Eau Sacree

A very lovely little incense number, I was initially intimidated by Eau Sacree's black label, listing of rose and apparently higher concentration than Cardinal. Well, my trepidation was totally unnecessary this time, as Eau Sacree is much the same as Cardinal, a straightforward mixed (olibanum + myrrh) incense with near flawless execution (and in my opinion truly flawless in the case of Cardinal). The secondary notes of Eau Sacree feed simply into the incense and do not take the perfume far away from a "solinote" concept. Indeed even the rose is fairly shy on my skin, and only just detectable. As you'd expect from such a composition there's a resinous, coca-cola-like scent which, to those who spent their childhood years in Catholic Mass (I did not) may evoke a sense of the spiritual. My only mild gripe with Eau Sacree is my gripe with incense solinotes in general - I simply don't love the smell of incense sufficiently to remain captivated by it over an extended period of time. For me, this would be a very "easy reach", spray-and-forget crowd pleasing type of scent, the kind of thing I'd spray on my clothes as I'm walking out of the house to donate some small element of magic to the day ahead. I do find both Cardinal and Eau Sacree coy, with a fairly quick collapse into a skin scent but relatively durable longevity thereafter for such simple fragrances. I can't begrudge them this fact unduly, however, as I suspect it's within the lightness; within the delicate, ephemeral sillage of the two scents that their poise is achieved. The more hardcore incenses can, for my nose, sometimes veer into something altogether different, though there's at least one (Rien Intense Incense) which I think I'd select over these out of a preference for simple oomph. I accept that my caveman sensibilities do not impugn the quality of Eau Sacree or his brother. Overall Eau Sacree is a glinting treasure, however fleeting.

Any scent I've tried so far from James Heeley has been a hit. Scents from this house tend to be simple and high-quality, centred on a key note. Eau Sacrée is similar - it is a beautiful incense scent centred on frankincense and myrrh. Being raised Catholic, I adore a good ecclesiastical incense scent, and this is a great example of the genre. Balsamic and rich, but not very smoky, I really enjoyed this. ES is richly balsamic from initial spray, featuring a beautiful, smooth frankincense note, perfectly evocative of a feast day mass. The labdanum adds a smooth leathery quality to the balsamic accord, grounding it and adding depth. Warm, sweet spices follow, complementing it to perfection. As it develops, smooth rose emerges, becoming increasingly powdery as it develops. It is the perfect accompaniment to the incense, but remains in the background. Patchouli follows closely, complementing it nicely and adding a herbal edge to this scent. Here, the combination of patchouli and incense feels a little hippie-ish, but this is not a bad thing. As it dries down, sweet myrrh seamlessly marries with the frankincense, forming that age-old nativity accord, and is beautifully rendered here. It becomes increasingly dry and woody here as the grassy vetiver emerges, slightly astringent but a logical conclusion. Sillage and longevity are moderate. It is a unisex autumn/winter scent. ES is a lovely, wearable example of an incense scent, understated and smooth throughout. Made with high-quality ingredients, well-blended throughout and reasonably simple, this is another impressive scent from this house. 4.5/5.

A mysterious incense interpretation, which has an elusive character. On the initial spray, you get the same resinous incense scent that you see from the likes of Avignon, or Heeley’s Cardinal, but there’s more going on here. There’s more wood, a bit more spiciness, and the drydown and heart have my nose interpreting an almost acerbic quality lurking underneath, which slightly reminds me of mustard seed. As Eau Sacree evolves, the incense and wood softens and the mystery note reveals itself: Rose. The combination of incense and rose in this is a very confusing one for my brain when smelling it, and I kind of like that. The latter half of this scent’s life on your skin will give way to that spicy rose, and it’s nice. A real enigmatic pure incense fragrance, this one, and on the opposite end of the spectrum from Cardinal when it comes to pure incense interpretations. Smelling them side by side will make this one seem all the more dry, dark, and bitter, considering how light and sweet Cardinal is, but on it’s own Eau Sacree is a more complex scent that requires some time to consider. Though this is an Extrait, it has a surprising lack of strength or longevity, and doesn’t last as half as long as Cardinal or Avignon. It shows up, poses it’s riddles, and then leaves you to contemplate the answer. I like it.

Really cool! I love fragrances that want to go for a specific theme or feel and execute it flawlessly. The opening hits you straight away with a very deep, warm, leathery labdanum that lasts a bit, even in the middle. It's all non-transitional - just one full, linear blend. There's a super resinous frankincense and myrrh combination. The rose is a bit hidden, because it's "dry", but it's really there, between all that, giving the whole scent an "elevated" feel. There's a slight "stanky", musky, earthy patchouli oil feel, but it's not at all bad. It all smells so clergy. But I'm not really getting a straight, old European Catholic church vibe. More like a monastery of monks from the Coptic churches in Egypt. It has a rustic feel to it, and a slight spicy dryness. But at the same time, it's viscous and dense, with a myrrh sweetness and a damp, woody backdrop. It feels like it's an essential oil that's meant to be rubbed on, instead of sprayed. It's very comforting, really. I don't find it smoky/incense-like at all. More ambery and balsamic. I also don't get the pine that some reviewers are mentioning. I love this a lot. Great theme execution. Nothing fancy, just simple and well-blended. I'm looking forward to trying some other Heeley fragrances.

This was a lot to take in when I sprayed for the first time. There is lots happening, it's very deep and strong. However, it has grown on me tremendously - maybe even to my favourite perfume, and now I wake up in the morning looking forward to inhaling this delicious resinous concoction. It feels more complex than the other incense based perfumes I've tried, and without that kind of dry & sweet frankincense in perfumes like Cardinal / Avignon / Montale-Full Incense... give it a couple of goes to get used to it before deciding. This and Armani Prive - Bois D'Encens are my favourite incense perfumes... So happy to find this - Phoenicia in the same vein is also delicious!