Cymbelline

This was my signature scent in the mid 80s. It used to be sold in EDP or EDT and also a wonderful perfume in a cubic bottle, if I remember rightly. I lived near the perfumery but then moved away and somehow forgot about it until recently when I bought a small bottle online. I was sniffing my wrist and thought: this reminds me of something I loved many years ago; and then I suddenly realised I was remembering this exact perfume! LOL! I'd say this is a woody chypre - the oakmoss is so smoothly woven into the mix that it really doesn't stand out but gives it an almost vintage vibe. It starts out with this bitter, warm, almost Rochas Femme like, oiliness. But it's nothing like Femme: it's drier, woodier and yet also warm and resiny. There is a subtle greenish start, I can't identify it as bergamot or galbanum, maybe vetiver - I'm not sure what it is; and at a certain point there is an animalic warmth, almost like costus but perhaps is the labdanum. I can't identify sandalwood but my nose isn't very educated! It's generally fairly linear as it dries down - the woody, resiny base notes being very apparent from the beginning - and the labdanum becomes sweeter and stronger as times goes on. Several people have compared it to original/vintage Miss Dior - I have never tried the original Miss Dior perfume so I cannot say if they are similar; but I think Cymbelline is less strident and less fresh than the vintage EDT. Although it does not smell the same - its mossy, chypre character married to a resiny base reminds me somehow of Dioressence and Vol De Nuit. I think this is a rather hidden gem and deserves more love. It was created by John Stephen who created many perfumes for the Boadicea the Victorious niche brand and I feel Cymbelline also has a niche quality - at a very reasonable price too!

this perfume is like getting punched in the face with sandalwood. I put in on shortly before getting in a car, and i thought i was going to suffocate

This has been a favourite since childhood,since i am lucky enough to live very near to the Bourton on the Water perfumery,sniffing the glass rods to delicate music and putting a bit on my wrist,buying myself the tiny sample bottle in the gift shop....before buying myself a 100ml bottle,and my mum the smaller bottle.Do not be fooled that this is a cologne...it projects !and folk will comment,for the good....for many hours ! The blast of aldehydes is like a tall gin and tonic with lemon and you get a sherbety blast that you can't help but keep sniffing your wrist ! Also an intriguing smell of saltpeter,like pulled Christmas crackers and cap-guns and spent firework tubes and burnt-out matches.also a huge grapefruit note mixed with sour sweet sherbet.....very yellowy-green.the dry down is reminiscent of sharp bramley apples topped with sponge and Birds custard,still with a bonfire night saltpeter smell.maybe a bit of ginger !it smells like something made with the skills of Grasse in France,my 70 year old mum says it smells of "proper perfumery" and i agree.she says that it smells just like her Miss Dior original and she has made it her daytime signature.it reminded me of mum getting ready in the 70s putting on her Karen Carpenter long dress and her Miss Dior.a person who likes to reinact Downton Abbey or Titanic would suit this wonderful perfume,because it smells of proper essences and absolutely timeless......unchanged since i had to stand on tiptoe to smell those glass rods in the Cotswold Perfumery.i advise anyone to hint to their significant other to take them on daytrip to this perfumery,and at least take home a dolls house style bottle teeny tiny sample,and it will remind you of your daytrip to the cotswolds forever !

Cymbeline is like a typical old school classic perfume, & smells like it’s made of the same ingredients. I have Cymbeline & a bottle of vintage Miss Dior Esprit de Parfum - they do smell very similar, but this is way more linear. Very nice & recommended if you miss the old stuff & are feeling a bit jaded by trendy aroma chemicals 🙂

Dark, deep and almost sticky, a bit treacley at first. I didn't like this much when I first sampled it but as I've grown to appreciate chypres (on a total chypre binge at the moment!) It gets a bit more floral with lots of sweet sandalwood. I'd certainly try a little 25ml bottle, I just wish it was stronger than cologne!