The Other Hot Chocolate

[pixelfish]

The other mother took the bacon from under the grill and put it on a plate. Then she slipped the cheese omelette from the pan onto the plate, flipping it as she did so, letting it fold itself into a perfect omelette shape.

She placed the breakfast plate in front of Coraline, along with a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice and a mug of frothy hot chocolate.

"Yes," she said. "I think I like this game. But what kind of game shall it be? A riddle game? A test of knowledge or of skill?

"An exploring game," suggested Coraline. "A finding-things game."

"And what is it you think you should be finding in this hide-and-go-seek game, Coraline Jones?"

Coraline hesitated. Then, "My parents," said Coraline. "And the souls of the children behind the mirror."

The other mother smiled at this, triumphantly, and Coraline wondered if she had made the right choice. Still, it was too late to change her mind now.

"A deal," said the other mother. "Now eat up your breakfast, my sweet. Don't worry-it won't hurt you."

Coraline stared at the breakfast, hating herself for giving in so easily, but she was starving.

"How do I know you'll keep your word?" asked Coraline.

"I swear it," said the other mother. "I swear it on my own mother's grave."

"Does she have a grave?" asked Coraline.

"Oh yes," said the other mother. "I put her in there myself. And when I found her trying to crawl out, I put her back."

"Swear on something else. So I can trust you to keep your word."

"My right hand," said the other mother, holding it up. She waggled the long fingers slowly, displaying the clawlike nails. "I swear on that."

Coraline shrugged. "Okay," she said. "It's a deal." She ate the breakfast, trying not to wolf it down. She was hungrier than she had thought.

As she ate, her other mother stared at her. It was hard to read expressions into those black button eyes, but Coraline thought that her other mother looked hungry, too.

She drank the orange juice, but even though she knew she would like it she could not bring herself to taste the hot chocolate.

Straight out of the bottle, this is super rich milk chocolate. Once it hit my skin, I started to pick up wafts of steamed milk with milk chocolate weaving in and out. As it dries, I get an impression of a very decadent hot chocolate with something a bit dark hidden underneath that's almost unsettling. I also get a bit of a Cocoa Puffs cereal vibe which is very Once this has completely dried down, it seems very similar to the Post's C2E2 exclusive atmo spray, The Agricultural Building, and stays on my skin for hours.
If you love rich milk chocolate, this one's for you

[joyfulgirl]

to me, this is a dead-ringer for the chocolate in velvet, minus the sandalwood and myrrh. this is just a super-smooth, super creamy, sweet, rich chocolate. i'm not wearing it much in august, but i definitely anticipate that once cooler weather rolls around, i'll be reaching for this seriously comforting chocolate scent on a regular basis. super glad i snagged a bottle!

[Numanoid]

Yep....can't really add more than what is above!! Very milk chocolate!! Smooth...like a nice cool glass of chocolate milk!! Pure and simple!! I think this is GREAT alone or also would be a great layering note! This is a must for you foodie lovers!!!!

[tharsei-thanate]

Ok I just got this in the mail but I have been craving it so hard so I must test it now.

 

In the imp: Chocolate, but dry chocolate. Cocoa powder, really, which I suppose is fitting!

 

Wet: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA THAT IS ACTUAL HOT CHOCOLATE THAT IS A LEGIT DEAD RINGER FOR HOT CHOCOLATE JESUS TAKE THE WHEEL omg omg I can smell mini marshmallows in there and even a bit of milk oh my god I'm in heaven

 

Drydown: The same, really, but much lighter.

 

Dry: Where did it go???? Wowww, my skin drank this up. I know it's delicious but come on, skin.

 

Of course, like I said, this is just out of the mail so I'll have to do a retest once it settles, but I'm really glad it's not clashing with my skin chem. This is going to be so perfect for fall and winter.

[themeaningofV]

Holy geez, this was a "why not?" addition to my decant circle order and I'm SO GLAD I WENT FOR IT.

 

There's not much else to say - it's JUST LIKE HOT CHOCOLATE, complete with marshmallows. It's really intense at first, but on the skin it dries down to smoooooooth cocoa, like the kind you use in baking. This is so good, omg. A total win and a possible bottle.

[dementia_divine]

This was the scent that I was looking forward to the most from the last Coraline update, and it does not disappoint!

 

In the decant, it seems somewhat reminiscent to Bliss, with a brownie-like quality, but the brownie-like quality isn't nearly as strong as it is in Bliss.

 

On the skin, that brownie-like quality disappears, and it's the most wonderful, rich, creamy hot chocolate (made with milk, and any marshmallows or mounds of whipped cream have turned into a frothy foam near the top of the cup).

 

I wouldn't say that it has great throw -- it has medium throw for the first few hours. After a few hours, it stays rather close to the skin. It's lighter, it's creamier, and there's less chocolate.

 

But damn, it is GLORIOUS, and so realistic!

 

This is definitely bottle-worthy, and I'm sure it will be fantastic in the winter!

 

*edit* Grammar.

Edited August 24, 2013 by dementia_divine

[Circaea]

Sweet hot chocolate and marshmallows! I need moar! This is one chocolate that doesn't turn to crayons on me, as so many other BPAL chocolates have.

[Nemi]

I can just agree with everyone. This is a very rich and very realistic chocolate. Unlike Velvet that goes a little "plasticy" on me, this is just sweet and lovely all the way. Thing is, I'm not sure I want to smell like a cup of hot chocolate hehe but if you do, this is definitely for you!

[absinthetics]

I third or seventh or what have you. This is an amazing cup of hot cocoa with marshmallows. It is perfectly evil and tempting.. as it should be. This note does not change on me and it lasts a good while. This is somewhat like Sue's puppet show but even more realistic and with none of the other 'stuff' to make it non-foody.

[heygraycatbird]

In the vial: Yep, it's chocolate. To me it's a chocolate sauce/syrup sort of chocolate. My first thought is that I could layer this with Alkemia's Patchouli Cacao when I want to bump up the chocolate-ness.

 

Wet: Mmm, good chocolate throw. But wait, when I take a closer sniff, there's something else... something darker, almost musty. It seriously smells like a basement. I originally smelled it on the inside of my elbow and thought maybe the oil was clashing with my body lotion or something, so I applied some to a clean patch of skin on my upper arm, and within a few minutes I get the basement smell again.

 

Very odd. On the surface, in the sillage, it's all chocolate... but the deep nose-to-skin sniffs keep giving me that weird smell. It is strongest a few minutes after application, then fades and starts to blend with the chocolate during the drydown.

Could it be the "Other" aspect of the Other Hot Chocolate, or is something weird going on with my skin chemistry? I've never noticed this smell with any other chocolate/cocoa blends before.

 

Did anyone else experience this?

[JazzieCazzie]

From the decantapalooza update: And my thoughts definitely echo and reflect many/most of the posts before me.

 

IN THE IMP: MOSTLY Bliss-like pure-a$$ chocolate (as opposed to what I consider the cocoa note, which I also love) but there is something almost ineffable behind it that I suspect I'll come closer to figuring out once it's on my skin.

 

Applied to both wrists.

 

WET: Very Blissy. Very chocolate-y. And something else lurking and waiting to dry down on me ... I also thought a little like Velvet but more like Tezcatlipoca.

 

DRYDOWN: I am thinking, now, that that secondary note is whatever the "marshmallow" scent is but it's subtle. It just makes it sweeter ... for me, it's not so much like hot chocolate with marshmallows as it is a hard chocolate candy, where inside it's pure chocolate but the outside has a sweeter hard sugary shell.

 

OVERALL: I like this a lot. It's not an everyday scent because it's so sweet but it's a keeper imp, for sure. I expected it to be a little more like Sue's Great Old Puppet Show but this is chocolate-ier for me.

 

On a scale of 1-5, about a 3.9.

[TheIceMaiden]

This starts off dark and milk chocolate cocoa powders, with a faint, sinister musty-dusty smell. The dust fades quick and it's now cocoa with marshmallows - not fluffy marshmallows, but the little dried ones that come in packets of hot chocolate powder. The drydown is pure milk chocolate, similar (but not identical) to Bliss. This is a very yummy scent, but it stays close to the skin and only lasts a couple of hours. I really like it and will probably get a bottle eventually.

[zankoku_zen]

So, take a Swiss Miss Milk Chocolate with Marshmallows packet, rip it open and you get this cloud of the mix, right?

 

That's what this smells like. Creamy, sweet milk chocolate with a touch of marshmallow.

 

If this is what evil smells like, where do I sign up?

 

On me, this doesn't have a huge throw and it sticks pretty close to the skin. I found Bliss too watery for me, and most other chocolate blends end up being either too foodie, or have an element that doesn't work for me. This, on the other hand, would be THE bpal chocolate blend for me.

[SophieCedar]

I just placed The Other Hot Chocolate on one wrist and Grog on the other wrist. Now tell me.. how the hell am I supposed to get anything done today?

 

ok really.. The Other Hot Chocolate was a no-brainer bottle order. It's sweet, deep hot chocolate with those floaty dried marshmallows. Reminds me of all those awesome moments in life when I decided a cup of hot chocolate was in order to fix the day. Its that light-hearted powdered chocolate smell of Cocoa Puffs/Pebbles/hot chocolate powder mix, taken just a weeee bit into the dark side.

 

[Invidiana]

I sprang for a bottle of this without even thinking, and I was right. It's thick, rich, creamy, marshmallowy hot chocolate perfection. Made me think of a steaming mug of cocoa with all that melted marshmallow goodness (you know when you leave them there and they just melt into this wonderful white goo) on top. The chocolate note is like the darker side of milk chocolate, not that artificially sweet stuff you might find in the clearance section of CVS but like like a "dark milk chocolate", the kind with about 50% cacao. Anyway, I'm rambling--LOVE.

[milo]

Pretty much as described, hot chocolate with something creamy on top, like marshmallows or whipped cream. It does fade fast, but that's okay, I'm not into wearing strictly foody scents, I like them blended with other notes. Foody lovers should check this one out though! It does remind me of the chocolate note in Boomslang version 2.

[Ajila]

In the bottle - A rich dark cocoa scent

 

Wet on me - Soft warm hot chocolate

 

Dry on me - A sweet milky hot chocolate with wafts of vanilla

 

Overall - Very nice indeed

[London]

This is everything I wanted gelt to be, minus that note that goes powdery.

 

It's rich chocolate, not super sweet. A chocolate scent I can wear!

 

Edit: it smells like cocoa butter when dry

Edited January 11, 2014 by London

[doublehelix]

Pure, comforting, creamy milk chocolate! Yes, it's very delicious. If you are a foodie that finds comfort in hot chocolate or a bar of chocolate when your stressed... Or not. You need this!

[ltrittipoe]

Count Chocula. I seriously get the oat cereal scent underneath the chocolate/marshmallow.... It's yummy and fun, but not as rich or deep as I was hoping for.

 

But I still like it.

[Teaker]

Lovely! Hits with a blast of dry chocolate, reminds me strongly of Velvet at the start. Then it becomes rich and creamy. A true milk chocolate scent, delicious! Unfortunately it gets a touch of play-doh when it dries down, but I really like the wet stages.

[bellumed]

Much as I'd like to have some thrilling new insight to offer, naw: The Other Hot Chocolate is straight-up delicious cocoa with marshmallows. Good wear length, and I won't lie to you, applying it when it's snowing and you're bundled up warm inside is almost as satisfying as the real thing.

[Blood onmy hands]

Most of bpal's chocolate scents turn to powder or plastic on me, and the marshmallows tend to be weirdly fruity or musky, so I avoided The Other Hot Chocolate for a long time. That is unfortunate, because this scent is amazing. It clings kind of close to the skin, but lasts all day on me, and my husband tells me that I smell like buttery caramel when I wear this. It smells like really thick, dark hot chocolate (like fudgy underbaked brownies + hot cocoa) to me for about a half hour and then shifts into a yummy, buttery, slightly salty, rice krispies treats type marshmallow. Sweet, creamy and perfect.

[LizziesLuck]

Wet: Yum. It doesn't smell like hot chocolate on me, but it is yummy. It smells more like chocolate cereal on me. It's very yummy, but more and more lately I am finding myself not as drawn to gourmand scents as I used to be. This is not wowing me.

 

 

 

Dry: It actually ends up rather perfumey, which I wasn't expecting. It's not bad, by any means. In fact, it makes it less gourmand, and I think I actually like it more. I think there are marshmallows in this hot chocolate, and there is vanilla in the marshmallows, and it is a perfumey vanilla. I still get the cocoa, but it is like a dry cocoa powder with the vanilla. I like it a lot, but not sure if I love it. Undecided, will need further testing!

 

 

ETA: A couple of hours later and the vanilla is gone, it's just soft dry cocoa and it's not wowing me.

Edited June 26, 2016 by LizziesLuck

[Cali]

Fiiiinally got to try this after hoping to find a decant of it for years, weeee! Dusty chocolate... Smoky chocolate?

It dries to a calmer, smoother chocolate, creamy and delicious... remind me not to eat my arm!