Ebano

Fruity fresh, lovely blending and very good projection

When I decided to buy the Elixirs discovery set, I was convinced that Ebano would be my favourite after checking the notes and hearing some reviews online. It literally has almost all my favourite notes for cool seasons perfumes and seemed impossible not to love. But there’s something in the composition that’s slightly off putting. And I can’t figure it out. Today, when I am writing my review, it’s the second time I am testing Ebano. And in full transparency, I like it ten times more than first time I have tried it. For some unknown reasons, first time it smelled like nail polish, and the cheapest kind of all nail polishes. Now, smells more realistic to the notes listed and quite pleasant. A warm, ambery, soft spicy cacao/vanilla/myrrh with some woods and a touch of sweetness from praline. Couldn’t say I get any red fruits, or fruitiness from Ebano. It’s a well balanced fragrance with slight gourmand touches. I’d say it’s perfect for those who don’t want a sickly sweet, typical gourmand scent, that smells like food or candy. The oak offers a good balance to the gourmand facets. Has also a lingering smoky smell, but very subtle and pleasant. You won’t smell like an ashtray if you’re wearing Ebano, have no fear! As much as I expected to love Ebano, ( it was main reason to purchase the set, to sample this particular scent), I don’t love. It’s a strong like at the moment, but it’s lacking that sparkle. I might be revisiting the sample for next fall, which I feel it’s the prime season to wear Ebano! Can see some similarities between Ebano and By the Fireplace, around 80% comparable, but they are quite different fragrances. Ebano is more powdery, cocoa forward, gourmand, while By the Fireplace it’s more outdoorsy, way smokier, more balsamic, spicier and more aromatic. And Replica’s By the Fireplace is cheaper!

I bought a bunch of Botanicae samples recently - a small niche house that came recommended. Funnily enough, it shares its theme with the last discovery set I sampled, Gallivant, with each scent inspired by a location. The names here are less on the nose, with Ébano apparently inspired by Africa, for example. Ébano is a dry, dense woody-chocolate-amber scent. Unfortunately, it is too synthetic for my liking, with something akin to cashmeran in the base, adding a chemical musky cloud throughout that weighs this scent down. Ébano has a sweet, dry opening, with powdery cacao and some balsamic incense. Pink pepper adds soft spice, a nice inclusion here. The synthetic, musky base note is evident throughout, grey and harsh. I think it's cashmeran, but I'm not sure - either way, I dislike such molecules. The dry woody notes creep in after a little while, marrying nicely with the cacao. There is a smokiness to this scent here, keeping things dark and dry. Resinous myrrh becomes prominent as it develops. Some dry vanilla adds to the sweetness. However, the synthetic musk lingers until final fade, shrouding the woody-balsamic accord in a grey haze. Sillage is moderate and longevity is long-lasting. It is a unisex, autumn/winter scent. Ébano has its moments - the cacao-woody accord alongside the resinous notes is delicious, but the cashmeran-esque molecule that permeates this scent takes from it for me. 2.5/5.

Lots of incense and pepper at the opening and, to my nose, an undeclared herbal aspect. Personally I don't get the red fruits. Soon a powdery cocoa and myrrh appear and, a couple of hours later, the vanilla and the resinous part begin to take the protagonism of the composition and, even, a very subtle point that reminds me to oak moss appear. Projection is pretty good for the first 2-3 hours. It lasts a total of 5-6 hours on my skin but stays on clothes for considerably longer. When I used it for the first time, I wanted to compare it with other sweet perfumes around incense in my collection but I found big differences. Specifically, I compared it to Bohemian Oud from Zara and Mystic Incense from The Merchant of Venice. In both, which are very similar to each other, the incense is more ecclesiastical and much more predominant in the composition. They are also drier perfumes, with Ebano being more gourmand, creamier and more complex. For me it is a truly addictive cold season perfume, a composition to use when I feel like wearing a not too predominant incense in a sea of sweet notes. Although I have not included anything from this house in my collection yet, this is a perfume that, I hope, will join it for next fall. Scent 9/10 Duration 5.5/10 Sillage 8/10 Quality/price 6.5/10 Versatility 7/10 Packaging 7.5/10 Would I buy again? I did not buy it

“I understood that the more words I knew, the richer, fuller and more varied the world I found myself in would appear to me.” -Kapuschinsky- Ebano is a diary of thirty years of solo travel. Kapuscinsky lived all possible experience: prison, illness, war, throughout his years in Africa. And he wrote Ebony. Now let's imagine him in the dark and gloomy African night reflecting and writing... and we will have this fragrance. An intense and incisive opening that is submerged by notes of dark and black cocoa, dark, like ebony. The drydown softens everything making it even more introspective. Ebano is not just any gourmand, it tells a story, and I am sure it will immerse anyone in a unique atmosphere.

To me this smells like the love child of By The Fireplace and Commodity Milk+ maybe with extra smokiness. Lovely smooth cold weather scent that I would consider buying if I didn’t have the other two fragrances. I’m not getting any fruity notes but the more it settles down I do get some cacao, very myrrh heavy on my skin

A dark, woody gourmand scent, reminiscent of raw cacao leaning towards black coffee, with a hint of spice (pink pepper). I detect a buttery, smooth, and enveloping facet with a touch of walnut shell. It's very beautiful and the perfect autumn fragrance!