Tonka Hysteria

Sometimes I genuinely wonder who the heck is making these “smells like” comparisons on here because this is NOWHERE NEAR Babycat. I promise you it’s so dang different. Babycat is borderline masculine it’s so deep leathery and has a sucker punch of nice rich warm spice. Tonka hysteria is warm but in a soft feminine cinnamon way. This fragrance wasn’t a love at first sniff. Normally I prefer more of a dark rich resinous choice like Babycat but my preference of the Babycat dna leans more to Vanagloria and Vanilla Vice. Vanilla Vice to me is the perfect slightly more feminine Babycat dna that’s perfect for me with its dark richness and slight boozy vibe. Tonka Hysteria is a stripped back rich fragrance that’s living in the space between rich thick tonka vanilla decadence and a certain warm airy vibe. It’s not a soft skin scent by any means but it’s sweet and ethereal and I think the Orris in this scent really makes the magic here it’s that orris and cinnamon that take this from the run of the mill vanilla Tonka combination we see so often in fragrance and it makes it something actually worthy of owning. For me the sillage is far more beautiful and intoxicating than putting my nose right up to my skin which is fine for me because I love a good wafting of my own fragrance hitting me whether it’s a fan blowing it back towards me or me being out in public and myself and others experiencing my scent trail. I’ve been on an Iris/Orris bender lately where I want Iris in my gourmand/ floral gourmand fragrances. Iris Cartagena started an obsession because of that cacao and Iris then Lola at Coat Check made the obsession tenfold. I can’t decide which fragrance reigns supreme between the two but Tonka Hysteria might end up in a three way tie because the sillage of this scent with that cinnamon tonka and soft light airy buttery orris is really flooring me. It’s not exactly the perfect summer fragrance but I can’t help but still wear it because I’m in that stage of needing an Iris fix and currently it’s either Tonka Hysteria or Lola at Coat Check which I’d recommend to any fellow lover or Iris and floral gourmands that tell a magical story in the air because both fragrances have sillage magic. I will say Tonka hysteria is lasting and it projects so don’t get the wrong idea when I describe it as soft but the ethereal essence that fills your nostrils just feels soft and feminine and so dang BEAUTIFUL! At first I was not gonna keep this blind buy fragrance but then one day the sillage just had me intoxicated and that addiction to smelling this in the air has only grown. Up closer to skin I get a very warm tonka cinnamon but in the air I get this almost powdery creamy buttery iris with the cinnamon and Tonka vanilla. It’s all so well blended that it takes time to really discern the notes in the air from one another but that’s even more magical when the fragrance just becomes this intoxicating trail where notes are dancing together so seamlessly. I get the hype around this scent now. D’Orsay seems to be a powerhouse brand because I’ve had FlowerLust and I loved it but it was one of those loves that it smells amazing you just don’t personally like it on yourself and it was a tad too floral like I can’t do just florals it has to be gourmand with vanilla and resins and bakery goodness or fruits and flowerlust was truly after it’s name and was floral explosion but a high quality one that I do love the smell of it’s a gorgeous scent just not my personal style. The only fail I’ve had with the house is everyone’s beloved Holy Berry.. let’s just say that’s one you should never blind buy because you might be like me instead of the influencers that swear it’s the “best ever”. The one thing that isn’t up for debate is the quality. The bottles are amazing with magnetic caps and the notes are listed on the back of each box. And you can tell the fragrances are made with high quality materials thats one thing that can’t be argued whether the scent is good to your nose or not it’s coming from quality even if the scent story misses your personal mark. Tonka Hysteria is worth the hype especially the sillage and I think it’s probably their best work and their easiest to love because its so good i don’t see how anyone would catch a whiff of this and dislike it P.S if you aren’t able to see my review on Holy Berry and you’re curious.. it’s disgusting.. it’s curdled strawberry milkshake that was curdled due to stank leather.. the strawberry milk and leather vibe should’ve never been worlds that mixed because without the milkshake vibe of it all.. the scent could’ve been amazing.

Although they don’t seem to have a lot of common notes, the opening and mid of Tonka Hysteria remind me a lot of Bois Imperial - maybe it’s the olibanum. It is spicy, metallic and minerallic in the opening and mid, and it smells like it could be mistaken for a Quentin Bisch creation. The Tonka sweetness is really subtle at first, but it slowly and methodically appears in the mid and even moreso in the dry down. The sweetness is blended extremely well, and even at its sweetest, it is very subtle and mature, with a hint of almond. The Tonka also provides a subtle tobacco accord throughout. So to me, the fragrance is dynamic and organic. It is what I imagine Antoni Gaudi would smell like. If you have the much cheaper Bois Imperial, occasionally for fun you could just lightly layer it with a Tonka and/or vanilla centric fragrance to create a poor man’s version of this more expensive fragrance. Another fragrance it reminds me of just a little bit is Ex Nihilo's Atlas Fever. In the end, the name “Tonka Hysteria” is misleading to me. That name sounds like it would be a loud and fairly sweet Initio fragrance. Yes, there is a little Tonka almondy sweetness in this, but just a little, and definitely not at first. The fragrance is complex and dynamic. It starts its life as a masculine, spicy, mineralic, metallic, and slightly earthy fragrance, and evolves fairly dramatically into a perfectly unisex rich, and warm amber fragrance with a touch of sweetness that I like very much. I would give it an 8.5/10 and a Fragrantica score of about 4.2. (I edited and raised the score a bit after wearing it for the last few weeks). I like it enough and it is unique enough to me that I bought a bottle from ZGO Perfumery. Update: 10/9/24 I received my bottle. I love the bottle. A heavy metal black cylinder with a strong magnetic cap. The scent is really nice. I am very happy that I got it. I highly recommend it.

[08.52] Received a sample of this, couldn't stop thinking about & smelling it, then fell in love with it. Tonka Hysteria's scent profile is the fragrance I pictured 100% when I first started collecting. Regardless of what people say – it's like a version of Babycat, or even Eau Duelle, that is richer in a sense that's spicier and more sophisticated. However to quote myself in my review of Flower Lust "Something that really let me down however is this fragrance's performance. Though I am not sure if it is just me going nose-blind but, I stop smelling it on myself in less than four hours. I really don't think it stays and radiates as much as people say it does, but maybe a better environment and extensive wear-testings are required." The packaging is obviously still the same, but the bottle does fit this fragrance more. Black minimalism is good because the scent really does all the talking; no need for distractions. Something also that made me anxious about the bottle I bought, but this is more a problem with the shop, is that the atomizer does not seem to be a pressurized one like the one in my bottle of Flower Lust and as it says so on the Internet. Really tried looking online for ways to authenticate mine but could not find a batch code verifier for example as d'Orsay is not as big as other houses yet. Though since it smells exactly like the sample I was given, I guess it should be all fine for now. It is again a plus that the house's offerings as a whole is not not as expensive as others. I really did want to rate this higher and even love this fragrance – but for now I am undecided if I should commit to repurchasing this or others from this brand.

I don't get the rubber/tyres that people are talking about; I also don't think it's like Babycat, besides that they both have a bourbon-type natural-smelling vanilla in them. Babycat is extremely un-sweet, wayyyy too peppery and Leathery, and frankly, is missing the "wow" factor for me. I also don't get ANY link to Velvet Tonka - that's straight up almond marzipan and Tonka, with no spiciness, as well as being quite savory, with a doughy vibe and is in no way as deep as this. This is an extremely elegant and cosy vanilla, tonka, cinnamon, and iris-heavy scent - which I adore. It's the less sweet, chic cousin of Angels' Share. It's almost like a mix of Angels' Share, the same bourbon vanilla as Babycat, and then add in Dior Homme Intense. I'm a woman, and I feel extremely "cool" and intimidating when I wear this fragrance. Update: I initially found it to turn a bit dirty on me after a few hours of wear, but then I bought a full size 50ml bottle, and that issue went away, so perhaps the mini I had sampled, wasn't stored correctly. This is a 10/10. My absolute favorite for Winter, and I'm going to be wearing it any time I need a show stopper fragrance. Zara's Sand Desert at Sunset Intense is still an amazing a dupe for this, but doesn't have the depth and silky smooth vanilla and Tonka as in this one, plus it doesn't have as much power so you have to overspray it quite a bit. That said, performance is fair given that it's a 5th of the price and a much lower oil concentration.

Blind buy success!! I totally disagree this is like Babycat/Vanagloria: those are edgy frankincense and vanilla- Tonka Hysteria is something more.... Orris x Incense x Tonka... Immediately the rubbery leather reminds me of RM5 but there’s also a dense sweet candied coffee/toffee Tonka nuance to a room filling churchy incense that reminds me of Incense suave. The pink pepper and vanilla reminds me of Magnificent Gold- but even though I’m reminded of those three amazing fragrances, Tonka Hysteria still feels unique. The Orris is creating an interesting powdery texture that isn’t cosmetic or doughy like it usually does. The olibanum isn’t going in a sharp pine direction, it’s just resinous and beautiful. I’m just really blown away by this fragrance. The presentation is stunning- the box looks and feels lux without being over done. The Flacon is sexy and feels really good on the hand (I have a 50ml) the sprayer is on par with Dior, Guerlain and Roja Parfums. The sheen left on the skin immediately informs your senses that you’re wearing something luxurious. Yeah, I’m in love and need to sample incense crush.