Queen Nzinga

A high-quality geranium note within a well-balanced spicy amber. The tamarind plays the same role as it does in Thai food - lending a "certain something" that you can't quite place. I get overnight performance (at least 10 hours) and it radiates past arms length - smelling awesome the entire time. This is linear - so if you like what you put on skin, there's little worry that it will dry down to something unpleasant. If you are an amber aficionado - definitely worth a sniff.

Everything i didn't even know i was looking for in a fragrance. Classic, warm, and sultry. As someone who's never gravitated towards amber, I'm in love. Looooong lasting (overnight!!) and insane projection. Reminds me of daydreaming on a shag carpet in the 70's even though i was born in the 90's and never got to experience anything like that.

I don't get the Shalimar likeness but omg this is the best amber I've tried in ages. Sweet as treacle, must be the tamarind but with that firm amber base. Wafts all around me. Comforting and uplifting. Still getting to know this but I'm 💯 getting a full bottle. Based on a 2ml sample from Sainte Cellier.

This is absolutely beautiful. A big, powdery, ambery, semi gourmand with tamarind, and zesty citric nuances on a deeply floral base, with light balsamic qualities. I can't quite compare this to anything else and yet it has a familiarity that makes it warm and welcoming. A richly beautiful fragrance.

fizzy, balsamic, gooey gorgeousness. i associate this scent so much with intimacy and the private sphere that I admittedly fear wearing it outside. a powerhouse that commands notice. in the vein of Shalimar.

I rave about this perfume. The sillage is enormous. It lasts from when I go to bed til morning. The tamarind smell is something I've never found elsewhere, except the actual fruit.

I'm partial to tangy/warm scents and this one delivers! Super powerful, use one spray. Lasts and lasts. Beautiful and badass. Love tamarind as a fragrance note.

Naked, sprawled out on satin sheets during a crisp spring day. She's got that tart and spicy charm, truly fit for a queen.

warm and powdery with a little spice. its sexy and comforting at the same time

Queen Nzinga was an African ruler who fought in battle and used other political tactics to protect her people from colonization. She did not refer to herself as a queen, but as a female king. She ruled dressed as a man, and had multiple concubines of both sexes. This fragrance is powerful, both literally and figuratively. It projects like an enormous, androgynous, sexy, overwhelming aura. It is dramatic as hell, it commands dominion over everything, and it fills every space. It smells very masculine (in a pleasantly striking way) --lots of aromatic herbs and geranium paired with a heavy, rich, eye-wateringly potent, powdery-bitter-warm amber. At first the amber is dough-like and tart from the tamarind. Mouth-watering. Then it grows in strength and absolutely roars.

I’m wearing this on a coldish overcast day in Pittsburgh in late autumn, great film lighting. Queen Nzinga is warm, sweet, and strong—maybe a litttle more silage than I tend to like, sweeter than what I usually go for. Smells feminine to me but I could see this working so well/reading sexier on a man. Catching a little powder, too.

“Queen Nzinga” is fit for a queen. A heavy, powdery amber, it is softened by the tart shimmer of tamarind. “Queen Nzinga” is remarkably long-lasting; I can still smell it on my skin the next morning. It is warm, regal, and commanding. It is full-bottle-worthy, though unlikely to become a signature scent due to its intensity.

gorgeous powdery amber. the tamarind offers something different to the fragrance that allows it to acquire some freshness. plays off the heat of one's skin nicely and lasts quite awhile throughout the day. love this house, and i love this line and history behind this fragrance!

I see the similarities to Shalimar, but if you, like me, aren't a huge Shalimar fan, don't be afraid to try Queen Nzinga - without the leather and iris of Shalimar, Nzinga is sweeter and a little lighter, and IMO more wearable for a wider demographic.

I can smell the tamarind in the beginning, then the amber, and when it dries down I can smell mint. It doesn't project very much or last very long on me, but it smells very nice.

Warm amber, juicy Tamarind, a hint of rose and powder and a very small amount of cumin or pepper or something that leans anamalic. It’s absolutely beautiful and embodies strength

the opening is a bit difficult for me, but the drydown is sublime--kind of elegantly medicinal. i'd love to smell this on another person. i might want to bite them.

if dial gold bar soap had a super sweet hot charming older sister!

The amber answer to the rose queen of Portrait of a Lady. This is an amber fit for an empress, accented with tamarind and geranium. There’s a burnt-vanilla sweetness, but grounded by the earthiness of the tamarind. The whole scent lies silken and heavy, like a queen’s dressing gown. Something about it feels like an expensive shampoo blended with massage oils – like you took Byredo’s Bal d’Afrique and distilled it into a venom. The most assertive Zappas scent, tied with Flaming Creature. Definitely not a princess fragrance. Queen at minimum, with the sillage and longevity to prove it. Mental Snapshot: A royal salon, draped in priceless tapestries and simmering with censers of rare amber. Handmaidens wave peacock-feather fans and knights flank the walls in golden plate amour. You must kiss the ring before addressing Her Resplendence, but every digit is studded with rubies and topazes. “You can start with the left pinky,” A high priest whispers. tl;dr: gilded goddess 👑💍

Normally enjoy amber perfumes, this one is a no go. I couldn't wait to get this off me like some other reviewers mentioned. Smells like cheap 80s/90s generic commercial amber forward perfumes. Like some of her other stuff but this is a No. Also overpriced for what it is.

I received this in a sample lot I purchased from a Mercari seller...I dont think I would have chosen it otherwise. Not a fan. But if you are into spicy scents you might want to give it a try. Not a lot of longevity or sillage - at least for me.

Got a sample of this and really wanted to like it, but I couldn't. Maybe amber heavy fragrances just aren't for me, but this perfume is so sharp and aggressive that its off putting. The scent reminds me of a stereotypical cologne (i really dont want to say 2010s axe body spray but....). The fragrance sticks in your nostrils and lingers on clothes for what feels like an eternity. If you're shy about big projection and silage this perfume is not for you. People will smell you coming across the room and their noses might not appreciate it.

I’m not sure if it’s just the heavy Amber in this perfume, but it smelled like something my mother wore growing up (Shalimar?) and then morphed into this giant traditionally-spicy men’s aftershave/cologne. The smell is still lingering in the fabrics around where I sprayed it and I fear I won’t be able to escape this now for days.

This is a first impression: incredibly warm and inviting. On a cold winter day like this, it feels like a hug. I'm struck by the sense of a wonderful woman- not just her fragrance, but the feeling that she has been here. Like when you borrow a sweater from a friend and it doesn't just smell like them but has their energy in it. I rarely feel moved to put a fragrance on my skin right away, but I wanted to see how it would interact with my warmth and chemistry. The sense of warmth continues to unfold, unlocking subtle but beautiful emotional memories: women who took care of me when I was a child, women who I met traveling, women who I shared meals with or a table of drinks or a dance floor... If designer perfumes are selling an aspirational feminine mystique, Queen Nzinga is hinting at a whole ass matriarchy

This is such a beautiful fragrance. Upon first spraying, I was a little unsure about it. It was spicy, powdery and warm but somehow fresh as well. I didn’t love it or hate it, but wasn’t necessarily wowed despite being intrigued. As time went on, though, I kept getting whiffs of something addicting and alluring and realized just how beautiful this fragrance is. I don’t really get geranium from it—just powdery amber and a hint of tamarind giving it just a smidge of juiciness. The dry-down is totally worth the wait. I imagine if you like MFK’s Grand Soir, you’d probably like Queen Nzinga.

This is an absolutely breathtaking amber. The geranium adds a kind of sheen at the top, and then it's all warm skin and sweet powder. Unlike other amber skin scents that can pull melancholy / contemplative, the bright, lingering tamarind note injects Queen Nzinga with a steady optimism and even courage. Fitting, since she was a master diplomat and strategist - I think Zappas has created a really compelling portrait here. Wearing this fragrance makes me feel like I have a friend in my corner all day long.

This scent is old fashioned in a good way. It is a sophisticated warm, ambery floral scent. It evolved to have a good amount of powdery warmth. It sits close, providing a fuzzy blanket of scent rather than announcing itself strongly. I feel unworthy and far too inexperienced to be wearing such a fragrance.

Modern take on amber- opens with a gorgeous sour tamarind note like no other! Geranium is barely there but adds a tiny touch of freshness. Dry and warm, fuzzy and gorgeous. Long wearing and the amber dry down is decadent. One of my top faves from MZ.

So so beautiful, warm and addicting. The perfect scent to spray on a fur coat. When I smelled this for the first time I envisioned myself in my coat watching a show at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta on a winter evening, so now I have to do that.