Bottle Design:
Kavi Moltz

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Hylnds - Isle Ryder D.S. & Durga 2013

7.8 / 10 126 Ratings

A popular perfume by D.S. & Durga for women and men, released in 2013. The scent is spicy-woody. The production was apparently discontinued.
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Main accords

Spicy

Woody

Green

Resinous

Floral

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes

Fir cone

Meadowsweet

Poplar bud

Heart Notes

European spruce Broom

Broom

Jasmine

Base Notes

Mead

Rush

Woodruff

Perfumer

David Seth Moltz

Videos

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Ratings

Scent

7.8126 Ratings

Longevity

7.5107 Ratings

Sillage

6.8107 Ratings

Bottle

7.385 Ratings

Value for money

6.613 Ratings

Submitted by Apicius · last update on 12/31/2025.

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What the fragrance is similar to

Métal Hurlant

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Reviews

12 in-depth fragrance descriptions

05/10/2016

9Scent 6Longevity 6Sillage

Silverfire
134 Reviews

Silverfire

Very helpful Review 4

Adventure Calls You

This is another winner in the Hylnds collection. Isle Ryder smells like leather, with a mineral-woody base, but it's more than that. Stone and moss are also present. There's also a touch of something medicinal, not camphorous, just what might emerge from a medicine bottle - dusty, musty - it just screams adventure. Unfortunately it lasts about 5 hours with at most 1' projection and it becomes a skin scent after that. However, I have only tested a pipette, so perhaps it lasts longer as a spray.

Recommended.

12/18/2018

6.5Scent 9Longevity 8Sillage

Meggi
1018 Reviews

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Meggi

Top Review 27

Tried Everything

A fragrance, of which several ingredients are either unknown or at least not sufficiently present, can only be approached from another angle. I take the bittersweetness of Isle Ryder as an opportunity to refer to a recording of Scottish and Welsh folk songs - in an arrangement for voice, violin, cello, and piano by Joseph Haydn (youtube.com/watch?v=hu8mIKaH2D8)

“Papa” Haydn is…not exactly my favorite composer. I find many of his works (sorry…) simply boring. To justify myself, I can point out that even those more qualified sometimes feel similarly. When Gustav Mahler presented the first movement of his 2nd Symphony to conductor Hans von Bülow, he remarked that Wagner's Tristan was a piece by Joseph Haydn. This comment, by the way, was not meant as a compliment for Mahler; it merely serves to explain that Haydn… let’s leave it at that.

Because I greatly appreciate the aforementioned recording, and that is due to the fact that the already wonderfully unpretentious setting was further enhanced by the exceptional voice of the early deceased Fritz Wunderlich: Wunderlich was able - despite the almost unreal beauty of the performance - to always imbue the more cheerful songs with a gently mournful warmth, laced with quiet, underlying melancholy, and conversely, to protect the sadder pieces from pathos through clever restraint in tone.

Should the fragrance achieve something similar? I set out to find out.

A medicinally bitter herbal opening on a scratchy base, quickly joined by sweetness that hints at a honey-like origin. A pile of old leaves comes into olfactory range. Mushrooms have spread out on them. After ten minutes, a medicinal quality emerges, almost like a kind of natural cough syrup. As it develops, the (already mentioned) linden and the indicated poplar seem understandable. I can smell both in the vicinity of my office at the relevant times in considerable measure.

Unfortunately, I cannot deny that I increasingly perceive the fragrance as musty, especially when a dull, needly woodiness in the middle section follows the same direction. However, this does not exude any gloom; perhaps it is meant to convey a quiet, cozy melancholy - which is exactly why I thought of the music. However, I cannot follow this approach. The fragrance has become too much “just there,” without anything more touching happening. Except that in the afternoon, I would attribute a potato-grainy twist to it, bordering on the stinky. From afar, the sheep-must from ‘100 Tweeds’ by Euphorium Brooklyn comes to mind, here just without the cheesy prickliness.

Well, it seems that it won’t work. I have tried everything: warmer days, cooler days, hotter days, colder days; gentler and bolder applications. Nothing helps, the fragrance remains foreign and nebulous to me.

It just can’t always fit; after all, the Durgas are quirky - it would be more surprising to like them all. Moreover, Isle Ryder is far from a failure; it appears to be of high quality like its siblings and is certainly worth every test.

I thank Gerdi for the sample.

10/19/2020

8Scent 7Longevity 7Sillage

Chizza
362 Reviews

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Chizza

Top Review 27

In the Footsteps of Störtebeker

D.S. & Durga is one of my favorite perfume labels. This is due to many creations telling stories that a fragrance from this house conveys and the sometimes unusual ingredients. I really appreciate this descriptive insert of the bottles and find the variety of ideas brought to perfume very charming, even if not everything appeals to me.

So today, Hylnds - Isle Ryder, a scent that is very linear for me and driven by unfamiliar notes. At first, I thought of civet, but no, that is not present here; rather, it is all about nature. Perhaps the idea behind it, behind the island raider, is a kind of insular panopticon of the flowers and trees thriving there, but it probably isn't a South Sea island; still, it is a warm fragrance.

For me, the real meadowsweet dominates. The name implies a certain sweetness; in fact, the scent of meadowsweet can be described as a kind of honey fragrance, which is very pronounced at the beginning. This now blends with the poplar bud, which comes across as resinous and viscous, slightly balsamic. It exudes inviting warmth without being too much; the balance is delicate.

I cannot claim that much will change in this basic orientation; rather, the additional notes underline the mélange. The broom supports the warmth, adds an herbaceous note to sharpen the character, jasmine provides the already present sweetness, and the spruce joins the poplar. Thus, the construct of Isle Ryder remains the same, but Durga manages to create a second layer, showing variations so that the sweet element is gradually toned down, and one perceives a certain saturation from the resins olfactorily.

I do miss some of the base notes, but I think that mead, spicy honey wine, knows how to fit in accordingly and begins precisely where the meadowsweet ends. This would at least explain the noticeable change over time.
The combination of dried woodruff and bulrush, both of which smell like straw in the broadest sense, will later be responsible for the dry, gnarled element that accompanies Isle Ryder after three hours. Not to be confused with henbane in mead.

I really like the progression of Isle Ryder because the initial honey note is significantly softened, while the hay scent is also not too pronounced. Both in moderation are finely balanced, and it is a pity that Durga has likely discontinued the fragrance.
Oh, and where could the island raider actually live? In fact, much could point to North America or Europe; ultimately, it might be the German islands since the common spruce is only native to Central Europe. Now the title also comes full circle.

12/23/2023

7.5Scent 6Longevity 5Sillage

loewenherz
919 Reviews

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loewenherz

Top Review 33

Sleep, Dearie Sleep

So goes the name of an old Scottish tune, originally written as a lullaby and cradle song. However, the piece is mostly performed today in a serious and dignified manner with the bagpipe at the gravesites of fallen soldiers. Elizabeth II. had already decreed during her lifetime in the so-called Operation London Bridge (the detailed planning of her funeral) that 'Sleep, Dearie Sleep' should be played at her burial - the legend says, on the recommendation of her personal 'Piper' - that is, bagpiper - Major Paul Burns, who was very close to her.

Sleep, Dearie Sleep. There is comfort and sadness in these words - and the end of duty and toil and deprivation as well as the promise of long-awaited rest and peace. And comfort and sadness and rest and peace may have been the inspiration for Hylnds - Isle Ryder, one of those quiet fragrances that D.S. & Durga dedicated ten years ago to the rugged land in the heart of Scotland, on the edge of which lies Balmoral Castle, the summer residence of the British royal family, where Elizabeth II. passed away in late summer last year.

Sleep, my darling, sleep. D.S. & Durga's Isle Ryder quotes much from that quiet Scottish lullaby and dirge. The rugged, the rough. Sketched by cracked and dry needlebrush. The unattainable, the harsh. Rendered through a dull, strangely muted green, lacking any freshness and youth. And finally the reconciling, the peace. Illustrated by a sweetness that is more resin and honey than flowers. And a wounded tenderness - like a quickly approaching light, yet still imbued with mourning and loss.

Isle Ryder is not a difficult fragrance if one does not wish to find it difficult. Then it is gray-green-brown and woody, restrained and perhaps a bit foreign. But when one opens up to it, allowing the rugged and the rough, the unattainable and the harsh as well as the reconciling and sweet - akin to the tones of that distant bagpipe tune, then it gives much more. Dry moors and deserted heath. Delicious tranquility and an unexpectedly soft base. And the memory of a queen in her beloved castle on the edge of the Highlands.

Conclusion: a fragrance for moments of reflection and silence. Perhaps a fragrance for the outdoors. One for the blue hour. And if a fragrance is sought for bagpipe music - here it is!

01/11/2019

8.5Scent 8Longevity 7Sillage

Serenissima
1229 Reviews

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Serenissima

Top Review 19

Early Summer in the Archipelago

I am known to always be drawn southwards: Italy is, after all, the homeland of my soul and the climate there suits me better.
And yet, Scandinavia has its own unique charm: especially the light over the water, particularly over the archipelago and in the fjords. I won't even start to rave about the wintry, mysterious northern lights here.
All of this I only know from pictures and, of course, from television: crime dramas set there are in high demand, but they are usually either too drawn-out or too brutal for my taste.
(Yes, that's how it is! Even though I have been grumbled at for this opinion and even called ignorant more than once.)
I prefer the Sunday evening entertainment that Inga Lindström (alias Christiane Sadlo: also known to me as a screenwriter) offers us in beautiful images with nice stories.
To each their own - you know what I mean!

"Isle Ryder" could well have been composed as a fragrant embodiment of Edvard Grieg's "Morning Mood." So bright and ethereal, yet still grounded, both fit together excellently for me.
Do you hear and feel it too?
The flat land illuminated by the first rays of the sun; the lark is just rising, greeting the day in the clear, cool air. She loves this morning.
The island flora is just a step above the awakening of nature: everything is still pristine - in the process of becoming!

The poplars have already unfurled their first light green leaves; a gentle breeze plays in them.
Their reddish-brown, parchment-like protective caps form a soft carpet on the still somewhat wintry soil.
They crunch lightly under the steps of the morning walker; pine cones can also be found there again and again.
The increasing strength of the early summer sun begins to warm, and robust spicy aromas develop from all this awakening nature.
The spruce also chimes in - here a little "Into the water with Badedas!" is heard; it is a bit too "spruce-y": perhaps less would actually be more in my opinion!
The mostly low vegetation beside our path, which is actually more of a footpath, harbors original, non-hybridized herbs with their own spicy scent.
But first, gorse and jasmine blossoms shine; both enjoy the sun's rays and develop their own, always somewhat unusual aromas.
Gorse and jasmine! How good it is that so much resinous-spicy green surrounds both fragrance notes; this combination of both floral scents would be too much even for me!
But lively, zesty woodruff entertainingly mixes into this concert of scents; meadowsweet is also present. When did I last encounter meadowsweet? Was it in our botanical garden?
Where there is meadowsweet, there is also mead - these two are the "ideal pair"!
And mead is, of course, honey; perhaps some beehives are hiding here, from which the thick, golden honey comes? The vegetation for bees would be present; encountering a beekeeper would not surprise me.
To my fine nose, there is indeed a hint of honey running through this natural mixture.
Actually, mead belongs to "the ancient Germans" (if one can believe crossword puzzles).
But who says they didn't also roam around here and thus brought their honey schnapps with them?
Migration has always crossed borders; we did not invent this.
(I can only remember that "Bärenfang," the concoction made from honey and spices, wonderfully warmed when enjoyed in the first cups of coffee in the early eighties.
But starting the day sometimes became a bit blurry. Especially, of course, when the morning gathering lasted longer, the phone disturbed less frequently, and the boss did not show up, a slight headache was almost guaranteed.)

All in all, "Isle Ryder" is a bright, very nature-connected fragrant creation that I really like.
It brings a lot of light and pleasant spice into the wearer's day without being burdensome or intrusive: a lovely companion for several hours, whose scent journey does not become boring.
It feels as if I am sitting on a blanket after a first walk through this Nordic landscape, enjoying a small snack, a good book beside me, the warming sun in a fragrant environment.
Edvard Grieg with his sound paintings remains in the back of my mind; for music would be out of place in such a setting.
Here, it is more fitting to listen reverently to nature, its rustling, whispering, and murmuring.

I am glad that the bottle, which Heikeso has so generously left to me, is indeed rich.
So I can travel to a land I would not otherwise visit on these gray, damp winter days with Edvard Grieg and "Isle Ryder."
Scandinavia - here I come!

More reviews

Statements

49 short views on the fragrance

Eggi37

1 year ago

7Scent 7Longevity 6Sillage

Not quite fresh mead anymore
Dull & flat without spirit
With honey-balm sweet aroma
Lying on a soft-dry hay pillow
In a herbal fir forest

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ElAttarine

9 months ago

8.5Scent 7Longevity 6Sillage

come, let’s ride on pine cones
where resin buds drip
where meadowsweet heals every fever
broom jasmine in the heart of indole
grass wind of freedom

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Jeob

7 months ago

9Scent 7Longevity 6Sillage

Between poplar buds
and meadowsweet
shy jasmine
blooms first on skin,
bees breathe honey mead,
& hum familiar longing.

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Danny264

1 year ago

7Scent 7Longevity 6Sillage

from island to island raiding
in the pine cone boat the
Celts on sweet fragrant mead
honey drops adorn
delicate jasmine

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Floyd

5 years ago

8.5Scent 7Longevity 7Sillage

Come, let’s steal little islands
With needle forests and sweet rushes
Dancing flower magic paste
In rain made of mead
And woodruff

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MonMedusa

2 years ago

8Scent 7Longevity 7Sillage

I discovered the possibility of an island
Light and shadow play of the poplars in May
Raucous green-covered woodruff floors
Ancient wild herb knowledge

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