intricate scent. The beautiful, soft amber seems to be what ties all the other notes together.

 

I can see this working wonderfully both as a room scent and as a personal fragrance, even though I have a feeling I am going to enjoy wearing it so much that the oil burner will not see much of it!

Interestingly enough for such a deep and rich scent, its staying power is only average, if not a little shorter than average.

[Honeygirl]

Bottle: Olive oil, donuts and fruit

 

Wet: Kinda Sugar Skull-like. Hot sugar, like burnt or brown. Some fruit in the background, which I'm guessing is the fig and pomegranate.

 

Drydown: Definitely similar to Sugar Skull, but with some fruitiness that lightens it up. I like it a lot!

3.5 outta 5

[Nia]

At first, I smell like a mixture of fruit cookies and salad dressing. Then, I smell like a light, not too buttery cake. It's nice, but a bit too foody for me.

[hkhm]

bottle: a very brown sugary amber and honey scent. this is sweet and rich and warm.

 

wet: oh wow! the pomegranate and fig added into the brown sugar scent make this absolutely swoon-worthy. why did i wait so long to buy a bottle? now i'll have to swap for a back-up!

 

dry: this dries warm and rich, like a yummy fruit pastry of some sort. definitely a new favourite.

[LadyCrow]

Chanukkiyah, on me, is similar to Egg Nog in that it doesn't have a powerful throw so much as a strong skin presence. I haven't tried this in a locket yet, but I have a feeling it would make a fabulous room scent -- very well blended, and, as many others have noted, foody and warm without toppling over the edge into "Gorram it, I'm making cocoa RIGHT NOW" territory, like my beloved El Dia de Reyes gets! It's not at all overly complicated on me, and doesn't morph much. The sugary tinge is right on top of the throw, and the beeswax, amber, and olive seem to hug each other and lie right next to the skin. I only get faint traces of the pomegranate.

 

Subtle and lovely, foody but not over-the-top.

[Lethran]

In bottle: Smells like tarts and burnt sugar. Likely that is the fruit mixing with sufganiyot, which is a traditional Jewish donut, apparently. Wet: Much like in the bottle only richer as the amber and beeswax come out a little. It’s pleasing for a foody scent. As the amber insinuates itself into the overall effect, it is surprisingly sensuous. Dry: Olive oil, candles, pomegranates, and a hint of tart and amber.

[QueenFae]

I know this sounds bizarre, but this smells like celery on me!!

 

Yes, occasionally, my skin morphs BPAL into celery. This is actually the third BPAL that has smelled like this on me. I think maybe in Chanukkiyah, it's the combination of the beeswax and the olive oil. That being said, it's not an entirely unpleasant celery scent. It's light, and rather sweet and fresh, with a soft floral background. Very interesting. Definitely not my thing, darn skin chemistry!!

[Shannihilation]

As soon as I smelled this in the bottle I thought it smelled just like my Buddha candle. He is made from beeswax. I love that smell. The amber comes through in the bottle as well but the beeswax really seems to be the dominanat note.

 

On my skin it's still mostly beeswax but the pomegranate and fig are there along with the amber. It's just bordering turning to burnt plastic on me though if I sniff up close. Farther away though i can't smell that at all. It's very soft and subtle and the different notes all blend really nicely. I like this alot.

[gchris]

In Vial: butterscotch

 

Wet: Butterscotch, the clean smell of soap and wood bark. Odd combination I know, but doesn't smell too bad blended together.

 

Drydown: As it drys I can begin to smell the beeswax. It has the scent of bark mixed with a light scented perfume. This is an interesting combination, one that I find I like, very unique.

[Apple]

To my nose, this is very similar to Kill-Devil (another favorite): the rich scent of sugar that's just begun to caramelize cut with a crisp acidity. In Kill-Devil I smell a squeeze of lime; in Chanukkiyah I assume it's the pomegranate in this role.

 

Wet, the sugar comes on deliciously strong. As it dries, some mellower, un-sweet notes (perhaps the olive oil?) surface along with a hint of spices and dried fruits. There's a slightly weird phase for about 30 minutes, and then it's back to deliciousness.

 

When fully dry it returns to a rich, deep sugar scent. Although it doesn't seem to have much throw, it lasts forever.

 

Love it!

[alianthe]

In the bottle: Warm and welcoming! Hot beeswax candles, some but not all of them blown out, a little fruity, a feeling of warmth and friendliness. Community? So much of this blend bypasses my scent analyzing capabilities and hits me straight in the emotional subjectivity. If it wasn't for the fairly forward element of blown-out candles (an odor I've never much enjoyed), I would really like it a lot.

ETA: I've decided to age it a bit more to see if the amber comes out as more than the warm, friendly aura it seems to contribute fresh.

Edited February 27, 2008 by alianthe

[Ajila]

In the bottle – Thick rich sugar, with just a hint of the pomegranate

 

Wet on me – The fruit is more prominent, but it is backed by a thick gloopy scent that’s sweet and yet slightly smokey

 

Dry on me – It sweetens to the extent that I had people at work tell me I smelt of caramel, butterscotch and popcorn respectively. However, for me the sweetness was tempered by a bitterness that I can only assume was the olive oil

 

Overall – I like this blend, but I’m not certain when I would wear it. This may be one to keep for a couple of months and see how it goes before making a decision

[Nimthiriel]

Initial impression:

It's nearly boozy in its wet state, and a riot of sweetness, without feeling very foody.

 

First on:

A strange mix of fruity sweetness and something more... oily in the background. Olive oil? Not sure. I'm not overly thrilled at this point.

 

Dry:

After 10 mins, it's disgustingly boozy on me, the way rum usually is. Guh, no, this has to be washed off.

 

Finally:

Dang, this really just mutated on me. A shame... Swapping/selling.

[enderfem]

Bottle: fig, pomegranate and something really sweet. Nice!

 

Wet: Sweet but not cloying. Still the fig and pomegranate, and some olive oil to temper it.

 

Drydown: The amber comes out of hiding a little bit towards the end, but still fig and pomegranate and olive oil dominate. I really like this.

Edited March 29, 2008 by enderfem

[cassandrakfreaq]

I have a bit of congestion so I will retry this later but in vial I got a wonderful beeswax scent that was very very sweet. On skin it gets a bit richer not sweeter though and the fruits come to play a bit. I am suprised that people mentioned sugar skull cuz it totally did not work for me and I am loving this scent.

[sadtomato]

a sweet, foody(ish) scent i can wear without gacking!

i love this.

out of the bottle, on my skin, and dried down i get honey, amber and sweet fruits.

yum.

it's not really foody on me, just honey, amber sweet goodness.

a warm, comforting scent that makes my kitties smell my skin a lot.

a lovely scent i'm glad i bought and plan to really enjoy!

[jwhxtna]

IN THE IMP: A really sugary, rich pastry and olive oil. With a hint of fig, I think. Interesting! And quite yummy.

 

WET: The smell gets a lot less heavy. It starts to smell a little soapy? In a clean way. It's almost a little floral. Plus I can still smell the sugar. It sounds like a strange combo, but it's actually really nice!

 

DRY: Soft beeswax, plus sugary pastry with a drizzle of olive oil. VERY nice!

[prrrplegrrrl]

When I put it on, I get the sufganiyot (which I know now, thanks to wikipedia)... beeswax... olive oil... and THEN the pomegranate comes out. It's such an interesting scent, certainly appropriate for the holidays. I was worried that I wouldn't like it after I spilled it all over my desk(!!) but I do!

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Pure caramel! Extremely foody.

 

Wet: On my skin, it's actually much less sweet, and the beeswax and amber dominate. I quite like the beeswax, as it's much like my beloved honey, but it's still too sweet and foody and warm a scent for me.

[scotchgrrl]

My Gran used to make sufganiyot at Channukah. She made that and everything else that made the holidays so sweet. Her house always smelled of the beeswax from candles burned every week. And fig. She always had a bowl of figs on the table.

 

When I opened the bottle I was transported to my Gran's house. She is in the kitchen making schmaltz from the left over chicken fat. There's a big pot of chicken soup with matzo balls on the stove and noodle kugel in the oven. She has already made the dough for the sufganiyot rising in a bowl. My Grandpa and Dad are arguing in the living room, agreeing very loudly about nothing at all. My sis and I are standing at the table hoping to get to help Gran while Mom gets her and Gran some coffee. Me and sis fight over who gets to help make the latkes this time. I win 'cause I'm the oldest. She's still too young to help. HA! The smell of oils, fruits, sweet and sharp moving through the house.

 

I miss my Gran. I'm glad I found a bottle of this to bring her back to my mind and heart.

[vividdreamer]

Chanukkiyah and I have had a tumultuous relationship.

 

When I first got my bottle, I hated it. Yeah, it smelled slightly foody, but there was something that kept putting me off. I think it was the olive oil/beeswax and fruits, because something just seemed too heavy and sticky and a little rancid.

 

So I put it up for Swap/Sell, and I waited. And waited. And...no one really seemed to want it.

 

It's been sitting there in my BPAL chest, gathering dust, because I just didn't like it and wasn't willing to give it another chance. I'd decided that I'd finally found a foody BPAL that I didn't like...at all.

 

But then tonight I grabbed it for some reason, and sniffed. And...wow! That's sweet and sugary, a little maple-y, and I can smell the fruits way in the background. Fig! I love fig!

 

So I slathered some on, and it was almost a magical experience. To my complete surprise, it smells REALLY nice on me. The brown sugar and fig are all sticky sweet, but the pomegranate gives it a bit of zing. And instead of smelling oily and gross, the beeswax and olive oil work to round all the notes out and bring everything together. They're still there, no doubt about it, but they just add mellow out the other scents and make them harmonize really well. This is smooth. Smooth and rounded, and really, really nice. I keep huffing my wrist and applying more to get that initial bit of pomegranate, because it works SO well here. After the oil dries, though, it's all brown sugar and fig, sweet and comforting and caramelized yumminess.

 

I'm glad I kept it, and I'm so amazed and happy that it aged so well. I'm going to *try* and leave it alone until cooler weather, but it smells so good that I'm going to have trouble keeping my hands off the bottle.

 

Incredible, really, what a few months of aging can do.

[zankoku_zen]

I didn't expect to like this. The review that mentions 'jewish jelly donut' has it. It has this honeyed cinnamon/maple syrupy loveliness. Better than Lionesse. But it's got that heavy sort of sweetness to it.

 

Tasty, tasty.