Earl Grey & Cucumber

This is one of the best citruses I have smelled. And I have smelled a lot. I usually don't like the perfumes where the citrus is the main character. For example, I sold my Le Labo Limette (San Fran exclusive) because it was too zesty, I sold my FM Bigarade Concentree because the bitter oranges were too overpowering and made it hard to distinguish other notes. I got rid of my Eau de Sisley 2, House of Oud Live in Colors, because again - the bergamot and grapefruits were too strong to my liking. I could not like even Zoologist Macaque Yuzu. At the end, this citrus is one of the only ones that I am keeping. It's green, light, slightly fresh, very sheer and transparent. It's not overpowering, it has tea-like watery qualities, it does not steal the stage. It is just beautiful and very well-balanced and is only heard in the background. Cucumber and vanilla are the most dominant notes for me. Beeswax is there to support the sweetness too. The cucumber is not spicy, not "dill-like" unlike Santal 33, it's not overly fresh or masculine. It is rather light and is simply there as a heart note to add an edgy vegetative nature and watery quality. The perfume is not marine and does not stink of seaweed, it is rather fresh, Mediterranean, and reminds me of gardens with bergamot somewhere not far from a shore. It's beautiful! I am keeping it permanently in my collection! My next cucumbers to try on the wish list are Kilian's roses on ice and bond no 9 wall street.

Earl Grey is my favourite tea. I take it steeped just a tiny bit too long in scalding hot water with a bit of honey, no sugar, no milk. And oh my god everytime I have a cuppa I always think to myself I wanna sink into a whole steaming bathtub of this because of how amazing it smells. Well, this perfume comes pretty close with what I imagine that experience would be. I don't really know what the notes stated above are all about but I guess the combination of them somehow creates an accord that brings Earl Grey so clearly to mind. It's pretty genius. It smells exactly like Earl Grey with the bitter black tea leaves and that tangy bergamot (I don't get much of the cucumber at all though). And there's nothing lactonic or sugary about it either. It's just that plain old Earl Grey tea, exactly how I take it. It's unmistakable. It's brilliant. It's fucken awesome. I love it. The only downside is, it's a cologne concentration and it's Jo Malone so the longevity and overall performance isn't that great. If someone somewhere makes a parfum or even an extrait concentration of this juice, I would snatch it up immediately. That's how much I love this scent. In the meantime though, I will definitely always have this in my collection. It's a staple. I love putting this on in the morning and have it energize me the way a cup of Earl Grey would. I'll probably buy a big 100ml bottle after I'm done with this little 30ml one.

One of the most beautiful Jo Malone scents, I really wonder why this is one of the underdogs in their permanent lineup and not talked about more. Maybe it's the name, cucumber might sound off-putting, as it can easily cross over into an unpleasant pickle smell. Fear not, this doesn't smell like pickles, not even like a fresh cucumber. Instead it is a soft, fluffy, creamy, but also powdery, slightly sweet and slightly fresh dream of a tea scent. It has a prominent base of vanilla and musk, so it doesn't just fade away like other citrus and tea fragrances do, but melts beautifully into the skin as it dries down. The Earl Grey tea and angelica are always present though, the bitterness and green notes keep the scent fresh and not too gourmandish. I don't get the beeswax note at all. This reminds me of a lighter, more casual version of Guerlain Angelique Noire, or a better, more realistically tea-like Teazzura. It also has a lot in common with Sylvaine Delacourte's Smeraldo, but with added vanilla. This is the perfect mix of a green vanilla, a fluffy white musk and a summery tea scent. I love all of these fragrance subgenres on their own, it's no surprise I also adore Earl Grey & Cucumber.

The opening of this scent is beautiful. It is true, refreshing and citrusy bergamot with the watery cucumber note and the slight earthiness of black tea (not a note but the combination really exudes this essence). It is ever so slightly floral adding a little warmth and sweetness to the tea concept. On me personally, I don't get the apple but as it begins to settle the musk starts to develop ever so slightly. I do eventually get the dry down that others were mentioning about the baby powder smell. I don't hate it but wish that it remained tea centered because the opening is so great but doesn't hang around too long.It is still a refreshing and classy-casual scent but changes fairly quickly. After maybe 2 hours, the powdery/beeswax scent dissipates and returns to a bit of a fresh scent just mildly evocative of elizabeth arden green tea but wears very close to the skin. I may give it a few more tests in different seasons to see how it reacts.

One of the older and underrated Jo Malone. Opens up with blasting bergamot and a hint of black tea, after around 30 minutes it softens/tones down just a little bit maybe from the cucumber - still fresh but more "watery" if that makes sense and ends with a light fresh musk scent. Projects as well as the other average JM colognes (in terms of projection of JM colognes, I classify Honeysuckle & Davana and Mimosa & Cardamom in the above average range, anything less than those two is considered average). I just picked this up last week and this has been my daily cologne now. I drink a cup of earl grey tea before bed and wearing this cologne just makes what is merely routine more enjoyable. It is unusual to wear a citrusy scent before bed but wearing this down makes me feel more positive. Cannot wait for spring and summer so I can test how it performs on my skin under the sun.