DuftFlasher

Thanks to a long-time fragrance friend who is deeply into the subject and works intensively with oud, I had the great opportunity to test this jewel.

It is amazing and fascinating how many different facets and fundamentally different characteristics oud can have. From deep, dark woody to transparent, bright, clear and almost fresh, ozony, moist, earthy to blue tones and animalic, cheesy, stale / faecal-urine spectra, it's all there.

With Jaya, I have now had my first green-rainy-fresh oud under my nose. Jungle soil infused with geosmin bacteria, releasing these earthy, moist, fresh impressions into the warm air, which I would describe as a mix of traditional mitti attar, the typical petrichor smell and those geosmin microorganisms.

For me, this creates the image of a tropical jungle after a short but heavy downpour, on the edge of which I stand as an observer. The raindrops on the large plant leaves quickly begin to turn into humidity under the tropical heat. Plant green smells and the moist, rooty jungle soil quickly begins to dry out and change its earthy scent.

A little further into the dense, jungle-like and untouched primeval forest, a subtle mossy-green freshness wafts towards me, which is repeatedly infused with typical oud, medicinal-smelling, wafer-thin mists of wood smoke.

As the hours go by, the scent of this oil changes to reflect the ever-changing climate of this primeval forest. Bluish, wet, dry, woody, earthy and always retaining its fresh qualities that I would never have thought oud could produce in such a realistic, honest way.

An insanely great experience that leaves you wanting more.

Cheers!

Fragrance stations:

Gold Room by Grauton Parfums opens with a tart rum-cola-cherry note, which is surrounded by a matching citrus freshness. This alcoholic top note won me over straight away and triggered a "wow" moment + "cola impact" that I haven't experienced for a long time. But don't worry, as wonderful as the top note is, it's not a typical dazzler, but paves the way for a really good, authentic fragrance for the cold season in perfume concentration.

Genuine neroli and citrusy notes of lime and lemon lend the fragrance a pleasant effervescence at the beginning, from which a cool, "ice cube"-like facet briefly emerges, which perfectly matches the alcoholic theme of the perfume.

A veritable delight of beautiful, slightly smoky cedar woods - Atlas, Texas and Virginia - quickly unfolds, accompanied by woody balsam. Spicy tobacco notes lend the fragrance a cozy, dignified, noble, yet modern and masculine warmth - matching the atmosphere and story behind the inspiration (Stephen King, 1977 / Stanley Kubrick, 1980).

In the drydown, Gold Room becomes a little sweeter, but this is well balanced by the many intense woody notes, the slightly dirty vanilla and the warm tobacco, leaving the fragrance in a masculine spotlight, even though it is declared as genderless.

Highlights:

I was particularly impressed by the realization of the top note, which is not only perceptible as a herbaceous, isolated davana, but also convinces as a harmonious davana-cola note. This is perfectly complemented by the tangy citrus notes of lime, lemon and neroli as well as the airy rum notes. The cherry cola theme is reminiscent of the syrupy cherry coke drinks of 1950s diners in the USA - refined with a hint of cream. The tart cherry note also evokes associations with Dr. Pepper Cola in my nose and therefore fits in perfectly with the later era that served as the inspiration for this fragrance.

Another aspect that I really enjoy about the fragrance is the combination of the different cedar woods, which make the scent wonderfully deep and woody from top to base. They create a very successful bridge, both olfactorily and thematically, between the extraordinary top note and the long-lasting finish of the fragrance.

Further aspects:

With Gold Room, you get a convincing overall package: a highly concentrated fragrance that olfactorily captures the cult scene of a fictional story in a dark atmosphere and the usual high creative / technical performance and ingredient quality of this German microbrand at a super price-performance ratio.

I hardly need to say a word about the decent projection and long-lasting performance until the next day. In addition, Grauton Parfums has also made another leap in quality with this release in terms of packaging and presentation (sprayer, cap, box, labeling).

Personal closing words:

If I had ever had an alcoholic tobacco-cedar bespoke fragrance with cherry-cola notes made for me, it would smell exactly like this. And I think even Stephen King and Stanley Kubrick would be thrilled with the result.

For me personally, Gold Room is the best fragrance that Martin Fuhs has ever released under his brand Grauton Parfums. This is exactly how it should smell and nothing else!

Cheers.

For me, Greyfruit is exactly what the fragrance wants to be: a refreshing summer cool-down with lots of citrus, some invigorating spice and effervescence, on a solid amber musk base.

This summer fragrance starts off wonderfully bitter-citrusy with mandarin peel and neroli, together with bergamot and grapefruit which, together with what is called a mineral water accord, always retains a nice bitterness.

Ginger and blood orange quickly join the citrus mix. Even though I personally am not the biggest fan of ginger and blood orange in fragrances, these two are so well interwoven with the rest that there is nothing to complain about in terms of my personal taste. Just imagine that the blood orange has rolled further down in the fresh fruit basket, so that it does everything it can do well there, but doesn't stand out in a disturbing way. It's a similar story with the ginger, which also adds a moderate woodiness to the whole thing.

About the exciting mineral water accord:
Greyfruit is not really an aquatic fragrance. It doesn't want to be. However, after just a few minutes, there is an effervescent coolness that is difficult to put into words (for me) and has a very refreshing effect on me. In my opinion, this association of mineral water with bitter citrus fruits is quite apt and therefore the mineral water accord is an appropriate term to use. For me, this accord is also the special twist of the fragrance: a watery-cool freshness that allows the unsweet citrus components to bubble to the top. This also ensures that the citrus fruits don't become so dull over time. As you can tell, it's difficult to describe: so it's best to smell it for yourself! A sniff often conveys more than a thousand words.

But you should be a citrus fan and not disdain a certain bitterness, then nothing can go wrong with Greyfruit.

The fragrance lasts surprisingly long on my skin for a fresh midsummer EdP. I would not have thought so. The projection is pleasant, so it's not overwhelming on 30°+ summer days. But it is present at all times, always wafting joyfully into the nose and triggering (at least for me) a lovely feeling of lasting refreshment and satisfaction. This is certainly also thanks to the stable amber-musk base with coumarin and the well-integrated oakmoss, which I can sniff out especially towards the end. This also makes Greyfruit somewhat soapy and clean in the drydown towards the end. Clary sage certainly also contributes to the cooling properties of the fragrance for a pleasantly long time.

Greyfruit is pleasing but not boring and, for me personally, offers a very nice twist between a broad citrus mix with bitter notes that I love so much in fragrances and a fizzy, refreshing cool-down with good performance and a classic finish on a stable base. Fresh, delicious, sparkling, cool. Everything done right!

Greyfruit has a very cheerful nature and brings me to more positive thoughts in a rather gloomy time that I am personally experiencing regardless of global developments.

I can hardly think of an occasion when you couldn't wear this fragrance in summer. During the day and in the evening, but also at work and in your free time in general. It is so versatile and works very well for many occasions and events if you like bright, cheerful, slightly watery and therefore not too sweet, uncomplicated summer freshies with a special twist.

I also find it appealing and practical for us fragrance lovers that this indie brand made in Germany offers the fragrance as a 30ml container at a correspondingly fair price. I always like it when houses offer 15-30 milliliter sizes, which "for us" - who often want to own a lot of fragrances - can also be a financial aspect of the purchase.

Greyfruit comes in a simple but neat bottle with a good spray unit. The outer packaging visually reflects my fragrance impression with the choice of color and the chosen design and, together with the inner workings of the packaging, exudes an authentic and charming flair of craftsmanship.

Cheers!

Sturbridge by Pineward opens with hidden cola notes that suddenly combine with pine resin and cones. In typical Pineward fashion, everything to do with the forest and pine in particular is very authentic and natural - at least to my nose.

Then it doesn't stop at the subtle scent of all kinds of pine accompanied by cola notes. Sturbridge is pleasantly sweet thanks to the baked apple and myrrh. Warm spices join in and, together with other great things, create a sweet, resinous, green, almost balsamic harmony that conjures up the following images in my head:

A wintry forest cabin stands in a Canadian pine forest,
inside there is an intimate, almost Christmassy atmosphere,
in the evening hours, two lovers roast their baked apples over an open fir wood fire,
pleasant smoke wafts through the rustic wooden hut.

I think I will also roast baked apples next winter, Sturbridge is welcome to join me :)

Cheers!

When I read that one of the new Pineward EdTs was coming up as an apple soliflore, my interest in a natural green apple scent for my collection was piqued.

With this expectation, I ordered the fragrance blind. After the first spray, I was at a loss: where is the apple? Then I was startled by the unexpected and distinct presence of the benzoin-sandalwood combination. Then, slowly, but increasingly, the green apple emerged.

Even though the apple is always present in the first hour, I feel that the scent is built around the wood-resin core and not the other way around, as I had hoped. Akero has a very linear (unspectacular) fragrance progression. It doesn't really change much, except for the fact that the apple clearly recedes after about an hour and soon disappears. As already indicated in my statement: it is not necessarily an apple soliflore for me, as Pineward writes. For that, it would have to be more central and dominate the fragrance, which it does not do.

I would have liked a watery, lighter, transparent, yet juicy and fresh-tart, cool green apple with significantly more restraint from benzoin and sandalwood. The apple-benzoin-wood combination dominates and not primarily the green apple alone. This also makes the fragrance warming rather than cooling in a certain way due to the wood and resin. I would therefore place it in the cooler spring and in the foothills of fall.

I had hoped that Nicholas Nilsson would bring a similarly ingenious natural apple here as the mealy red apple in Apple Tabac, only without the spicy - or in this case resinous-woody - "disruptive factors". But that is of course a matter of taste and expectation management :)

A nicely made indie fragrance that gets more chances. The apple is also quite well done. Although not as authentic as the red one in Apple Tabac. Wood and resin are too loud (for me) in Akero, which is a shame, but that's the way it is with expectations. It's better not to have any.

The fragrance has a nice natural color, and I really like the 37ml formats of Pineward. I can't say anything about the H/S/P at this stage, but will add to this.

Cheers!