Czech & Speake no.88

[Joedy]

Yep.... ditto on the Magic Shop smell (at least the professional ones, that is.) I continue to use my C&S: 88 on a regular basis. It has quickly become my preferred Rose scented cologne of choice.... surpassing the Penhaligon's Elizabethan Rose and the Une Rose from Malle.


Strange enough, I don't normally care for incense of most kinds, but I do find the incensey scent of 88 agreeable. I love how the various scents seem to almost randomally appear throughout the day.

-joedy

 

[zaphf]

Got a decant today from Rik. Very good scent.

Floris has a scent that's very much like this, Special 127. It's a lavendar version, while this is a rose, but the other impressions are the same. Not quite as floral.

I don't know about vampires, but this is a classic scent.

 

[Scotto]

Weird. To me Special #127 bears no resemblance whatsoever to #88. How differently people perceive scents never fails to amaze me.

 

[Joedy]

I agree with you, Scotto. I can't seen any similarity between 127 and C&S 88.

-joedy

 

[zaphf]

Weird. To me Special #127 bears no resemblance whatsoever to #88. How differently people perceive scents never fails to amaze me.

Well, I'm also the one who thinks Penhaligon Opus smells like Hampster bedding, so your milage may vary.

Sniffing the bottles they don't smell the same, but on me they smell quite similar (albiet, with slightly different floral tones).

 

[Jim]

It's interesting you've mentioned a "magic shop". I actually do a bit of magic myself and thus have spent some time in some shops. Perhaps more time then I should... I don't know what shops you refering to, but I do know of one that does have a scent VERY close to this in their air... It's because of the incense they burn.

Oddly enough, it's the same incense I have burned at home on frequent occasions.

It can be had a Spencer's Gifts of all places. It comes in a gold cardbord package (stick incense) and is charcoal based. It's made by "Gonesh" incense. The particular fragrance is "No. 8 Perfumes of a Spring Mist".

I LOVE this incense... Imagine my surprise when I spray this C&S 88, which from all the descriptions I was thinking may become my new favorite cologne, only to find out it's almost EXACTLY the same scent as this incense! Needless to say, I love it as well, and I'm now going to have to buy a full size bottle of it...

So if your wondering what this stuff smells like, go swing by spencer's or any other place that sells Gonesh incense, and pick up a pack of No. 8. You'll get a pretty damn good idea just from that.

Gonesh #8

 

[Joedy]

Well, I'm also the one who thinks Penhaligon Opus smells like Hampster bedding, so your milage may vary.

Sniffing the bottles they don't smell the same, but on me they smell quite similar (albiet, with slightly different floral tones).

I agree with you about the Opus; there is a distinctive cedar odor from the Opus when smelling from the bottle.

And of course, as you mentioned, everyone's chemistry changes these scents to one degree or another.


For me, I get a strong incense'y odor from C&S: 88 and at the end of the day, a more pronounced Rose scent. Strangely enough, I smelled Geranium, but it seems almost unpredictible as to when I can get a whiff of this. This happens all day long, which makes wearing the C&S 88 a little like color-changing mood rings and chamellon (sp?) like clothing - everything seems to be in a constant state of change and flux.


I recently saw the movie "V for Vendetta" and I can easily imagine the protagonist wearing C&S: 88 daily.

-joedy

 

[majkeli]

Whoa! I just my my #88 Decant from Rik. As soon as I opened the bag I knew this scent--Spencer's Gifts. I've been smelling this all my life, or have I? After putting some on it smells almost completely different, I get more rose and spice. But it's quite strong too. I'm almost afraid to use the atomizer for fear of making everyone sick. I just put a few dabs on my neck and it's quite strong.

Are you guys spraying it on? Does the scent die down enough to use the spray?

 

[Joedy]

I'm using a roll-on which I really enjoy since it reduces waste and allows me to accurately apply it.

It does need about 30 minutes or so to mellow out. Once it does, it has a whole new character.

Don't over do it, though. This is some very potent juice!

-joedy

 

[Agent86]

Spencer Gifts...wish I hadn't read that. Anytime I've passed one I feel a bit nauseated. Oh, and my #88 is on the way...

 

[Joedy]

I think that allusion to Spencer's is a little stretched at best and misses the comparison at the least.

Yes, there is a sense of "incense'y-like" aroma in the 88, but the effect of the fragrance is just too complex to write it off that easily with a comparison.

Look at it this way, I generally abhor incense smells; I almost universally find them disagreeable and "grungy" (reminding me of all of the current day Hippie Wanna Be's).


But the 88 does something unique.... it pulls you in a little at a time. In fact, at first smell, I did not care for it at all, but like all good fragrances, you owe it to yourself to give it at least three days of sniffing and at at least one day of wearing. For me, on the second day of sniffing, I was starting to become interested and on the third day, I had enough courage to wear it for a day. After wearing it, I was firmly hooked.

I restoutely believe that 88 is one of those "you gotta try it at least once" classic scents. Unlike many scents which aim to transport you somewhere through the powers of olfactory senses, but fail miserably, C&S: 88 will instantly make you sense that you've been transported back in time to an older era filled with castles, dark cloaks, strange bumps in the forest at night and rose gardens in full bloom during a full moon.

-joedy

 

[majkeli]

The Spenser's smell is just the immediate first impression. Don't get too hung up on that line, the second is more important:

After putting some on it smells almost completely different, I get more rose and spice.

And it continued to change on me for the next few hours. There's a lot going on with this stuff and writing it off as an incense smell-a-like would be doing it a great disservice.

 

[rusirius]

The Spenser's smell is just the immediate first impression. Don't get too hung up on that line, the second is more important:
And it continued to change on me for the next few hours. There's a lot going on with this stuff and writing it off as an incense smell-a-like would be doing it a great disservice.

I think it depends on what incense your refering too though. The Gonesh #8 is INCREDIABLY similar to the C&S #88. In fact, though an incense doesn't "dry down" per say, it actually follows some of the very same "stages" of smell once it's done burning and starts to disappate. It's a VERY close representation. Smell the Gonesh straight from the pack and it's MUCH more "bright" and quite a distance from the 88, but light it up and let it start filling the room and you'll find striking similarities...

With that said however, I think it's important for ANYONE who hasn't smelled the Gonesh #8 before to understand that it's NOT what typical people think of when you say "incense". I can't stand the typical crappy incense... The supermarket crap, musks, sandlewoods, etc... None of them make me think "ahh, that's a pleasent scent...". The #8 is very different, it's really more of a "perfume" smell with a tinge of "incense" under it, rather then typical incense which is "burning wood" with a tinge of "scent" under it... In fact, the ONLY other incense I burn and care for is Rei-Ryoko (a traditional japanese zen incense) which I burn while i'm sitting zazen. It's base is aloes wood, so it's a pretty mild light fragrance. Definitly falls into the "incense" category, especially compared to G#8, but still MILES away from what probably 90% of people think of when they think "incense"...

 

[Lyrt]

I just received my bottle of Czech & Speake and my first impression is Scotto’s description lacks an Indian monk on an elephant somewhere between the pile of roses and the bloody scream.

Of course, these are just my initial feelings.

Edit: Nostalgia. Kyoto temples.

 

[Agent86]

Okay, my decant was just delivered. First impressions are: an elderly woman applying perfume with a bulb atomizer, roses, incense, an old-folks home(sans the urine), stale air...

Years ago one of my Grandmothers used a rose scented lotion...might have been an Avon product. Anyway, the #88 is remarkably similar, and this may be what's ruining it for me. I'll post back when this has had more time to drydown.

 

[moses]

First impressions are: an elderly woman applying perfume with a bulb atomizer, roses, incense, an old-folks home(sans the urine), stale air...

And this is supposed to be the best thing since sliced bread.... hmmm.... YMMV I guess.

Interesting thought, cologne scented like fresh baked bread out of the oven....

 

[Agent86]

I've had a chance to reapply with the atomizer. The rose definitely takes a backseat when used this way. The overall scent is much better, I'm not getting the old-lady vibe anymore. No. 88 is a complex scent...think I'm going to need more time to sort this one out.

 

[moses]

Well, I'm also the one who thinks Penhaligon Opus smells like Hampster bedding, so your milage may vary.

Hmmm..... I just tried the stuff. Maybe I like hamster bedding. (I do like cedar, and that is what hamster bedding starts with, as an, um, "base note" before other notes are, um, "applied.")

 

[Joedy]

Is it not strange how musical tastes parallel fragrance preferrences?

Some musical genres (and oftentimes, specific artists) tend to appeal to us outright from the initial listening, but other songs become our favorites after a few hearings.


I find that fragrances are very similar in nature. Some general scents (like Roses, for me) tend to universally appeal to me to one degree or another depending on the fragrance house while other scents sometimes requires a few sessions in order to form a firm opinion.


"Hey, you over there! You there, smelling the C&S: 88 and listening to The Greatest Hits of Conway Twitty. Yes, you, with the baby blue ruffles, don't hog all of the 88. Share the love man..."

-joedy

 

[sphughes]

The UPS guy just dropped off my bottle of #88. To summarize the first impression of the scent. Wow, very complex...........This has alot going on. Definitely need to wear this a few times in some different enviroments to get my arms around everything that is happening within it. I do detect much of what has been written already but I feel there will be some impressions that are unique to me. I will enjoy the next few days 'breaking this in".

-Scott-