I was really wary of trying this one after trying Limonata and God of Fire considering the parallels being drawn between them. On paper, they seem to be alike, and I can see myself thinking they smell similar if I smelled them months apart, but I think side-by-side, there is a clear difference between Tales from Zanzibar and the others — the base here is much more woody. A lot of fruity scents use the same base as Erba Pura, the strongly musky accord, but in Tales from Zanzibar, I actually get a good bit of woodiness even in the first hour or so. I think it's the oud accord, which is actually using something like vetiver or cypriol, gives a nice warm base for the fruits to sit on.
The fruity notes themselves are more realistic than in Limonata too, and less sour and off-putting than in God of Fire. Juicy tropical fruits, with a hint of lime keeping them from becoming too sweet. I'd love to compare this side-by-side to Passion Island, which I liked on strip but haven't yet tried on skin, to see which tropical fruity scent I want in my collection. But Tales from Zanzibar is definitely on my shortlist.
