ArkangeL

Insignia opens urgently with spices of cinnamon and saffron, followed by a luminous floral heart of rose and violet with a woody base. The oud here is imaginary. I expected a synthetic oud at least, but even that is not detectable. In a nutshell, Insignia has the classic CH DNA, enhanced with a spiced rose and no oud. Strong introduction, but dries down rather subtle. Not all fragrances have to be "beast mode", but I wasn't really impressed by the performance here. While this release is every bit designer, it is a good designer choice that I would place alongside fragrances like 1 Million Elixir. In addition, a stunning bottle with weight to make up for the lack of power behind the glass.

Woody, yet floral. Spicy, yet fresh. Imperial introduces itself sharp and slightly off putting, but one must keep in mind that the house of Boadicea uses raw materials. Many of their blends smell very natural and often take time to unfold. The dry down is stunning. Rose is not a prominent note, but you can catch it peeking its petals through a full floral heart of this composition. The lavender here is so finely blended, that it doesn’t strike you as lavender. It has been merged with several other notes to forge something rather distinctive. I find that this fragrance smells almost completely different when smelling close range versus catching intermittent wafts. I was not immediately reminded of TF Oud Wood or Creed's Royal Oud, but find that it does fall into that category. If you smell hard enough, the oud and rosewood combination is reminiscent of Oud Wood. Those who compared Imperial to Angel A*Men may seem way off looking at the note scheme, but I do get very subtle whispers of A*Men 45 minutes into wear. Lavender, sandalwood and patchouli perhaps? Imperial may vaguely remind you of a few existing scents out there, but is definitely its own fragrance. Classy, unique and high profile. Imperial will take you on a thrilling olfactory journey.

While there is a fair amount of creamy vanilla, we're not dealing with baked cookies. Although that is likely subject to change from person to person. There is a floral presence, but blossoms very warm and full bodied. Love Delight is sophisticated, but safe for Amouage. It's a fun fragrance that will be enjoyable for Spring and other seasons going forward, as it is versatile. Unlike Guidance, which is amazing but a cold-weather performer at best. I imagine anyone adding Love Delight to their collection, will find it easy to reach for. Don't be intimidated by cacao. It's there, but doesn't make the composition chocolaty in any way. I find that it provides a certain balance between bright florals and sweet vanilla. Ginger and cinnamon are so well blended, that it's not apparent that they are present. It seems that for every aggressive or spicy note, there is a softer or sweeter note to counter. I find that what I'm smelling perfectly reflects the aesthetics of the bottle. The color scheme speaks to a composition that is pleasant, bright, warm, floral and just sweet enough.

I honestly wasn't sure what to expect. I purchased this blind as I own the original Red Tobacco EDP (screw cap), which in my opinion always felt like an Extrait. While I cannot compare to the reformulation of the EDP with the magnetic cap, I almost couldn't tell the difference between the Intense and vintage EDP. Dare I say, the performance of Red Tobacco EDP (2017) seems to be noticeably superior to Red Tobacco Intense. I also find that the patchouli was more prominent in the old formula. This was one of my favorite facets about Red Tobacco. Has the quality been reduced and slyly reintroduced as an "Intense" or simply redefined? This version starts out just as abrasive and noisy as the classic, however I find that 3 hours after application it attempts to take on a new identity. As it dries down, the patchouli note bows out gracefully and leather takes the stage. Here, we have a case where it is redundant to own both fragrances. However, considering the dry down differs with both formulas you may find yourself preferring one over the other. With Red Tobacco it's not the journey, but the destination.

PM smells like the music industry in the 80s, at least for the first hour. Cocaine and smoke. Ironically inspired by a music producer or collaboration rather. Upon the opening there is this bitter sweet, ash-like, smoky leather; only slightly metallic. Reminiscent of TF Tuscan Leather and Byredo's Black Saffron, but turned up a few notches. This particular note allows very little room for other notes to shine outside of cardamom, patchouli and woody accords. 3-4 hours in, the floral notes are more detectable, but still leather dominant while moving into a powdery phase. There is a freshness of juniper felt in the late stages of wear as well. PM is quite masculine and intrusive, if that's your thing and could very well be worn by a woman. Well made and performed, but it's going to require an abrasive personality or much confidence to pull this one off.