OK, OK, so the inspiration of Blackbird Ophir is a fictional trade planet and some pulp paperback storylines. I’m fine with all of that. I’m not here to debate what I think a fictional trade planet should smell like, but I’ll say this. This fictional trade planet smells a lot like what is in this Seattle-based brand’s backyard.
If it were up to me to classify Ophir, I’d have to say it’s a woods fragrance. It smells like a forest floor in the Pacific Northwest. There’s damp earth, moss, cedar and fir needles. There’s a smoldering campfire in the distance. Primarily on my skin, I pick up on a bitter sandalwood, lots of cedar and a slightly smoky gaiacwood. As the fragrance progresses, I notice more spices and nutty notes. The forest accord is accented by dry pepper, earthy saffron and hazelnuts. This doesn’t make the perfume more “gourmand” but instead emphasizes the environmental aspect of this perfume. It’s like spiced evergreen needles and a forest floor sprinkled with nutty shells abandoned by the critters. The dry-down reminds me of sandalwood, dried rose petals and a pocket knife. It has a metallic meets wood thing going on. My guess is the vegetal musk ambrette is coming across like a knife blade.
I love living in the NYC metro area. It’s a good “fit” for me. But, I admit that smelling something like Ophir on a mild, rainy day where the fog drapes between the buildings like some sort of sanctimonious cloak, I start to miss life in the Pacific Northwest. I miss damp October weekends foraging for mushrooms in the Olympic peninsula. The air is crisp and fragrant. There’s the feel and sounds of damp biomass underneath your boots. Anyway, Ophir is so realistic that it gives me those bittersweet feelings.
Notes listed include sandalwood, tonka bean, amyris, Siam wood, muhuhu, rose hip seed, cedar, gaiacwood, myrtle, cyrpress leaf, rosewood leaf, frankincense, saffron, pistachio, hazelnut, opopanax, lavender, ambrette, bay, rose, black pepper and nutmeg. Launched in 2016. PERFUMER – Aaron Way
Give Ophir a try if you like woodsy, natural-ish fragrances, especially if you like cedar or sandalwood. Or perfumes like Olympic Orchids Kingston Ferry, any of the Juniper Ridge scents, Sonoma Scent Studio Forest Walk, Raw Spirit Wild Fire and/or Slumberhouse Norne.
Projection and longevity are average.
The 1 oz bottle retails for $88 at Blackbird. Samples are also available for purchase.
Victoria’s Final EauPINION – Forest floor. I don’t wear perfumes like this that often (“environmental scents”) but it does give me a feeling and puts me in a place that I’m not…that’s a sign of a good perfume in my opinion.
Want more reviews? Try…
StyleZeitgeist – Overview of the brand.
*Disclaimer – Sample provided by the brand. I am not financially compensated for my reviews. My opinions are my own. Product pic from the brand. Olive Borden pic from fanpix.net.
This sounds perfect for what I’m craving right now. Done with hot, muggy summer and all the tuberrose and neroli fragrances I’ve been wearing.
Same. They were fun this summer but I’m ready to move on! I’m feeling incense, woods, ambers and musk!
Ughhhh. This post made me miss Seattle so much!
I really loved the weather while I was living there, and the smells, the views, the food, Capitol Hill (the old Capitol Hill – not the new, totally gentrified Capitol Hill), Queen Ann, Ballard….the list goes on and on.
This sounds wonderful, and I’ve been on a bit of an ambrette kick lately, so I’ll have to seek out a sample. Does the ambrette stand out throughout? or just in the dry down?
Oh, I know. I’m feeling that right now. We had an unusual weather week that was cool, grey and misty. It was so Seattle-y except it still smelled like rotten garbage and I couldn’t find any Dungeness crab! Also, oh, how I’ve been craving chanterelle mushrooms!
Anyway, this perfume really had me thinking about that place and brought back some fond memories. I haven’t been back in over 3 years now. I bet it looks completely different. There was so much development when I left.
I think with something like this, different notes are going to being amplified on different people. On me, I notice the ambrette a lot. But, it’s like a cool, metallic, tin-y (is that a word?) ambrette. I notice it about halfway and then much more into the dry-down. Most of this on me is forests and sandalwood. I’m trying to think of ambrette-dominant perfumes. One of my favorites, and I’m not joking, is Lacoste Pour Femme. It’s a soft, pillowy ambrette with vanilla and florals. It’s just one of those soft, musky scents that I feel like I could wear most of the time.