Biwa

[London]

Tangerine, black currant, white musk, honey, and tagetes.

In the bottle: Sweet and tangy, with a very light floral smell.

Wet: I can smell the tangerine right off, the oil is a little zesty on me..but also sweet. With the tagetes sort of floating in the background.

Dry: Bright, summery, orange! Gorgeous! The Tagetes never amped or became overly strong in this. It's mostly a sweet tangy orange with touches of tart current and honey drizzled on top. Beth is really amazing

The throw isn't far, it's a very close to the skin scent, but my skin isn't eating it up either. So I think it'll last some.

[thebirdofhermes]

So, I will try to remember to edit with a full review when I get a chance, but here are my impressions after five hours of wear.

 

It is a fairly close sticking scent in that I can smell it when I move my arms near my face, but if I'm still, it has to be in a few inches of my nose. However, it is still going strong.

 

To my nose, the tagetes is a much more dominant player. It gives the scent a feel reminsicent of The Harp, but not quite so sweet.

 

I find myself surprised that the musk listed is white, as it's behaving far closer to how skin musk plays on me.

 

The honey wants to go powdery, which makes me suspect the O honey note, but it's only right up against my skin where that happens. The throw is all sweet and creamy honey-musk with tagetes.

 

I don't really get more than the suggestion of blackcurrant rounding the scent out. Tangerine has not showed up yet at all for me.

 

All in all, this reminds me of a less sweet and more demure version of Giant Vulva, or a muskier and somewhat sexier Harp. I will try to actually compare the three in the future.

[reynardine]

Biwa started out a lot like Thoos (probably due to the tangerine and white musk). Then the tagetes amped on me like whoa, which isn't one of my favorite scents. Within 30 minutes, this had gone to baby powder. Have to pass on this one.

[Dark Alice]

This starts out as gorgeous fruit and white musk. Some how the tagetes in this make it turn to cat pee on me. Then back to fruit. Then back to cat pee. This is a morpher and the tangerine is gorgeous but the tagetes...yeah...cat pee. Going to go wash this off now.

[tarotgirl99]

Like Sybil, the initial application is beyond my wildest dreams...Biwa is spring in a bottle, blasting tangerine drizzled with honey. But within 15 minutes, like Sybil it goes from FAVORITE SCENT EVER to very nice. Throw slows from 100 mph to 30, and the electric rush is gone, gone, gone.

 

But I still love it very much. I wish it were stronger, but I will learn to slather and reapply for Biwa. Bottle-worthy for me for sure.

[edenssixthday]

Biwa - In the bottle and when first applied on my skin, this is the incredibly awesome scent of fresh tangerines drizzled with honey. It's a dead-ringer for the scent of Bella Lucce's Manuka Honey Drizzle. As it starts to warm up on my skin, the tagetes comes out, and adds a really interesting touch -- kind of a dry, bitter floral, but not unpleasant. I typically can't stand the scent of marigolds (neither can bunnies, which is why I border my garden in marigolds!), but when it's used in BPAL blends, it's typically light enough to not overwhelm and to add an interesting and unique touch to the scent, and this is definitely not an exception. I really like the addition of the tagetes. Oh, but then I smell the black currant, which is one of my long-time nemesis scents, as it always turns and smells like cat pee on me once it dries down. Sure enough, this scent smells absolutely fantastic until dry-down, at which point the black currant starts to smell like a room where a cat peed on the carpet a long time ago -- musty and old and dry and really, really cat pissy. And all the tangerine is gone at this point, too. This would be a lovely scent locket scent for me. I'll definitely have to try it that way before deciding to pass, but for straight skin-wear, it's definitely a pass.

[pandorasmuse]

In the decant: I half expected to get something similar to Thoos, because of the tangerine and white musk. Far from it. This is darker and fruitier (but it does have the same “afterscent” that lingers in my nose, because of the musk).

 

Wet: Oof. For some reason, and I do feel terrible saying this, it smells like baby powder sprinkled on a baby that needs to be changed. Something in here is NOT working on me at all.

 

Ugh. I couldn’t wait any longer, I had to wash it off. Utter chemistry fail.

[Lycanthrope]

Biwa Biwa Biwa Biwa Biwa Biwa - Mushroom Mushroom

Biwa Biwa Biwa Biwa Biwa Biwa - Mushroom, Mushroom!

A-Biwa Biwa Biwa Biwa Biwa Biwa - Mushroom Mushroom...

Biwa Biwa Biwa Biwa Biwa Biwa - Mushroom MUSHROOM!!!

 

A bright citrus that has a hint of a foul mushroomy background, but not bad. I like its depth, like a richer, slightly earthy yet bright scent.

[vowsatsea]

I have to say that this is probably the first bpal scent that I can say I *hated*. I couldn't even bring myself to skin test it because in the decant, it was all cat pee and old lady. I don't know if it's the tagetes, but I'm so glad I didn't get a bottle unsniffed, because this is definitely not for me.

[cfrancesca]

This one's a morpher one me. Initially, I get bright tangerines, "O"-type honey and white musk. The blend goes powdery shortly after and the tagetes amp (and get slightly sharp for bit). After that, it's soft, powdery, musky honey, soft tangerine (but it has lost most of it's initial brightness) and tagetes. It finally settles into a powdery floral.

[ivyandpeony]

I'm not giving up on Biwa just yet, but our first meeting wasn't as stellar as I'd hoped. I love all the notes in this scent individually, but black currant (really, currant of any type) doesn't always work on me. It can get an odd, bitter edge, then it may or may not morph into the dreaded cat-pee effect. And dammit if that's not what it did to me here. Or tried to do, at least. It wasn't the worst example of currant-gone-wrong I could give you (I think that would be Knave of Hearts), but it definitely marred the delicious honey and tangerine that were battling it.

 

When I have a disappointment, I always try the scent again at least once and I will definitely do that with Biwa. There are certain times from month to month that my chemistry seems to go a little sharp & that's what could have been happening here. If currant gives you caution, I'd recommend you skin test this one, but otherwise it has the potential to be beautiful.

[Blood onmy hands]

I wanted this mainly for the black currant. So, of course, I don't smell any black currant in the bottle or on my skin. Biwa mostly smells like a glass of watered down lemonade to me, with a drydown that's mostly baby powder and a hint of citrus (that still smells more like lemon than tangerine to me). So many of this year's Lupercalia blends are just duds to my nose

[Iceblink]

Slightly citrusy honey with a powdery edge and a tiny hint of earthy/plant-y undertone to it. Very much like a lot of the Rappacini's Apiary blends--it's lovely if you like honey but I'd like to smell the currant and musk and I'm not getting any of it here. Pass.

[hkhm]

bottle: fruity musk.

 

wet: this is a very nice tangerine musk scent, makes me feel glowy and warm.

 

dry: this dries to softly sweet tangerines and faint musk. very, very pretty.

[Invidiana]

By all accounts this should have been beautiful on me but something in here just doesn't do it. I barely get any black currant, white musk or honey, just what translates on my skin as a sharp and dry combination of tangerine peel and tagetes. Oh boo.

[DifferentDances]

Decant!

 

Imp: White musk and tangerine.

 

Wet: The musk dies down as the black currant jumps up in tartness. Delicious.

 

Drydown: Bah. It's mostly white musk and I suppose the tagetes, whatever that is. Powdery.

 

Dry: White musk. BOOO. I loved the wet scent!

 

My rating: 2/5

[zankoku_zen]

Oh Biwa, I had such high hopes for you. I did have some concerns regarding the white musk, but in the end the lure of the tangerine was too great.

 

Biwa puts me in mind of last year's Thoos, which again had a citrus/tangerine with white musk appeal going on. However, this one is a touch sweeter because of the honey, and unforunately the tagetes lends a bitter, at best, and cat pee/baby diapers, at worst, edge to it.

 

Even in the imp, it smelled like tangerine cat pee but that didn't deter me from trying it on. On wet, it was ultra tangerine, white musk and slight bitterness that grounded it. Much better.

 

And then the tagetes smelled like baby diapers. And then 20 minutes later, it was slightly bitter and not cat pee like either. I don't blame the tagetes entirely, since part of the powderiness is due to the white musk.

 

EPIC. SKIN. CHEMISTRY. FAIL.

[Deek]

Bottle: Ooh! Very sweet and orange, kind of loving it.

Wet on Skin: Orange and honey, lovely.

Dry: Goes kind of powdery.. Tangeriney with tagetes.

Overall: 2.5/5. Meh, not for me. Wish it was sweeter / didn't have the powder to it.

[CiaoBonefish]

This is lovely wet. I am getting beautiful juicy, sweet tangerine. A touch of currant which for some reason always appears a bit woodsy to my nose. The white musk is hidden, as is the tagetes. I don't really know what tagetes smell like so I went into this testing tagete-blind. Once this starts drying down the tangerine disappears... NOOOOO. Tangerine come BACK. PLEASE. I LOVE YOU SO. Drat. No more Tangerine. Something which I am assuming is the tagetes amps like woah. It smells like mehndi/henna. Very strongly of henna actually, and the dried henna that is left on your skin after some time. The tangerine is gone and I can't even smell the musk or currant anymore. It is just this weird henna blend... TANGERINE I MISS YOU.

 

SKIN CHEMISTRY FAIL. GAAHHHH.

 

Adding tagetes to a iffy death note may be list...

[theseagrows]

this smells kind of like an incense stick with a touch of fruit added. i think i am mostly getting black currant and honey. this smells musky and musty, not exactly a red musk, but it doesn't smell like white musk to me either, a more "dirty" musk, and less clean, like i tend to associate with white musk. it's mildly unpleasant and not that remarkable with my skin chemistry. usually lupercalias are among my favorite scents, but i am having little luck with them this year!

Edited March 16, 2011 by theseagrows

[Mountaingrrl00]

Reminds me of Givenchy Pi, which I love. It's fresh and almost cologney but with a lovely almost vanilla warmth to it.

[thekittenkat]

In the decant: Al the notes, except for the tagetes, are present.

 

Wet: The bright and sunny tangerine is just singing!

 

The dry-down: The currant, musk, and honey are now keeping the tangerine in check. But since tangerine is a note rarely used by the Lab, I may have to upgrade to a bottle, if the currant continues to play nice.

[Gin]

I feel like I'm in some sort of alternate universe, because I don't smell anything listed in the notes, 'cept maybe the honey? My experience is much like zankoku_zen's. Unfortunately. Something smells foul, but if I were guessing, I'd say it was some sort of bad jasmine scent. Anyway, in spite of looking like it would be fantastic, Biwa is a cloying, weird floral on me. So sad.

[milo]

Wet, very bright orange/tangerine. It smells like the orange in Lady Lilith, a blend that I love. Wet, it is orange soap, just like the Satsuma Orange soap that Lush makes, which is OK as a soap, but not for wearing. So disappointed, I thought this was going to be a win.

[ACVail24]

BIWA

 

In the Bottle:

Definitely gives an orange impression

 

On my Skin, Wet:

TANGERINE!

Very pungent & juicy tangerine!

 

On my Skin, Dry:

Tangerine, honey & the whiff of marigolds.

the tangerine has calmed down, but is nicely tempered by the honey & marigold.

 

Verdict:

This is a great citrus blend!

I'm glad that there is honey in this blend or the tangerine might have been too overpowering.

This smells like a spring garden where the gardener wanted only to have orange flowers and citrus trees - there is a honeybee hive nearby, and I can smell the sweetness of the honey they are making.

very evocative of spring!