Terror & Magnificence

And 2020 will begin under the reign of the Terror and Magnificence, the new fragrance by Beaufortlondon ...This time the architect in charge, is no other than Pia Long, she has a great article/review about her creation online. They say, love is blind, and as much as i love this house, and being Vi Et Armis/Rake and Ruin my all time favourites, to tell you the truth, i'm a bit confused, because i don't really know if this is taking the direction of the mainstream-waterdown highway or is just something punctual and the house after this release will carry on creating Dark Beasts like the ones from the past. This state of disorientation reminds me of something the perfumer said: Darkness of the kind that makes you doubt your own senses, my problem with this fragrance is that i was expecting another kind of terror or at least, my vision of it ...wrong again! The subtle character of this rare beauty, the balanced and blended to perfection and her refined soul, is the true manifestation of Magnificence. Notes: since i don't know what the Kyphi accord smells like, there not much i can say, this perfume develops from the begging to the end, not linear at all; and you do pick up many of the notes listed ..The papyrus, the incense, the benzoin and the styrax, the labdanum, the smoke from the birch tar, the myrrh, the tobacco and the vetiver. But what really took me by surprise is the stone cellar theme, when i saw the wet stone accord listed, i thought: here we go again with the selling poetry. There is at one point a huge stone-inside of a church feel to this masterpiece. Once again a blind buy from this house, for me, absolutely no regrets and very glad and thankfull.

Terror & Magnificence starts the way I would expect a BeauFort to: smoky and dark. But this time, it’s more polite and mellow compared to previous smoky BeauFort creations. The fragrance opens boldly with the sharpness of a campfire—black like tar, woody-smoky, and charred, oily wood. As the opening mellows, the more “churchy” elements begin to emerge: incense, myrrh, benzoin, old dry wood of benches and other old religious décor. But the scent doesn’t go fully ecclesiastical. There’s something darker, wilder, and more primal anchoring it—the exotic kyphi accord and a sharp, woody-earthy papyrus note. The traditional BeauFort black smoke in this fragrance turns surprisingly mild and even slightly sweet. Birch tar is softened by labdanum and, especially, the aforementioned benzoin, creating an exotic amber-like accord of black smoke. To me, Terror & Magnificence is the BeauFort for people who don’t typically “get” smoky fragrances—or better yet, the perfect introduction to the smoky genre. I love smoky, incense-heavy, and resinous scents, so for me, this is all Magnificence—no Terror to be found.

It's one of my favourite fragrances now, but you NEED to try it before buying. For me, it's playing with something dark and unsettling in smells without getting too much into trashy odours that will give you a headache. However, I saw that it pretty much gave a headache to some other people who tried it... It's dry, it's gunpowder-like, it's cruel, it's mighty... This smell makes me think of a scene with someone being followed in a dark green forest. It's autumn, just a couple of days without rains. There's still some daylight at the moment, but it's barely helpful in this place. The person who's being followed passes an unexpectedly grandiose old church in the forest. This church is in a really bad state and had a fire recently (struck by a lightning maybe), the smell of burnt wood, incenses, and smoke is still there. The church looks magnificent, but radiates danger without any obvious reasons. For the person being followed, it gets worse from there—the follower's definitely getting closer remaining unseen, but it's unclear "who" or "what" that follower is...

Okay, yep, there it is: The year is 2004; I am back in college at UC Santa Cruz. It’s a rainy night, and I’m out in the woods. I’m with my friends. We’re listening to black metal on an iPod plugged into headphones that are cranked up to max, acting as a makeshift portable speaker. The thick lush greenery of the dark woods gives us refuge from the downpour, but we’re still soaked. One of us is climbing a redwood tree nearby. Cold granite boulders offer us makeshift, if slightly uncomfortable, seats. The mouth of the nearby cave beckons with a dubious invitation – an exhalation of cold, wet, earthy air. I’m wearing my favorite old leather jacket; it’s cozy with wear but it’s barely keeping me warm. The sweet perfume of the girls from the party we just gleefully abandoned is still wreathed around us like a ghost. One of us just finished a damp cigarette. We’re passing around a bottle of Jim Beam in the dark, laughing. It’s no wonder I love this fragrance. 95%

Got this as a sample with a fragrance order, thought nothing of it, never heard of the house. On a night in, like all nights these times, have it a go. First impression, commend des garcon black with BALLS! I like CDG Black but felt it went too soft spice market in the drydown. This is good! It's dark and Smokey but something in here gives it some brightness to balance it out and make it wearable. After 24 hours with the sample a full bottle was on order. While CDG Black was good there was something stopping me from taking the plunge. Terror and magnificent is just that, some trrrrrrrble with some mags. Ying & Yang in a battle so fierce you get them confused. I see reviews commenting on how Pia went soft in this one, well whatever, it's right in my wheelhouse. This will even make me reach for encre Noir less, a lot less. To me this is heavily masculine. Good longevity and proper projection. Love it!

Magnificent! Like anything with birch tar, this one instantly pulled me in... It’s one of those dark scents that doesn’t suffocate you with smoke. There’s no sweetness. No cigarette ash vibe. Instead, it’s a beautiful blend of saffron, incense, tobacco, churchy resins, and a gorgeous labdanum. There’s also a green feel from the papyrus, which adds freshness to the mix (also dry). I really liked the composition. My signature scent contains the ancient Egyptian kyphi note; and this one has it too, which made me respect it even more. Toward the drydown, the earthy, grassy nature of vetiver becomes more prominent. Incense is more prominent. The scent doesn’t shapeshift wildly; it has a few soft waves but stays relatively linear; likely thanks to the labdanum. Because of that, I’d say it sits right between dark academia and gothic in terms of aesthetic. Tag(s): Gothic, bold, dark academia, incense-y

I can't be the only one that finds this DNA similar to Amouage's Purpose 50 - my signature scent. They share a common backbone of incense and smoke, each evoking a sense of ritual and grandeur. Whereas, Terror & Magnificence leans dark and gothic, with birch tar, papyrus, and benzoin creating the feel of charred wood and candlelit stone walls within Winterfell. Purpose 50, while equally incense-driven, softens the smoke with creamy sandalwood, papyrus, and a touch of vanilla, making it more opulent and polished within The Red Keep. Both Game of Thrones reminiscent scents are commanding and long-lasting, but where Terror & Magnificence feels austere and architectural, Purpose 50 presents incense in a more luxurious, rounded, and elegant form. Purpose 50 is the sacred fire reborn in gold leaf and silk with incense rendered not as terror, but as magnificence refined.

Terror & Magnificence is exquisitely dark and unforgiving. The birch tar is a smidge industrial and dominates the composition. The distant smell of burning villages mingles with leather, stone, and deep, dried tobacco. It isn't a gentle scent. Harsh, but it still manages to be refined, polished-- or maybe sharpened?-- and menacingly elegant. An excellent blind buy as I wanted something in the mood of Matiere Premiere's Falcon Leather. (This isn't a Falcon Leather clone, by any means.) If Vlad the Impaler had a signature scent, this would be it. Unisex, leaning masculine. Moderate projection, excellent longevity. I showered hours ago and I can still smell it on me.

I didn't like this when I first got the sample. I think in my head I was expecting pure church incense, so the mineral note of the wet stone accord really threw me off. But the more time I spent with it, the more I liked it. Now it's my absolute favourite, and I wear it all the time. The pure church incense frags like Avignon and Sacreste smell kind of 'thin' to me now by comparison. Some people on here say that this is a weak perfume on them, but I guess I'm lucky and it really sticks around on me -Weirdly, my cat really loves it too and tries to lick it off me, which she has never tried to do before with any other perfume. What's up with that?

#1025 in my "Tour de Fragrance" This is my second Beaufort London decant. The first, "Fathom V" was an immediate buy decision and so is this. Nothing unisex whatever about this scent. Probably not a scent for the young. More traditional. Business wear for the execs. Date wear for the confident. Nice woody incense without being churchy. Nice pepper and papyrus. Honestly the only thing I'd wish to add to this is some iris. Otherwise it covers all my bases, and it performs well and is reasonably priced.

My second fragrance from this house And it is obvious they have a certain theme going on It’s the smoke, unapologetic, potent, not willing to please anyone, just being itself which I respect It is the closest thing to smoke that i smelled in my fragrance experience Though I would’ve loved if it was stronger iam sure it could’ve been a masterpiece But the weakness of the scent is unexpected with what you smell in the beginning of the fragrance Average longevity and below average projection

My third from the house. Having previously purchased Iron Duke (8/10) and Vi et armis (9.5/10) I find Terror and Magnificence A slightly more accessible proposition. Smoky, leathery, boozy with an oudy feel, this is strangely mainstream for the house and is becoming a bit of a signature scent for me. Good longevity, decent sillage and projection makes the an excellent choice. Love the birch tar the packaging style and the inspiration for the fragrance. 8/10

This is not for everyone. That said, I looooovvee this!!! Deeply intriguing, very gothic, dark, with such a deep character. It makes me think of visiting an old aristocracy castle in Europe, getting whiffs of old leather, old fabrics, and masculine scents. Only for the fearless who do not wear fragrances to please the masses. Decadent. One of my top five out of 140+ collection.

Please tell me that I am not crazy and it doesn't smell 1:1 like Robert Piguet Bois Noir because I can't tell any difference between these two Edit after some time with this fragrance - it definitely reminds me of Bois Noir, but it's very different once you get used to it. Really like this, highly recommended.

Contemplative smoky incense, with a dry sweetness (probably coming from the myrrh note) that lightens the darkness, making the fragrance somewhat more sociable and mass-appealing than the more abrasive leather of Iron Duke. Great concept as well. Sweet darkness, and quiet revelatory truth.

You want church, go Avignon, Cardinal or LAVS. You want smokey dark vetiver goth/rock vibes, this is a joy. Not as powerful as the earlier fragrances but very wearable. It’s niche and I love it. Try before buy with Beaufort but they make two of my all time favourites and this is one.

Evokes the feeling of being in a dark gothic church filled with incense. Feels like it would be worn by Benedictine monks. Absolutely stunning, slightly let down by poor performance.

Almost parodically butch: Steve McQueen lounging in his leathers smoking a cigarette in a Roman church.

Love it. Smells like a high end department store that recently had a small fire. Intriguing.

Whenever you spray this on, play some Type O Negative and that's it.