Hold me until all the prayers that go to heaven get an answer.

Perfume Challenge Week 20: Monday, 5/30/11, to Friday, 6/3/11

Dear reader -- I am currently enraged by this WSJ piece criticizing current Young Adult novels. I am enraged for many, many reasons, but for now I will focus on this one.

My brother had severe hearing problems as a child, and as a result had slower reading development than average. This always made him feel stupid and academically inadequate.

My parents did not help in this, constantly reinforcing my voracious reading habits and academic prowess, while telling my brother his strengths lay in his athletic accomplishments and social acumen.

In the 8th grade, his English teacher assigned his class S.E. Hinton's "The Outsiders."

It was the first book my brother ever truly read, and he identified with many of the characters and themes. It became a favorite. It inspired him to read "Rumblefish" then "Tex" and to branch out to other authors. He learned about poetry, because the book used Robert Frost's "Nothing Gold Can Stay."

He's 31 years old now. He has three sons. He reads to them all the time when he's not gone on deployment. In just this last year he's read Kerouac's "On the Road" and Homer's "The Odyssey" -- for pleasure.

"The Outsiders" changed my brother's life.

Shame on anyone who would have denied him that opportunity because they felt they had the right to determine what was appropriate for him to read. Growing up as children in a home caught in the grip of domestic violence and alcoholism, I assure you that these books were far less dark than parts of our every day lives. Instead, they made us feel less alone.

Okay. Rage...abated, temporarily. On to the perfume.

This week I bring you five scents from the lovely house of By Kilian. Founded by "the heir to a long line of cognac-makers that were pioneers in luxury, the grandson of the founder of The LVMH Group" this line is a fantastic,luxurious scents. The line is, generally speaking, heavy on sillage and foodie aspects, though some of the scents occasionally surprise.

Monday: By Kilian Love - neroli, iris, jasmine, rose, musk, vanilla. Supposedly inspired by the smell of marshmallow  this is one very gourmand scent. I do get marshmellow fluff, but really it reminds me most of the these creamy glazed bundt cakes they sell in grocery stores across the southlands from whence I spring. (Sadly, I cannot find there here, but they generally looked like the photo to the right.) Super sweet, even as it turns towards its more floral face toward you as about forty-fve minutes in. If you don't like sweet, run away from this. If, however, you love sweet like I do, it's pretty good. 3 of 5 nods.

Tuesday: By Kilian Liaisons Dangereuses - plum, pelargonium, cinnamon, musk, sandalwood. A sophisticated rose with an obvious fruit aspect, in a realistic way that makes me feel like I'm biting into a fresh plum. It's also got a nice coconut aspect, more like the fresh flesh of a coconut than the sweetened and sugared flake. I also definitely plum in it, which I surprising and lovely. It reminds me most of Jo Malone Red Roses, but less soapy. 3.5 of 5 nods.

Wednesday: By Kilian Cruel Intentions - Notes: calabrian bergamot rose, papyrus, tahitian vetiver, guaiac wood, amber, coconut and styrax. Hello oriential. Cruel Intentions is woodier than your classic big orientals, like CK Obsession, though you can tell they are in the same family. Lots of powdery amber here, but I get a decent wallop of the vetiver which makes it feel less like a big-haired model straight out of Xanadu or Elton John's "I'm Still Standing" video (see left). Very nice, as orientials go. The vetiver is what really sets this apart, giving it a dry smooth quality like a good leather. A well-made oriential, so if you roll that way, try it. 3.5 of 5 nods.

Thursday: By Kilian Back to Black - Notes: bergamot, saffron, nutmeg, cardamom, coriander, raspberry, chamomile, olibanum, honey, cedar, oak, tobacco, patchouli, almond, vanilla and labdanum. According to Fragantica, Back to Black is loved by those who enjoy L'Artisan Tea for Two, Guerlain Spiritueuse Double Vanille, L'Artisan Timbuktu, Tauer Perfumes L'Air du desert marocain, all of which I love. So here I am, getting all googlied eyed at another tobacco scent. I'm starting to wonder if I'll ever meet one I don't like, or if my intense love and adoration for my grandpa and his pipe smoking during my formative years is going to result in an army of tobacco scented bottles in my perfume armory. Back to Black comes off at first as a weirdly spicy tobacco; I definitely get some of the various spicy top notes, particularly the cardamon. During the dry down, I'd think there was coconut oil in here from the beach-y note I keep hitting half an hour in, but I suspect that's a combination of the vanilla and labdanum base notes bleeding through. This does not seem particularly foodie, thought it is sweet, more sweet than a lot of other tabacco scents. I'd love to smell this on a man; I think the sugary edge to it would be dead sexy with an open collar and light summer suit. 4 of 5 nods.

Friday: By Kilian Straight to Heaven - Nutmeg, patchouli, rum, cedar. The opening is whack in the face of rum. It's like taking a shot of rum and just as the initial taste on the tongue fades, taking another. It then grows increasingly nutty, and not all that sweet, which after this week of scents, was really welcome, especially in our close to 80 degree weather. Also, in a house where so many scents are knock-me-down strong, this is surprisingly subtle. I really like it.

I tried it next to Olympic Orchids Bay Rum, which is more medicinal and earthy, where Straight to Heaven remains polished, sleek, and smooth. The difference feels like the difference between drinking hooch our of a barrel with the Bay Rum, as opposed to sipping from elegantly cut crystal tumblers with Straight to Haven. If you're into boozy scents, this is going to thrill you to your toes. 4 of 5 nods.

Winner of the Week: You know, on Thursday I thought I'd be saying Back to Black, but I think I have to go with Straight to Heaven.  On the whole, though, I really enjoy the various offerings of the house in general, and I would be pleased to own any of these scents.

"You are absurd.
You say the cutest things I've ever heard.
I don't think that I could take another word,
or my head might explode
and I might have to go to heaven
Love me..."
~ "Go To Heaven," The Pierces

Scent samples generously provided for review by the perfumer.