The Second Morning After Christmas

[cuervosueno]

I had called upon my friend Sherlock Holmes upon the second morning after Christmas, with the intention of wishing him the compliments of the season. He was lounging upon the sofa in a purple dressing-gown, a pipe-rack within his reach upon the right, and a pile of crumpled morning papers, evidently newly studied, near at hand. Beside the couch was a wooden chair, and on the angle of the back hung a very seedy and disreputable hard-felt hat, much the worse for wear, and cracked in several places. A lens and a forceps lying upon the seat of the chair suggested that the hat had been suspended in this manner for the purpose of examination.

A crackling fireplace, pipe smoke, fir needles, and a flutter of snow.

Wow, I'm first!

Anyway, to the review! I love fir and evergreen notes, and the lab's snow note, and also am a huge fan of tobacco. There's not a note I don't like in this, so I was sure I would love it! Unfortunately, that doesn't always guarantee a good fit.

In the bottle, there I get the fir right away, but the overall impression I get from the bottle is masculine--it reminds me of a men's cologne. A good one, of course, and one with fir, but it has that men's cologne vibe that I wasn't looking for. When I get it on the skin, I do get the flutter of snow, too, which is the lab's snow note, which I find magical. But it's still a bit overwhelmed by whatever is causing the "cologne" impression. There is something slightly sweet in it too--and I'm not sure what that is. I don't get pipe smoke per se, but perhaps that is what is sweetening it up a bit? I don't get a smoke note at all--not from tobacco smoke or from the fireplace, which is sad, because I was hoping for tobacco and a bit of smoke.

 

In the end, this smells like a classy men's cologne--a bit aquatic, a bit sweet. It doesn't morph much on me at all. Though the fir is there, it certainly doesn't make me think of a Christmas tree or candle or anything like that. I imagine it would be lovely as a good "date night" scent for someone who loved those kind of sophisticated classic men's colognes. That is not me, alas, so I probably won't keep the bottle.

[BeyondBad1313]

Ok, this bottle is for sure one of the ones that makes a drastic change after settling from travel. I tried this one straight out of the mailbox because I was excited and impatient. At first sniff this one seemed to be almost the same scent as fireplace cinders. It had the same sharp sinus clearing pine smell, which to me as soon as it hits my skin smells like pinesol. I was disappointed because I had been hoping for more pipe smoke and some of the snow note in there. I stashed the bottle away planning to try it later in hopes of a morph. Well I tried it again today and wow, this is how it went down:

 

In the bottle: The sharp pine note seems to have calmed down a bit and I am finally smelling some of the other notes.

 

Wet: Holy crap this changed a lot, the pine is still very much there, but now smells like pine wood burning in a fireplace, then there is something sweet and smokey there too.

 

Dry: Good heavens this smells so much better, The fireplace is now in the background and I can smell the sweet pipe smoke, then there is this wisp of scent like a bit of snow is blowing through the window of this room. This is a keeper after all. I can smell all of the notes now and they work well, it's not overpowering, but I can smell it and it is nice. If you like the notes listed in this one don't be afraid to go for it, just let it settle before you toss it in the sale pile.

[oakandloam]

In the imp I get cool sharp pine. Wet, the pipe smoke/tobacco note really sweetens things up. There is something a bit ashy and something a bit like berries, which must be the snow/cold note interacting with other notes. Far warmer and much less pine than I was expecting, as well as a very strong throw.

 

As it dries it starts to smell like pomander??? I'm getting orange and clove... I think I can detect the smokey fireplace and I know I can get the pipe, but really there isn't much of the pine/snow thing going on, which is really disappointing because that's why I got this to try in the first place.

 

And more orange and clove as it dries. Not a bad scent, but not me and certainly not what I wanted from this scent.

[Soupy Twist]

As the great man said, it is a capital mistake to theorize in advance of the facts. I was convinced that if I were going to purchase any bottles out of this update it would be this one, but wow, did it not work for me.

A lovely fir pine in the bottle and on first application. Then someone lights the fireplace which is stocked with fir boughs. The window must be open for a minute to facilitate draw, bringing a smoky snow note to the back of the throat. It's not the Lab's sweet snow note from the Snow Falling series; it's definitely "smoked." The window is closed, and then all I get is pines in the fireplace. The smoke note is much less offensive than Alkemia's, but that's all it is: smoke. No tobacco at all.

[LizziesLuck]

Wet: A blast of fir, and something like eucalyptus. Then the tobacco comes out, and it's gorgeous. I love the Lab's tobacco note so much! I was actually not expecting to like this. So far, I am finding it fairly masculine, but now that the fir is quickly dying down to be replaced by snow and tobacco, I'm quite enjoying it.

 

 

Dry: Dry, this is sweet snow and smoke. Reminds me a lot of Mat Night, which I love, but I am not sure this is different enough from it to justify having both in my collection. This is lovely though.

[zankoku_zen]

Oh man, this smells like tobacco and Christmas trees. I really love the tobacco note in this, and its warm, comforting and cozy. This smells like a warm hearth, full of holiday cheer. Slightly too masculine on me, but this would make a gorgeous room spray. Decent throw and wear length.

 

Smoke, pine, and warmth.

[unxolve]

Wet, this is everything I could have hoped for. Heavenly pine, smoke, and a drop of mint. A beautifully rugged Christmas scent. I could stretch my legs out in front of the crackling fire. The door is open, it's snowing outside, and there's a real pine wreath on the door.

 

It's a shame winter's almost over, because I could wear this wet the whole season. Unfortunately, this cozy, vivid stage doesn't last.

 

Drying: Something here does turn into a twist of a too-sweet, slightly salty cologne. Which is sad. The smoke's still there, and a hit of the mint.

 

Dry: Much more pleasant, lighter. It smells like a man's polo shirt that I'd be perfectly happy to bury my nose in, with a hint of smoke. Here at the end, it's quite comforting, warm and good. A bit sexy, to be honest, when I'm right up against it.

 

Edit: Slightly further back from my wrist it's, surprisingly, a nice snow with a touch of pine again. Wow.

Edited March 25, 2016 by unxolve

[AirimirOfGondor]

This little beauty is my all-time favorite scent! (It used to be No. 93 Engine, but that has now been dethroned!)

 

Wet, it's very piney, a little sweet, and a little smokey. To me, it's less of a Christmas tree smell, and more of a just-wintertime-pine-tree-outside kind of smell.

 

As it dries, the pine tones down a little, and the tobacco is more noticeable. At this point it very much feels like more of a pine wood fire, and less of the whole tree, and the pipe smoke/tobacco is just kind of at the edge.

 

As it dries further, the pipe smoke and tobacco are a bit more noticeable. They blend very well with the pine by the end, and they all share a similar strength level - so once it's fully dried, you can smell all the notes evenly, and still pck them all out.

 

I'm definitely glad I opted for a backup bottle of this one!

[leira]

Juniper and pine wood smoke with a touch of tobacco and a light chill. Unfortunately this starts turning into a soapy cologne on my skin after a few minutes, but I love the imagery!

[Blood onmy hands]

This smells like harsh, sharp woodsmoke, sour pine and a soapy snow note on me. Might be better as a room fragrance, but I don't like the smokiness all that much, so it's probably just going to wind up in my swap pile.