Boadicea the Victorious
Boadicea the Victorious
80 votes
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
Nutmeg arrives with immediate pungency, its warmth tempered by coriander's crisp, almost citric spice. The initial impression is bright despite the woody base already asserting itself—there's a brief moment of clarity before the composition grows denser and more contemplative.
As the volatile spices settle, rose emerges with surprising restraint, its petals dusted with the creamy, slightly powdery quality of sandalwood. The resinous accords deepen considerably here, and that leather note becomes discernible, weaving between the florals like smoke through gauze, creating an intriguing interplay between delicacy and gravitas.
Benzoin and gaiac wood dominate, lending the fragrance a honeyed, almost varnished quality that feels both aged and comforting. The oud settles into the leather base, creating a warm, slightly animalic skin scent that feels closer to the body—intimate without being cloying, lasting with a subtle, persistent whisper rather than a shout.
Bayswater arrives as a deliberate contradiction: a fragrance that marries the sharp bite of spice with the creamy warmth of resinous woods, creating something neither conventionally masculine nor feminine, but rather distinctly *assured*. The nutmeg and coriander opening suggests cosmopolitan sophistication—the kind worn by someone who knows their way around a library or a gallery opening—before the composition settles into a more sensual register.
What makes Bayswater compelling is how the rose refuses to soften proceedings. Rather than blooming into floral sweetness, it acts as a bittersweet thread running through sandalwood that smells aged and slightly tobacco-tinged, as though the wood has absorbed decades of contemplation. The benzoin and gaiac wood base provides a resinous undertone that's neither cloying nor austere; it lends a kind of varnished warmth, like antique furniture warmed by afternoon light.
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3.8/5 (179)