Brokilän

Notes are way, way off. Posion hemlock is shown here. This is black hemlock (tsuga) needles. Also spruce, fir, larch, sandarac, momi resin, sandalwood, and Vietnamese oud. Anyway, Brokilän is perhaps the single most true to life conifer perfume out there. A huge presence of spruce needles, backed by a perfectly balanced blend of larch sap, fir balsam, black hemlock needles, and pine, for the most complete blend of conifer resins. I'm not sure what the sandarac and momi are adding, but I'm sure they round out the profile. Oud isn't oudy or dank, but it contributes to the resinous, woody feel, ultimately serving to capture everything about a fresh, sappy young Christmas tree, and bottling it up. This isn't dark, brooding, and loamy as the likes of Fanghorn, Bindebole, and Murkwood, nor is it pine needle-focused, like Boreal and Oxylus. It isn't Norney at all. This is fresh, fragrant, sappy, and almost snowy and chilly. Clean needles and sap. The various conifers lend an almost cooling camphoraceous opening, not dissimilar to eucalyptus, but this settles quickly, highlighting the spruce, fir, tamarack and black hemlock. It's green - almost blue-green, sticky, potent, and really serves to steer from the typical dark and foreboding black hemlock profile, opting for a festive, crisp, decidedly Christmasy conifer, whilst avoiding any typical tropes or PineSol associations. It lasts ages on skin, and projects fairly far for the first few hours. At over 30% concentration, it doesn't readily fade from skin. It is entirely realistic and natural smelling, with no trace of aromachemicals or Little Trees air freshener. Just pure, distilled conifer resins and snowy forest absolutes. It's amount the most unique conifer perfumes out there, and one of Nick's crown jewels. Don't be fooled by the $80/17ml price tag. That 17ml bottle will last ages, ad this only needs two sprays to do its job for the day. Not remotely redundant amoung other conifer perfumes, including good spruce-heavy takes like Dasein Winter or TRNP Black Spruce. It stands completely on its own, and may be the most transportive, authentic, wintery evergreen perfume you'll ever come across. Every bit as Pineward as Fanghorn or Murkwood, but an entirely different direction, and a must have - for conifer lovers, especially towards the wintertime, where this will really conjure up festive holiday imagery. Stellar.

@sniffmonster - I just want to point something out for clarification (I didn't downvote your review, don't worry). In your writeup, you said "be aware that these scents don't last long". Maybe you've only sampled Pineward from dabber vials? Virtually everything from Pineward Perfumes is incredibly potent (at 30+ percent oil concentration!) and longevity - for all Pinewards, is through the roof. Bindebole is on the weaker side as far as longevity (6ish hours) and Boreal isn't a powerhouse, but those are an anomaly. The rest of the lineup (and I've worn every single one, plenty) will stay on skin from anywhere from 12 to 70 hours - many in that 20+ hour range. The dabbers don't convey this very well, but Pineward scents are far from weak. On the contrary, it's some of the most potent perfume you'll find! (Think about the amount of juice a dabber puts on your skin - now compare to a spray. Of course dabbers aren't giving nuclear performance and staying power - but Pineward extraits are impressively beastly and tenacious. Just so you know) Zero disrespect in any fashion! I just felt the need to comment on that so others can see a differing opinion, as I'm quite familiar with the house, and complaints of longevity just don't enter the conversation with Pineward, so it seemed odd.

As an avid Lord of the Rings nerd, I’m thrilled to see references to J. R. R. Tolkien’s work. Brokilan is a not subtle about its reference to Tolkien’s ever-mysterious and incomprehensible Elves of Middle Earth (peep their website’s description, you’ll see the reference, I promise). Just like the Elves, Brokilan is complex, beautiful, unapproachable and decidedly not human. In other words, Brokilan will not appeal to most fragrance wearers, and it doesn’t want to be worn by mere men. The story telling here is seriously impressive; when I inhale my test strip, I’m transported to a forest that nature herself doesn’t want me to know about. It’s earthy, elemental, raw and seemingly indifferent to humanity much like the forest itself. The note breakdown terrified me, even as an avid wood and resin lover. I’m still learning to appreciate the complexities of oud , and I was especially worried how it would be balanced as there isn’t an identifiable tonka or vanilla note at the base. Frankly, I was anticipating an animalic and dirty scent that I would immediately regret testing. I want to return to this fragrance again and again. I don’t want to wear it but I want to experience it often. 7.5/10 for scent but 20/10 for story telling

A conifer forest wrapped in night: moonlight glints off ice crystals, while something enchanted seems to gather around a nearby waterfall. Brokilan is a fragrance with an entirely blue aura. Related to Snoqualmie, yet more layered and profound, it unfolds in distinct strata. The canopy opens as a blue balsamic bubble, built around black hemlock and larch cones—a refreshing green-blue accord, almost ascetic in character, where hemlock imposes a quiet, disciplined gravity. Along the bark run sweet, woody lymphatic lines that soften the composition and lend it continuity. The base ultimately settles into a dark resinous weave—bitter, oily, dense, and meditative. A subtle aquatic dimension runs through the entire development, from canopy to roots, suggesting blue as a physical presence rather than a purely chromatic one. Here, Vietnamese oud plays a key role, imparting the sensation of matter saturated with fresh water. Brokilan may well be Pineward’s most complete and balanced forest, and the starting point I would recommend without hesitation.

Another Pineward fragrance that seems to sit differently with everyone! I adore this, in part because of the realism of the larch and forest-floor notes, and in part because it's among a handful of Pineward issues that manages to be simultaneously fresh and dark. The resin-y and citrusy elements of the larch lift the composition; the forest-floor feeling (a synthesis of that agarwood, hemlock, and sandalwood, if you stop to think about it, which you really don't need to do) grounds it. It's masterfully blended. I also find it good summer-wear (unlike many others, it seems), in how it evokes summer hikes through a conifer forest. My only dissatisfaction here is with performance. While I do find some Pineward fragrances quite powerful and durable, I need to spray quite a bit of this for the effect I want, and to respray mid-day. If it weren't for that, combined with the not-cheap price tag, I'd wear this on the regular.

I am not sure how other people pick up their signature perfumes, but to me, this was an absolute love at first sniff. After I wore it once, I already knew it smells like me. To me, this is the best of what Pineward has to offer. So realistic, so grounding, so lovely. Spicy, resinous, coniferous, with some cooling menthol hidden under, I strongly believe Brokilän to be an all-year-round perfume. It is a smell both faintly familiar and incredibly unique, very-very herbal and only slightly woody, perfectly blended and rounded, a forest in your hands, a beauty you cannot look away from. The projection is just right to cover you in a deliciously smelling cloud, and the longevity is amazing, just as with all the Pineward perfumes. I struggle to find words that are good enough to describe it.

Of the several Pineward dabbers I purchased, this one is my favorite. Brokilan smells like an actual conifer forest. Beneath the pine needles, you can smell wood and also a green, grassy layer that I cannot quite pinpoint. It doesn't smell like pinesol or a Christmas tree yankee candles like many other pine scents do. It's the closest I've found to a scent that makes me feel like I am actually smelling a pine forest. Just be aware: 1) these perfumes can stain 2) longevity isn't particularly strong. Edited to add: apparently the dabber vial I got might be contributing to why the scent isnt lasting as long. I will have to buy a larger spray and report back. I did apply a fair amount to my neck and wrists so it possible just isn't meshing with my skin chemistry.

This one opens extremely fresh and coniferous. It’s almost vegetal and reminds me slightly of celery, it’s really good though surprisingly. These are green accords I haven’t smelled before, they’re definitely foreign to me but I really like them. I enjoy the oud in this too, it’s a background note but it adds a woody smokiness here, and some depth. I believe larch cones are similar to pine cones but they come from larch trees. And you get that smell here, like a pine cone type of aroma. Fresh, woody, slightly spiced. This was described as the prickliest conifer to date on the website and I agree. This scent feels prickly in the best way possible. The sandalwood here does read a bit like sawdust but in a way that oddly works for a scent like this.

Wow, Pineward has struck gold with this one! The scent really comes alive in fall season when temperatures approach freezing and when you spray vigourously (be careful not to get it on clothing as it will cause stains). Imagine the dark pine resin from Fille en Aiguilles by Serge Lutens, but mixed with the sweet incense from La Liturgie des Heures by Jovoy, and with the larch note providing a bit of fruity citrus vibe. I would almost think there is a bit of oakmoss in this as well, due to how it projects. Other Pineward fragrances that I would relate to this one are Sturbridge (more sweet incense and less pine) and White Fir (but sweet resin replaced with orange+clove and more pine).

This is my favorite from Pineward. I lived in Colorado and actually had a Larch (a deciduous conifer) in my yard. This does smell like Larch. I get the oud, sandlewood and resins too. I drink soursop juice a relative to the cherimoya almost daily, and I get a slight odor from a ripening fruit from the Annona family in the drydown as well. The note is well blended and I wish it was used more often. What I do not get is people saying that Brokilon (Pineward spelled as Brokilän) forest is in Tolkein's middle earth. Brokilon is a forest in the Northern Kingdoms of the Witcher Saga. The notes remind me more of the atmosphere and magical sensibilities of the Witcher than middle earth.

My family always chose a balsam fir as our Christmas tree when I was growing up. Brokilan smells just like shoving your face into the boughs of one of those trees and deeply inhaling. Next comes a dark, resinous pool of tree sap that you slowly sink into after a few hours of wear. Really beautiful and naturalistic perfume. This fragrance features black hemlock, not balsam fir, but after a quick google search it seems these two trees are known to have very similar scents. Also, to echo so many reviews before mine -- the juice is extremely dark and will temporarily stain skin. I wouldn't dare spray this on clothing.

Wow. Dark yet serene pine forest. Smells more like pine needles on the forest floor than fresh trees. I definitely see the inspiration from Tolkien's work in this. The juice is dark green, and will stain your clothing and your skin (it looks like a bruise when sprayed which I personally kinda like but I'm just letting you know). Oud is not offensive (and normally I cannot stand it), it's very well done here, and reminds me of oud in Dragon's blood by Heretic.

Super realistic Christmas tree smell. At least the kind of wild sappy Scandinavian firs I am used to go out and chop in the snow the day before Christmas eve. Not as dark and complex as Mirkwood. This perfume is a tree, mostly the needles, not a full forest. A bit simple, but love it.

This smells like a woodworking shop. Tingling, fresh scent of conifer needles develop into a heavy, blend of resinous turpentine and varnish, before eventually quieting into a second voice to cozy notes of freshly cut wood and sawdust. Absolutely love this scent on my partner.

definitly one of the best perfumes in the forest collection it has the scent of a dark forest that is in the midst of fall to me there is also this nutty/granola kind of scent which I love 9/10

A sweet conifer fragrance that is pretty wood-forward on my skin. I can definitely smell the needles and cones, but the wood is what comes through the most.

Editors need to step up their games notes are off. Missing spruce and Sandarac. Where they get chirimoya from?

خیلی دوست داشتنیه برای من ریلیستیک ترین بوی صمغ کاجیه که تست کردم

my first try from the forest discovery set and it's very promising. this paints such a clear and specific picture: i'm in a dry, dusty log cabin that's been turned into a kitschy shop, the kind with local art and essential oils and buckets where you can buy bags of tumbled rocks. it takes me back to field trips out to gold rush country in the appalachians. my only gripe is with the color, which is such a dark shade of caterpillar guts type green that i can't imagine spraying this on light clothing.

One of the “fresher” pine heavy fragrances from pineward. It’s more citrus heavy than others which I dont mind because it doesn’t smell synthetic to me. My only complaints are the atomizer (as with all pineward bottles) and the performance. The performance is abysmal. I need 5-7 sprays to get the desired strength and that for a cost effective niche perfume does not make.

This one is quite lovely and you can definitely pick up the oud hints. It leans a little bit too heavily on the incense however and I would prefer if that was toned down a little. This is basically a cheap version of what I imagine an incense stick of agarwood might be like if it was cut with other things and then somehow converted from a powder to a liquid.

Photorealistic resinous & burnt/-ing conifer/ pine. This is crazy niche category scent. I kind of can't stand the sweetened resinous part but the whole fragrance is absolutely lovely. Would love it on somone esle. Kind of masculine leaning unisex fragrance.

refreshing menthol with earthy pine smell that quickly develops into what I would describe as scratch and sniff colognes in magazines, with the adhesive and paper smell. 7.5/10

I find this one to be a more lavender-smelling conifer/sap-resin smell. Very realistic fresh forest smell. Might be my favorite of the Pineward collection so far.

I got a sample bottle of this frag with my full Pineward order, here’s what I have to say about it. If I had to describe this frag, I’d say it’s like breaking a flower stem and getting a big whiff of it while standing next to a pine tree. It’s not floral, but green, if that makes sense. If you want to smell like flower stems and pine needles I definitely recommend this one.

smells like wooden furniture with the varnish and some wood cleaner im straight wearing a bench rn

I got a sample set a while back of around 100 samples from pineward- i liked many and appreciated the ethos of the brand and naturals used, but i didnt find one that i immediately loved through and through. This sample is my most revisited and maybe my top favorite of those many samples- i think it embodies what pineward is when theyre at their best- its just the right combination of naturals blended with a little perfume magic so that you smell great and like you just got back from carrying firewood or walking through the forest or something without anyone really thinking that you must have sprayed a fragrance on yourself. Appreciate the lotr reference too. The notes breakdown for this lists a few things that i dont know or dont know what they smell like, but this just smells beautifully forest-y to me, i didnt expect to see oud in the breakdown either judging by the scent profile. Im getting something that reminds me of truly fresh cut wood specifically and its sappy quality, and also some resinous pine mixed in but not too dominant. I live amongst pine forests and a lot of the comments are saying this brings them to a pine forest but i dont fully see that outside of that one resinous note- it reminds me of some other kind of woods i cant pinpoint more, and it smells more like fresh chopped wood than a full forest to me- but it also feels full, like youre getting hit with a bouquet of woods and the perfect blend of light and dark woods, this doesnt hit my nose as one smooth symphony of notes but a little more like a sine wave. I love this one specifically out of all their very foresty selections because i feel like it embodies that slightly animalic musky sensuality that real woods can have. If i smelled this on a man i would find it to be an attractive musk, personally. There is also some sort of underlying fizziness to the scent profile that reminds me of something else ive smelled before (i realized it was serge lutens dans le bleu- and that accord is a bit strange in both of these fragrances to be honest)... I am talking about the on clothes experience of brokilan here by the way, and that leads me a bit to my one slight qualm about this fragrance- a lot of pineward creations use some sort of base that smells like cleaning products to me and also usually gives the fragrances it is in a cold characteristic to it- i tend to feel like this detracts from the fragrance instead of exalting it and it is present here and isnt too distracting in the mix but i do prefer it wasnt there- its just really at the core of the way these fragrances hit my nose and the inherent impression they leave me with... on skin i feel like brokilan has a beautiful sharp opening reminiscent of the on clothes experience, but then quickly gains a cold cleaner like quality to it, and then becomes more of an entirely different wood that smells of the damp and dark varietal- i think its fine but i dont love it like i do the on clothes wear experience- but then the far far drydown is actually quite soft and vanillic, i really like that stage. But ive gone through my whole sample, and this may just be the first full bottle worthy pineward that i think i must have for my collection. I love it, i highly recommend it, and it will probably grow on me even more over time

First, it must be pointed out, that the 'hemlock' in Brokilän, and in most other perfumery (...though seemingly not Jo Malone's Hemlock & Bergamot) is the conifer hemlock (Tsuga), particularly the needles of black or mountain hemlock (Tsuga mertensiana), ...NOT the poisonous Apiaceous herb hemlock (Conium maculatum), of Socrates fame/infamy. ...AND FURTHERMORE, there is no listed Cherimoya (Annona cherimola) or reason to even infer it. Why do such bizarre errors even happen? Anyway, moving on. What this Brokilän IS suggestive of is a number of other fougère-like scents I've smelled before, though I can't identify an exact match, ...especially as Brokilän is certainly more deeply woody than most. Its many conifers (hemlock, larch, momi fir, and sanderac) plus Vietnamese (real?) oud take care of that, One can easily feel enshrouded in a cool and darkly solemn forest grove while smelling this literally dark green brew. It certainly does provide a most invigorating, trigeminal chill, almost like standing in full shade while breathing thin mountain air. Also, like many Pineward scents, it makes me almost angry that I'm not hiking or camping in wilderness at this very moment. Brokilän is named after Brokilon, a fictional forest in Sapkowski's Wiedźmin. That iself is based on Brocéliande, a legendary enchanted forest of Old French Arthurian romance, or perhaps not so legendary, as it is believed to be the same as the actual Forêt de Paimpont in Bretagne.

i got a few pineward scents in search of a realistic, sweet and sappy leaning earthy/tree scent (fanghorn II is closer to what I wanted, if you are also looking for this). this one was close, but instead of leaning sweet and fresh it was a little dry and medicinal. i got more dried pine needles than straight up wood, but i also live in new york city so maybe i dont spend enough time around trees to know the difference. the menthol note was a little surprising but i didn't hate it. i do like it and think it's nicely done. this reminds me of something a forest witch would wear and i'll probably pull it out in fall/winter.

Gorgeous sappy (the creamy sap inside some toxic/poisonous plants) and fresh green like you are breathing fresh pine forest air. Gorgeous, I would say this is a safe purchase for someone who wants a forest scent. It isn't too wild and doesn't have anything that would make it unwearable (like fanghorn II) in the real world if you are confident smelling like a forest. It doesn't have anything reminiscent of a pine cleaner as that is often my fear with these sorts of scents.

Wow, very dark pine. Like I'm in the deep woods. This is one of the cooler scents from my Pineward samples. It's very fleeting though. Unfortunate since this would have definitely been a full bottle buy otherwise. One of the more realistic scents from the house that I've smelled thus far. Heck. . .I might just buy it anyway. It's pretty freakin cool haha It's so realistic!

Forget the "notes list" (larch, hemlock, oud, blah, blah), Brokilän is a very bare violet leaf boosted with a bit of galbanum. Bitter, unpleasant, unremarkable, overpriced.

I don’t think there’s hemlock in Brokilän. It should be replaced with black hemlock (Tsuga) as I believe it’s the one that should be named.

smells like if you found a cough drop in a bed of pine needles on the forest floor and ate it. needless to say i’m obsessed

Lemony pine notes dominate the opening. Way too citric and floor cleaner’ish for my tastes. Not a fan of this one.

Yawn........ another US house that cannot be bothered to ship internationally.