BLACK FOREST (General Catalog)

BLACK FOREST
Agarwood, Nagarmotha EO, Tobacco Absolute, Dark Chocolate, Chocolate Mousse, Cocoa Absolute, Maraschino Cherries, Black Cherries, Hay Absolute, Sandalwood EO, Whipped Cream & a drop of Pink Peppercorn Essential Oil

NOT TO BE USED BY WOMEN WHO ARE PREGNANT OR NURSING.

Offered as a Perfume only

Description: This is one of our first dual concept fragrances. It is meant to embody the luxurious decadence of black forest cake and the dark secluded imagery of the Black Forest in Germany. The focus was on rich exotic wood notes in lieu of conifer notes to represent the forest. Black Forest is very heavy on the woods. On initial application the cherries are detectable but they quickly fall into a chasm of deep dark notes that serve to tame the gourmand element of this blend. The agarwood and nagarmotha prop up the sweet notes and are the next to be discovered. Nagarmotha essential oil is a divine cross that strikes somewhere between vetiver and agarwood. It evokes a rare and precious wood note. The tobacco and hay absolutes are the next notes to emerge quickly after detection of the aforementioned notes. They wrap the other oils in a cozy, warm, dry and dusty blanket. This is the point where Black Forest turns most dry and smells like a humidor housing a very fine and exceedingly dark chocolate cherry pipe tobacco. The scent stays in this phase for a little while but as your skin warms it, the ethereal billows of the fluffiest whipped cream waft far in the background and sweeten the blend of woods to the point that it begins to smell like a wonderful unlit incense stick coupled with the pipe tobacco. The gourmand notes end up receeding tremendously though they are invaluable to the overall character of this scent. This is not a standard foodie scent. If you like dark fragrances with these notes, try this unusual and enticing fragrance. It is full of character and depth. After a few hours on the skin it turns a lot sweeter when the whipped cream note is most apparent but the woods keep it grounded and it stays a super delicious incensey scent.

This scent is absolutely gorgeous. I need not describe it in detail because Angela has already done so, and her description is spot on. Black Forest perfectly fits its concept, in that it has a dual "personality"--it starts more gourmand and ends up more incensey with sweet influences. It reminds me of Manor a bit but with chocolate and cherry pipe tobacco notes. Whereas the woody notes in Manor are have more of a strong bite to them, the woody notes in Black Forest are more warm and "cozy." The cherry element is not at all sickening or medicinal. A beautifully blended scent. In short: I love it! Angela, I seriously would not mind paying a heftier price if you wanted to make some glace in this scent, which I hope you will! For now, I think I will try layering it with Manor glace.

Also, I'm editing my post to add my opinion that this scent should go GC. It's just so good and while it certainly evokes a Valentine's Day feel I would wear it year round, especially during the colder months!!!

I love this! I am a die hard gourmand girl, but this one gives me the best of both worlds with incense/woodsy and gourmand. Angela's description is spot on like always. I definitely think of black forest cake + the forest when I smell this. It's like naughty and nice at the same time.

I agree, this could definitely go to GC.

HOLY CRAP!

If loving this scent makes me a FOODIE, then SO BE IT!

This scent is ohhhhhh so wonderful! Angela... amazing blending there! I wrote on the "green" that this is the perfect crossover scent for foodies and non-foodies. It has elements that both will love. Your dual concept for this scent works PERFECTLY. Who would have ever thought that chocolate and incense would be in the same blend! When I look at the scent notes to this blend... I think "How the heck can all of these scents work together?" That's where Angela is a master.

I agree with SScholar (as per usual! /grin), I think what brings Manor in to mind might be the Agarwood and I certainly wouldn't mind paying more for a glace either!


In a word... LOVE THIS!

Rob wrote:

HOLY CRAP!

If loving this scent makes me a FOODIE, then SO BE IT!

This scent is ohhhhhh so wonderful! Angela... amazing blending there! I wrote on the "green" that this is the perfect crossover scent for foodies and non-foodies. It has elements that both will love. Your dual concept for this scent works PERFECTLY. Who would have ever thought that chocolate and incense would be in the same blend! When I look at the scent notes to this blend... I think "How the heck can all of these scents work together?" That's where Angela is a master.

I agree with SScholar (as per usual! /grin), I think what brings Manor in to mind might be the Agarwood and I certainly wouldn't mind paying more for a glace either!


In a word... LOVE THIS!

It must be good to do this to Rob!

I'm in!

I really LOVE this scent, it has all the notes that Angela described. For me, it reminds me of Jack and the Devil, with delicious cherry and cocoa notes in place of the pumpkin. Dark, sultry and gourmand!

I want to add that I wore Black Forest to work today and it lasted forever! I can still smell it and it's after 7 o'clock in the evening. This is a truly amazing scent.

I got a tiny bit of chocolate on cold sniff, but on my skin it's rich wood and tobacco with chocolate, cherry, and cream subtly smoothing everything out around the edges. This is complex, a little dark, and is definitely amazing on a guy or girl. Masterfully done!

THis is an amazing scent-smells like rich cherry tobacco that is so smooth and sensual. I just love it! Would be more than happy to pay more for a glace in this-would love that! Hope this iw a year around scent! LOVE!

Review of the oil:
I'm getting mostly the cherry pipe tobacco and chocolate impression.  There's a hint of that musky/dark woodiness that I get from Manor, but it's smothered in sweeter notes here.  
I have trouble wearing tobacco fragrances, because they often turn cloying on me.  Black Forest is like super sweet, sticky chewing tobacco and dried cherry/raisins.  Too sweet on my skin.
I do love the whipped cream note after an hour or so, when the blend shifts to more of that creamy vanilla, incense, and tart cherry smell, but it takes too long to get to that stage for me.

Review of the edp:
Tart, sweet cherry and sweet cocoa powder underneath earthy, cool tobacco leaves that are making me think of crisp fall breezes and crunchy fall leaves. As it dries down, the agarwood is dark, woody, and sweetly resinous, and I definitely smell the realistic hay absolute along with the cocoa powder, bright red cherry, and a little bit of the vanilla-y whipped cream.
I understand and can pick out the foodie elements (the cocoa powder is wonderful and rich, the cherry present and tart, the vanilla lending a creamy edge), but it's 50% foodie and 50% atmospheric, dark woods and earthy notes to my nose. The tobacco, hay and agarwood are dark, moody and wonderful for conjuring up the outdoors.
After an hour, this is like cherry flavored chewing tobacco, sticky and sweet, and sitting on a porch in the woods as summer is turning to chilly fall and all of the leaves are dying, looking out at a barn full of drying hay for the winter.
Very interesting and I love the progression and the specific outdoorsy picture that it paints for me.

I don't know what to make of this one. Its a sweet and a woodsy scent. I can't decide whether I love it or hate it. I think I like it in small doses, in a perfume form rather than say as a body lotion. Maybe I'll change my mind later. The scent is growing on me. It is very beautiful and I can see why everyone loves it.

update: I love this! I wouldn't mind the scent in ganache or in glace, and will def purchase it. I love it more and more as I wear it

So glad I took a chance on this one -ordered full size, unsniffed. Initially, I get cherries & dark chocolate but not overly sweet. It doesn't take long for that to dissipate on me. I don't get very much tobacco - I was a wee bit concerned abt that as I've had trouble with scents that have tobacco in the past. Then woods begin to fill out. On me it ends up as a wonderfully rich, creamy, dark yummy-ness. I get a smidge of vanilla even though vanilla is not listed. Absolutely amazing! For me, this is a fantastic fall-winter scent despite it being offered as part of the Valentine's Day collection! Would second the request for this in a glace! It's a good thing I'm home as I keep sniffing my wrists.

I can see the comparison to Manor. That is one of the things I love abt perfume oils - each of us gets such a different experience from the same product depending on our chemistry!

I. LOVE. THIS. SCENT!!!! I WANT A GLACE!!!!! Please oh, please, oh, PLEASE...and make it GC?!?!?

(takes chill pill)

Ok. I am a dark/incense/gourmand luva, anyway. But THIS. TAKES. THE CAKE!

Black Forest smells very strongly of cocoa at first, but soon it's like incense in a sauna, or like in the tropics when the sun is so hot it makes the trees smell hot. I LOVE that smell. (I always want oude to smell like that, but too often it smells like band-aids). It smells so NATURAL for having so many "foody" notes, and yet, I don't feel like I've dropped cake on myself. It's hot, dark, and SEXY! It's definitely Manor's brunette sister!

lookingglass wrote:

It's definitely Manor's brunette sister!

Nicely put.

SolsticeScholar wrote:

lookingglass wrote:

It's definitely Manor's brunette sister!

Nicely put.

^^ LOL

Cross-posted from the green:

Black Forest surprised me in that it really is a lovely blend of foodie and non-foodie notes. The sweetness of the foodie makes it almost wearable for me - "almost" because I'm not a fan of wood notes on myself, but I'd love to smell it on my husband. The scent of the drydown would be perfect for me if it was the same scent throughout because it's just as Angela described: sweet with the wood notes in the background. She may just convince me that wood notes can be my friend yet.

I'm bringing this topic back. I see no one's commented on it in a while...

First off, I'm new here... Just joined and this is my first post.

I felt I had to come here to make comments because I just recently discovered Solstice and am fascinated with what I've found so far. I just received a sample set today, am only on my first scent and am already blown away with how much I love it!

I've had my first sample, Black Forest, on my arm for about 3 hours and it had turned into the most interesting woody/incensey/chocolatey thing. I'm in love with this. But I have to ask: what is that delicious woody smell? Is this what Agarwood smells like? I just can't put my finger on it. It's unlike any wood I've smelled before.

Thanks everyone. I'll be back to comment on the other samples in the coming days as I get to know them.

Like Violet Truffle, there is more to this than first meets the nose. This is a serious fragrance. In it's opening gambit, the chocolate cherry combination provides a ready memory reference of black chocolate cherry cake, however, that is simply the beginning to what is a very clever sleight of hand as you are soon guided into the woody, darker serious notes that underpin this excellent work. It's evolution is fascinating and takes you through many steps all the while with a definite pull between gourmet and non gourmet notes. For me it is a fragrance that is about the tobacco and woods within a cocoa frame. At the opening, the deliciously dark cherries provide an excellent contrast for the cocoa and woods and provides the obvious cake association. Later on, the Hay note provides the sweetness and at the close a "whipped cream" note provides the foil to the darkness and the fragrance moves away from the gourmet. The balance between the two shows your technical skills. An enormously approachable fragrance and an enormously satisfying one. Very clever and mature work. The description you have for this fragrance is spot on.

This stuff right here! OMG! This stuff right here is awesome!

I sniff it and I can feel the oxytocin fire off in my brain. Really! My eyes roll into the back of my head and I can't stop the deep inhale and the very slow exhale. The deep chocolate scent loves me like no other. When I layer it with the whipped soap and body ganache...pure heaven! Life gets no better than this!

The first gourmand type of perfume to attract my attention and keep it!
Let it be known that I am very fussy when it comes to any perfume blends that are gourmand or foody in nature. Forgive me, I just don't like smelling like a muffin or a pancake However with Black Forest it's SUCH a different story.

I've always been fond of cherry and chocolate notes, and seeing them together combined with a more sophisticated blend of woods really caught my interest. There is so much more to Black Forest than just considering it a gourmand experience. If we want to talk on basics, then okay, this will definitely suit those who adore foody/gourmand types, but even then you'll be able to see past it's chocolately, creamy exterior and discover a hidden gem within. Very soft and pretty woods just seem to waft out and around, almost eery, like a ghost floating and following you, and then there's something almost earthy about it, nothing intense. Just something that makes me feel a little more grounded. For anyone concerned about the cherries, nothing synthetic of nasty smelling. Think of a most decadent cherry preserve. It's not tooth ache inducing levels of sweet and creamy, and I don't really tend to pick up much of the whipped cream.

This is a very potent perfume, as in its staying power is absolutely fantastic. I don't think I've come across such a long lasting perfume such is Black Forest. I've worn this before, and had some on a shirt from when it's made contact with the perfume laced areas on my skin. The shirt has been in the laundry pile for a week and STILL had Black Forest on it! I also find it to last well over 6 hours on my skin without wanting to touch up, because I don't want to touch up yet because I'm enjoying the more mellow, woody phase to it.

Black Forest is definitely a blend that will attract the foody lovers, and for those like me who appreciate the more darker blends, this might be up your alley as well. Definitely a signature scent for Solstice Scents, and is always a scent I recommend to anyone new to Solstice Scents.

This is a scent that truly lives up to the duality of its name - I am quite impressed.

To start with, upon cold sniff, I've just cut a slice of Black Forest cake - chocolate and cherries. Upon application, there they are and there they stay for about the first hour and an a half. Very gourmand and foodie.

But the aroma absolutely does a 180 after that hour and a half and then you are in the German Black Forest. On me, all gourmand/foodie-ness is gone and replaced with a very dark, woodsy accord. What an incredible transformation.

Black Forest is not my favorite perfume; I'm more of a softer gourmand/floral wearer, but I definitely have to say, the transition and transformation Angela has achieved in this scent is absolutely amazing and masterful.

ohh, I love this one.

when wet, Black Forest is heady chocolate and dark cherries, almost boozy in its intensity. but for me, it loses its foody opening rather quickly (20-30 minutes) and dries down into something else entirely, pipe tobacco and rich cocoa and deep woods, the edges softened just enough with spiced cream.

the first night I wore this, one of my friends brought over a bottle of chocolate red wine to share. if there is such a thing as a perfume / wine pairing, this would be it! there were no romantical implications to the evening - but if that were your aim, this would be some big (yet subtle?) guns, for sure.

This was the first SS perfume I tried, and it instantly made me curious to try more.

Black Forest is really unique as a dark dual concept perfume. Angela's description hits the nail on the head, so I won't go into depth on the progression of notes that float to the top. Besides, it's far too complex for me to do it justice. Let's just say that the richness of dark chocolate cake and cherries melds perfectly with the earthiness of incense and woods.

Black Forest is long-lasting and it morphs throughout the day. It appeals to me as a complex gourmand fragrance, but I imagine it also appeals to people who enjoy woods or other more masculine scents.

Black Forest was a surprising sample for me - I've never been into 'foodie' scents, but decided to try this one because it is darker and more unusual than most gourmands. In the vial Black Forest smells like a deep dark chocolate. The sweetness is prominent but you can smell the rich, dank background in the roundness of the scent. Once applied to my skin, Black Forest becomes more woodsy and spicy, the sweetness of the chocolate toned down but still present. It's quite an interesting scent but I haven't worn it out anywhere- it's so unusual I think it'd be hard for me to pull it off.

I realllyyyyy wanted this scent to work for me. I was introduced to SS by a friend via the German Chocolate Cake scent, which she unfortunately didn't tell me was discontinued damn her. I turned to this scent as an alternative.

Wet, this has a really strong artificial maraschino cherry scent which I kind of hate, then it fades and becomes more and more chocolate cake goodness (YUM)... and if it stayed that way I would hoard this stuff like crazy and bathe in it. Unfortunately, the cake note completely disappears pretty quickly on me and turns into a really dark, wet, slightly muddy, forest. Kind of like how I would expect the Forbidden Forest in Harry Potter (wtf connection? Sorry it's 1:36 am...) to smell like in the middle of winter, but less magical. This is a really strong, masculine scent that is noticeable from afar, and I really can't stand it. Unlike the cake phase, the forest phase lasts for aaaaaaageeessss. Then the cake comes back and morphs in a rather lovely manner with the forest.

Again, I really wanted to love this stuff. As in, I wore it repeatedly on and off hoping to suddenly love it. While I adore the chocolate cake scent, the forest phase is just too much of a turn off for me to ignore. I actually try to keep my wrists away from my face during this phase. In the end I couldn't justify buying the full size but I somewhat enjoyed my sample up until I accidentally spilled it OTL.

Despite this, I really love the originality of this scent, and the idea of a dual concept fragrance. Though it didn't work for me, this is one of the fragrances I would tell a friend new to SS to definitely be sure to try out, if not for its originality alone.