Bois d'Encens

Ok not trying to offend anyone (hint: I actually am because you people are nuts) but how is it possible, at all, that the first note listed is anything other than Cedar? This fragrance NAILS cedar. It is genius Cedar. PERFECT cedar. Quite literally the most amazingly photo-realistic Cedar ever created in perfumery. CEDAR CEDAR CEDAR CEDAR AND ONLY CEDAR!!!! Now that I have effectively overstated the true nature of this fragrance allow me to elaborate. Many fragrances list 'oakmoss' or 'bergamot' 'leather' as notes in the fragrance. 99% of the time they actually smell nothing at all like any of these notes, but rather sorta kinda like like these notes. Similar to how a Yamaha keyboard can sound like a Piano, but you'd never mistake one for a Bosendorfer grand. No one in their right mind really truly smells leather in Cool Water, but perhaps some synthetic interpretation of 'leather' but again- Yamaha keyboard vs Bosendorfer. Now Bois d'Encens... This one smells exactly like cedar. It is what you smell from fresh cut cedar, or perhaps something that is handcrafted from cedar. I will never forget my parents had a turtle carved from cedar that had a pull out jewelry storage drawer. You couldn't smell the cedar from the outside of the turtle, but when you opened the drawer it was overwhelming! Beautiful. The kind of scent that burns into your brain and heart. When I sprayed Bois d'Encens on me I was instantly transported back in time to when I would sneak into my parents room with the sole purpose of opening that cedar turtle and taking in a giant deep whiff. I wanted that scent to last, but it only ever was good for a few deep inhalations before it was gone. I would close the turtle knowing that later the smell would come back. With Bois I get to smell that scent anytime I want! But alas, much like my coveted cedar turtle, the scent does not last for long. Longer than a few whiffs, but not long enough. Maybe 3-5 hours depending on many factors such as outside temperature or what I'm wearing. Sillage- moderate within the first couple hours, close to skin thereafter. Overall the execution of this fragrance is a thing of utter brilliance. The first from the Prive line that I have fallen for and am actually considering purchasing beyond the sample I have. With the only flaw being the longevity I give this one a solid 8/10.

As an incense lover, I'd been keen to try this. Whilst it is quite a lovely incense fragrance, I couldn't say it breaks any new ground or really stands out in what is becoming quite a crowded genre. It is based around 5 ingredients: frankincense, labdanum, vetiver, spices and cedar. All of these are easily distinguishable and I find the scent itself quite linear, except for the cedar & spices becoming more prominent after a few hours. It isn't quite as liturgical as say, CdG Avignon, but not as contemplative as Kyoto from that house either. In fact, it's kind of like a blend of that pair. Frankincense with a big compliment of cedar. It's staying power is really good, but it is quite subtle on me, so it doesn't try to suggest to everyone within arms reach that you've been sitting in a catholic mass all day. This is a good thing! I believe a full bottle of this is worth quite the pretty penny and seeing as I have a bunch of other perfectly delightful incense frags already (that do a very similar job), I doubt I'd be in the market for a bottle any time soon. That being said, there's no denying it's a very elegant, classy scent, so if you have the money....well, let's just say, there's no pockets in a shroud!

Bois d'Encens is an excellent rendering of church-style incense, bringing back memories of attending Mass growing up. Simple and high-quality, it is woody and spicy in equal measure with balsamic, resinous nuances. It is somehow sensual despite being thoroughly churchy (Catholic guilt?!) BE opens with peppery spice, followed closely by dry, woody vetiver. Resinous notes with a pine-like nuance emerge, forming the frankincense accord together with the woody spice. Initially dry and smoky, catching in the back of the throat, it is church incense through-and-through, one of my favourite notes of all. The amber accord develops as the scent progresses on my skin, becoming slightly animalic. It is a good, high-quality amber accord, resinous and rich, adding a smoothness to the hyper-realistic incense of the opening here. Cedar adds some woody depth, rounding out the vetiver nicely. The spicy incense remains until final fade. Sillage and longevity are moderate - I did expect better performance given the price and scent profile, but it's so good regardless. Perfectly unisex, and best worn in autumn/winter. Simple yet perfectly formed. The thurible swings. 4.5/5.

Beautiful, absolutely the most beautiful, gentle and mild, woodsy incense perfume!!!! It's gorgeous!!!!! It's the loveliest, gentlest incense. I'm completely in seventh heaven when I wear it, which is hmmm......most of the time.......I can't get enough of it!!! It's deep and rich, comforting and soothing. It envelopes me in a soft cloud of lightly smokey woody fragrant spicy sweet incense, but it's a smokiness that's more like a powder than smoke-up-your-nose suffocating smoke. It's soft and smooth. It's exquisite. I adore it!!!! It is much loved by everyone who smells it on me, especially my husband, and even complete strangers tell me how wonderful I smell and ask me what it is!!! And it lasts for 24 hours!! I'm serious!! It's lovely and strong for about 10 hours, then softens to just a little more than a skin scent for the rest of that time, but it virtually never goes completely away until after 2 showers!!! Which is fabulously fine with me, especially as I only need to spray 3 or 4 sprays on!! It's the most perfect perfume for me - it's divine!!!!! It's one of my favourite perfumes, and I treasure it dearly!!!

Armani Bois d'Encens is a refined mildish Incense frag. A hit of slightly sour spices in the beginning before the labdanum and woody cedar comes into play.I get hints of olibanum as well even though it's not mentioned here. It stays pretty linear after that for the rest of it's scent life. This is not a resinous or smokey Incense like CDG Avignon or Interlude so even people who dont particularly like incense can pull this off. Projection is Ok, pretty much in the safe zone and well behaved. Longevity likewise is slightly disappointing for me considering the price, around the 5 hour mark. I like this frag and incense is one of my favourite notes, so I enjoy wearing this but I hesitate to blindly recommend it because purely from a price to performance ratio, this is barely ok. Far better options at cheaper prices exist, Avignon to just name one or even Montale Full Incense if you want better longevity. So if price or performance is not an issue go for it, one of the best clean incense frags around, versatile enough for office or dates. 8/10