Botrytis

ok that is freaky. it signed my review as guest... so lets try it again and it cut off the end. strange. Heaven I’m in heaven And my heart beats So that I can hardly speak And I seem to find The happiness I seek When we’re out together... If heaven has a scent please let it be this. And if heaven had a song Frank Sinatra would probably be singing it. Botrytis, I find, is just as golden as its color. This has to be the truest honeyed perfume I have tried to date. I don’t think I need to look any further. After this I think everything else would pale in comparison. The honey is so deep and rich. It has a rawness about it. It seems unfiltered, if you will. Also the second thing I smell is tobacco. Even though it is not listed it is unmistakable. When they combine together it becomes unbelievably rich and decadent. Then it turns boozy with the help of the grapes, wine and dried fruits. Gingerbread sprinkles its spice gently along in the background. Amber and a touch a vanilla seem to wind it down at the end. I also hesitated to use the word “sweet” when trying to describe this. Yes it is sweet but not the typical sugar-coated candy fluff sweet or big heady floral sweet. This is a natural, earthy and deep intense sweet. This deserves to be savored like a fine wine. I remember reading a blog post on it (I wish I remembered who so that I could give credit) but they wrote it was a “gourmand for grownups” and I couldn’t agree more. Not that I think you couldn’t enjoy this in your twenties. I imagine this has fans from all ages. But I think if you can appreciate a nice glass of wine you will appreciate this fragrance even more. I think this fragrance can be worn all year long. I have a feeling it would bloom better on the skin in the spring and autumn months when the bees are especially active and the sun’s warmth just touches the skin but the shadows are still cool. I only have a sample of it at the moment and I use it very conservatively. It seems to stay close to the skin. But it seems to last a good 6 hours on me. This would be a great fragrance to wear for an outside event. It will remain close to you but anyone that steps into your space will be so glad they did.

Mature, raunchily honeyed fruit. This is the wine perfume I was looking for. The gingerbread note is tantalizing and so well placed! Edit: This fragrance is my husband's favorite on me, which is saying something. It's really underrated. I could wear it every day as the perfect warm honey scent, but I don't overuse it because I'm not sure how long it will be available. I was only able to find it at Luckyscent for about what you'd pay for a designer scent (so, highly reasonable for a niche scent), and it only comes in one size. It's got kind of cheap packaging and a pedestrian bottle design, but don't let that sway you against it. There is, however, a lovely satin drawstring bag that it comes in, so the little touch of luxury is there. However, I say judge by the scent alone. The longevity is fantastic and it lasts all day. It's a close-to-the-skin scent, but I did get a sweet compliment from someone who hugged me. It seems as though it's a weak performer but I contest that the wearer should spray lightly, 1-3 sprays, so as not to be overwhelmed into perfume numbness. This way I get lovely whiffs of honeyed raisins with a hint of yeast and spice all day. *Eyes roll back in my head* For a while I was looking into smell-alikes out of curiosity, because I want more of the same. The Al-Rehab Dalal is very close but smells cheap with some annoying plastic note. Lush Honey I Washed the Kids is heavier on the honey, so much that it's more of a beeswax scent. Hiram Green Slowdive has some comparison but it was really too heavy and foul for me, even dabbed. Escada Collection...I can't even touch the stuff, it's so expensive. So I've settled on my beautiful Botrytis and am happy that this local French winery decided to branch out into its inspired perfumery. This is one hidden gem for sure.

I wanted this since forever and a day. I wanted it so badly, all of sniffing a tiny sample a couple years ago. Finally I decided to treat myself for Chrsitmas. And after the first reaction ( my precious, finally mine ! ) disappointment came.... Not because it isn't as stunning as I remember , but because the silage is weak and the lasting power is not stellar either. Other people described this well . It's liquid honey. Nectar of the deities . Mixed with flowers and maybe some propolis . The top notes can't be beaten by anything, honey shines here... And then there is a floral Amber developing softly , beautiful, feminine, curvy . The bottle looks much smaller than what one would think 100ml look like, it's round like a ball with a silver wine leaf on the cap. The bottle sits in a brown satin bag and the box is quite plain. A beauty so soft and I can barely feel it and I need to be heavy handed spraying . Maybe my skin eats it... I wish it didn't. It is better in clothes but the juice is rather ambery in color so I am not sure I want to spray much on my clothes. Very beautiful and sweet!

My signature for years was Escada Collection. I almost paid $300 for it on eBay, it's so rare now. After reading some of these reviews, I ordered a sample of this to compare, and I am stunned at the similarity. They don't even have the same notes, but they smell nearly identical. The only difference I can detect is that this perfume seems slightly less rich than Escada. I think the plum and caramel notes in Escada make a difference. Still, this is close enough that I am thankful I did not purchase a $300 bottle of Escada Collection. For those who don't know the scent of Escada, it's like dried fruits that have been stewed with honeywine and cloves until it becomes a syrup, then it is poured over a panettoni; and then, oddly, moss is added. It is rich, rich, decadently rich! This is also the scent of Botrytis. Sounds weird, but it's like a gourmand chypre. There is nothing else like it (well, I guess now there is Botrytis, the ever-so-slightly anemic version that is actually quite awesome).

WHOA!!!! This perfume is out of this world! Picture sitting at the head of a long table in 18th century France. You reach out to the delicate china holding an assortment of dried fruit. As you pick up a juicy dried apricot, it's dripping with honey and a hint of lemon zest fills the air. As you take a bite, you feel the honey drip down the side of your mouth. You lick it off and take a sip of dessert wine, sit back, and enjoy while someone walks by wearing a sensual amber perfume. The scent fills you up with richness as you smile at the delightful taste in your mouth. This is the experience of Botrytis Ginestet. It is breathtaking. Sweet, sophisticated, sexy, sensual, and utterly irresistible. I would bathe in this, if I could. The scent is very close to the skin but seems to last on and on. Wow, I can't wait to try this on for my husband. Delicious. Definitely full bottle worthy!