Frustration

Woody, nutty, sweet, boozy gourmand goodness! Personal: 8.5/10 – Dark, boozy vanilla with rum, cinnamon, and roasted chestnut. It's rich, cozy, and a close cousin to Black Phantom and Absolute Aphrodisiac. I really enjoy it. Mass appeal: 8/10 – Boozy vanillas are crowd-pleasers, though the chestnut and rum give it a slightly heavier edge some may not love. Performance: 8/10 – Strong longevity and projection, as expected for this DNA. Value: 7/10 – ELDO pricing is fair, especially for a fragrance with this richness and quality. A great alternative to other big name booze bombs from big niche houses. Uniqueness: 8/10 – Dark boozy vanilla isn’t brand-new territory, but the chestnut note sets it apart from the pack. SCORE: 79/100 Full bottle buy? YES, this is one of the rare ELDOs I’d actually want to own. It would go on my shortlist of bottles to buy. Blind buy? NO, it’s heavy and boozy. Sample first to make sure you enjoy that style, or make sure you like some adjacent booze bombs. Recommend? YES, for lovers of boozy gourmands or darker vanillas. Date night? YES, warm, cozy, and seductive, perfect for colder evenings. Office safe? NO, it’s too rich and heavy for professional wear. Sadly. Pros: Rich boozy vanilla, chestnut warmth, cozy and seductive, strong performance. Great winter staple without being hideously pricey. Cons: Leans a bit too boozy, so could be cloying to some. Performance could be slightly better, despite not being bad. Frustration is one of ELDO’s most wearable and addictive creations. It’s a dark, boozy vanilla laced with rum, roasted chestnut and spice. It's rich and edible, honestly. It's super cozy and seductive without falling into the most common pitfall for such fragrances, which is them being a spicy vanilla syrup. This is beautifully blended, extremely complex, and constantly evolving while being worn. There are so many layers to this fragrance, and I respect that about it. It's not a groundbreaking DNA, but it doesn't need to be. You wear this one just cause you like it. This absolutely makes the bottle-worthy shortlist, and I would happily reach for this alongside bottles like Absolute Aphrodisiac, Black Phantom, By the Fireplace, and Side Effect. Review #120 in my fragrance journey – this fragrance I own as a decant

The most mesmerizing scent i’ve smelt in a perfume. This is the first ever perfume I fell in love with and the one that kick started my perfume addiction. The smell is addictive, sexy, seductive, and all in all a masterpiece in my opinion. First time I saw this was in a boujee clothing store selling the ELDO collection. I initially smelled the whole collection from left to right and didn’t get intrigued to a single one, until this one, Frustration, I thought I could give it a chance. The first initial spray on my wrist was harsh, the opening was stinging and straight up an assault, almost unbearable. I thought to myself, why would anyone wear this? It’s not even the slightest bit enjoyable. In other words, frustrated. Maybe disappointed at the high hopes I had for this one. I then left the store aggravated, thinking how I’m going to smell like a nuclear cinnamon stick for the rest of the day. Then around 10-15 minutes later, this perfume starts to evolve into something otherworldly and unrecognizable. Sudden whiffs of a freshly baked cinnamon bun and caramelized nuts started to pierce my nose. It was almost as if a bakery was baking something right by my side, but there was no bakery nearby. I wondered to myself, “could it be the perfume I sprayed? No. It can’t be, impossible.” Then I smelled my left wrist and it was true. The insufferable perfume I sprayed about 10 minutes ago turned into a love and respect for perfume. If you like gourmand scents, definitely give this one a shot. My rating for this perfume is a straight 10, even if projection and longevity is average. Definitely more for the winter time though, it really brings out the colors of this perfume. Smell: 12/10 Longevity: 6/10 Sillage: 6.5/10 Price: $$$$ i wish it was cheaper

Got my hands on the sample kit with 20 small vials of ELDO's fragrances to try with my girlfriend. This is our seventh fragrance we decided to test out. One of my favorites from the sample kit - but an even bigger favorite for my girlfriend, who won't let me have it! This scent is a bit more linear than most of ELDO's offerings, but not in a negative way at all - this is a delectable gourmand fragrance without going full on into sweet gourmand territory. Opens incredibly boozy and rich with spice. That cumin-cinnamon combo is killer. Drying down, it becomes a lovely, lightly sweetened chestnut with phenomenal woody notes and spice. It tickles your nose delicately when you get a full blown whiff of it, and the earthy vetiver base prevents this scent from straying into being too sickeningly sweet or spiced. This is a deceptively simple fragrance with a glowing, rich, olfactory backbone - and that's a wonderful thing. Some other reviewers have noted that this scent bears a striking resemblance to Maison Margiela's "Jazz Club" and I'd have to agree with that. This is very much in the same place as Jazz Club, just slightly sweeter and with a diligent chestnut accord. Think the same club, but during a festive event in the winter. Also, great longevity on this one. Not too overbearing or strong either, but enough to leave a pleasant trail. This one's a winner for fans of that Jazz Club DNA - if you're willing to spend a bit more on something that's tastier!

I'm new to Etat Libre d'Orange (which I shall refer to as ELDO) and this fragrance was my introduction to the brand, and straight off the bat I am intrigued and looking forward to getting to know this brand better. Frustration is a gorgeous blend of rich nuts and smooth boozy vanilla which seem to meticulously work together to create a warm, inviting aroma that is unique and pretty much unlike anything else I've smelt before. When I wore it as my SOTD I found pretty much all day long I could smell it around me in a thick scent cloud, and I found it did a pretty good job of filling up a room (which was much to my delight). It is also very much unisex and versatile, and I can see this being worn in all sorts of situations or events. The actual scent profile on my skin did end up changing throughout the day, with it starting off as a whole load of nut, but as the day went on I found it to develop into a more sweet and velvety kind of gourmand situation with the addition of an ever so forthcoming rum note, so I suppose for me it seemed like the notes completely flipped, with chestnut at the top/start and rum + cinnamon coming out later on. Overall, I find nothing about this fragrance to be frustrating except for the fact I won't get the chance to smell it for the first time again! It also has me very excited to try more nutty fragrances in the future as this one was so gratifying.

I’m feeling like the perfume industry needs to create a subgenre of gourmand fragrances called “boozy gourmands”. Maybe it already exists. Lately, I have been so into them whatever you call them. Anything even remotely rum and bourbon has been making its way into my collection in anticipation of glorious Autumn weather. I have several fragrances from this house, and I love them all. I blind bought Frustration on a whim based on reading the notes. I’m glad I did. Like my other Etat Libre d’Orange perfumes, this one needs a minute to get situated on my skin. It opens with a screechy vetiver note that made me say “oh no” at first. But as it started opening up, it turned into a warm, cozy, boozy experience that I am so grateful for. It smells both comforting and familiar yet modern and new. It’s so perfectly genderless and JUST PLAIN GOOD. If you like Angel’s Share, Khamra, and Khamra Qawah, this is a safe bet for you. All three of them of course smell unique and are their own thing, but they have that boozy gourmand vibe I mentioned. Add Frustration to that delicious mix in your collection. I now have Frustration on my dresser next to Spice Must Flow and Like This, two other delicious Autumn gourmands from Etat Libre d’Orange that I love. You should look into those fragrances, too.

Got this in an ELDO discovery box Opening - Blast of sweet, powdery spicy raw cocoa like feeling - strongly reminds me of a box of high quality "truffle" chocolates. Boozy cinnamon notes blends excellently with the warm bread-y feel from the cumin. Excellent gourmand opening. Drydown - the powdery feeling of the spices subsides, giving way to gourmand sweet notes from the vanilla, providing a "sweet dough pastry" type of sweetness, rather than sugary one. Chestnut wood accord provides a warm backbone combined with the slight leftover booziness remaining from the opening. Excellent gourmand scent providing warm, cozy feelings of baked sweet goods and spices, without being cloying in the slightest. Excellent blend and quality. Out of 11 ELDO samples i have tested from my discovery box, this have to be the only one that i am outright convinced with. And despite the name, it provides exactly the opposite sensations to "Frustration". If you are looking for cold spring/fall fragrance that provides warm, cozy, soothing gourmand experience, this is bottle worthy.

Frustration: perhaps the most anomalous interpretation of the Etat Libre d'Orange rose. A dive into childhood, the smell of chestnuts, the aroma of liqueur invading the rooms, the warmth and sweetness of those days. “The memory of that fragile child that was within us, now strong adults, or the melancholy of the happiness of a child who has become a fragile man”, this is the beautiful explanation given by Etat Libre d'Orange. And frustration here is seen not as something negative, but as a pleasure that is not fully satisfied and ephemeral, doing nothing other than stimulate our soul to remember and rekindle the desire for that unfinished something, and the perfume, with its volatility, it is a sort of metaphor for it. So enjoyable that I wanted to try again to get to the end. A beautiful and original fragrance, warm and comforting. Ended up on wishlist. “Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens” drawn by Arthur Rackham.

My first full size Etat Libre d'Orange!! I'm IN LOVE with this supreme vanilla chestnut cozy scent with massive performance!! I love vanilla scents, and this one is in the top five. I bought the discovery set for this house, and this was my immediate number one out of all 20 in the set. Exit the King and I Am Trash were right behind, but this one stole my heart and I absolutely had to have it. If you are a vanilla lover/collector, you may also adore this one. It is similar with the chestnut note to This is Her by Zadig and Voltaire, but it is more vanilla rich and sweeter. This is such a comforting enveloping fragrance, I was thrilled to find it for under $120 for the full size on EBay. This is going to get so much use in the cold weather, what a great fall/winter fragrance to give you cozy vibes!!

This opens up quiet sharp (but maybe i oversprayed a little). on the first initial spray i didnt really like the cumin accord but thats faded quiet quicky. It starts off a bit too sweet for me but that sweetness also settles down after a couple of minutes. The opening is this warm spicy and very chestnutty scent with a slight smoke accord and a pronounced cumin note. Cinnamon in the background. When it dries down it loses the smokeyness a bit. After a while this very soothing powdery vanilla comes through. And the cinnamon gets more to the fore .Very cosy scent. I like that it isnt a sticky gourmand at all it actually quiet dry. And to me its perfectly unisex, i love wearing this as a man but could really see a woman wear this. Overall a very good cosy winter/fall scent. 7,8/10

A lovely fragrance, sweet and soothing, after the initial overly sweet blast has disappeared. It oozes cleanliness and comfort and to me it smells identical to Cara by Farmacia SS. Annunziata, which is mainly a nutty vanilla. Unfortunately, just like the haunting and elusive Cara, this is just another skin scent with zero projection and very average lasting power. I caved in and bought a FB, thinking I undersprayed at the store, but it turns out it is indeed a skin scent :( I'm not sure I regret buying it, it IS lovely and I love it on my wrist, but I would've bought a much cheaper EdT if performance wasn't an issue for me. PS: I bought it from a department store, not online, so I don't think that authenticity is the issue regarding its performance.

Oh this scent brings so many memory and joy of nostalgia. It reminded me when I was a child, when I used to sit by a fireplace and roasting chestnut in the middle of the night. I remember when my mother helped me roast my chestnut, I remember the aroma of the slowly burning chestnut and the scent of the fire. I remember the scent of the roasted chestnut and the joy it brings me when life used to be simple. Now I can't relive that moment again except remembering the memories with the help of this masterpiece of chestnut fragrance. Definetely a 10/10, might be little biased but try it on your own and see if my words are right.

Yesterday, at first sniff, I couldn't get past caramel popcorn. I hadn't checked on the notes, so that's what chestnut is about. Today I wear it to the office and I am surrounded by a sunny autumn vibe, roasted chestnuts and maple syrup pancakes (a pinch of cinnamon, a pinch of vanilla), dried leaves and the smoke of the fireplace. It is a golden, laidback perfume, all peace, rum and memories of young love, old rock tunes and dust of the prairie. If your heart still longs for a Marlboro Man, if you're in in your 50s but young at heart, Frustration is just for you. Younger chaps may not get the hang of it.

I do really really enjoy this to be honest: Up from the start it’s a sweet vanille and chestnut fragrance, sweet yummy a bit lactonic smells a bit like Nutella. Very well done gourmand with great raw materials, not synthetic you can very much feel the presence of every note in the breakdown here. Picture bread slice with chestnut cream on top with a glass of milk. Totally unisex Compliment getter average projection and longevity 6/7 hrs Still I’ve smell plenty of chestnut vanilla fragrance, not innovative in this sense but still worthy of the price tag in my opinion 8.8/10

On initial impression in really fascinated, I needed to get my thoughts down as soon as possible. Spraying it on paper it smelled so reminiscent of Initio Side Effect, the main notes were rum and vanilla. The second I sprayed it on my skin the chestnut appeared as the main star (I couldn't smell it at all on the paper), and now about 10 minutes later the rum has emerged. I love Side Effect and have a full bottle, so initially I thought it was too similar to justify a full bottle, but depending on how it performs from here, maybe a decant might be in order.

Etat Libre D'Orange Sample Kit 17/20 A warm, sweet and exceptional take on a more "nutty" gourmand style fragrance. Boozy and sweet, quite strong when sprayed initally. Everything you would expect from the scent profile, but with a strong creamy chestnut note in the drydown, which is more enjoyable than expected. It's different enough to notice, but not weird enough to freak anyone out. Furthermore it projects quite well, which is a bit of a bonus for me at least. One of the best from the brand I've tried so far, definitely worth sampling.

I adore this perfume. It's Fat Electrician's nighttime brother. The chestnut note is so addictive and with the other notes it becomes a warm, sweet and nutty blanket of scent. There's a slight spice but on my skin I don't get the curry like cumin, just spices that evoke autumn and don't overpower the sweetness of the scent. The performance and longevity are pretty damn solid too, as I've found with all of the fragrances in ELDO's pricier offerings. I knew I was going to love this, and love this I did, and now I need to buy a FB.

Cozy and Seductive at the same time. Admittedly, I didn't know how to feel about this fragrance upon first spraying it. Most of the gourmands I've worn in the past were more floral and sweet, whereas this is deep and nutty. It's like you're wearing sexy pajamas in front of a fireplace. It quickly grew on me. Also, it lasts literally forever. It won't be the same as it was when you first sprayed it, but you can still smell the sweetness for more than 12 hours. Scent Description: Warm Chestnuts Sillage: Strong Longevity: 12+ Hours

This scent really shocked me when I smelled it. I didn't know the notes and was not expecting the vanilla cinnamon twist. It was addicting to me I kept sniffing the area I applied it something about it was so alluring to me. I love this I just wish the price was similar to most of the ELdO line. However, I see why its more exensive as this lasts much longer than any other ELdO I've tried. Also don't understand the votes this can totally be worn in the summer if you're brave enough; I plan on doing it with the sample I bought.

I actually really like this one, it's a very mature gourmand, still sweet, vanilla-y but spicy [more cinnamon spicy than pepper spicy] boozy, smoky, nutty. it kinda reminds me of marrons glacés. very autumn/winter vibes, really cozy and nostalgic, this is one of those smells that takes me back to end of autumn/winter holidays as a french kid, when the adults would have their afternoon snack and pull out boxes of marrons glacés paired with a liquor or cognac, or smelling those roasted chestnuts at christmas markets

This opens with a spiced rum with warm cinnamon and dry cumin. This brand seems to really love using cumin in a way I don’t really enjoy but in this blend it works well with the booze. The heart of this is allll vanilla with a slight hint of ambery labdanum but I don’t get a lot of it, just a creamy and smooth vanilla absolute with remnants of the rum. The dry down is a dry & sweet chesnut with boozy and smooth woods. This is a very boozy wood forward vanilla scent with hints of spice. Really loved this one