Medianus76

Woody Mood literally translates to woody mood. Just because of the name, getting to know it better has been of great interest to me. The label has also been on my radar for some time. Therefore, nothing stood in the way of a detailed test - and I was anything but disappointed. Because the name truly reflects the essence!
The golden-yellow amber liquid promises a promising, ethereal forest scent. The opening sends out a slightly fresh, citrusy note. This briefly lasting fresh forest air is framed by a wonderfully mild-bitter cocoa nuance. Not intense or sweet, but initiating and leading into the further development of the fragrance. In my opinion, this start forms the basis, the framework for the other components. A slight sharpness, presumably from the ginger, joins in right away. This harmony is supported by a similarly mild, herbaceous subtlety.
This constellation of aromas forming the top note is excellently executed. But Woody Mood has more to offer, much more, because we are just at the entrance of the monumentally impressive giant sequoia forest...
As more and more ethereal-balsamic tones slowly mix in, we find ourselves more on wooded terrain. Fragrant, slightly smoky forest floor combines with an incredibly beautiful, smooth, and warm woodiness. The scent is never overwhelming or jagged; the forest is not burning anywhere, and it always appears accessible and excellently realized! Occasionally, a slightly bitter facet flashes through, likely arising from the tea, rounding out the entire fragrance spectrum towards the middle. At this point, we are already deeper in the forest.
Upon reaching the end of the forest, at the drydown of the fragrance, a caressing woody-resinous component mixes in. The styrax likely conveys this warm-sensual and resinous finale, accompanying us until we exit the forest...

I write comments on fragrances that touch me deeply with their magic and aura. I want to try to convey and bring the special impression to the readers of these lines.
But what is so special about Woody Mood for me? There are many forest scents, and they are probably all somewhat similar!
What fascinates me about the fragrance is the complex aura that arises in terms of projection and radiance! It is this veil that the scent creates!
When I smell directly on the skin, I can recognize individual images, perceive individual aromas. Like looking through a kaleidoscope. I look through, and each time I see a different beautiful image.
But it is the sum of these components that makes Woody Mood truly extraordinary, enchanting, and intense...
A scent that, in my opinion, is unparalleled, and as beautifully sublime and majestically powerful as the giant sequoias of our planet!
Thank you for reading.

It is early August. I am in Rome, and there is a scorching heat. Our central star shines from the sky as if one were in an oven. The air shimmers in the winding side streets, and it smells of overheated tar.
Rome was another destination on our Italy tour. Although we knew that visiting the various sights in this heat would be like walking a gauntlet, the temptation to visit Rome was strong enough. Especially now during the Corona break, when people are not crowding together and the city is bursting at the seams!
Rome is a colossal city. Shaped by antiquity, influenced by modernity, equipped with an Italian flair that I have not experienced anywhere else in Italy. Our plan worked out, and we were able to marvel at a nearly empty!! Colosseum, take pictures on the Spanish Steps without other passersby, and explore the winding side streets without being overwhelmed.
But this heat - it was relentless. So it happened that I discovered a small perfumery in one of those wonderfully Italian-looking side streets.
Of course, water is the first choice in the heat, but a refreshing scent, ideally from Italian manufacture, can’t hurt...
Said and done, I dove into the perfumery...and came back a while later with my new acquisition. Acqua dell Elba "Blu Uomo" was recommended to me by the owner. I found the top note of the fragrance refreshing, zesty, and maritime. And I wanted an Italian product. To test the scent further, and due to the spontaneous sympathy, I purchased it. Unfortunately, Rome did not become cooler because of this - but I felt a bit more refreshed and my collection grew by one fragrance!

Blu Uomo begins with a sparkling, refreshing, and beautiful citrus note. Lemon, orange, and mandarin play the first orchestra. Southern citrus fruits, so fresh as if they were still hanging on the tree. Unfortunately, it often happens to me that such fresh-sounding scents develop a certain association with toilet cleaner. This effect hardly occurs with this fragrance. If it had, I would have been disappointed with the purchase. Because whether Blu shows this tendency, I could not quite assess in the perfumery.
This initial freshness is compensated by a well-executed twist. A certain herbaceous-woody component flanks the scent progression. The oak moss contributes a slightly green-mossy facet, and the cedarwood adds this herbaceous-woody sprinkle. The fragrance is by no means pushed away from its core theme but is rather supported complementarily. It remains a blue, maritime, fresh-sounding scent that fits the south like a glove. Naturally, it fits summer!
The well-used mastic resin is small, round, and bright yellow in its original form. It is the resin of the wild pistachio tree and is also called tears of Chios. The scent is described as sweet-fresh, resinous-spicy, and reminiscent of citrus fruits.
In my opinion, this additional ingredient perfectly rounds off the fragrance and thus the overall olfactory impression. This light citrusy resinousness makes the scent very soft in the end...
Projection and longevity correspond more to what one can expect from blue fragrances. I would advocate for a diplomatic middle ground here. Nevertheless, Blu remains perceptible as a beautiful skin scent for quite a while.
Overall, Blu is for me a beautiful, well-made Italian summer fragrance. It will certainly remind me of that extraordinary day in Rome every time I smell it...
As with Part 1, I have included a few pictures of Rome in my album to provide some visual impressions to accompany this description.
Stay loyal to me and thank you for reading.

The first part of my fragrant journey through Tuscany, or rather Italy, I would like to dedicate to the scent Black by Gutteridge. I discovered this fragrance in the Italian city of Pisa. The trademark of this city, who would have thought, is of course the leaning tower. So it was also our goal to pay a visit to this monumental structure.
By the way, it should be mentioned that Pisa is a typical Italian town, and even with the current Corona restrictions, it is relatively well-frequented. Compared to my other destinations in Italy, however, Pisa actually had the least southern flair. Everything is very much geared towards tourism. This changes the further south you go. Nevertheless, the city along with its sights is certainly worth a visit.

On the way to the highlights of the city, one can wonderfully stroll through the pedestrian zone. Passing by cafes, souvenir shops, and ice cream parlors, I noticed a very elegant store by Gutteridge. High-quality, refined Italian fashion is sold there, as well as the perfume line of this house.
It seems that some of my predecessors had a similar experience. They happened to pass by the stores and became aware of the scent.

Upon entering the store, it was immediately clear to me that no cheap goods were being sold here. Wrapped in a fresh, herb-spicy cloak, I perceived the sales rooms. It smelled very appealing and pleasant, very masculine, and in this combination, also very Italian.
Of course, this scent already came from the perfume, which the operators surely also use as a room fragrance, not least for sales strategy reasons.
All of this convinced me almost on the spot, and I bought the fragrance blind. At the price of 30 euros, this is certainly not a daring undertaking.
What followed was an extensive test of the newly acquired little water, which presents itself as follows...
Black starts with a sparkling and pleasant freshness. This is more of a lemony freshness, which shines briefly and intensely, but then quickly loses its presence. This opening is supported by a light, subtle fruitiness, without making the scent smell sweet. On the contrary, Black always remains elegantly herbaceous and pleasantly spicy.
As this refreshing start settles, a certain herbal, earthy-mossy component takes over the reins. A minimal roughness also lingers in the background. Very authentic and in good symbiosis with the fresh opening.
To ensure that the whole thing does not become too angular, amber and vanilla act in a somewhat regulating manner on the scent development. The overall picture makes the fragrance appear smooth, elegant, and absolutely wearable. As they say...easy to wear ;)
The projection and longevity I would place in the moderate to upper middle range. Black is not an aggressive companion but operates well from the background. Occasionally, you can still catch a small cloud a few hours later.
The bottle is a beauty, feels quite heavy in the hand, and is very solidly constructed. With all these qualities, the 30 euros for the fragrance is an absolutely fair and realistic price. Clear recommendation to buy if you like such scents.
In summary, Black is certainly not a monumental work of art, like many other things I looked at that day. But it is an elegant and masculine fragrance that is worth wearing.
For the interested reader of this olfactory description of Black, I have included the appropriate visual accompaniment in my album with a few pictures from Pisa...to be continued!!
Thank you for reading...

For even more interested parties and Creed enthusiasts:
The often-cited comparison to the Creed fragrance house holds only conditionally for me personally. I took the time to compare both fragrances. Based on my Aventus batch that I own, Black is olfactorily differently colored than its supposed model. While Black does have certain facets and sprinkles of Aventus, it is, and I find this the big difference, more herbal and herbaceous in overall impression.
Ultimately, this will always depend on the respective batch.

Without shadows, we see no sun. Without darkness, we would not find the light.
So or something similar would fit for me as the introduction to Black Gemstone. The molecular structure presents a deep black - period!
When I look at black as a color, and then have to imagine a scent, then that opening would certainly be a good choice.

At the beginning of the fragrance pyramid, a true black hole emerges. The incense forms an olfactory tunnel that initially contains no brightness. However, through the skillful use of fragrance molecules, it soon allows us to perceive a light at the end of the tunnel. This light is created by a consistently translucent fresh lemon and is rounded off by the presence of cedarwood. In the opening, these components complement each other harmoniously and regulate each other. The lemon and cedarwood keep the incense in check, so it does not take over. The incense, as the counterpart, keeps the scent uncompromisingly on the dark side.

If the fragrance did not undergo any further significant development at this point, it would certainly not be interesting to me, and I would not pay it any further attention. The metamorphosis that the fragrance undergoes later on, however, is what makes it what it truly is - a black gemstone!

Similar to a roller shutter that you slowly raise on a sunny day, the individual, dark-crusted slats gradually dissolve. The incoming daylight drives away the darkness and fills the room with a cozy and pleasant warmth. This effect is the strength of Black Gemstone. More and more, resins and myrrh take control, giving the fragrance a berry-like and sweet component. The dark and smoky aspect recedes into the background, creating an overall picture of a smooth, sweet, resinous, and smoky projection artist.
A projection artist also because the oily essences and resins cling to the skin like burnt milk in a pot! This results in a very long-lasting scent, and the sillage should correspondingly be significant. Therefore, one must handle the dosage carefully.

Black Gemstone is a fragrance that is more than worth wearing. However, it is not always wearable. It strongly depends on the set and setting to provide the fragrance with the appropriate space and opportunity to unfold. In what place do I want to wear it, which location? And do I have the appropriate mood of the day to embody and radiate such a fragrance aura?
I am definitely fascinated by this scent, and I find its ability to transform extraordinary and very exciting. It embodies the recurring opposites of light and shadow in life!

And as Jim Morrison once sang in one of his songs...You know that the day destroys the night...Break on through to the other side...

Thank you for your attention

...and time stood still for a moment. 2 ml was exactly the amount of The Moon that I purchased during the last sharing here on Parfumo. Unfortunately only 2 ml, because had I known what awaited me...

The Moon sets a new marker on my olfactory timeline. It breaks certain chains, so to speak. There is a time before The Moon, and a time after The Moon.
Many things are put into perspective, and fragrances that previously impressed me suddenly shift into a completely different light.

After I examined the amber-colored elixir, I thought, especially considering the small amount, I should test it on my skin right away. I don’t want to waste anything. And wow... at the moment of the meeting of fragrance molecules and olfactory cells, there is a synaptic fireworks display like no other. And time truly felt like it stood still for a moment.

The Moon opens with an incredibly strong, fruity, and sweet raspberry. Also supported by other fruits, which I cannot perceive in isolation. I could never experience the raspberry so intensely in Tuscan Leather or La Yuqawam. More like a green, unripe fruit. But with The Moon... absolutely impressive.
Accompanying it is a very finely woven oud. The association with cow stalls and horse romance may only come through at the very beginning, quickly blurring, and leaving a fine veil that gives the fragrance this enchanting animalistic touch... strong!!
Additionally, what I find appealing is a subtly flashing rose. Only occasionally and just now and then. Too much rose in fragrances rarely reaches me, but here the theme seems to be very well resolved.
As the composition progresses, very elegant and soft leather joins in, providing the fragrance with a rounded finish and expressive strength. With all these more than harmoniously coordinated components, the fragrance truly captivates you.

It has such a strong presence, and its radiance is akin to that of a neon tube. Thus, the sillage and longevity are breathtaking, which, however, means it cannot be worn everywhere. In my professional life, that would probably be too much. But so what... everything has its time and everything in its time. There are plenty of other occasions to wear the moon.
The quality of the individual ingredients seems definitely high-quality and exclusive. This likely accounts for the enormously high price. To what extent the price is actually justified, I cannot assess. For that, I ultimately lack the expertise.

In conclusion, I would like to draw a bridge to the real moon. More precisely, to the blood moon, which occurs during a total lunar eclipse.
The moon shines mysteriously red, often seemingly within reach, and represents, just like the fragrance, the following qualities:

mystical and legendary
powerful and expressive
intoxicating and captivating

Enjoy The Moon and thank you for reading!