The Black Tower

chilly in the way a basement is chilly, like cold stone walls and a damp castle ruin. The first time I smelled this, it immediately evoked this recreation apothecary shop in colonial williamsburg that I visited as a kid-- vaguely medicinal, heavy on the ivy and galbanum, solid ebony wood base. there's something almost cold in there which isn't listed in the fragrantica notes but I guess is the 'white bone and blackened steel' and ozone. I don't know what bone is supposed to smell like, I could maaaaaybe see the steel, but personally it makes me think more of wet cobblestones and mossy walls. Maybe it's the ozone that's making me think of damp and rain. it's interesting, not overtly Perfume-y, but still palatable enough to wear on public transport or in crowded elevators. virtually no red wine that I can detect but I make up for it by occasionally layering with a tiny, tiny bit of Nosferatu (nauseating, drool-inducing, rotting-sweet berries and mulled wine) and it coheres really nicely. I have this listed as my signature fragrance on here and will probably be sticking with this one for a while.

There is a strange dark berry syrup impression at first (maybe it's the wine note) that fades and leaves me with a very dark, very deep but slightly fuzzy resin-y incense. I love this scent. I think you'd have to REALLY love resinous wood-y fragrances to wear this. This is one of the few fragrances that I fear might scare people when I wear it out.

Is my old imp vial started to go off? It doesn't smell like I remember, but remembering exactly how this smells is challenging because it was always such a complex and unique scent. I am getting peppery notes, some kind of bitter earthy and dry dusty layers as well. I remember it being complex and mossy, but now it smells a little on the edge of a little wrong-- a shuttered up smell, having notes of an old dusty room or neglected chest in the attic. Stale and prickly. Maybe that's the way it always smelled, considering it is based off poem about dead soldiers resting forever in an abandoned tower that was under siege (or something like that.) My tube is at least 14 or 15 years old though, so I suppose it's possible it could be going a little wrong. Interesting then then that if it is, it really only helps tell the story. I'm not sure if I will still wear the scent from this old sample vial now, but I remember being so fond of the scent that it would definitely be worth reordering to see how the fresh one smells again. There are a number of mixes from this label that I would love to be able to reorder but which are no longer produced. This one, thankfully, seems to be. If you like very unique, earthy, cold feeling, literal scents that don't try to inject a little bit of flowers or a little bit of balance, and just take a firm stance on being what they are and saying what they are trying to say, then this would definitely be one to try out. That said, I don't remember it being so shocking or strange that I would consider it unsafe as a blind by, just make sure you enjoy kind of musky, natural, sort of masculine or at least non-feminine sense and you may be very likely to enjoy it. In fact, my younger sibling took one sniff of my vial a couple years ago and instantly went online to buy the full size and has made it their signature sent ever since. If you are looking to branch out and support a small label, don't sleep on this particular blend.

There is some yellow, resinous, ambery note that is missing from the list here. Not the cool sandalwood or the warm leather... Something warm and woody. But I am at the beginning of my perfume journey and I cannot tell if I am just unfamiliar with all the notes. Either way, love this, look forward to getting a full bottle.