On my skin, Dzongkha starts out strong on cardamom and incense. But it's also oddly wet, as if I'm sitting outside, in the rain and among wet leaves, with the incense smoke drifting out to me. I like the effect. But there's nothing blooming in those leaves - I don't get the floral or fruity notes that the notes list (lychee, cardamom, tea with milk, vetiver, cypriol, cedar, leather, peony, iris, and incense) would predict.
As it dries, it gets weirder. The rain and incense are joined by saffron and celery seed - a lot of celery seed. A couple of hours in, the celery vanishes and the mix starts to transform. It's dryer at this point, with the leather dominating. It's still light, but powdery - the iris, I suspect - rather than wet. Some reviews refer to the iris as cold, but to my nose, it's a warm, satisfying base.
I like it. It's on the List. And it's very nicely weird.
Review Roundup: Now Smell This and Perfume-Smellin' Things and Aromascope and Perfume Posse and Victoria's Own and Basenotes and Sweet Diva and The Scented Salamander and Fragrantica and Polish, Platforms, Perfume and MakeupAlley and Feminine Things and NotesFromJosephine.
Photo: By Lourie Pieterse. Wikimedia Commons.
