Black Forest

I received a sample of this DELICIOUS juice in a swap ages ago. Unfortunately, as it was not yet in the Fragrantica database at the time I was unable to review it. This beauty was an absolute LOVE at first sniff! It begins sweetly oudy, woody with a touch of sweet, kirschwasser-soaked, black cherries before melding to rich chocolate with mounds of whipped cream. If I remember correctly is had decant sillage of an arms length and several hours longevity (even from a dabber vial)! It is not the overly sweet, non-alcoholic, Americanized-version of black forrest cake with cherry pie filling that bares little resemblance to its namesake. Rather, it is a true black forrest, schwartzwalder kirschtorte sitting on a wooden stump somewhere in a dense conifer forrest... woody, chocolately, decadently sweet, and utterly tempting!

Oddly enough, the owner sent me this fragrance oil by accident. I contacted her and she told me to keep it. I ended up falling in love with this. Don't worry, I also got the products I ordered. This is rich, and so well blended. It is truly an atmospheric scent, but also a gourmand. I love the chocolate cherry mixed with the damp, earthy, woody notes. Perfect for late fall and winter. Sillage and lasting power are both great.

Dark chocolate brownie in the opening. Oud dry down. I really enjoyed this scent when I first smelled it. The opening reminds me of brownies fresh out of the oven. This note is present in the dry down but more faded to let the forest side shine. The chocolate note hasn’t been too sweet on my skin so far even though it’s a strong aspect.

They were going for black forest the dessert meets black forest the place and they nailed it. I own about 200 perfumes and this is my top for winter. Chocolate, cherry, smoke and woods with some greenery. Reminds me of my great grandfather's pipe with cherry tobacco. Perfect from halloween through winter

the description is very literal to my nose with no deviation. chocolate sponge, chocolate shavings, dollops of whipped cream with indulgent cherries on top. as the sweeter notes fade, the fruity, spiced tobacco intensifies, giving it an oaky and atmospheric twist. this cherry comes off as candied to me.

Chocolate bomb!!! This was chocolate chocolate and more chocolate but in the best way possible. Developed into a beautifully earthy sweetness thanks to the hay and got smokier from the tobacco. The cherries were pretty subtle. Dried down to a creamy, earthy, sandalwood with the cacao present.

I got a free sample of this one 1 year ago. Straight up cherry and chocolate cake. Not even synthetic, I'm not sure how the perfumer managed to make this one but this is amazing. Now I feel like smelling like a chocolate cake so I ordered my little oil perfume :)

Reminds me of my love for Serge Lutens' Chergui. Gives me imagery of a rustic, upscale destination barn wedding on a vineyard. Good taste, celebratory feel married with an appreciation for the charms of the great outdoors.

Straight out of a fairy tale forest. Chocolate, cherry and chypre, with hints of tobacco and earthiness. Dry down of dark chocolate and oud. I don't usually like gourmands but this is beautifully done.

I just moved this from Like to LOVE! Ermahgerd. I have not worn this in months and just randomly decided to wear it again. It is delicious!! This reminds me a lot of SS Manor, but with chocolate. <3

Gorgeous scent. Cherries, chocolate, tobacco, woods. This is one of my favorite all time fragrances. I just wish it were a little stronger, it sits very close to the skin.

I absolutely love this. I have the oil but I neeeeed the perfume. If anyone has one they are gonna sell let me know. I haven't found a comparable chocolate perfume yet.

My only problem with this scent is I wish it lasted longer, it smells so good. I got the EDP, going to get the oil to see if that lasts longer.

Out of the bottle this was *heavy* on the chocolate! Wow! However, on the skin the top note of chocolate dissipates within a half hour, leaving behind a rich oud / incense with great projection for an oil. This could be a case of skin chemistry producing a unique response (since I also projected oud with "Thornwood Thicket"), but I don't get any cake sensation, nor whipped cream, not even the cherries. It goes from chocolate, to chocolate incense, then finally to a heavy incense scent. I do like it, but it's not what I expected.

I picked this as one of my 10 pieces (11 after the free sample) sampler set. I like it, don't love it. It's a little too chocolate covered cherry cordial to me, BUT, my teenage daughter LOVES IT! It was her favorite one. It's definitely lovely and not overly cloying. A dark german chocolate cake topped with cherry pie filling atop a mound of vanilla ice cream. I usually like my sweets to be tamed with a bit of floral or spice, but for a totally sweet gourmand, it's actually quite nice.

I enjoy this cozy, foodie scent, though I can see how it might not be for everyone...or for every occasion. It’s not something I’d reach for on a typical workday or for a formal night out. Instead, it feels made for a quiet night around an outdoor fire with sweet treats in hand--only AFTER bug season has passed--as the air becomes brisk and the leaves turn crunchy. (That's far too many prepositions for one sentence, but I'm sure this laid back fragrance doesn't mind.)

no reviews of this??? well this one is truly delicious... you get the sort of Black Forest Gateau vibe but unlike many gourmands, this one remains smelling like a perfume and not like a pastry shop. Am not big on gourmands but this is a true love and want!!! Actually, on second thought, it smells more like Mon Cheri or cherry liquor bonbons, the ones that are of dark choc with an alcohol soaked cherry inside.

Decadent chocolatey amaretto cherry gourmand. There’s a dark green smoky pine-y richness in the background... I’m not usually one for gourmands but this is such a darling scent! I close my eyes, and I’m eating boozy cherry chocolates on a bed of pine needles on the forest floor. I can pick up on a comforting powdery accord somewhere in this bottle, like expensive foundation.

This is a super interesting one. Very rich, extremely spot on deep chocolate at first. I get a bit of the cherry. It eventually gets to the woody notes and its earthy and slightly fresh which works surprisingly well. I like this scent a lot. I like that it sits closer ok the skin too. A deep dark scent that feels like an enticing secret you have to lean in to learn.

A delightfully dark and woody gourmand. I love the concept of this fragrance. It really is like eating black forest cake in the black forest. Lots of rich, decadent chocolate and deep oud mixed with a little cherry liqueur and a touch of sweet hay and tobacco. Scrumptious!

Very strong chocolate tobacco scent. I love wearing it at home. I doused myself with it and hit up ALDI and was really mortified. I smelled like a straight up cherry cigar. It’s a cool fragrance but I’m too scared to wear it out anymore.

I can get the appeal, it smells kind of misterios and atmospheric. There is the dark cocoa, some spices, some sweetness and in general it is a complex scent. Reminds me of Black Phantom in some way. But I would prefer for chocolate to be more fragrant and bright. It is kind of dusty. So overall it is okay, but I do not find it particularly enjoyable, personally.

Dark chocolate and cherry then oud and sweet whipped cream in the dry down. An amazing and completely unique gourmand perfume. On me, it last for 3 - 4 hours and has no noticeable silage. It's cold right now so maybe it will shine in the summer?

too sweet. spicy dark chocolate. kinda reminds me of cake.

This smells too musty, strong, heavy-handed, & masculine to be Unisex. Lots of Woods, Fruits, Tobacco, but the listed Cherry scent is missing. And surely Angela St.John has been to the Black Forest like Bram Stoker visited Transylvania, which is to say never. Fake theme with a Fake Smell.

Smelled good for a second until an unbearable smoky, bitter scent took over. Not sure if it’s the hay or the tobacco or something else but I am not a fan

I love this one quite a lot. Was a little afraid with some reviews calling it musty, masculine, etc, and especially wasn't sure about the hay note. For me, it opens as straight up black forest cake, yum. It then does settle into something more earthy and complex as you get the other notes, but it's still well balanced by the chocolate cherry cake, definitely still gourmand AF. Those other notes don't overpower, they just cut the sweetness a bit and make it more interesting. I do tend to love tobacco, woody notes, and coffee, so ymmv. I guess I can see how someone could get a cherry cigar vibe, but this is way nicer than that. I love the artistry of SS, but don't wish for a bigger size of too many - this one I would love to have more of for winter. Very unisex balanced gourmand, imo. I have let it sit for a few months, maybe that's a factor.

I've never been into scents, perfumes, etc. but I have a habit of deferring stress on to new hobbies. I write that to explain: Never thought I'd be into cherry scent because I despise the smell of cough syrup. This combo has changed my mind. Loved the EDP sample I bought on a whim so much that I bought the perfume oil when Solstice had a restock (I apparently prefer oils over sprays, didn't know that either). To me it starts with a delectable chocolatey, toasty, deep black cherry smell that mellows into a woody, somewhat smoky, tobacco scent. It did prompt my mother saying something I never want to hear from her ever: "That's what you wear when you want to get eaten." She is not wrong, but did not have to stare straight into my eyeballs when she said it.

Wearing this makes me feel like drinking an old fashioned with a cigar in the other hand. It’s very much a vibe. That said, I am enemies with oud, and this is very oudy to me. Sniffing up close, I get oud in this playdough vanilla context. I simply cannot seem to escape the playdoh with Solstice Scents gourmands. I guess the marachino with dark chocolate gives me jujube dates from afar. I feel like I get wafts of Lush Sticky Dates, but with tobacco. The wafts are not terrible, but again, it’s a strong vibe. Cold weather by the fire safe, not office safe.

Bitter chocolate, sandalwood incense, slightly rank green forest notes like galbanum at first, which I really like. However, pretty soon a bitter fruity note takes over in the end like black currant, which I dislike, so this one didn't age well for me as it dried down. Love that dark moody beginning though.

A rich dark chocolate woodsy forest scent. I wish i could smell the cherry notes :( I imagine this is what the Twin Peaks diner would have smelt like but with a more cherry scent. All i smell are the chocolate and wood notes. Overall it is a beautiful delicious fragrance!