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ASergeyI – :
jtd- I have never been so bored in my life reading your comment, was there any need? I have yet to try these scents, I have a sample pack and will explore at some point!
I have heard amazing things about this house and cant wait to test! We all have dreams
salik917 – :
smokey dry wood; guaiac, oak, touch of oakmoss, hint of bourbon but not really boozy sweet, the smoke rules this fragrance, a dry dry dry smoke and wood; the benzoin is there, too; in the base, it sweetens up a bit into a woody, boozy incense, just lovely
AnnuarimiDamy – :
This review is for the new EDC version which came with an order, though it took me a while to realize it was the EDC and not the original extrait.
I used to hate Shalimar despite repeated tries. Then, one hot summer day, I was compelled to apply a drive-by spritz in a shop, and Shalimar and I had our moment. I went on a hunt for vintage versions and was vaguely obsessed with it. But the bottles languished (my husband and cats are not fans of it) and so I rehomed all but a vintage PDT, which still languishes. Instead I find myself wanting to wear modern interpretations of Shalimar: Aroma M Geisha Noire, Cire Trudon Olim, and ELDO Bijou Romantique.
I’m testing Bourbon EDC today and it’s striking me the same way. This interpretation (though maybe unintenional) is a mellow, sheer version. The opening bergamot mingles with a hint of booze giving it a sophisticated sparkle. As the woods and vanilla emerge it takes on a fuzzy haze, like sun streaming through gauzy curtains. It’s warm and comforting without being heavy and I could wear this on a warm summer evening, for sure, where I suspect it would bloom beautifully. As with everything I’ve tried so far from Hendley, this is blended beautifully into a cohesive whole. It’s subtle, but for me this is its strength. Like wearing the lightest, softest cashmere wrap that is so comfortable and weightless that it lets me breathe and move about effortlessly. Nice!
инсайт – :
This a beautiful scent, but not worth the price point in my opinion.
aboniyaa – :
I was interested in the indie house of Hendley due to the artistic and seemingly powerful attributes of the scents, and Bourbon stood out to me most of all as one that I would like to try. The promise of the note breakdown seemed very high, with positive reviews, despite a couple of areas of small concern.
Unfortunately, for me, the orange zest seems to be most of what sits front-and-center throughout the early wearing and beyond. It outshines any of the sweet and/or boozy elements, such as the cognac, vanilla bourbon, tonka, or benzoin, and it all but eliminates the distinctiveness of any of the smaller woody or floral accords.
Bourbon sadly slightly reminds me of Urban Legend by Sebastiane, one of the worst scrubbers I’ve ever had the displeasure of smelling, but admittedly Bourbon is not nearly as quirky and problematic. Bourbon is far more toward the middle despite the dominance of the orange zest to my nose.
Bourbon is a pretty good performer, at least, but still quite pricey, at a $260 for 50ml extrait, so it’s roughly in the area of one needing to love it in order to buy it.
I wouldn’t say I despise it, but I certainly dislike it a bit—just that orange zest, sadly, is a ruiner.
4 out of 10
saksa2008 – :
We’re approaching a bubble. Or we’re already in one—bubbles are notoriously identified after the fact. The Perfume Bubble has all the features of previous speculative bubbles, from the Dutch Tulip Crisis in the 17th century to the Housing Market Crash of 2008. It even follows the five stages:
1) Displacement, or New Paradigm. (Independent Perfumery)
2) Boom. (Groovy Early Niche and the Celebrity Perfumer)
3) Euphoria. (The Rise of Luxury Perfumery)
4) Profit taking. (The Whores are at the Gate)
5) Panic. (You Can Smell the Fear)
Look around you. Grossly inflated prices, escalating new releases, more new luxo-lines than you can shake a stick at. When the bubble bursts who among us will be saved? Economically, the most adaptable survive, and while large companies might have deeper pockets, my money is on the small indies surviving. Scalability is key to living past a bubble and artisanal perfumers, whose scale is the single perfumer, might stand a better chance than others.
So how did we reach stage 4.5 so fast? The seeds were planted early in independent perfumery, where new perfume brands responded to the perceived poor condition of the state of the perfume market. They focussed on quality, favoring novelty over reiterating traditional forms. It makes sense that the perfumes that drove creativity at this time were the oddballs, the beautiful freaks. Professionally-trained perfumers who chafed at the limits of their days jobs were free to test new ideas in the new niche houses. Fairly quickly the old guard learned the lessons from the indies and threw a lot of money at new, pricier alt-niche lines, often hiring the same perfumers. Ellena reinvented Hermès. Roger invented Roja. Chanel created les Exclusifs. Guerlain, launched the new blah-blah line. Dior, likewise. Tom Ford, ditto. Less experimentation, more lavish olfactory symbolism.
Artisanal perfumery signals a return to fundamentals, though I don’t mean to imply that it is either reactionary or prosaic. No single impulse drives independent perfumery. Small-scale work is an alternative to the noisy world of commercial perfumery, not protest against it. As for why artisanal work takes the shape it does, after early-niche experimentation played the ‘unconventional’ card, outrageousness started to seem easy. The high-end commercial lines went the other direction, filling surprisingly uninventive compositions with oud, molecular derivations of rare botanicals, and horseshit. If there is a goldilocks center to be found, artisanal perfumery might point the way.
Hendley is trained in photography. One risk of crossover work is that technical training in one form won’t translate to another. Despite a strong conceptual framework, will the artist’s ‘new’ form have an amateur appearance on a technical level compared to the form that he was trained in? Compared to the professionally trained perfumer?
In Hendley’s case, creativity translates, though not literally. I’m new to the line, having tried only four of the perfumes recently: Rosenthal, Amora, Jade and Bourbon. I don’t know Hendley’s photography, but his perfumes are clearly not simply an extension of visual work—they don’t translate photography to scent. They do offer a coherent approach and well-finished, well-edited perfumes. Of the four, three explore a resinous range of tones without too much overlap. Amora is fruity-resinous, Rosenthal is a balsamic rose and Bourbon explores vanilla. The fourth, Jade, offers a new angle on the maligned “fresh” category. It has a buoyant, aromatic quality without leaning on citrus and herbs or the dreaded ozonic and aquatic notes.
Why turn to the artisanal artist for a new take on a known idea? The proof is in the pudding, so to speak. I’m not usually drawn to vanilla-centric perfumes. Vanilla brings out my conservative tendencies, I suppose, and Jicky and Shalimar cover my vanilla needs. But Bourbon is the vanilla I never knew I needed. It’s is more than just a simple vanilla perfume and the furthest thing from the ditzy stereotype of the nom-nom vanilla. It avoids the traps of gourmanderie and humdrum orientals, and, like Hendley’s Rosenthal, finds plenty of new twists in a well-worn trope.
The single word bourbon tells you about the two sides of the perfume. Vanilla from Réunion (formerly Isle de Bourbon) and Bourbon whiskey find common cause in wood. Unsweetened vanilla has smoky and woody facets and whisky is a reflection of the charred cask in which it ages. Bourbon (the perfume) smells like a sip of whiskey or brandy feels–potent and invigorating. Smooth and rough at the same time.
The perfume makes great use of its extrait concentration. It strides out of the bottle and covers a lot of ground very quickly. It has moderate throw, but if you’re within range, it is deadly handsome. The opening is djinn-in-the-bottle alluring and the tweedy drydown still manages to growl 12 hours down the road. It doesn’t coast into coziness as vanilla perfumes can. The liquor gives it a speakeasy quality and the drydown speaks in shady Lauren Bacall tones.
The early indies responded to a market of dull, unsatisfying perfumes by taking unconventional approaches. The current luxe market again offers uninteresting perfumes, now at stratospheric prices. Crossover perfumers still can and do question convention (Cognoscenti Warm Carrot, Cadavre Exquis) but Hendley’s Bourbon doesn’t shock. Its inventiveness is in the half turns and subtle juxtapositions that undercut expectation of a well known note/material.
(from scenthurdle.com)
skeletboy – :
Warm, delicious amazing scent. I need this stuff asap!!!
swat14 – :
This is so boozy and deep! It’s too warm today, but am putting my decant away for much cooler temps. This will blossom!! A little overpowering in warmer temps. I cannot WAIT to try it when it’s in its glory :o)
Xeroxgxmqa – :
On me, this is a delicious, boozy, sweet-spicy amber. It is somewhat a cross of Le Labo’s Poivre 23 and Obsession. The vanilla smooths and mellows the animalics to a purr. Somehow the guaiac wood, oak and tonka swirl to create an almost-cinnamon accord. I do not get any of the citrus directly, but I’ll bet they help keep everything from getting too smoky or dark. The sillage is strong and still present 12 hours later, sitting warm and close the skin.
avatar0185 – :
Citrusy sparkling fizzy and KiNd boozy. More of a citrus lime and bergamot with wooden plate. Greeny style on the sparkling citrus side.
I don’t know wither if I’m gonna love it but all I can say is that I respect Hans for being an artist and proceeded with his passion.
I’ll give it more time cause I think it needs that.
Edit (11th sept 2016) it’s quite charming, the orange, cognac, wood, and bergamot, the vanilla is shown there as well. It remained fizzy and sparkling.
But the main drawback is the metallic note that devours the blend into an unpleasant state.
drz531Bessinepome – :
I received this in a giveaway set and I’m not brilliant enough to come up with anything different than what has already been said in the two other reviews here. Boozy, sweet, comforting, delicious. It’s a chilly but bright April day here and I’ve been down with a nasty head cold. I decided to shower and put myself together, and walk to a nearby park. I chose this scent and what a perfect choice. I can’t actually pick out any citrus – but I suppose it is in there, offsetting the booze and vanilla and keeping it from getting too sweet or cloying. Very nice! Cozy and foody, and two little squirts behind each ear have lasted several hours now.
vip-saxmatist – :
Just received a sample of this. Very warm and boozy opening with a just a hint of citrus in the background. However, I don’t feel myself getting this simply because for one, it is strong VERY strong and the dry down smells too musky for my taste. $95 for 15ml sounds like a lot for some, but just one spray of this stuff is more than enough in the cold weather.
meleha77 – :
I first tried Bourbon in a sample I was given. From the moment I put it on, I loved it. I said to myself, “this fragrance is perfect for the Fall months.” At first spray you smell the bourbon vanilla with the cognac. Then in the dry down it mixes with the orange peel and bergamot. It gives me the feeling of relaxation and coziness.