Panther Moon

[lucyboo21]

Gleaming black musk, mandrake, labdanum, black ginger, benzoin, champaca, ambergris accord, myrrh, and star anise.

Dark, smokey, smooth, mysterious and slightly sweet. The resins remind me of Schwarzer Mond also. Love it. May need to search for a back up.

...and less than an hour later it's gone.

So sad...

[surlygurl]

Okey dokey. I tried this when it was fresh from the mailbox, when I was, er, hormonal, when I had a cold, when I was well. Each time, I got the same thing: Dirt Soap. There may have been florals trying to swim against the tide of Dirt Soap lather, but it was hard to tell. I decided to try it one more time before aging the hell (hopefully literally) out of it. So.....

 

Fresh on, it's Dirt Soap. Bitter soap, like the saponins in - guess what? - bitter roots. Must be the mandrake (insert woodcut of a dog pulling a screaming mandrake root out of the earth here). But there's also a...something pleasant underneath. Sniffing up close, it's sharp dirt soap, but the throw is something else. Very head-shoppy. Like a head shop that carries lots of incense from Nepal & Tibet - 'incense from 100 medicinal herbs hand rolled by monks' kind of incense. As it dries, the bitter leaves the party and the headshoppiness comes out full force. At the tail end is a sweetness, almost candy-like. When dry, it's all sweet incense.

 

I do like this, but enough to tolerate 45 minutes of bitter dirt soap? Maybe in 6 months it will have aged away. Let's hope so.

 

 

[bheansidhe]

I'm glad so many people like Panther Moon, and equally glad it doesn't appeal to me, because I'd hate to hunt it down. OH THE HUBRIS, THE OVER-CONFIDENCE! Read on and WEEP!

 

I had the opportunity to test it during my eight-bottle pickup at Will Call. I get the black musk, champaca, myrrh and ambergris right off - the latter two being death notes for my skin, and the former creating an overwhelming Eau de Headshop. So while the scent is evocative - black, exotic, velvet-furred and powerfully muscled - I just don't want it pushing into my nose-space.

 

About two hours later, on the faaaar drydown, I get a lovely dry, spiced ginger, anise, and wood (possibly from the benzoin). If it was like this from the get-go I would have bought it.

 

Incidentally I wrote on R.M. Rilke for my dissertation for my German degree (and translated some of his poetry myself, which I won't inflict here). I always liked C.F. MacIntyre's version of this poem; normally it sounds forced when a translated poem attempts to rhyme in the same meter as the original, but I think it works for this translation.

 

The easy motion of his supple stride,

which turns about the very smallest circle,

is like a dance of strength around a center

in which a mighty will stands stupefied.

 

Only sometimes when the pupil's film

soundlessly opens . . . then one image fills

and glides through the quiet tension of the limbs

into the heart and ceases and is still.

 

ETA after three hours: What... what's this? What's this on my wrist? This beautifully dry, warm, sibilant ginger-box of really slinky seductive smelling STUFF?

 

That's the Panther Moon I let pass me by.

 

Edited June 2, 2010 by bheansidhe

[Blood onmy hands]

I get a strong, musky, man's cologne smell from black musk. And Panther Moon is a very strong black musk on me, with the resins dancing around the musk. It was a bit sour smelling on me at first, but the drydown is sweet, vanilla-y resins and that dark, musky cologne smell. It really reminds me of Satyr, but Satyr + some resins.

 

I think that this is too dark and masculine for me, but it does smell dreamy on my husband. It's a dark, strong, musky, intense sort of fragrance, and the sweetness from the resins softens it enough that I find it enjoyable.

[ralenth]

Dark, slinky champaca and musk tempered with sweetened resins. Panther Moon smells like trouble in a bottle. I'm going to need more.

[TrailerTrashPrincess]

when i tried the proto for this at the previous month's DSWC, i remember thinking that "without the pepper and anise it would be pretty!"

but, then, i sniffed it and tested it after i'd already sniffed and tested lots of other things... and by the end of the night, even the very air in the room has a very definite scent (which is lovely, don't get me wrong! but it sometimes skews things)

 

so i intended to skip it - like i skipped Egg Moon (which is i think the first Lunacy i outright didn't buy since i first got hooked?) but based solely on the requests for pick-ups, i decided to give it another try and grab a bottle for myself.

(figuring it'd be easy to re-home it if i didn't like it)

 

now.... i didn't try it until yesterday. and even that was just a single drop on the top of my left wrist.

let me repeat: one drop. from a glass wand.

 

and for HOURS afterward, i was surrounded by the most delicious cloud of deep, dark, earthy, musky, champaca.

 

holy staying power, and wow at the throw!

 

also? ♥♥♥

 

yup. so very glad i didn't pass this one up. delicious spicy purpleness!

[heleng]

Wet -Nag Champa - spicy, hippy scent

Dry- musky and wonderful, something sweet and spicy in the blend too.

Nothing like Schwarzer Mond to me- the Nag Champa sets it apart.

 

This is the scent of an incense filled Hippy shop and it's beautiful and worth hunting down.

 

[wl552]

Panther Moon. Rawr!! I knew, I knew, I knew I would love this! I want to roll around in it.

 

When I first smelled it in the bottle and on my skin, there is a VERY strong resemblance to Snake Charmer: Res. So much so, in fact, that I pulled out my SC:R to compare. They are, to my nose, definitely kin.

 

I can't really add much to the reviews above other than I adore PM. It's what I think about smelling like when I want to feel sensual, sexy and bold. 100% pure love. I wish I could hoard it.

[cyberpuff]

I ordered Panther Moon since it was the moon of my birthday month, and for the three notes of champaca, benzoin, and myrrh, which always make me happy in theory.

 

In the bottle: Holy Hippy Headshop Batman! Some kids somewhere must be smoking reefer with this cover up!

 

Wet: Ah, lovely, lovely champaca flower. This is like Now Winter's Nights Enlarge without the caramel.

 

Dry (20 mins later-ish): Spicy dark floral. I suspect this is the egyptian musk and myrrh. It's rounded out and nowhere near the Reefer Madness Cover-Up that the first bottle hit gave me. There's a tiny vanilla here and there-benzoin?- which stays more along the lines of a vanilla orchid and not candy vanilla.

 

Much later: I keep catching wafts of something/someone beguiling and intriguing, soft, sexy and not at all safe. That's Panther Moon hours later.

 

Verdict overall: This is one of the most sophisticated Lab scents that comfortably works on my skin. The musk never goes powdery, neither does the myrrh. It has the complexity of Mme Moriarty but with a stealth sexiness. I can see the comparisons that have been made to Satyr too, but Panther is more dark floral and spice j'ne sais quoi. I'm impressed with the way this changed from blatant hippy to lurking sexy beast. I was afraid to review this and let people know just how fantastic this Moon is, but everyone knows the big cat is out of the bag now.

[Coldfire]

 

 

 

 

Decant: dark oil in the vial. Just as dark and lush when I open it for the first sniff. Here kitty kitty.

Wet On Me: Dark, lush, tropical cut with spice. heady.

Drying Down: the musk so wants to come out and be baby powerdish all over everything but the spices and resins are keeping everything in check.

Dry: Not as dark and lush as the initial aplication but still dark and still lush and heady. This makes me wanna go prowl and stalk something...or someone!

[CreamyJade]

In the decant: The oil is very dark. Nag champa, deliciously intoxicating nag champa, & resins.

Wet on skin: More resins, sweetness of the nag champa, black musk, spice (it must be the ginger).

Dry on skin: I get resins, black musk & incense. This is a very sensual blend!

Final thoughts: When I opened the decant I knew that I should have gotten a bottle of this. Argh! I was very afraid of star anise in this one, but it stays quietly in the background. This is a sweet dark blend of incense & delicious black musk. It has a good throw and a little lasts a long time. Now the hunt for a bottle begins...

Try if you like: Temple Viper, Minotaur, Scorpio 2007 (though it is more herbal).

[Monster]

In the bottle: Rich and sweet black musk

 

On my skin: Beeeeaaauuuutiful incense, black musk. This is dark, smoldering, absolutely the type of scent I obsess over.

There is definitley something sleek and furry about this.

 

Dry: Absolutely amazing! The ambergris accord stands out on my skin as this dries. I'm not detecting any anise or ginger. This is all resins and incense on my skin. Dry, the ambergris is dominant along with the musk.

 

Overall: A beautiul unisex incense/resin scent. Instantly a Top 5 favorite!

[bloody sore]

Black musk dominates this in the bottle and while wet. As it starts to dry down, a powderyness comes out and threatens to take over but never quite does. Once it's dry, it reminds me of smelling my kitty. Honestly, it's like the perfume version of him in this stage. But it doesn't last long, and once it's super dry, it's hard to notice and doesn't have much throw. I'm on the fence with this one, I think I'll let it age for a bit and see what happens. It has potential, it's just too soft for me right now.

[Aldercy]

Panther Moon reminds me very strongly of Temple Viper, including the odd grape note that I got from that one as well. My nose must interpret champaca as grape. Overall, it's very dark, spicy rough, and musky. I really thought I was going to like it more, but it's just not charming me as much as it ought to.

[Seismogenic]

As the owner of a large black cat with yellow eyes, I would have been remiss not to try Panther Moon on principle. However, the notes also sounded like winners to me, so I gave this a test at Will Call and at Bat's Day. I liked it immediately, so I decided to pick up a bottle and write a more proper review!

 

In the bottle: I definitely get the musk, the mandrake, and a whole bunch of resins, but those resins are blended so well together that it's hard to tell which is which. There's a hint of the anise, but it's subtle.

 

Wet on skin: Whoa, the oil itself is a dark golden color! Predominantly resiny, dark and a bit sweet. The musk smooths it out, but there's still some dryness that I suspect comes from the mandrake.

 

Drydown: Freshly dry, the champaca comes strongly forward. It's not overwhelming the other things, but it's quite prominent. The resins, still very homogeneous, are the second most prominent thing, and the musk's still smoothing it all out. On the whole, it's a strong scent. At one hour in, everything has calmed down quite a bit, though the scent's still very present. At this point, it's champaca on top of smooth resins and overlaid with a little musk. On the whole, it's dark, but not murky.

 

Five hours later: Still very present, though now it's definitely a dark resin blend with an edge of champaca, as opposed to vice versa. The musk is still there, but remains more in the background. Still very smooth and and well-blended.

 

End of the day: A light presence of a smell that still qualifies as dark: resiny, spicy, and warm.

 

Overall: I agree with everyone who says this scent really bottles the panther. It's dark, smooth, and warm, and it certainly does have a bite! This is powerful stuff, and a little goes a long way, but the way it goes is wonderful. It's the right combination of incense, resin, and musk so that I can't really categorize it as one of the three above others. I'm very glad to have this one! I'm also guessing it's going to age wonderfully.

[milo]

This is a soft, gleaming 'black', blend on me. It is very hard to distinguish the notes, but it is much softer than I thought it would be. Think of a toned down Mircalla/Marianne/Scherezade, which fades faster than any of these. The black musk doesn't even smell like black musk to me. It's almost a cross between black and red, if that makes sense. I get a bit of spice here as well. I like this, but probably not enough to hunt down a bottle unless something changes throughout the next few hours. It is just too fast of a fade, and I have similar blends that last longer.

 

oops, a few weeks later and a bit of rest has improved this blend immensely on me. This is kind of like a cross between BTBT and Raven Moon, only this doesn't go powdery on me like Raven Moon did. I pretty much NEED a bottle of this now...

Edited August 1, 2010 by milo

[zankoku_zen]

Dark gleaming champaca, musk and something spicy. It reminds me alot of Schwarzer Mond. Slightly masculine, dark spicy musk.

[grnwoodtree]

Loved the initial dirt note - the incense was alright too - but the musk turned it into something entirely TOO sweet for my chemistry. Its too bad, because I enjoyed the subtle spiciness of it.

[annanwater]

This and Raven Moon are my favorite Lunacies, and both have the same sort of dark musk on me. Panther Moon, however, is more resiny, and the spice is more homey than fiery. It's a feminine scent, but not floaty or floral -- more seductive, with a comforting undertone. Really beautiful.

[mxtine]

Rawrrrr! I bought this because I love black cats and the notes made me think it would be amazing.

 

Bottle: HEAVY musk.

 

Wet: It's the color of dirty motor oil. Smells like dark, luscious, resiny musk. It reminded me of a more masculine Smut. I didn't slather but I put a few dabs around like I usually do and it was too much.

 

Dry: Nag Champa incense <angels singing>. The heavy musk phase has calmed down and I notice it really does have a Snake Charmer vibe. I love this phase!

 

3 hrs later: It still smells like Snake Charmer but very close to the skin.

 

So glad I bought this slinky black Panther bottle.

Edited August 14, 2010 by mxtine

[Reedsong]

I skipped this one because I read the notes for it at the time, thought, "Huh, black musk death, champaca death," etc. Then I started noticing that people were salivating for it and that bottles would disappear in a heartbeat.

 

So I got a decant just to see what you people were fussing about.

 

Reviewers above have summarized this scent very well: I definitely get an Eastern incense, head-shop kind of vibe from it, and it's slinky, sexy, and very..well...panthery. I've never been near a panther or even seen one except in pictures, but this seems to match exactly what I expected scent-wise, and it's so well blended that one or two death notes don't ruin the overall effect.

 

I also love the way the oil looks: deep golden-brown, thick, like a precious attar.

 

Eta: I'm also really glad I picked up the imp to admire it again for this review, because the imp was leaking! So, writing this saved me from losing the entire thing, and there's my instant karma for the day.

Edited August 26, 2010 by Reedsong

[crebbsgirl]

This was predominantly a sweetened black musk on me. I think the sweetness can probably be attributed to the tonka and the champaca. The myrrh is really soft here, as is the ginger. Its incensy and a little "headshoppy" but I like it. Dark, sweet and a little thick.

[ravenscanary]

Source: Original decant

 

In the decant: Before I open the decant, before I even get the tape off... Nag Champa incense. Heavy duty and strong. I feel like I waltzed into a head shop or too close to my stoner former roommate.

 

Wet: And...Nag Champa incense! Spicy, black, and slinky. Very resinous. The comparisons to Snake Charmer (at least the resurrected version, as that's all I've ever tried) are pretty accurate.

 

Dry: The star anise is making this sweet and with a faint root beer note under the heavy musk/incense top. However, this is a bit too much musk for me.

 

I'm somewhat reminded of the movie Anchorman and the "Sex Panther" cologne joke. This certainly isn't the revolting, room clearing scent from the movie, but it is very powerful, musky and feral to my nose.

 

Notes: The oil is very dark and thick, but I don't see any sediment or residue on the bottom of the decant. It stained my skin slightly on application.

[Telamir]

This one smells better in the bottle than it does on me. D: Oh woe!

 

I bought a bottle of this, expecting it to be dark and sexy and mysterious, and it was...in the bottle.

 

On me? After drydown I got this light, powdery smell. Not a bad smell, mind you, but not at all what I was looking for.

[Penance]

Origin:

 

Tester from Dark Alice.

 

Preconceived notions:

 

Panther Moon sounds like it could be an instant perma-fave scent for me. Everything in here other than the anise is perfect and, from the reviews, it sounds like it could be absolutely amazing on me. I'm terrified that the anise is going to ruin it, but I'm so excited about trying this that it's ridiculous. I'm almost hoping I hate it because I can't seem to find a bottle for sale anywhere and I missed out on its release during my BPAL hiatus. I'm kicking myself for not having come back just a little earlier.

 

First sniff:

 

Gloriously dark and incensey. This smells like the inside of a mixed box of incense, heavy on the nag champa, mixed with deep, dark black musk. It's instant nostalgia (it reminds me of the best of my college years) and instant love. If it smells as good on me as it does in the tester, then Panther Moon may become my most coveted, "must acquire" scent.

 

Wet on skin:

 

I can't pick out many of the notes here. To me, Panther Moon just smells gloriously incensey. It really does smell like the inside of an incense chest. That heady mix of different resins that pushes all my buttons in the best possible way. The primary scent here is nag champa. And strong nag champa at that. I've heard that it's one of those love it or hate it incense scents and I happen to love it. I also get some black musk and maybe a little bit of myrrh, but mainly it's nag champa. Musky nag champa. And it's glorious.

 

Dry down:

 

This is some strong perfume! I love that! Very, very close to the tester/wet scent. The only difference is that I get a bit of spice (ginger and just the tiniest touch of anise) on the drydown. Panther Moon is still incense heaven, mixed with dark musk, but now with a touch of spice.

 

The bottom line:

 

This is so good I could cry. It's everything I've ever wanted in a headshop incense scent and more. I'm in stinky hippie incense heaven.

 

I've been waiting for a scent like this. And I can't find a bottle to save my life. Which seems to be the way it goes with me.