Targa

This one had to grow on me, and from the other similar perfumes, like Bois Sikar and Bois d'Ascese, this is the one I chose. They're not the easiest things to like. They're not pretty in any sense, and not meant to invoke a traditional sort of class or refinement. Targa is very smoky, with a subtle sweet side that keeps it from being entirely bitter and scorched. I have to assume the name is taken from the main component, which would be a tar from some sort of wood. I understand when people say they get a BBQ smell from these things (A City on Fire, et al.). I personally don't get any burned meat from this. It is what old homes smell like after decades of heating and cooking by wood stove or open fire pit. The tiny sweet side is just right, but hard for me to pin down, as usual. Immortelle in the pyramid makes a lot of sense. I'd personally place this as a fall scent, due to the smoky nostalgia in it, but I also think it works just about any time. It has an evocative ability that would go with just about anything, from summer rocket launches to winter luge sessions. For all olfactorily daring persons. Leans cozy and edgy.

It's smoky at the beginning, as expected. This is a very 'perfumey' smoke rather than a smoke that clearly comes from a particular source. It's not sharp enough to be rubber smoke and not deep enough to be woodsmoke. I don't get any citrus at first. It is somewhat balsamic. After about twenty minutes the smoke shifts a bit towards incense and is joined by a nice woody scent. There's oud involved, but other woods are more prominent. This is a nice smoke-centric scent. In the opening, not enough sets it apart from similar offerings to make it worth purchasing, but be patient; the dry-down is much more distinctive. It's somewhat animalic with a lot of oud, some sandalwood, and some vetiver. Definitely worth trying if you like heavy, smokey scents, though I wouldn't suggest blind buying it.

It's about time I got around to reviewing this gem. When I first smelled this, I thought of an older historic house I had visited. In the back was a smokehouse which was used to smoke meats. The years of smoking had imbued the log walls with layers of amazing smoke scents. I smell something similar in Targa. This has some of the best woods and smoke I have ever smelled. In spite of my mentioning a smokehouse and meat above, this does NOT smell like barbecue to me. I don't get a meat vibe. It's an incensy wood scent...deep, rich, and absolutely amazing. longevity is reasonable. I can go throughout a day with this. Sillage is decent too. You don't want this being beast mode, and it isn't. It becomes a skin scent after about 3 hours.

Intensely smoky of course, that's what we're here for! I think it lives up to the comparison to A City On Fire. They both start with a very acrid piney smoke and then go in different directions: ACOF has a sweeter berry feel and Targa is more resinous and rubbery with the sparsest touch of freshness like green pepper. My sample definitely improved in the few months since I tried it last. Now it's less acrid, and more sticky, as a smell not a texture ykwim? It's grown on me... but every time I wear Targa I think how divine it would be with a cherry frag layered over, or maybe the other way around. Something sweet with luscious spices could work really well with this fabulous tire fire.

Opening of 100% Lapsang Souchong Tea, just a ton of smoke and wet leaves then fades into really beautiful mid-notes of incense, smoke, & resins, with a carefully measured sweetness (which I am SO GRATEFUL for). Reminds me of Bois d'Ascese by Naomi Goodsir, without veering into the animalic territory of lanolin which that one does. Targa stays solidly in the smoke/incense/woods area, and doesn't change much after drydown, besides the dissipation of the early smokiness. MUCH more sophisticated than most in this genre (looking at you Tyrannosaurus Rex, Masque Milano, Hyde). I will definitely wear this.