Apple Brandy On the Rocks By Kilian

Now please, don't tell anyone, but I ordered a sample set from Skins because the money didn't stretch for a full bottle of Sweetly Known or Lamar. After I placed the order, a sneaky mail came in that a retailer had 20 percent off an already discounted perfume. That perfume was Apple Brandy. Luckily, one of the samples in my sample set was exactly that, Apple Brandy On the Rocks by Kilian. How could I not?

I snagged the full bottle and couldn't wait to try it when the sample set arrived. After all, I can always return the full bottle.

From first spray, Apple Brandy is a green and crisp apple scent. Even after dry down, the note is fresh and delicious! Very realistic and endearing. The fragrance has a wonderful richness, a depth from cardamom, but not as strong as in Sweetly Known, in this juice, the note just perfectly balances the tart apple. 

A little while later, the cardamom becomes the main note along with some discreet brandy and just a hint of pineapple sweetness without the characteristic juiciness or tropical note that pineapple usually has (or let's be honest, like it is wonderfully presented in Lamar).

Funny thing is, and it just hit me, Apple Brandy is a faint mix of Sweetly Known and Lamar! What a surprise! I got a two in one! 

Now, on second wear, a week later, I have to say that the scent is a little raunchy at first. What went wrong? Apple Brandy is still a green, crisp apple, but it is as if something has gone bad. My boyfriend came back from a run outside and when he came back, he said that our apartment smells like a sauna! And you know what? I do get it too - damp wood, imagine walking into a sauna that just has been used and is ready for the next group; sweatiness, a little musky undertone; and sour wood, the tart apple note only pushes the sauna experience with the sour resin in the wood being heated up repeatedly. At the moment, my nose cannot smell anything else. Imagine a classic sauna room build with wood on all four walls including flooring and the ceiling. 

After dry down, luckily, the sauna has gone. Mostly.

Apple Brandy has definitely been tainted by the illusion of a sauna and though I liked it at first, I am planning on returning the full bottle.

Rouge Smoking by BDK Parfums

High Expectations chapter three:
Rouge Smoking is not what I expected, doesn't sound like we are off to a good start, but hear me out.

Main accords are vanilla, sweet, powdery, amber and cherry, but from first spray, on paper, Rouge Smoking is purely sugary sweet. No cherry, no vanilla, no amber or powderiness. All I have to say is, huh. There is a cashmerean sweetness to it, very smooth, but absolutely no fruitiness or florals from violet or orange blossom, which are stated as notes.

I honestly expected more or at least some cherry, but the fragrance is an indefinable sweetness.

Nothing about Rouge Smoking alludes to anything red (red berries, juiciness or sexiness) or smokiness. Nothing. I am honestly baffled at this point. I expected to love Rouge Smoking and like Gris Charnel, but right now it is the other way around.

I waited a couple of days, if not over a week, and gave Rouge another go.

So, the same sweetness as before - not fruity, not like vanilla, but indefinable. Like a marzipan confectionery with a little bit of jam inside and a thin, thin coating of chocolate - a multum of different sweetnesses. After dry down, the scent is all but edible in its sweetness. I would actually describe it as a generic body mist from any brand. I know I just offended ninety percent of the fragrance community, but scents are very subjective and this is unfortunately my experience.

My boyfriend is no scent connoisseur, but he said I smelled like an old lady... 

I would say he represents the general public, so that's not good. 

And I have to agree, there is something Lancome-esque about Rouge Smoking. I have done everything I can do, lately, to try and do fragrances justice, because of the streak of disappointments I've had. I moisturise, I try it more often than usual, but I'm getting tired of smelling bad or boring... I am considering shelving testing new fragrances for a while and wear my own to enjoy fragrances once again.

I just got a kit of samples from Skins and might give them a go first...

My three chapters of High Expectations were, safe to say, a complete fail.

Mon Guerlain Intense by Guerlain

High Expectations chapter two:
You see, anything that Anne Lauren recommends, I have to try. This amazing girl could sell sand in the desert! When she spoke of Mon Guerlain Intense, I had to get my hands on a sample.

Come to the rescue, Laura! She was so sweet and made me a sample, in exchange I sent her Taj by Yas (and I really hope she likes it!). My expectations for Mon Guerlain Intense were high, but after doing a little swatch on the back off my hand, I did an "and I oop". Yikes, am I about to disagree with Anne for the first time?

Mon Guerlain Intense gives, from the get go, an old and outdated fragrance DNA to me, I'm so sorry, but it made me think of my aunt who is in her seventies.  Think good ol' Tresór by Lancome vibes. How can this be from 2019? Mon Guerlain Intense is without a doubt an aromatic, it is powdery, I get a clean lavender note that isn't like that of an essential oil, but a lavender field. The liquorice it quite prominent too. I despise the taste even though I was born and raised in a country that eats liquorice like their life depended on it. Safe to say, I am not too keen on the note in this fragrance too. On paper, I do not get any vanilla. The scent is purely an aromatic fragrance of lavender, liquorice, benzoin and just the slightest hint of some florals. At least, the outdatedness has disappeared. After dry down, the scent reminds me of Libre eau de toilette.

On skin, the fragrance has the same older DNA that it had on paper. I think it's the liquorice. It is somewhat sweeter on skin, but it isn't from the vanilla, it smells more of bubblegum. I had to revisit Anne's video to find the words to describe it. In my own words, it is a sweet, aromatic fragrance that by no means is a woody fragrance (according to Fragrantica, it is an Amber Wood). I have to agree with Anne, it is "sweet, creamy and flirty", but I don't get the white chocolate creaminess or even any creaminess from sandalwood, unfortunately.

Laura recommended to do a full day wear testing and I always do that before reviewing, but I really hope Mon Guerlain Intense surprises me. Right now, it's a loud 'no' from me.

Alright, so how did it go? First of, the scent was strong and I had a slight headache for many hours. Something about Mon Guerlain Intense is still very mature to me, not really endearing or my taste. Some (better) notes have appeared, but not enough to make me like it. After hours of wear, the scent had calmed down, but it hasn't changed my mind. It is very likeable, I think, but it is not My Guerlain.

Hours later, when I was getting ready for sleep, water came down my wrists while washing my face and only then did the vanilla appear and was actually pleasant. I got whiffs of it going to sleep and thought "I wish this was Mon Guerlain, but from first spray, not 12 hours after spraying...". 

Gris Charnel by BDK Parfums

High Expectations chapter one: 
Alright, Gris Charnel has been the main character in my feed along with Rouge Smoking for a while. The way you guys have been describing it, I just HAD to try it and from the first spray, I am hooked!

I get a lovely tea note that is comforting, but also fresh. There is some sweetness that doesn't make this a sweet scent, but creamy-sweet, a mix of tonka and light fig. There is a wonderful amount of vetiver (bourbon) that grounds the fragrance and I have to say that Gris Charnel reminds me of something. A fragrance I have tried before, but I am very unsure from which house or which fragrance. After dry down, the sandalwood makes the scent even more creamy, it is elegant, elevated, just delicious! 

Still on paper, I don't get any cardamom at all, maybe my take on cardamom is like that of Sweetly Known. THAT is a cardamom done right and strong!

I wouldn't call this fragrance woody, spicy or aromatic, which is the first three main accords according to Fragrantica. I would describe Gris Charnel as smooth and creamy, but not lactonic, and now when I come to think of it, it reminds me of a Commodity fragrance. Or even Santal Austral from Matiere Premiere.

On paper, the fresh tea and grounding vetiver has completely gone. This is just on paper, so let's give this a go on my skin.

On skin, I get a slight spiciness from cardamom, but not the sensual kind like that of Sweetly Known, instead it is more rough, sour. The tea note isn't present like it was on paper. Gris Charnel is not the smooth fragrance I got from paper, it is more masculine and wild. 

After dry down, the cardamom is faintly there and the roughness has gone too. The scent remains dark, but has become creamy. It is very different on paper than on my skin. It still has some Santal Austral vibe to it, but not as light an airy; it is an Autumn, gloomy version of it. 

Do I like it? Yes, but do I love it? No, I think I might forget all about it before long... I will give this one a couple of goes, because it has gained so much notoriety and I really want to know what all the fuss is about.

I added a couple of sprays, and this time around, the cardamom isn't sour, but more candy like. Riddle me that! Much more endearing.
The upcoming three reviews, including this one, are fragrances that I've had really high expectations for, so buckle up!