The Soldier

[Incendiare]

Red musk, vanilla cream, black tea, black pepper, leather, and pie.

The notes in the Soldier are very well-balanced in my decant and none in particular seem to take the spotlight. Wet, the black tea, red musk, and leather take a step forward, all the while the creamy vanilla keeps the whole package smooth and well-rounded. Oh, I can see the anise that other reviewers are talking about. That pie must be chalked full of anise. While it's a bit disappointed, it's doing a good job keeping the leather in check, a note with which I generally don't get along. Perhaps another note in the Soldier mingles with the leather, and together they create that anise-like note? It seems that as soon as the anise piped in, the leather piped down. Actually, I'm sure the Soldier just dropped his anise pie on his black leather pants. Or something. They blend very well together.

Either way, about five minutes in, the Soldier has softened up and slightly faded. The red musk is still hanging around in the background while the anise remains on top. The black tea vanished and the pepper never showed up. I like this blend but not enough to buy a bottle.

[AnArtfuldodger]

Wet, this was leathery snake oil.

 

On the drydown, this is snake oil.

 

I think musk-y scents ALL turn to that snake oil scent on me. Silly skin chemistry!

[lunaticana]

sooooooooooooo creamyyyyyyyyyy..

I love it! there is red musk to smell, like in my Infernal Lover heehee

there is vanilla cream >>MOST def.

and tea, leather & pie all mingled together, so nice, so SUPAH sexy!!!!!!

[Michele my belle]

I was surprised by The Soldier.

When I sniffed the imp, it was all yummy red musk, my love.

I was thinking "Psssh. People are getting anise! Hah! No way!"

 

Then I put it on and.... .

Wishful thinking does not erase the smell of anise.

 

Now, I have a theory that the red musk and leather together create the faux anise smell because I only catch it sometimes. Or maybe there is actually anise, either way it is there.

 

It is not as creamy/leathery as I had thought, maybe with some age.

[misscoldheart]

I ordered 3 bottles in my last lab order- this one, anne beany, and boo. To my delight they were all winners, but The Soldier is my decided favorite of the bunch. I really wasn't sure about some of the notes- I am a musk fan, but I'm one of those lucky fools that snake oil doesn't work for. I have also had bad luck with fruit blends so was unsure about the implications of pie. So, against better judgement, went out on a limb with it and am so happy I did!

I actually don't get much pepper, and I am so glad it isn't the anise that others are reporting. I definitely get the vanilla tea and musk at first. The leather and pie usually show up a little later, which is nice and certainly not overpowering. This is a very sophisticated scent, without being snobbish. A definite winner!

[Blood onmy hands]

I thought that this was going to be instant top ten material for me, because I like red musk and LOVE vanilla, tea, leather, and foodie scents. Unfortunately, the red musk here seems to devour the other notes. Leather is usually super-strong on me and I can't smell it here at all.

I wish that I got the anise/black licorice that others have mentioned, but this is all red musk and hints of sharp black pepper on my skin.

The red musk here has that slightly fruity/wine-like, heated scent that it always does on my skin, but something about it is slightly more earthy/incensey than usual.

 

I get more of a sweet, creamy, foodie feel from The Infernal Lover (which I have hoarded several bottles of). I hope that The Soldier gets better with age, because it's pretty 'meh' on me at the moment.

[zankoku_zen]

Red musk, vanilla, hint of leather and black pepper. Red musk definitely dominates both the leather and the black pepper. On wet, the vibe is much more masculine, but as the red musk gains prominence, it becomes a much warmer, female scent.

 

Not my cup of tea, but glad I could test it.

[tinylegacies]

I'm another one who is getting the anise/black licorice from this. I liked it wet and on the initial dry down, but as time passes, I seem to amping the musk (I think) and it's taking over.

 

Not sure if I'll keep this one.

 

 

ETA: decided to do an all day test on this. man, the throw is impressive. my carpool buddy commented on it immediately when I got in the car this AM. She said that all she can smell is the musk and leather and compared it to Old Spice.

Edited December 15, 2010 by tinylegacies

[capncait]

The Soldier is all torrid fantasies and lust.

 

I know a lot of reviewers have said they feel this is the red musk note of snake oil, but there is something just slightly different to me. This does remind me of Smut 2010, but the leather adds a different dimension that I am REALLY enjoying.

 

but now I have to decide... do I upgrade my decant to a full bottle? Do I own too many red musk scents that seem so similar to the soldier already?

[laslibres]

Ooh...very dark scent, I can smell a lot of the notes straight from the bottle, except I also think I smell some kind of red fruit (currants or plums) and something like anise or ouzo...interesting. But yeah, the creamy vanilla, leather, and red musk show up right away. This is in the Madame Moriarty/Snake Charmer vein of sexy, dark scents.

 

But then, after a minute on my skin...er, cola? Cola. Or root beer, possibly. That's what Smut did on me too...what is it about sweet scents and musk that make my skin chemistry decide, “hey, this should smell like BARQ’S!” Where is the delicious vanilla and pie that I smelled in the imp? Curses. However, this is a lovely scent if I ever want to smell like I just spilled soda all over myself. And honestly, after a couple hours it doesn't really scream SODA! anymore and is just more of a musky, sweet scent...but it does spend much of its wearlength as root beer on me. Sad!

[boxinghelena]

There is something very interesting going on with The Soldier on my skin. Someone mentioned anise seed. I see...er...smell what you mean. I'm also getting pepper pie. How very odd and it's actually not bad. I hope it turns more to pie on me.

 

ETA: Nooooooooo! It turned into a pepper garden on me.

~

Edited December 18, 2010 by boxinghelena

[milo]

Wet, candied fruits and red musk. Uh oh, not a big fan of candied fruits, in fact I detest them. Soon, it ends up being a slightly spicy, fruity red musk. There is a dusty vibe going on here, which I'm not really digging, kind of like candied fruitcake that is a year old that someone forgot about in the cupboard. This blend is not for me.

[greenranger]

I smelled anise, at first. Very strongly.

 

Now that it's had a chance to settle in I smell the red musk and the leather, sweetened by something bakery-like....and anise.

 

It's nice. It isn't anything like I was expecting, but, it is nice.

[ofthegood]

The first whiff I got of The Soldier, it reminded me of birch beer -a little woody and herbal. I can see where you'd get a hint of sarsparilla or root beer as well. On top of the birch beer, I've got vanilla and musk, and a hint of the pepper. That makes it sweet, spicy, and creamy... not OMG FOODY, but still a scent that you wouldn't mind tasting, if that makes sense! I'd drink something that smelled like this.

 

But I'm not sure that I'd wear something that smelled like this. Too sweet for me, in the imp, on the skin, wet or dry. I was in it for the leather and tea, and got pretty much everything else instead!

[ACVail24]

The Soldier

 

In the Bottle:

lots of red musk and something sweet in the background

 

On my Skin, Wet:

Pie (some kind of buttery sweetness, no nuts or discernable fruit/veggie) a faint hint of leather & LOTS of red musk

 

On my Skin, Dry:

still lots of red musk, and honestly, I can't tell the difference between The Soldier & Mme. Moriarty from Carnaval Diabolique at all.

 

Verdict:

interesting wet phase, but dissappointed that the dry down is so similar to another BPAL out there.

 

ETA(3.29.2011)

OK, this is nothing like the previous review now.

I get the black pepper note, no pie crust, and a heck of a lot more leather now.

This is what I imagined Spanked would smell like!

this is now it's own blend and not a Mme. Moriarty dupe anymore! Yay!

Edited March 29, 2011 by Akurarei

[Lorelai1945]

When I put this on, I smell mostly red musk (but a peppery red musk- I can definitely tell there's pepper in there, but it's hard to put into words what that smells like- it's like a heat), and I also get anise like many others before me have mentioned. I HATE anise, but this isn't heavy or strong, so it's not unpleasant...but it's there. As it dries, The Soldier starts to smell a lot like Smut on my skin, except it doesn't go as strange/latexy as Smut does. I think that the red musk is softer but the same type. What I don't ever get any of is anything resembling pie. There is a hint of a creaminess about the red musk, but it doesn't really scream "creamy". Once dry, there is a hinf of leather, but it's still mostly red musk. It's cool..there's almost a mintiness about it. This is okay, but I think I can live without a bottle. Not the winner I was hoping for.

[sihaya09]

This one is SMOOOOOOOTH. Red musk and cream are the predominant notes. I don't really smell much else, but on my husband, I get a little more leather. This is really nice!

[CreamyJade]

In the bottle: Creamy red musk, vanilla, pie, anise, black tea. I get no leather.

Wet on skin: The red musk drowns all the other notes (but I have no problem with that).

Dry on skin: Creamy red musk, vanilla, anise and just a whiff of buttery pie crust.

Final thoughts: This was one of those that's supposed to work right away just based on the notes, so I was really surprised when I got my bottle, sniffed it and recoiled in horror: it was like heavy cream turned sour with a buttery note I couldn't shake off. Therefore I didn't try it. It was left alone in the reject box (well, with the other rejects) until a friend mentioned she was suprised I didn't like it because it was all red musk and leather on her. I wanted that too! I tried it again hoping to find what she sniffed and I kind of did, but the leather disapeared. A month of aging rendered the blend sniffable to my nose and therefore testable. It's not the awesome red musk & leather hoardable blend I was hoping for, but I'll keep my bottle (for now).

Try if you like: Infernal Lover, Smut, Pomegranate IV, VILF

[surlygurl]

Firstly, the red musk isn't doing what it usually does, which is a good thing. This scent is understated. It's a little juicy, a little fruity, and a touch...... not foody, but sort of bakery like. The leather and pepper are way in the background.

 

As it dries, the red musk tries to muscle it's way to the front, which is bad news for me. But soon the cream reigns in the red musk bully and everything finds itself in harmony. It's quite well blended. The pie comes out once the fighting stops and everything smooths out. It's still not a "me" scent, but the decant is staying.

[cherrycherry]

My only criticism is that it doesn't last all that long on me. The red musk hits me first and I'm an absolute sucker for that stuff. The cream note has me think of The Infernal Lover (one of my all-time favourites) and the leather and pie are there too, adding richness and body. I don't think I'll need a back-up bottle of this one, but I'll be using what I have here for sure ^__^

[forspecial_plate]

I love The Soldier! I was expecting something like Lawn Gnome but it's really not. Reading the notes, I'm really surprised there is no sassafras in there. I guess it's a trick of the black tea and leather? Or black pepper? Who knows. This smells herbal and sweet, and the red musk is there but it's kind of more airy than usual. I was concerned about the black pepper but I can barely pick it out. If you're in this for the leather you might be disappointed. I can barely tell it's there. Everything is just blended.

 

This smells like some of my favorite GC scents. It smells like Blood Kiss, Kabuki, Fenris Wolf, and Laudanum are having a little party in my wrist.

[suki]

In the bottle: There's definitely the musk note that is so prevalent in Smut, right off. Which is great, because that's one of the reasons I was interested in trying this scent. I also smell a combo of cream and leather that, when combined, make a facsimilie of anise that some have mentioned. It also is slightly root-beer-y in nature. I'm intrigued, even though the notes do not, at this point, seem to be meshing in the least.

 

 

Wet on skin: The leather is only a subtle background scent right now, for which I am grateful, since that is a note that my skin usually amps tremndously. The musk seems to be shifting to accomodate the leather, becoming more of a dark or black musk, like in Enraged Orangutan or something- rather feral, animal-like. I'm also getting the first hint of the black tea, which is adding some balance to the mix.

 

 

Dry down: Well. Okay. So. All those notes that I already mentioned? They are all here, only now, they've decided suddenly, without warning, to play nice together. To my boyfriend's nose, it "smells like a Christmas drink", but to mine, it's a combination of Smut, De Sade, Love's Philosophy and one of the Enraged animals. Sweet, musky, dark and with a hint of sugary licorice.

 

 

In all: one that promises to absolutely get better and better with aging, this is a sexy scent with medium throw and possibilities for the long winter nights that lie ahead...

 

 

 

[rayvn1]

I'm so grateful to TrailerTrashPrincess for sending me a sniffie of this guy! I was all prepared to hit the swaps forum hardcore to find a decant, but no more All the notes sounded fabulous with the possibility of pie not going over well. Oddly, when I put this on for a long time all I smelled was rootbeer-barrels not what I was going for at all! Eventually a plum note came out or some kind of really dark berry. Alas! The Soldier is not my friend, but better to know now than obsess about finding it..

[thekittenkat]

Yet another one of the Yules that I was hesitant to try.

 

In the decant: Bang up my poor nose with tons of pepper and the sharp chemical leather note.

 

Wet: Yes, there's the tea, the cream, and the musk. Although the pepper and leather are still along for the ride.

 

The dry-down: In the end, this is mostly red musk with the vanilla cream and the black tea to keep it in check. Not sure what happened to the pie. And I'm ever so glad that the pepper and leather just disappeared, somewhat. There's faint whiffs of them from time to time, but this is a tame lion. I can only liken this scent to that dress that looks like nothing on the hanger, but once you try it on, it starts looking better and better.

[whisperstilled]

In imp: Leather and that dark red musk from Smut, plus the cream and the pie to give it a little warm foodie edge, but nothing that is immediately identifiable as smelling like food. This is really very nice. I don't get much of the pepper except as a light background spice. This is a very warm, very smooth scent.

 

Wet: The sweet cream comes out a little more on the skin, mingling with the musk. Then the leather suddenly amps and comes to the fore, which I have absolutely no problem with. This has ended up being a nice sweet red musk and leather blend with just a little foodie edge. Absolutely fantastic. I can already tell this one will be a winter comfort leather scent for me. It's got a deeper tone to it than Robotic Scarab, one of my other favorite leather blends. Delicious, this is a soldier riding a well-worn leather saddle. There is tea there in the background, but just as a very light complementing note.

 

Dry: Love it! The red musk didn't go sick plasticky on me which it sometimes does, and just smells like sweet musky deliciousness. The best way I can describe it is Smut+Leather, without the added accouterments that similar scents like VILF have. Fantastic! 5/5