Vanilla Bourbon Intense

Ah, this is a boozy beauty! I got a couple of samples from Lucky Scent and I've been a big fan ever since. I can still smell this even though the samples ran dry months ago. First, I admit, I LOVE vanilla scents. The note itself, whether it's the gourmand cupcake variety or the powdery flower blast, never ceases to suit me, and even throws me back to my late teens, early 20s, when all I EVER wore was pure vanilla oil. Here the smell is a bit more layered. Start with a lovely blast of delicious sweet vanilla balanced with rich, bitter cacao, all carried on a powdery wave of whiskey with a touch of tobacco. This is an aged barrel scent - something that reminds me of the warm waft of wood coming from a distillery. It's labeled as unisex, but I think it's amazingly feminine without being girly (those were my boyfriend's thoughts the first time I wore it around him). It's a sweet, almost edible scent that's linear, simple, and sexy. The boozy note is very strong here, and it does take a while to mellow (I wouldn't wear this to work ... or to my AA meetings) - but it would be a fantastic date night fragrance, or one that would just add a little warmth to a bitter winter night. I'm sure there are cheaper perfumes out there which smell almost identical, but it's hard to dismiss something this perfect, even if the price seems prohibitive. And I believe you really do get what you pay for when it comes to good vanilla perfume, so I'm still thinking I might treat myself when I have the extra money to get it.

This stuff is really strong; Dawn is not fooling around here. Nothing light and femmie and respectful. So go in forewarned. Predictably, I went all in. I'm not always a fan of vanilla scents, but DHS's Vanilla Bourbon is not like a commercially made perfume. It's not Obsession or something made by a big French perfume house. It's like walking into the Dickens Faire, or the Renaissance Faire. Lots of chai tea smells in the air, many people wearing perfume oils, many people slathering on perfume oils, etc. Ok, and maybe people have flasks around too. Or were smoking whatever and trying to cover it up. Who knows? Some of us consider these smells nostalgic scents. It reminds us of our lost youth and/or middle age. Note: I'll let you know what the sillage level is, based on how much my 20-something physical therapist whines this afternoon at my appointment. 8+ hours later: I'm guessing here but the sillage level must be at least 6 feet out for the first 3 hours, if not further. When I apologized to my physical therapist about wearing loud scents in a small room, she tactfully said she couldn't smell anything through her mask. (We were both wearing masks and trying not to face each other, but social distancing and physical therapy isn't optimal.) The longevity of Vanilla Bourbon Intense is very good too. It lasted full throttle at least 3 hours, calmed down around hour 5, and drifted off maybe around hour 7.

Smokey vanilla dessert liqueur. Rich, smoked, scorched, clear and lumious vanilla bean scent. SMOKEY! This smells deep and very natural. NOT excessively sweet. Only as sweet as the vanilla bean itself. Unquestionably VANILLA at the center of the composition, and very pure. The smoke and the booze serve only to boost the vanilla bean's natural lovely qualities. Warming, sparkling, simmering vanilla. Better than Pure Vanilla by Lavanilla, but they do demonstrate parallels in that they are both deep, golden, nectar-like interpretations of vanilla. If you like one, you will likely enjoy the other. This is an unquestionably sexy, raunchy, almost metallic (in its mineral smokiness) straight Winter vanilla! It also smells like it was created by a friend, as opposed to a "perfume house", which is not to say that it lacks balance or professionalism. It demonstrates all of those attributes, but there's also true intimacy in it. It's divine. Edit: those who are interested in this fragrance should definitely also sample DSH's Vanille Botanique. I love it even more than Vanille Bourbon Intense, and it's actually my very favorite vanilla on the market, hands down.

This is a deep, gorgeous, booz, yet feminine Bourbon vanilla. It smells good enough to drink. The almond and labdanum gain strength with wear-time, making this one of the sexiest vanillas I've ever worn. Lovers of Un Bois Vanille, Vanille Insensee, and Spiritueuse Double Vanille will likely enjoy this very much!

The reviewer below (rosequeen) hit it on the nail for me. This is the first perfume that smelled like a place before to me, or reminded me of anything. And it reminded me of the Dickens Fair! I go there as part of holiday traditions and this perfume smells exactly like walking around there. That said, I thought the longevity is decent for a mostly natural pefume, and while I haven't sampled all the natural perfume houses out there, I've noticed that alot of them don't smell like perfume to me. DSH and this perfume is one that still smells like perfume (to me). I bought a small sample pack and while I like most of them, they do have poor longevity in general -- I ask about 4 hrs of longevity for naturals and in general they last about 2 hrs (except for one DSH that has synthetic musk and that one lasts super long as to be expected due to the synthetics but I always view that as the tradeoff between synthetics i.e. long lasting and natural i.e. not long lasting), but this one matches/exceeds it. I can't wear it -- I don't want to smell like the Dickens Fair. It's still a well-done mostly natural decently long-lasting perfume.

This might be Dawn's most masculine-aligned vanilla. I would have guessed this to be a spice scent, but I think that's just how my skin plays with amber sometimes. It's a little bit candle/craft store-like but not unwearably so. There's that tonka playdoh quality and the booziness brings a complimentary sharpness. The vanilla used smells high quality and manages to not dominate the scent. I do think "intense" is appropriate as it's got some throw. While I'm not into this one on myself, I would recommend it for someone seeking a vanilla gourmand that's not girly.

I don’t smell any of the notes on my skin... only play-dough. No vanilla, no bourbon... just play-dough. 😔 I’m going to let it macerate for a while and then I’ll try it again.