Countess Willie

[femmefatale]

Chocolate plum musk, red musk, amaretto, candied fruits, and red ginger.

So I'm wondering if this is one of those scents where decants don't always work well if the bottle wasn't rolled enough first, because I get absolutely no chocolate from this at all. It's mostly red musk, plum, and the candied fruits.
It's actually quite pretty, just not really my style. I'm glad I tried it though! Edited December 31, 2009 by Shollin

[AliBabble]

thank goodness countess willie seems like it's gonna work on me, since the other two from my latest order do not...

"yes" to the bordello comparison. since bordello was one of my first bpal loves, i know that anything in that vein will work. i should just embrace all the plummy oils, because really, they do agree with my chemistry. this is well-blended and surprisingly subtle actually - the ginger is barely there on me, and the red musk, which can sometimes smell obnoxious to me, just totally blends in. i'm only getting the smoothness of chocolate, not an actual chocolate note, and the amaretto and plum just kind of blend together. i'd say that it's a bit smoother than bordello, and i like it a lot!

[Ondine]

I amp red ginger, so this smelled like screeching red ginger on me with a bit of dusty musk. Like War and Mme Moriarty mixed, but really heavy on the War. Overall, it was spicy, dusty, and hot.

[sarahmarie]

This is such a cool scent. Well, actually, it's warm - and I get chocolate and plum right away. It's evocative of rich, deep velvet- reds and purples and browns. As it dries, I get a slight bit more fruit, the undertone of chocolate remains, but no ginger really ever develops for me.

 

I like this one. I might really like it, but it's hard to say. I think I'll have to wear it again to be sure. On the right person, though, I bet this is 100% knock-out gorgeous and sexy.

[filigree_shadow]

Very nice! I was worried about the red ginger (that has given me some allergic issues in the past), but it seems to be fine. I love the red musk with the fruits -- gives the scent a good balance. Sometimes red musk can overwhelm. Not in this one, though. It's sweet and red-smelling, and the musk is actually rather gentle.

 

Quite lovely. I'd like a bottle of this one.

[musichappens]

I want to start off by saying that I was a little afraid of this scent b/c chocolate is usually a big death note for me. However, on my skin the chocolate is non-existent ... yay! Wet, it is very fruity (mostly the plum) with just a hint of the red musk and ginger. Dry, all three of the previously mentioned notes co-mingle into something extremely sexy. Just like Flora, this is a very light scent on my skin, not one where I have to put my nose right up against my wrist to smell it. In time, I can definitely see myself picking up a bottle.

[voodoocatwoman]

Definitely fruity. It reminds me of Pixy Stix, the powder in a straw that I loved as a kid. There is something else a bit on the sharp side (if I didn't know better I would swear it is rubbing alcohol) but I think that must be the musk.

 

Not a bad fragrance once the alcohol dies down.

[laslibres]

All of these notes are basically win on me, so I wasn't surprised that this was awesome. In the bottle, it's candied fruits and red musk, and on me that becomes even deeper and sweeter. The musk and ginger assert themselves a little more, and there's lots of plum and other sweet fruits (blackberry, strawberry, blackcurrant, orange? I don't know, but those are the fruits I get from it). Maybe some amaretto if I really huff my wrist.

 

It's a lot of fruit, but it's _exceedingly_ sexy fruit, which is the best kind. This is like Snake Oil after gorging on lots of Candy Phoenixes.

[Lyrical]

In imp: mostly red musk, chocolate and plum - reminds me of Midnight Kiss.

 

Wet on skin: very sexy dark chocolate, spiced with ginger and speckled with tiny bits of candied fruit. The red musk is strong, but not nasty (red musk mostly doesn't like my skin).

 

Dry on skin: red musk and dark chocolate is an intriguing combination. It's foody yet not at all foody, and while it's too dark and passionate for me, I predict that it will be popular. I'm getting red wine from it too. After a while it gets softer and sweeter. Interesting!

[zankoku_zen]

Oh yum. This one was nicer than I anticipated. Red musk can be so overpowering on me and plum can turn very cloying. This one is a nice, sweet musky plum with a drizzle of chocolate. I can smell the ginger and it keeps everything from being too much.

 

Definitely Bordello's grown up sister. You know the kind. Mature, sophisticated, confident, and ready to take what she wants and is completely unapologetic about it. In fact, you look at her and think DAMN, I wanna be like HER when I grow up...

 

Not my style at all, but seriously considering keeping the decant...

 

ETA:

This is for the prototype. Not so much red musk, and more of the plum and a hint of booze. It dries down to a boozey, grape candylike scent on me. More like Countess Willie hit both the sugar bowl AND the liqour cabinet a little too hard this evening. Not sexy, just sort of a plummy version of Jailbait.

Edited November 17, 2010 by zankoku_zen

[hepkitten]

This is definitely Bordello's more sophisticated sister. I love the rich fruits going on here, but I'm not sure that I can take the chocolate. For anyone who has more tolerance for chocolate scents, though, this is a sex bomb.

[amyw]

I happen to looove Bordello, and this is very close to it on me. I thought it was almost a dead ringer until I compared one on each arm, and now that I'm smelling them side-by-side, so to speak, I notice that Countess Willie has a slightly darker edge to her. I can pick out a tiny TINY bit of chocolate, a smidge of the bite of the ginger, and a bit of musk. None of those are present in Bordello, as expected, but this makes them a bit more obvious. This is definitely bottle-worthy and will be perfect on days when I'm in the mood for a slightly less sweet Bordello-esque scent. The Countess, she is yummy. I was pretty sure she would be given those notes. And apparently many prostitutes like amaretto.

[aquazoo]

I get that chocolate amaretto. The amaretto and candy comes forward, giving it a sweet drunk feeling.

[ffiferoo]

I think the chocolate plum musk is the most prominent note, but it's more of an herby floral than fruity, and there's just a hint of the chocolate. I'm not getting much of anything else, maybe a bit of the candied fruits, but it's really nice, and very unique.

[glcastil]

I knew this was going to be a keeper!

I'm not a fan of red scents, as they tend to not love my skin chemistry, so this was sort of a gamble. However, I couldn't pass up on something with chocolate and ginger, so I bought the bottle.

 

My nose can't really make out any of the scents individually, but I don't even care. The Countess overall is an intriguing, sexy, fun scent. I would definitely describe it as a red wine color.

 

The wet stage reminds me of Dragon's Milk, but all the best parts about it--deep without being too metallic, sweet/creamy without being foody. I don't know what's making it so close to the dragon's blood resin, but unlike Dragon's Milk, I love it here.

Even in the wet stage, you can get a whiff of the candied fruits, which i think is fantastic. They're juicy and sweet, and makes that resinous aspect lighter, making it much for wearable while the sun's out.

 

It pretty much stays the same for me drying down, with the musks becoming a little more powdery while the fruits get a little juicier, but I'm not complaining, because this is the first time red musk is behaving on me. I think the ginger and chocolate are here, because now there's something that's opening up the scent and thinning out the musky quality.

 

Wonderful.

 

 

[crebbsgirl]

I was concerned about the amaretto note here, because almonds and I tend not to get along, but I shouldn't have worried. This is slightly boozy on my skin, but the almond/amaretto doesn't overpower anything else. There is a sweet chocolate/plum combination happening here that reminds me of the new 13 (November 09). It does get a little more powdery on the drydown, but it's not a gramma-powder. The ginger is really faint on me, I have to search for it. And the fruits lend a sweetness. I like it, but I'm not sure how often I would wear it. For my chocolate/fruit/musk combo, I think I prefer 13.

Edited January 12, 2010 by crebbsgirl

[reynardine]

In decant: chocolate and musk

 

Wet: chocolate, musk and a hint of sweetness

 

Drydown: Lighter now. The sweetness (they were right, it smells like candied fruits) is coming out more and the chocolate is almost gone, with a touch of musk.

 

Later: Finally getting the ginger, which is always a winner on me. Going to test it a second time, but I might end up getting a bottle of this one.

 

[SpookyBunny]

This begins sweet and dusty, like rich candied fruits.

As it morphs there is a distinct chocolate added to it - gingery chocolate plums.

This seriously dries down to none other than a creamy gingerale float - seems like the amaretto and ginger mixing, oh how glorious... this is such a luxurious and yummy scent.

[Leopard403]

This doesn't work for me, but I was wary of that red musk and ginger to start with. This is a musky, plummy cocoa scent that manages to somehow smell foody and weirdly dirty at the same time.

[pandorasmuse]

Received from salixnoir's decant circle.

 

In the imp: The oil is a pretty amber color. It smells tasty and plummy. I'm getting a hint of muskiness, but most of what I smell are the sweets.

 

Wet: Musky plums. And candy! My wrist smells like a candy dish!

 

Drydown: Candy dish and musk. A little root beer?

 

Later: It smells like something I can't quite taste. It's similar to SweeTarts, but that's not it, exactly. Eventually most of the candy fades into musky deliciousness. Mmmm. The first time I WORE wore it, I got some wet on my clothes, and I smelled like grape lollipops. If I am patient and let it dry, I smell so delicious. I will probably get a bottle of this.

[kmasden]

Wow, one of my dream scents actually....i love having things in a scent that don't really stand out on their own. In this it's the chocolate. I love the way it grounds this scent a bit (at least that's how i think about it) without smelling like chocolate...of course as it's chocolate plum musk, i'm not sure how chocolately it should be anyway...

 

For me this feels like snake oil (i'd assume that's the red musk part and i'm a whore for red musk!) with a darker note and only slightly fruity. I definately "get" the plum/fruits, it's like a hint of what is in midwinters eve, with a little bit of spicy added in from the ginger. This is sex on wheels for me.........mmmmhmmmm GOOD!!

[hkhm]

imp: ginger and red musk.

 

wet: this reminds me a bit of bordello but with the plum and amaretto turned down. the red musk and ginger are amazing here and the chocolate is a nice, rich creamy scent, not the way chocolate usually turns on me.

 

dry: this smells both creamy and spicy-sharp at the same time. i know it's the ginger playing rough with the red musk. i'm thinking a bottle may be in order...

[TereFaerie]

Chocolate, ginger, and red musk all the way. It's very sweet, but not too cloying, and the musk keeps it from being too foody.

 

Love the similarities to Midnight Kiss, but MK smells a bit too much like a grape tootsie-pop to me, where this smells dead sexy!

 

[KesHiro]

Someone please tell me why I didn't buy this sooner? I can't believe I passed on it for the first few months it was out and I'm kicking myself for this. Yes, it is that wonderful.

 

In the bottle, I get plum, amaretto, ginger, and red musk. Wet, it is the same. During the drydown, more scents begin to emerge and in addition to the plum, amaretto, ginger, and red musk I start to get currants (or perhaps this is the candied fruit) and possibly chocolate (it's a dark, semi-sweet note that isn't easily identifiable). Dry, it's the same as the drydown stage.

 

This is a fantastically blended oil. Every note is there, with no single one dominating over the others. I can see why people are calling this Bordello's older sister; it has the same plum and amaretto elements, but the ginger and red musk take the edge off of that sweetness and instead make it sophisticated. Don't be scared of this blend if you do not like foody scents; while it has a foody element, the red musk and ginger tame it down, and the ginger adds in a spiciness that keeps it from becoming sugary.

 

This is sexy, elegant, and sophisticated. Definitely a fitting tribute to Countess Willie.

Edited February 12, 2010 by Kejiaron

[sprocket21]

I don't get any chocolate from this whatsoever, but I like it just the way it is. This is what I pictured Bordello as - a smoky, sexy, sultry, MUSKY plum blend. While it's basically a musky Bordello, it has a totally different feel to it. It does remind me of Snake Oil a little bit, but it doesn't have that medicinal smell to it that SO does. Overall, a win, but only for occasions in which I need to feel sexy/sultry.