Sova

Sova? SO GOOD. This is ... just extraordinary. Just some phenomenal beast from a different dimension where smell is the primary sense and 'marketing' isn't even a thing. It might as well be sold in tiny jewelled apothecaries' vials and labelled "Essence of Pure Niche". Sova is something other. Be prepared to go deep into the territory of weird - with uncompromisingly outdoorsy, botanical, oddball tangs of strange burning bushes and leaves and roots and buds you've never smelled before, and certainly not together. Be prepared to thrill to the usual shirt-bustingly robust Slumberhouse sillage and solid presence. Be prepared to be charmed by its mellow sweetness, and slightly disturbed by the dark, sticky bottom end, which reeks of molasses and treacle and burnt grasslands all at once. Be prepared to be disconcerted that at times it morphs into a bizarre alt-gourmand seemingly built of toasted coconut and maple syryp. Then let your mind boggle freely as it shape-shifts into the performance-art immolation of a raisin drunk on cognac which hurled itself into a blazing redwood fire to sizzle away to a caramelised crisp. Utterly strange, completely compelling. It's the stuff of my dreams and it's a privilege to own it. That doesn't mean it's right for everyone - and it's so violently individual that if you don't warm to it, you are probably going to hate it strongly. It won't leave anyone without an opinion - probably a pretty intense one. And for me that's yet another reason to love it. This is what art perfumery is FOR. The banal details : pricy, stupidly difficult to buy retail, rarely let go of by aficionados so equally hard to find secondhand. Though throwing like a lumberjack at first, its sillage bubble does shrink hard after the first hour on me, BUT, remains so robust at closer quarters that this isn't a problem. Up to 6-10h on skin depending on conditions, though its ghost will cling up to 24h and beyond. For me, it's a little too plum-pudding-rich and dense to be enjoyable (or even thinkable) on hot hot days, but on cold ones, this will warm you all over better than a nip of rum from a hipflask or the cosiest bear-trapper's hat. Lasts literally weeks on fabrics (not joking) - to me this is a bonus but it definitely won't be a win if you are - somehow - unconvinced whether you like it or not. Alternatives: well, there is none. BUT, for something oddly similar though gentler and airier, Hendley Mown canters around the edges of Sova's imaginary harvest-grassland-autumn acres. Sova's got a fair bit of shared DNA with its Slumberhouse siblings Jeke and Kiste, but is (to me) way odder than either. Not for beginners. For connoisseurs. The sort of scent which makes me wish I knew more botanical and aromachemical science, to be able to understand its amazingness better and say cleverer things about it. So forgive me but there's only one thing I can add: Sova is FRICKIN' AWESOME.

I only obtained a bottle due to the limited re-release this August via Fumerie Parfumerie of Portland, OR, and I was fortunate to nab a bottle, breaking my general rule of not blind buying, especially fragrances on the more expensive side. Sova's reputation, having been discontinued for a couple years, however, was the stuff of lore, and so I felt justified in going for it, and I'm not disappointed that I did. Like the other Slumberhouse fragrances I own (Jeke, Ore, Norne), Sova is powerful and provocative, but it's a bit more daring, spicy, and even borderline animalic. And like the others, while there is a woody commonality (woody dominance in the case of Norne, in fact), and a semblance of sweetness in Ore and Jeke, both qualities are present in Sova but are overwhelmed by the spicy, animalic mixture of hay, castoreum, and broom, giving it a sharper edge than the other fragrances in the lot. Still, Sova is anchored by tonka and vanilla, both of which keep it from flying off the rails as a wild spicy and dirty potion. Sova pushes the envelope from what I already considered bold, daring scents in Slumberhouse, but I'm pleased that it's still a sophisticated enough blend that I'd feel comfortable wearing it in a few situations. Yet at the same time, it's a bit too daring and edgy for a first impression or early date, but a little loud to wear privately, so it's hard to select an ideal occasion for wearing it, but no matter: I'll find the time to wear it, albeit sparingly. It almost doesn't need mentioning, but Sova has the same superlative performance like its fellow Slumberhouse dark juice brethren, on the extreme high end in terms of both projection and longevity, a testament to the juice's value at $160 for 30ml. If you come across this, do check it out! A staple of the line and one I'm glad to have added to my collection. 8 out of 10

At last--a foray into Slumberhouse. I have spent a few days wearing this perfume. Longevity is easily +12 hours. Each time it leaves me with many interesting impressions. I respect it as high-quality artwork. Sova is extremely gourmand, and yet it is not. The notes are polarizing, and at times they blend together to create accords that I did not expect based on the pyramid. I thought this would be an herbal green perfume, but it is far from it. The first time I sampled, it smelled like the darkest chocolate. Just days earlier, I had the pleasure of eating a roasted cocoa bean for the first time. Its taste was like my initial impression of Sova--somewhat sour, a little bitter, and nutty. I was intrigued. There was a lovely dark and smoky incense note along with strong dried coconut and ebony wood. Whew! That is a lot of impressions! Upon my second sampling, my impressions of the top notes were entirely different. I smelled intense gingerbread--not the mass produced hard sheets that people build gingerbread houses with, but the soft, moist cake made with freshly grated ginger and spices. Then there is this persistent dark, bitter note that is quite enjoyable actually. During all wearings the heart smelled like pure ambery maple syrup, which reminded me so much of the wonderful Tabac Aurea by Sonoma Scent Studio; but on the whole, Sova is far more complex. I also perceive a tobacco accord in the base. At some point, way down into the drydown it becomes a bold and very dark Italian roast coffee with a touch of sugar and cream. This is one perfume that takes time to get to know well. This is a longer review than I like to write, but there was so much to say! I love Sova's complexity and would definitely recommend trying it out to see how it unfolds. I am intrigued by Slumberhouse.

This is a review of the 2014 release, in the new 30ml bottles, where I believe Sova has been tweaked a little since its earlier incarnations. Sova opens with a green-sweet, almost tarry blast. Herbacious, balsamic, spicy and deep. This wears a lot lighter than many Slumberhouse offerings. The first half of the experience brings to mind rum soaked christmas cakes of Northern European origin. The mix of bitter hops, sweetly waxy beeswax and dry hay add up to something surprisingly similar to an expensive, rich gingerbread. The animalic notes combined with the creamy tonka only further amplify the gourmand notes on my skin. The latter half of the drydown stretches on for damned near eternity. The frag itsself is rather linear, and hums away as a dusty skin-scent for literally days if you don't wash it off. Longevity is phenominal, sillage however, leaves something to be desired. At this kind of price point, I want the whole damned room to know I'm wearing something. Unfortunately, after the first 20 minutes or so even I have trouble smelling it, except for an occaisional craving for gingerbread I can't smell much of anything without inhaling my wrist. It's a shame, the poor sillage, (for its price point at least), is the only thing bringing down an otherwise beautifully crafted and astonishingly complex perfume. Completely unisex, if you can warrant the high price, low volume and sub-par sillage then this truly is a beautiful creation.

This is just so strange. I've tried to review this for some time but I can't make up my mind about it. It's unlike any fragrance i've ever smelled. Opens up thick, smokey and boozy (what a shock coming from slumberhouse!). This is paired with a bizarre, slightly tangy fruitiness that I'm lead to believe is the hops but it certainly does not smell like any IPA's i've had. When I focus I can make out a little bit of dirty sweetness that is almost definitely tonka. But there is something subtle in the opening, lurking underneath the cacophony of strangeness. A salty, savory, somewhat acidic bile that reminds me of vinegar. This all combines in a manner that reminds me quite a bit of barbeque sauce. To be frank, I am left scratching my head at the opening. But things start to 'click' as it dries down. I start to get the thick and entirely unsweetened beeswax note. The hops lose their "fruity twang" and smoothes out into a raspy, pleasantly bitter grassiness. This all still has the tonka sweetness that I enjoy and hours after the fact I find myself appreciating this. If only I could past that tangy sweet baby ray's opening. All in all this gets a like from me, definitely unique and undoubtedly daring but also somewhat off putting. Longevity and sillage are comically over the top (once again, no surprise coming from slumberhouse).

It probably says everything that could be said about my childhood that I will run a mile to avoid any of the smells I associate with it, my mom’s rose bushes, my dad’s Irish Spring soap or Old Spice aftershave, my sister’s nivea crime, even the vanilla scented body lotion I chose for myself. So Sova is not the smell of the childhood I had. And yet, it conjures memories of childhood. The one I had, not in reality, but fantasy. If I really think about it, Sova reminds me of one of my favorite stories as a child, a book I read to rags - Little House in the Big Woods. Specifically Sova is the smell of the loft where Mary and Laura play in the long cold winter. The dusty woodsy smell of the rough planed floor, the smoky scent of cured meat and woodsmoke, dried herbs and grasses. Ma made a gingercake yesterday and the scent still pervades the house. It’s cozy, safe and snug. The smell of a world that makes sense. Wearing this affects me on an almost spiritual level. It cocoons me in a bubble of peace and simplicity. The world outside is as chaotic, noisy and needlessly complicated as ever but inside, I am still.

Gorgeous, one of the most complex fragrances I have ever smelled and one of my favorites from Slumberhouse. Sova is such an eclectic and interesting mix of spices, beeswax, hops, castoreum and hay. It's a heavily rustic and transportive blend, wearing it I'm taken to a dusty little farmstead with hay drying out in fields and dozens of beekeepers boxes around the periphery. Seems like this newer darker green iteration is a bit less honey-sweet than the light yellow versions, a sharp immortelle-like facet has been turned down, and the hay and woody aspects have been amplified. There seems to be a better balance overall. Sova lasts for a full day easily on my skin, and the most prominent notes oscillate between the honey and hay. While I don't smell any curry in Sova whatsoever, that was the first thing that my wife said when she smelled it, for what it's worth.

Okay, so this is very complicated stuff. Off the bat I get a lot of dry tobacco, which then becomes rounded out by hops and a little bit of sweetness thanks to the beeswax. It then becomes a woody-sweet scent, almost maple like, but NOT maple syrup. This is the way it stays for a while, supported by vanilla (but more vanilla bean than traditional vanilla, very interesting). There is definitely the roasty-toasty goodness of tonka bean, but it is an enigma of a fragrance. Every time I wear it I discover something new. This is a fragrance masterpiece by the nicest businessperson I've met in my life, Josh Lobb. 100/100. Just stunning. Oh, and this lasts 19+ hours with one small spray from a sample. I now own the bottle and presume it will easily last 24+ with one spray.

francamente non conosco molte delle note che compaiono nella piramide di questa meraviglia già fuori produzione. eccone alcune: pioppo, robinia, luppolo, fieno, trifoglio, ginestra, vaniglia, ambra etc etc. la sensazione complessiva è sorprendente e molto gradevole. si tratta di una composizione che sa di tabacco, quello da pipa, molto aromatico, con ginestra e rum (per quanto io riesca a riconoscere qualcosa di familiare!), un tocco di chiodi di garofano, che si assesta su sensazioni più secche, di terra e di fieno, con punte affumicate. sensazionale, austero, elegantissimo, dandy e gotico, insomma una cosa speciale! ne ho una quantità minima e, ahimè, sta già finendo!

Sova, like all Slumberhouse scents, is from the “fuck yeah” school of perfumery, all potent concentrated syrups infused with herbs and spices. Very much like Serge Lutens. In fact, Sova reminds me very closely of Serge Lutens Chergui. Like Chergui, Sova is supposedly a hay or tobacco scent, but I smell is *cloves* above all, as if all the Havdalahs in all the world were distilled into one drop of perfume. Except Sova, unlike Chergui, is a *salty* scent. The saltiness and animalic skank comes from castoreum, and really elevates it for me. Great fun; very satisfying. Warming spice and furry mammalian dirtiness.

Sova has tobacco, smoky sense to it. It has an underlying coat of quite subtle sweetness. Top notes like alcohol infused Greek grape vine leaves, slightly balsamic in a resinous way. Hops and cloves come through the haze of smoke. Unique. Sova is Kathleen Battle singing Mythodea - Movement IX [Update] Smoother and less so smoke than Jeke More smoky than Baque (RIP: wish you were here and still made) Longevity around 8 hours compared to Jeke at about 18 hours 4.5 / 5 Try layering Sova with Vict. Delicious.

Sova is a beautiful fragrance that I would love to have in my collection. It smells like slightly burned, or singed buttered caramel corn. There is a particular burning rubber smell in the opening that disappears quickly, and then I found Sova to be very linear from there on out. I should say that there are also some spice notes present, but they never took the forefront and were bit players to the sweet caramel buttered popcorn. The longevity and sillage are impressive. Very enjoyable!

Formulation has changed from old round bottle with beads to new flask bottle when doing a side by side comparison. More honey evident in the older version. Prefer the older. Its slightly smoother.

I was looking to purchase a sample of this or a bottle blind but as I was cleaning my closet yesterday I found a packet of samples that I ordered in 2013 from luckyscent. To my surprise one of the samples was Sova! Funny how the universe works sometimes... I immediately applied TWO dabs of it on my wrist. The scent quickly bloomed into something monstrous. I have norne and jeke so trust me when I write that Slumberhouse fragrances are a POWERHOUSE in sillage and longevity. The sample I have is clearly from the old(er) formulation/batch when the fume was still in the tapioca bubble bottle. First impression: In your face animalic honey, as though a beaver (castoreum) rubbed its entire body across a freshly extracted honeycomb. It's so incredibly potent it almost makes my upper lip rise in a animalistic grin. This blend of notes is very sensual, primal and carnal. You can't exactly put your finger on it but it's there and it's either love or hate, black or white, no neutral or gray territory. Once it starts to relax a bit it turns into a fruity, musky raisin scent- yes, raisin as many have pointed out. But it's not your typical dried up grape sprinkled with a bit of random oil. This is a complex raisin that has been sitting around in a tray for months in a room where people smoke pipe tobacco, eat overripe fruit and have ferrets as pets. Soon enough the hay pokes through - dry farm straw during a hot day. The hay melds with hops to create a lightness to the fragrance. What you're left with is sweetness, hay, raisins, booze, honey, and the carnal sensuality of a furry beast lurking underneath it all. I picture a beaver in a wheat field surrounded by barrels of hay eating honeycomb. Absurd, right? Just so weird, so potent, so unique. Worth a try for any fragrance enthusiast...

This is a bit of a strange creature. On me, this smells of baked apples, and something watery and syrupy (like canned fruit cocktail) and the lit end/ashes from a cigarette (burnt and dry). The ashiness is pretty prominent and is quite strong, but after 30 minutes it dials back a bit. Don't get me wrong, it's still the main thing that I smell...but at least it doesn't smell quite so much like I've been rolling in an ash tray or covered in paper that's on fire. In the back of it I can smell this metallic fruit cocktail (complete with juiciness of the syrup) and a hint of baked apples. It's also starting to develop a soft "boozy" quality, I think maybe brandy? All in all, I like this weird little scent adventure! It's not very high on my purchase list, but it's something that I will enjoy the sample while I have it.

Aaah what a strange wonder this is. It's rich with tobacco, herbs, honey, beeswax, amber. Different, for sure. A very modern fougere, I find myself thinking about it when not wearing it and noticing the whiff when I open the cabinet it's stored in. Has a strong presence for sure. A warm, enveloping fragrance. The tobacco verges on cigar, so be prepared for that, but it is layered and complex, no one element dominates. It's all about Fall, changing leaves, turtleneck sweaters, pacific northwest gray skies, chilly evenings. I got a little sample vial from LuckyScent, but it seems full bottles and samples are sold out for now. Apparently it's a very "niche" niche fragrance!

I've had this for about a year now and it's not something I pull out often. It's perfect for a cool, damp, kinda gloomy day. It's warm and soothing, filled with a sort of fermented fruit cake sweetness. I don't like the the taste of fruitcake, but the smell is another thing entirely. I have a decant that I suspect is from the first batch as it is all dried fermented fruit. I also have a newer bottle (middle batch) and the hay comes out more in that one. All in all, I'd say super cozy, kind of a Christmas or Harvest scent. I really enjoy it. If you aren't into foody scents though, I'd stay away.

A strange and surreal fougere that in many way defines this unique perfume house. The perfume opens with strange herbalish notes of clover, hop flower and hay. The heart is beeswax, broom and black locust. The perfume settles into a powdery slightly musky base of castoreum, vanilla, slight amber and tonka beans. The utterly unique scent has moderate to strong projection, sweetens after a roughish opening and good longevity. Truly like being transported to the Grimms fairy tales type of setting like most offerings of this line. Enjoy!

For me Sova was very confusing. The opening scents were clashing for attention. At first I got a hay herbal fourgere, then heavy cloves and tobacco, then a hint of woods with sweetness. A very complex elixir. But then it happened ... Sova started to settle into a gorgeous blend of sweet tobacco with a fourgere /hay background. This fragrance is very dense, raw but the dry down is perfect for a cold night out. I've notice with most Slumberhouse fragrances the secret is in the silage ... the whiff as you pass by.

First impressions: Prunes & raisins soaking in booze. Sweet, rich honey dripping from the waxy comb. Metallic burning - the smell of sparklers on a cold winter’s night. Birch tar, old leather coats, warm cats. Hay, hay, hay. Like getting stickily drunk on Sazeracs & Bees Knees in a London gentleman’s club, then trying to sober up with a chamomile tea.