Bloodline

I have always been really iffy on overtly smokey fragrances. I don’t like those smokey outdoor BBQ sort of fragrances that others seem to think are all that. I have never smelled one that I felt was all that appealing, let alone beautiful...until today. Bloodline is, without a doubt, the most realistic woodsmoke fragrance I have ever smelled, the most natural, and the most beautiful. There is nothing weird thrown in, nothing distracting, no rubber, no plastic, nothing “trying too hard”. It’s not too charred, nor is it lumberjack manly (with heavy evergreen notes like you often find), nothing “grilled food” like, nothing Portland hippie trendy (no offense), or anything that I tend to get with a lot of smokey indie scents. This is the exquisite beauty of whiffs of firewood that drift through the fresh morning air of a rustic cabin in the middle of nowhere. It’s that first smell of winter in the neighborhood you grew up in, those whiffs you get when you know it’s cold enough for someone to be using a fireplace for the first time. That unexplainable peaceful and joyful — yet melancholic — feeling that comes with it. It’s the comforting smell of being home with family. Or the memories. It’s pure. It’s elegance. I can’t explain it, but Bloodline almost makes me cry. For someone who doesn’t even like smokey fragrances to be this pleased, it is really saying something. I actually feel bad even writing a review for this because only 15 bottles were made and it sold out in an hour. But if you are a fan of smoked wood fragrances and happen to ever see this one for sale, I strongly suggest you buy it. Unsniffed. Don’t even pause, just get it. I can’t image ANY fan of woodsmoke who would not be pleased. In my humble opinion, this is an award worthy scent. It’s flawless. And, again, I don’t even like smokey fragrances. But when something is this good, I will make an exception.

Bloodline, by the American Perfumer boutique, was created by Hans Hendley, a limited edition of 15 of which I was lucky to obtain a bottle before it quickly sold out. It’s dark, dense, rich, and very satisfying to someone like me that’s a huge fan of the winter pine resin type scents, slightly burnt but mostly a mix of various woody, earthy accords—most of all, pine---though there are cedar, patchouli, and oakmoss in the mix, too. Labdanum adds to the smoky resin vibe and vanilla provides a sweet base, a point of contrast to the deep, albeit slightly sharp woody dominance. With dark juice and extrait concentration, Bloodline unsurprisingly performs outstandingly, with tremendous longevity and density, though slightly less projection at first than the most extreme fragrances (some Slumberhouse offerings like Norne, Jeke, Ore, and Sova, and perhaps a couple of Tom Ford Private Blends like Tobacco Vanille and Amber Absolute come to mind as being slightly louder at the onset). Still, Bloodline is very strong and one need not apply much to enjoy it thoroughly. A fairly easy comparison in the Hendley catalogue is to Fume, another dark, smoky scent, but while Fume more sharply focuses on the burning campfire accord, Bloodline leans toward more pine resin dominances with vanillic undertones. Quite different, but related, and I’d always recommend Fume in any case, as it belongs to a similar family that includes Slumberhouse Norne, Dasein Winter Nights, La Curie Incendo, and Profumum Arso, all of which I love. Overall, Bloodline is outstanding, and worthy of high praise above all else for its quality, belonging in the group of the aforementioned wintery delights. 8 out of 10

the sinews of life itself will be tied in the very veins of my bloodline... An utterly breathtaking, shapeshifting scent from Mr. Hendley whose limited numbers renders this basically unobtainable, making me cry... We start off with a much more intense version of Jeke. Think pre-marbles Jeke, turned up and with an interesting addition. There is an odd 'fried battered fish' vibe/accord present. Not necessarily a bad thing, just a nostalgic thing for me. The accord is the smell you get when you open up a bag of fish and chips, and being from southern Australia, it's a battered flake smell for me (gummy shark) mixing and riding along with the Jeke aesthetic. Fast forward a few hours, and then Pale Fire by Apoteker Tepe emerges. This also is basically unobtainable, which is also another item on my 'to weep over' list, further adding to the unobtainability of it all. Jeke w/ battered flake >>> Pale Fire The shift and change is so subtle, so nuanced and so unbelievably gentle that it's jawdroppingly beautiful. After I experienced it all, I actually considered looking for this, at least some more of it, but at 14 bottles @ 50 mls, 700 mls of the juice in existence, I have nigh on NO CHANCE. Put frankly, I have more olive oil in my pantry... An utterly amazing scent.

I recently returned to this one, mostly because it's around the time of the year when it gets released, and so I put some on today and it STILL hits hard. I'm getting a bit of cade-birch smokiness with this one, though. A few years back, I got a lot of resin-funk, but today I'm getting a LOT more labdanum and smoke -- I'm not sure if it's matured over the years, or, if my nose has, but the awesome woodsiness isn't coming through as much as it used to. Anyway, I'm still in love with this, and I'm more than happy to sing its praises. Dry, woody, smokey and BBQey. It works. It really REALLY works...

A brilliant take on coniferous cedar with a dash of pine, oak, and vanilla. That's what I smell and it is gorgeous for a conifer lover like me. I love the blending "and" the blend, I love the longevity and the sillage, I don't think I could enjoy this fragrance more than I do. Excellent job by Hans Hendley once again!

Simply the best "campfire" fragrance ever made in my opinion. It's like red hot wood, without smoke. How this was achieved is a complete mystery. Masterfully done by Hans. Very happy to have in my collection.

Hey do you wanna go inside the big rusty shipping container in the middle of the evergreen forest out back and throw firecrackers at each other? First to tap out has to eat this jar of goldfish flakes

Smoky fragrances are hard for me. I live in an area with frequent wildfires, and far too often these scents remind me of red skies choked with ash, emergency alerts, and stories of families losing their homes. Bloodline, however, is a cozy, contained smoke, nothing acrid or wild about it. It's the scent of my father's jacket after he's been sat by the fire pit on a cold winter night. It's throwing another log on the fire and watching smoke curl up into the sky. Frankly, it makes me want a s'more. There's a slight undertone of sourness I'm not crazy about, but overall it's a big step up from other smoky scents which I unfortunately find intolerable. I received a .5ml sample as a freebie with my American Perfumer order which I will be saving for the depth of winter, as it will be sure to warm me up.

I had the chance to try this blend that it went "sold out" within hours of releasing it! Thanks to Hans. This blend simulates a wander in the forest with a river running through in 2pm. You can feel the sun, the pine & oak trees, traces of campfire, & a glass of cognac. It's very woody, harsh yet soft & dry. It's a very cute blend that presents the forest time. I didn't like it at the beginning cause i sniffed something quite fish like that last around 2 minutes then the show begun. Excellent blend for a dry forest lover. What can you say! It's Han's creation, could it be any better?

Smokey, woody, and resinous. It took me not long to see what it was trying to do and I can assure you that it doesn't smell nearly as good as Jeke by Slumberhouse. Bloodline is just a shell of that masterpiece of Jeke. The limited quality marketing scheme is the only thing that hyped this up, not what is inside.

Smells good, but quite a few other fragrances out there that smell the same for the fraction of the price. It's hyped because it's a limited release.

I am looking for a bottle of this please! Partial is fine. Thanks!