Dead of Winter

Do you love Pastis? Ouzo? The opening is very much THAT, boozy anise, and it is delightful if that's your thing. The pastis note dies down after a while, and a nice creamy gourmand vanilla takes over; I find the vanilla sweet, but not overly so, and it dries down to be nice and powdery. It lasts for a few hours before becoming a skin scent on me. I can't pick out the heliotrope or cedar, but I'm not bothered by that.

I just wish it came back every Christmas. I was waiting for this this year to get a big bottle. Better luck next time. First some anise and after that lots of heliotrope which I adore, but some real heliotrope that is flowery and a bit vanilla like and not just pure almond. I love it!

this starts off with a big whiff of anise. for some reason i thought star anise was more subtle but in this it's definitely not. it smells like good and plenty. after a few minutes i get some hints of vanilla and heliotrope, like a fluffy white cloud, mmm. that cloud grows but the anise is still strong too and while i don't mind anise in small amounts, it's a bit much here. i don't really get much cedar in this. after being on the skin for quite some time the anise calms down and it is more tolerable for me. at this points it smells like marshmallowy-anise, and is soft and comforting like gourmands often are.

Mirrorghost did a great job describing this. Dead of Winter starts out as pure anise and slowly becomes an anise flavored marshmallow. Very soft and pillowy, and as such not to my taste. I wish there was more of that "zombie musk" from the description as I'm sure it would really give this a more well rounded and wearable character instead of just smelling purely edible which doesn't personally appeal to me. Performance could also be a bit better. Not bad, but perhaps a bit unfinished feeling, worth a try if you are a fan of pure gourmands without anything too musky or inedible. 5/10

Extremely strong anise to start, settled more sweet as the heliotrope and vanilla start to come out. About 2 or so hours in the musk starts to come out. Eventually the musk becomes dominant, and it’s a bit unpleasant. I’d like to try it again in the winter to see what I think then.

This to me smells like black licorice and cedar. I can't smell the heliotrope at all.

Dead of Winter by Smell Bent has one of the strongest openings on the skin that I have ever encountered. You need a few minutes to allow it to settle before going in for an up-close sniff as any sooner could render you unconscious. Dead of Winter is my favourite from this indie brand. Despite being a wonderful wintry scent, I can't say that this fragrance encapsulates the scent of Winter. Dead of Winter smells strongly of anise, almost reminiscent of a shot of ouzo. Thankfully I enjoy its licoricey aroma and find it more palatable than most. If you enjoy licorice/anise heavy fragrances, like Lolita Lempicka and Diesel's Loverdose, this fragrance is the new and improved alternative. Despite the dense anise opening, Dead of Winter dries down into a smooth and delectable blend of cupcake vanilla, powdery heliotrope and soft white musk. For the most part, this fragrance's composition is quite linear and simplistic. Smell Bent as an indie brand was quite popular a decade ago, however, I haven't heard anyone talk about them for years. This is one indie brand I urge everyone to sample at least once as their quirky fragrances are both unique and very wearable. I am pleased that I own a significant decant of Dead of Winter as I very much look forward to wearing it during the upcoming cold season. I suspect that this fragrance may have been discontinued as I can't find it on Smell Bent's website shop.

An initial burst of anise, cool like a winter day. Settles quickly into heliotrope and a very light musk. The heliotrope gives it a somewhat "play-doh" type vibe.I like it. For me it's a childhood memory, walking home from school on a cold afternoon and finding creative ways of using play-doh and other such things to entertain myself while spending cold evenings indoors.