Cocktail

First of all, isn't the bottle just DIVINE? Truly beautiful, and the pump that comes with it gives it a real vintage feel. As with all 'B Never Too Busy To Be Beautiful' perfumes, it comes in a delightful gold box, filled with confetti, gold paper and a unique fragrance story which adds to the richness of the whole experience. Envisage a classical ball, filled with rich socialites and aristocrats, preened and beatiful women waltzing endlessly in silk gowns, groups of people drinking dry martinis and making small talk - Cocktail is a fabulous, dress-up fragrance that's a tribute to these occasions. Cocktail has a huge floral heart. Ylang absolute and calanga petals both from headily scented white flowers pair with Mediterranean jasmine, rose absolute and orange flowers. Add oak moss and sandalwood for a scent that's elegant and gorgeous. It is a rather heavy scent and definately not for everyday wear. Cocktail is a grown up perfume, as it warms on the skin it becomes spicy, exotic and tempting. Yes, it may seem a little pricey at £50.90 (the most expensive of all 'B Never Too Busy To Be Beautful's perfumes), but I think it's absolutely worth it.

Cocktail was an instant love for me. It's definitely a 'spritz and walk through' fragrance as it is incredibly fizzy and even a little peppery to begin with. However, once it's had a little time to settle, it smells like a vintage boudoir. The Bergamot helps to balance out and liven up the Lavender notes, which allows Cocktail to be a cheerful, punchy retro frangrance (as opposed to one which reminds one of department store bath salts and the elderly) This fragrance always gets me noticed and infuriates passers by when they can't immediately put a brand name to the flutter by of my aroma. Definitely one of my favourite Be Never fragrances.

This is my all time favourite perfume. I bought it looking for a more saturated, and sensual perfume (compared to my normal light floral collection) and it's exactly what I asked for. Very warm and I find it almost spicy but is quite mature (my friends call it my old lady perfume). Lovely for winter (warms you up with one whiff) and evenings, with a fab sillage, a couple of sprays lasts the whole day. I'm in love with this perfume, so glad to have found it!

Love this scent- it smells like a zingy, sophisticated, alcoholic mint. I don't really get much in the way of floral notes. Instead, I get much more wintergreen. This description doesn't really do the scent justice, as it's complex, sophisticated, and unusual. I think it tends to be a love or hate scent.

(Review of the Gorilla Perfume release, bottled in 2016) If this is truly a cocktail, it's a strange cross between a mint julep and a caipirinha. Generally speaking, you better love ylang-ylang to even get close to liking this perfume. Cocktail is crammed full of natural ylang-ylang and cananga oils, which virtually smell the same but the latter is a touch sweeter and warmer. The opening is a full-on starchy banana ylang-ylang, which definitely calls to mind cachaca - the banana forward Brazilian rum in caipirinhas made directly from sugar cane juice as opposed to the deeper molasses concentrate of sugar cane in traditional rums - but there is an extremely bright freshness to it, not nearly the sugary or fruity aspects one would assume from these materials, perhaps a type of alcohol heat, that almost forces the ylang-ylang into wintergreen territories, i.e. mint julep, a cocktail of mint and bourbon. I'm leaning more in the latter direction thanks to the heavily woody base of mosses and sandalwood that makes one think of barrel aged liquor. However, quite a bit of crystal white, citrusy, and piquant jasmine and orange blossom are playing around in the heart, dragging along their quieter and more reserved friend the jammy red rose, which certainly adds a deeper fruity dimension. Alcohol heat, some type of rum or bourbon, wintergreen mint, light starchy bananas, floral citrus, fruity floral, and a big, creamy, damp earth and wood base, in summation - a bizarre but extremely fun concoction that is unlike anything I've ever smelled. I'm not sure how this compares to the original formulation from B Never Too Busy To Be Beautiful or the last formulations under the Lush parent company's name. Serious Lushies that have closely followed the BNTBTBB, Gorilla, and Lush brands' perfumes for the last couple decades would have to tell you, since my experience with them is not that deep or far back. But, assuming the various formulations are very similar if not the same to my 2016 Gorilla bottle, I would say this to anyone wanting to try it: try in the store before you buy to make sure you love ylang-ylang if you don't already know for sure, and, if you do, you're going to find a truly unique ylang-ylang perfume. This is the brand's(s') entry into the tropical pool party, beach side, suntan lotion and cocktails perfume genre that is fresh, lively, and just darn good fun.