Tzadikim Nistarim

[Christine Daae]

... The scent is one of unadulterated spiritual purity, with a taste of the world's eternal pathos, and the joy of suffering with grace: frankincense, olive, spikenard, hyssop and galangal.

Frimp from the Lab!

In the bottle: Ummm, sharp and...not at all a smell I would associate with perfume. I think that must be the olive.

Wet: Sharp, sharp, sharp and Christmassy smelling. I swear to God there must be pine in here. I don't know what it is, but this smells like Christmas to me, too.

Drydown: This gets fruitier and less herbal and (I SWEAR) Christmassy smelling.

Verdict: Okay, so how come this has such remarkable throw, when most of my favourites (save Sugar Skull, bless it) stay so close to my skin? I keep getting wafts of the incensy Christmas smell, even though my arm is far away from my nose. It's not unpleasant, just...different. Not one of my favourites.

[jiggahava]

Freebie from the lab! From the description, it seems like it would be a heavy and incensy scent, but I was quite suprised when I applied it to my wrists. First there's a light fruity smell..some have compared it to pineapples, and I think they're quite right. Not sure what note that is, but I likes it. Then there is this light, juniper scent, which makes me imagine I'm in a forest, but it's not a heavy smell. Very pleasant. Then there's a light spice, which must be the frankinscense.

 

Verdict: Another big bottle. I wouldn't look twice at a scent like this from the description, just because it didn't appeal to me right away, and other scents sounded more exciting than this one, but I was wrong! Beth knows best.

 

And here's a crazy happy guy!

Edited October 18, 2006 by Hava

[supremegoddessofall]

Very strange. Olive as a perfume? I smell like a Greek restaurant. The olive is wallowing in frankincense, and they play together strangely. I think this might smell good on someone else, but it's just not working for me.

[minnalavender]

I received this as a frimp with my last order, and I'm glad I did! It's not something I would have sampled based upon the notes, and I would have missed out on a very lovely, pure scent. (Frimps freaking rule.

 

In the vial: very fruity, and yes - pineapple is what my brain is associating with it, and a little hint of something cedary...? But once I apply it, the fruit is joined by the woody, spicy note - the galangal, maybe? Gha - I hate having an ignorant nose. The whole fragrance is clean, pure, and sweet on my skin. It has a lot of throw on me, which is good - there's nothing in it that could become overwhelming. It's fruity without being childish at ALL - no candy or doll perfume, nothing coy or silly. This is a very dignified fruit scent. Beth often mentions offertory cakes in her descriptions - this is an offertory fruit, ripe and perfect. I would use this to annoint a blessings candle to burn for Kuan Yin on my altar.

 

I really, really like Tzadikim Nistarim. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys soft, sweet, fruity scents but is of an age or mindset where smelling like a lollipop is kind of ridiculous. lol I might have to invest in a bottle of this!

[maijasu]

I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys soft, sweet, fruity scents but is of an age or mindset where smelling like a lollipop is kind of ridiculous.

 

I wholeheartedly agree with the above statement. A lot of fruity BPAL scents smell much too candyish on my skin, but this manages to be fruity, light, and playful while still smelling like perfume. There is something slightly herbal and powdery to it, which keeps the sweetness in check.

 

A surprise winner! I'll be keeping my imp and revisiting it in the spring, after my craving for spicy/foody scents has passed.

[phedre]

In vial: Pineapple? How odd. Definitely olive too. Herbal with bite.

 

On skin: sweet, but the olive keeps it from being too sweet. There's something almost pine-like coming out.

 

Dry: This has changed completely. It's no longer sweet at all, but wood and olive. It's definitely interesting. I can't decide if I like it or not, so I'll have to try it a few more times.

[presotm]

Received as a frimp in a swap.

 

I get what others have written about this being decidedly fruity, although I'm not getting pineapple so much as a very sweet yet coconutty peach. Then I read the notes listed.........wtf? I don't get olive or frankincense or anything like that.

 

I am, however, still endeavouring to train my nose....

 

Verdict: would be lovely as a spring/summer daytime scent. Not sure if it's bottle worthy, but I'll certainly use the imp.

[monsteralice]

Wet: Interesting and not like any other BPAL I've tried (though that's not many, so YMMV). Galangal, familiar as Little John to Chew and as an ingredient in Tom Kha Gai, is the most prominent, along with something that must be the olive, though it doesn't smell like olive oil, it's sharper than that.

 

Dry: An occult shop, the type with lots of dark wood and little drawers, where you have to ask for everything.

 

Finish: The inside of a wooden box that once held incense.

 

Duration: It was down to the wrist by about four hours, so would need reapplying.

 

This one is a keeper.

[evilbee]

I smell like musky, slightly sweaty fake banana milk from start to finish. It's rather comforting in a disconcerting sort of way - maybe memories of Amoxilin? I'll wear this when I feel quirky.

[lapillus]

In bottle: sort of fruity sweetness, although no specific fruit

 

Wet: Ok, getting the olive (I think it’s the fruit) and it’s still sweet and nice

 

Dry: very stable and pretty purely sweet. Very light throw.

 

Later: Sticks around in its own mild form for a long time

 

Summary: Nice, calm and cozy. I will definitely enjoy the imp. However, I was not wowed so I probably won’t go hunting for a bottle. Although if one showed up in a lot of imps I'd be quite happy.

[Extispex]

I'm having a test-o-rama today with my imps. I keep getting winners. This is no exception.

 

My initial impression was fruity, kind of like melon to me. My niece said, "It smells like candy!"

 

Like most of the BPALs, on me its the drydown that really reveals the depth, delicacy and subtlety of this blend. The olive is the only note I can actually pick out. It doesn't dominate, rather it carries the other notes gently. Its hard to pin this one down. Its neither woodsy nor resiny, herby nor foody, just a lovely well-rounded and luminescent scent.

 

I think I want a bottle of this for my more benevolent moods.

[wikkidraven]

i actually like the olive in this...the scent waffles between herbal and fruity in a totally nice way. it's interesting, for sure.

 

a must-try for quirky scent lovers

[isisonearth]

On me Tzadikim Nistarim is very sweet but a dignified sweet (not at all candy-like). It does make me think of golden light. I don't really get the fruit notes a lot of people are talking about. There is something lofty and pure about it very different from other oils I've smelled. I'm guessing the olive is what seems so different.

 

I really enjoyed reading about the inspiration since it was a new story to me. I love all the new ideas BPAL exposes me to along with the lovely scents.

 

I had been thinking it was nice but not for me but my husband commented on how gorgeous it was as soon as he got home from work so I'll be wearing it again.

[RemAkimichi]

I've been wanting to try Tzadikim Nistarim since I read the description. Such a lovely scent!

 

In the bottle: Fruit candy, the kind you can buy in convinence stores for a dime. Not at all what I was expecting.

 

On me (wet): Fruity goodness. Definitely a strong sense of pineapple and tree bark. I'm guessing that the tree-earthy scent is the olive, since I've never smelled olive in any oils yet, and it's not really like pine.

 

On me (dry): God, this dried down fast. Not even ten minutes, which makes me sad, because when dry it's almost nonexistant. If I sniff closely, I can smell the frankensense, which is one of my favorite scents EVER, so that's all good.

 

Overall: This is a beautiful scent, but it doesn't last long. I wish the throw was a little stronger, too, but when you consider the nature of the Lamed Vev, maybe it was made to be that way. Hidden except for a faint, beautiful wiff, and short lived like man. Or I'm just being overly philosophical. Either way, lovely.

[Nia]

As others have said, this does smell of pineapple. Unfortunately, it is very fruity in a very synthetic way, like a supermarket air freshener, or fruit drops. Few things have gone so bad on me.

[Diana]

wet: sweet, almost bubblegum... i think it's mostly the hyssop

 

drydown: smells sweet still—somewhere between candy and penicillin. i can't decide if i like it or not. the penicillin note is making me waffle. i wouldn't turn down a bottle of this, but i probably wouldn't seek it out, either. mass confusion!

[CiCi]

I received a frimp of this from the lab and my first thought upon sniffing was "umm, calm". It was very soothing to me, but I have a headache, which I guess is a good sign that this is a soft, mellow scent. Otherwise, I can't be around BPAL at all. I detect a little fruit and a bit of sweetness. Overall, I like it and would never have purchased it without help from the lab. It just seems peaceful.

[LadyCrow]

At the beginning, the frankincense combined with some other note to seem quite sharp, almost overly resiny. However, this dries down into something almost indescribably creamy, sweet, and golden -- albeit grounded here and there by flashes of the salty olive leaf. This is a joyful scent, despite the complicated mythology. I did have to reapply and slather a fair bit to get it to stay, but once on, it hangs in there close to my skin for a good long while; gradually, the other notes exit, leaving the frankincense until last. There's something oddly uplifting about the whole experience.

[bryghtrose]

This smells of sweet, rich olives.

 

But I don't like olives

[ceiswyn]

I've been working up to this one. I originally bought it for the name, because my boyfriend loves the story of the Just Men, but the smell in the bottle was surprisingly lovely, and I was nervous that it wouldn't live up to my hopes.

 

In the imp: A warm scent. For some reason I expected it to be woody, but it's not, particularly. There's a 'deep' aromatic note that isn't quite flowery, with a slightly woody backdrop. A gently masculine scent.

 

On the wrist: I slather it on and it lightens up... and this is gorgeous. That 'deep' aromatic note (spikenard?) is lighter and almost flowery (a little like jasmine, but deeper), and the light woody frankincense begins to really come through. The other scents aren't individually detectable, but are just there as a gentle chord that gives the perfume a little more complexity. There's a necessary bitterness to the wood, behind the slightly spicy warmth. Mmmm. I love this to pieces.

 

One hour later: It's lightened and sweetened a bit more, and lost a little of that glorious depth, but it's still lovely, flowery with wood and earth (that must be the galangal and hyssop) behind. This is a wondrous, uplifting scent that makes me feel... I feel... I can't describe it, but it's amazing.

 

All your Tzadikim Nistarim belong to me. All of them.

[Miseraya]

In the imp: Olives and oranges. Interesting.

 

On the wrist: Sour orange type smell with green olives. Very strange. Wait, now it smells like peaches. WTH? This is a very distinct peach smell. No more olives nor oranges. Peaches, peaches, peaches. Possibly bubble gum and mangoes. Now all of that with boxwood. Now sharp and cloying. Starting to get a hint of frankincense in this.

 

Drydown: Powder. The frankincense killed all the strange fruits. Killed them dead. After awhile the powder gets very sharp and evil.

 

Overall: This one was a big morpher on me and smelled like tropical fruits most of the time, but in the end the frankincense killed it. Made it sharp and pointy and then powdery.

Edited July 5, 2007 by Miseraya

[LunaClaire]

Name: Tzadikim Nistarim

 

Bottle: A heady fruit scent - not oranges, not peach but something in between.

 

Wet: Same fruity scent, but olive seems to ground it a bit. Like others have said, not candy sweet. Definitely different.

 

Dry: The fruit combines with some exotic spices. Becomes a little resinous, smokey. Very nice!

 

Furthermore: I chose this because of the story, and wasn't expecting it to be so fruity. However, it deepens beautifully and I find myself wanting to catch a whiff regularly. Again, the story for me is especially moving, and I appreciate the choices made for the particular oils in this blend. As someone else mentioned earlier, I notice a centeredness in myself when I wear Tzadikim Nistarim. Well done!

[sookster]

straight sniff from imp this is olive and fruit... and quite frankly, decadent!

 

once applied the olive combines with the other notes which my body

chemistry adores...galangal, hyssop and frankincense...this is

too gorgeous...this has a very much head shop feel to it...

 

gonna need a big bottle of this beauty!

[JenM]

A Catherine wheel of scents—whirling furiously and burning itself out.

 

In the imp: a muted, fruity lavender-type smell. The description says blackcurrant and fig. I can see blackcurrant, actually—it’s as if you mixed resin with lavender and then wafted some Ribena through it.

 

On the wrist: simultaneously sweet and sour, though not of the sauce variety. I’m getting citrus—zest rather than fruit. It smells like zest tastes like.

 

Dry: Still zesty. I think I’m picking up sweet and sticky, too.

 

15 minutes: faded to musky or dusty lavender.

 

45 minutes: oh, how odd. It’s turned into cedar, pure and simple. And it’s fading.

 

90 minutes: no longer cedar; undefined evergreen, with lots of sap (that may be the frankincense?). Okay, fruit to evergreen is really weird. Too odd for me—I’d need rapid mood changes to keep up with it!. Swapsies.

[Trish]

In the imp: Sweet, a bit creamy, fruity - pineapple? No, maybe melon, it's not as tart as pineapple. I can smell herbs too.

 

Wet: Wet, creamy fruit with a touch of frankincense. This is SO different to what I imagined. There's something underneath too, more earthy and not nearly as sweet.

 

Drydown: Sweet fruity earthy incense, with a touch of dried herbs. It's not as sweet as it was, and it's not overly strong either. But it is very nice.

 

Dry: This is starting to throw a fair bit, and it's sweetened back up again too. Sweet soft fruity incense. And herbs. There's something in this that reminds me of Osun for some unknown reason. The fruit smells more like peach now, but I wouldn't like to put money on what it actually is!

 

Not long afterwards the olive starts to dominate and I'm not so impressed. A little olive is ok, but I do not like it dominating. However the throw - which is starting to fade - is much nicer and still fruity incense. Thankfully the olive starts to back off a bit within 15 minutes, leaving a soft slightly sweet earthy resin scent on my wrist. The throw has all but gone, as has the fruit.

 

I wish the fruit had stuck around, which is surprising because I usually don't like tropical fruits (I'm a black/purple fruit person). But this really agreed with me especially in the drydown/early dry stages.