Bois d'Ascese

This was another of the luckyscent samples a loved one let me try, and it's one I chose to keep. On application, I got smoke, reminiscent of times around a campfire and the scent is like that of a log of pine or cedar wood that's been burnt into nearly black charcoal. It's a bit too smoky for me and I didn't apply much so a little goes a long way. This fragrance also brought me back in time to when I used to attend a women's circle for rituals around a fire out in the woods at night where we'd each apply pieces of birchwood, pieces of pine or cedar and also burnt incense. This fragrance definitely evokes a sense of that sacred space, of incense and smoke and meditation. After the first hour, the scent became more leathery and brought back vivid memories of riding the motorcycle of a good friend where we'd both be wearing leather jackets. There's a spicy-amber mix that comes into play about a hour in and rounds off the fragrance. It's a scent to wear on a day like this one which is cool, damp and rainy, and overcast and where you're going to stay indoors curled up by the fireplace with a good book. I can't imagine wearing this when out with others, nor is it suited to the office due to its intense heady smokiness. It's definitely suited to wearing with a quality leather jacket as the loved one who'd given me this in the luckyscent sample commented when I was wearing it the other day. This is definitely a fragrance for lovers of smokiness and cedar, and it brings to mind sitting around the campfire with friends, pieces of cedar wood being added to keep you warm, and watching the sparks flying up against the darkening evening sky. It's a very evocative fragrance and if you have any memories of campfires when younger or of wearing leather whilst riding a motorcycle, this will vividly bring those memories back to you. The sillage is moderate with it becoming a skin scent more rapidly than I'd anticipated. The projection is quite good, though, and it's easy to underestimate this because once applied your nose quickly adapts to the fragrance so it's best to apply a little at a time. Whilst as a woman I find this quite nice, I prefer to layer it with my Clarin's Eau Dynamisante EDT just to take the edge off the smokiness and to give it a lighter note. That way, too, I'm able to wear it out and people have enjoyed the mix whilst this fragrance on its own often come across as a bit too strongly smoky. However, I'm sure some people prefer not to 'dilute' it in any way and just wear it by itself.

This is the one. The holy grail of smokey smells. I have never encountered pure fiery smoke like this in any other perfume save maybe Smoke and Mirrors/Fumee from Alkemia. Certainly I've never found it in a mainstream or niche perfume. I have been prowling for a bonfire smell for, geez, years now. I have found barbecue sauce juice, I have found dozens of pines, incenses, and tobaccos with bare tiny hints of smoke, and I have found boozey, vanillic, marshmallow candle perfumes, but I have never until Bois D'Ascese found smoke and fire like this. I don't detect all the listed notes, but I am assuming this is a "more than the sum of its parts" situation. To preface, I'm in late summer/early fall Southern California, which is still hovering in the mid 80s, and I am certain this will perform better in colder weather, but I still quite like it even at these temps. I get a super smokey, burning bonfire opening, and that goes on for (in this heat) about 20ish minutes. That starts to fade into a smoked cedar for a good forty minutes or so, and then I start to get the steady fire bubble. I'm in a little cloud of smoke, smoke from a fire, smokey wood, smoked whiskey, smokey amber. I generally DO NOT like amber, but I am not getting sickly sweet powdery amber, I'm getting gooey burning resinous amber. The cade oil brings in a touch of leather, like a leather jacket you wore to a bonfire with smoke clinging to it. It smells dangerous, comforting, amazing. Even in the heat where the smoke and burnt wood could border on too much, I get desert bonfire. I have been wearing it for several days now, in hotter and cooler weather (as cool as it gets out here this time of year, anyhow, which is about the 60s at best), and the smokiness goes from cowboy campire to scottish hearth. It lasted all day and I could smell myself, and my husband could smell me if close enough, but it doesn't project too far, which I personally love. It stayed pleasantly in my clothes like actual smoke. All this from a Luckyscent dabber vial, so I can't wait to smell it from an atomizer. I just adore this. This is signature smell worthy, or at the least signature fall/winter smell. I personally don't think this leans too masculine, I find it very unisex, but I imagine the flowers and sugar perfume crowd wouldn't be interested. I full sized this with the quickness (50 ml shipped with taxes and fees for $150 USD from Nose Paris, for me, is a steal). If you want true bonfire, give this a try.

I am a big fan of Naomi Goodsir perfumes. I have previously tested three samples, two of which led became full bottles. They are compelling, avant-garde compositions, housed in chic, minimal bottles that let the perfumes within speak for themselves. They also manage to be wearable. Bois d'Ascèse is a boozy woody-amber scent, not typically my thing, but an excellent example of its genre. This can be an unforgiving scent profile - too smoky/alcoholic; resembling candles/campfires/potpourri etc. - but BA is refined and clever. I'm guessing the name is tongue-in-cheek - I had to look up the French, but asceticism suggests the opposite of the vices that here are moonlighting as opening notes! It is remarkably well-composed, with each note carefully chosen, making for a scent that develops seamlessly and cohesively. BA opens with a boozy whiskey note, paving the way seamlessly to the balsamic amber base. Tobacco follows closely, dry and plant-like initially, complementing the balsamic, slightly fruity whiskey. The woody base emerges early on, a predictable-if-perfect addition to the boozy, smoky opening. It is full-bodied and realistic, resembling an oak cask here alongside the whiskey. It becomes very dry, with a hint of leather evident as it progresses, likely thanks to the labdanum. I get some cinnamon here, adding a little sweet spice to the balsamic amber. As it develops further, the incense comes to the fore, a seamless progression from the balsamic amber accord as well as enhancing the smokiness of the tobacco. There is a campfire quality to it here, but only as an aside. Oakmoss makes for an earthy counterpoint to the balsamic amber base while rounding out the woody notes to perfection. It remains like this until it fades to a musky, smoky skin scent. Sillage is moderate and longevity is long-lasting. It is a unisex, cold weather scent. A top-notch example of its genre, BA is masterfully-composed with high-quality ingredients, never becoming thin or candle-like. While I wouldn't typically wear this, there is much to admire here. Another excellent scent from this house. 4.5/5.

To me, Bois D'Ascese has two parts. The opening, which lasts around 15 minutes, is an explosion of the listed notes. You get smoke with a distinct hickory flavor (thankfully restrained and temporary) mixed with ambery sweetness and boozey notes from whiskey. It's not as elegant as I make it sound though. The opening is kind of jarring and messy and everything mixes together in a way that you're not sure smells good together. It's smokey, it's cold, it's sweet, it's dry, it's chemical, it's natural, it's confusing. HOWEVER, Then comes the drydown, which lasts around 4 hours, and is the real reason to own a full bottle. It starts off with pencil shavings and quickly becomes the smell of chimneys on the first cold evening of fall. It's amazing the way it makes your skin and close surroundings smell like your clothes do after spending the night by a campfire. It conjures images of dry oak leaves on the ground, crunching beneath leather boots. It captures the way burning wood smells in cold temperature with low humidity, that crispness. I recommend spraying heavily and disregard the opening which doesn't last very long. PS: I am wearing today on a cold fall afternoon and it’s beautiful. There is a base of leather that fits nicely with the theme. Brings back memories of growing up in a house in the woods and my attic bedroom with hardwood floors and the fireplace directly below downstairs.

I can't do this justice right now because it makes me swoon. Might make out w/ my hand where I sprayed the sample if it keeps throwin me those eyes this way...! A bit strong up close in the cedar/smoke departments, the wafts you'll give off from a distance wearing this are otherworldly good. 5 stars! 'High quality' is putting it mildly. Sillage is just right, longevity is great at 8+ hrs on me w/ just a partial sample's worth of a dab. Buying it asap. EDIT: I bought it asap along with Cuir Velours. Wearing it now for only the 3rd time (since it's summer and this is strong, manly juice) in the cool of the evening sitting at home. The cedar and smoke are as delicious as that first magical time I smelled it and there are definite touches of a smooth whiskey to be found intermingled with all these freshly downed cedar logs. A campfire must be nearby... and there's my lumberjack, drinking his Gentleman Jack on the rocks just how I like it ;) Reminds me of: Sex with a lumberjack. Not that I've been there. *looks from side to side* Compliments?: Not needed, I'm in love. I've only worn it around the house because of how manly it is. This is for ME! And a certain deserving man whom I wish to nuzzle up to, perhaps. Sillage: heavier side, spray lightly Longevity: 8+ hrs Experience: worn 3 times (FB) Usually apply: 1-2 sprays [8.28.14]

Wow! I did not expect that! Simply put, it reframes every facet of Tianjian tea (天尖茶, literally tea from heaven's ridge ), a variant of Anhua dark tea (安化黑茶) that originates from Hunan province in China. To draw an analogy, tea can be categorized into six main types—green tea, black tea, white tea, oolong, dark tea, and yellow tea—much like how perfumery is divided into fougère, oriental, chypre, and so on. Each tea category has a unique "base" of flavors that are highly consistent within the sub-category yet distinct between categories. For example, within the realm of dark teas, there are established brands akin to "designers" in perfumery, such as Baishaxi (白沙溪), Xiangyi (湘益), and China Tea (中茶), alongside niche and indie producers that cater to more specialized markets. This fragrance is the most realistic tea scent I’ve ever encountered— though it’s not a mainstream green or black tea familiar to non-tea-aficionados . I suspect that capturing the essence of Tianjian tea may not have been the perfumer’s original intent, as this "niche" variant is primarily known to true dark tea enthusiasts. Rating: 9/10

When I was 11 my father moved us into his grandmothers small ranch in NC that sat in the middle of a forest of pine trees. The house smelled funny to my young nose. The cabinets in the kitchen and dining room walls were made entirely of cedar. I didn't know it then but that was the funny smell. To top off this funny smell was a wood burning stove that kept the house warm during the winter months and whenever it was opened to put more wood in, smoke filled the house. That is what Bois D'Ascese is to me, smokey cedar. After about an hour it transforms into something entirely different. The smoke is barely detectable and the fragrance lends itself to a beautifully clean, soapy, spicy something or other that I can't describe, completely different from the initial spray of smoke and wood! This is the most drastic fragrance I've encountered. Lots of bad memories in that ancient house but Bois D'Ascece tells me that life may end up being that indescribable beauty and not the smokey cedar I want desperately to forget.

There are memories I have of from my youth, sitting around a bonfire, throwing back beers with friends on cool autumn nights, getting buzzed and opening up about stuff. Deep conversations and mesmerizing embers, the smell of charred wood and the sound of indolent crickets, their chirps slower and more subdued as the season progresses. I stare into the glow and flicker, then look up at the silhouettes of pines against the sky. The smoke imbues my flannel shirt and its aroma persists as I arrive home to retire. Bois d'Ascese conjures up these flashbacks and then some. It has both cade AND birch tar—'tis quite smoky, indeed, accompanied by a peaty scotch accord. Yet it eases into frankincense and other resins, and what seems to be destructive distillation of cedarwood, scorched and rich. As it softens and mellows, it evokes that very feeling of having been suffused by the bonfire: not nearly as strong as when facing it, but a sweet, lingering imprint. I am most compelled to wear this during walks at nightfall.

I haven’t found a niche fragrance I like better. I adore it in spite of its flaws—it’s linear and it has pretty poor performance and sillage, but it still offers something so insanely unique. It opens with a very strong, realistic woodsmoke—like the smoke from a bonfire of cedar wood or piñon. But there’s a warm, dry sweetness settled just behind. The cedar/pine remain in the drydown in as the sweet smell of oozing resin and fallen needles heated in the hot summer sun... Reminds me of my childhood summer camping trips in groves of cedar near the sea. Incense and a sweet amber come through too. The incense smells sacramental but not dreary or pretentious. Overall an elevating, uplifting, beautiful scent for me. Only thing is that I like scents that smell “sexy” and this is not it. It’s beautiful but not sensual. Also, BDA just kind of disappears when it’s done shedding the last of its amber, incense, and labdanum—it doesn’t seem to bloom much on skin.

Review Foundation: Have a tester, live in a high humidity country, tried because I am looking for a fire/burning/campfire scent. // Thoughts: started off with a wonderful burning fragrant wood. Absolutely love it. Lasted a long while before going into a warm rich tobacco, like the leaves in a nice cigar. // End Opinion: I do really like this, and I want to adore it but I already have City on Fire and while there are differences it’ll come down on the feeling of the day. I feel this is more alive and City on Fire more noir. I tested this on both myself and my husband, as I did with City on Fire. City on Fire smells burning on me but like a gross cigarette ashtray on my husband. But this, this, smells fantastic on both of us. I have tried a great deal of “this smells like a campfire/burning wood” fragrances and this is the one that is most true *AND* has that part of the scent last the longest.

Opens woody, smoky, in an outdoor fireplace sense, followed by a woody accords. The wood lumber has been put out, smelling the charcoal emanating from the woods post burn, next to freshly cut wood. This is like Red Colorado/Black Lacquer but more complex, and woods-focused...you can tell the incense is bringing the burnt smell, but the unburnt cedar is still there. There is a tinge of dirtiness from the amber here... +1 * - Smoke -> 66/100 A nostalgic olfactory experience, yet it’s so neutral that you could imagine layering this with whatever else you wanted to, if you wanted to change the scenery. I didn’t click completely with Corpus Equus (but only as a matter of personal taste, the frag was wonderfully done), but this is a phenomenal smoky, woody frag that is so photorealistic yet universal to use. Definitely FB worthy, and a breathtaking work of art by Julien Rasquinet.

I sampled a spray from a friend's bottle and ordered one for myself the same evening, it's that good. Rasquinet does it again! This is the holy grail of smokey scents for me - it is rich, deep, complex, sophisticated. It is enchanting, it is the smoke left behind after a spellcaster vanishes. It is the scent of the pyre from a witch who freed herself before the flames got her. If you shy from incense / tobacco / smoke notes, don't go for this one, it packs a punch and certainly isn't a blind buy item. Fabulously unisex, my man often reaches for it too now. I'm especially a fan over how incredibly layerable this is - it adds gorgeous complexity and distinguished character to a slew of other fragrances on my shelf. My current favorite comforting wintry pairing is Bois + The Maker's Dream for a mature smoked vanilla that releases a million feel-good chemicals in my brain.

Bois d’Ascese is a scent constructed in typical Naomi Goodsir fashion, meaning it STINKS - but not in a bad way. This scent is profoundly powerful, it can fill rooms with ease and definitely won’t be for everyone; there is no mass appeal here. A brutally strong note of sticky, sappy labdanum coupled with an absurd amount of incense gives you this intensely smoky and dense aroma, if I’m being completely honest it almost smells like a burnt out barbecue. Pair this with spicy cinnamon, dry leafy tobacco and burning whisky and you’re left with more confidence than you can deal with. If you wear this you will smell like your clothes are burning all day, so take that as you will. As is often the case with this house, this fragrance is exceptionally well made and smells of fantastic quality, but it’s just not something I would wear. I don’t want to smell like I’m burning.

Just got this today, and although I'm still too novice to try and talk about notes and layers etc, wanted to give my experience. When I first applied it, the smoke hit me as very very strong. For some reason, it reminded me of the scent of a hot power saw after it cuts through some particulary frangrant wood....and then catches on fire. I could detect notes underneath...kind of a whiskey,and insense/amber mixture. My first thoughts were that I wouldn't wear this except at very special times, and that was more about my audiences reaction than the way I was feeling. Throughout the day I kept catching hints of it and it dried down to a really lovely addictive scent. The wood went down a bit, the amber came up and I detected some sweet cedar. it's now been at least 7 hours and I can still smell it- I think I'm in love.

To me Bois d'Ascese smells like a campfire (made purely of cedarwood) made in the middle of the sawmill. Very prominent factors I can smell are: ash (whole a lot of ash actually!), cedarwood (which is a solid backbone, background to it) and an incense smoke. It opens up very ash-y and when it dries down it becomes more and more woody and the smoke transforms strictly into frankincense smoke. What I really like is a fact, that Bois d'Ascese is a relatively dry scent on my skin. It sticks pretty close to the skin and does not make a scent cloud, maybe just a little bubble. Longevity on my skin is 10+ hours and the sillage is very big at the beginning, but it mutes itself a little bit. This is potent so one or two sprays from a decanter are good for me. I think all lovers of smoked scotch whisky should sniff this.

I asked the people at my preferred perfume shop for their recommendation for something as smoky as it possibly gets, and this was one of their three picks (next to Burning Barbershop by D.S. & Durga, and City on Fire by Imaginary Authors). Indeed, the opening reminds me of a campfire - if you've ever been out in the woods when it's time to haul lumber and burn the cuttings, drink whisky from flasks and watch the older men light pipes, this is what it smells like. That resinous, gorgeous smoke that seeps into your clothing and hair. It dries down into something softer, more wearable, still with that smoky note but now with more amber, like coming back inside the warm house from your time spent in the forest. A beautiful, more masculine leaning scent that is both unique and enticing.

finally, and at long long last, my holy grail smoke! yay!!! it's perfect: strident and unambiguously smokey, but with depth and complexity without ever deviating from that core, central aspect. it doesn't relay on birch tar or phenols to ramp up the smoke but what seems like a more organic wood-based accord (how that's put together here, i don't have a clue, perhapsstyrax, opopanax, myrrh, actually i don't want to overthink this one). it doesn't develop appreciably but does soften into a gorgeous denoument of shimmery resins that mirrors the last coals of a fire gone out. i bought profumum arso and was disappointed by how cedar-wussy it smelled - THIS is what i'd hope it would smell like, so arso has gone to another home. did i mention that bois d'ascese was just perfect?

I told luckyscents that I was interested in a fragrance that suggested a campfire, and they told me about this one. So I bought a sample. Yep - campfire it is! Smoke and wood. Since I love the smell of a campfire I quite like this one. I see one of the basenotes is described as incense, and to my nose it smells like the same clean wood/pine plank smell I detect in Tom Ford Sahara Noir and Tauer 02 L'Air du desert Marocain. (To Catholics it smells like Mass, to me it smells like pine plank.) This fragrance goes on very smoky but after about an hour the main note is this one. I barely detect a tobacco scent and for me there is no whiskey note. My wife hates it, and gives it the same verdict she gives to the smoky notes in Encre Noire: "Dirty ashtrays at Grandma and Tony's!"

This is my new one-and-only scent. Julien Rasquinet created it for Naomi Goodsir from a memory of an ascetic country church in Australia. It takes me to my own beloved Baroque churches of Rome. The smokey aroma is for me less like campfire and more candle smoke and incense overlaying the resin in wood pews and the cool dampness of old stone. Whiskey, cinnamon, moss, and amber notes deepen and age the smoke, giving it the history and gravitas of ancient holy places. The scent is first redolent and mellows quickly. I don’t feel like I’m competing with a restaurant or host’s own aromas. And yet it is present enough that I’m often complimented. As with anything that takes me back to Rome (espresso, amaro, a warm baritone voice) Bois D'Ascese is an inspiration and a comfort.

One of the most beautiful smokey-tobacco-amber fragrances that I have ever stumbled on in niche selections, smells so exclusive , so different than many other ambery perfumes in the market, it makes you feel definitely in an exquisite ambience right from the first sniff on, boozy whiskey accords combined with precious smoky resins smell absolutely fantastic , the labdanum&cinnamon combo hits you in the heart unexpectedly and the oakmoss-tobacco duo carries you away in a dream-like atmosphere of a palace court with marbel floors and velvet walls, where your satin dress is rustling when your cavallier holding your hand carries you to the royal dance floor to start the opening waltz of the long anticipated palace ball night. Absolutely amazing and inspiring fragrance