Euphorium Brooklyn Voluptuary Event at Twisted Lily and GIVEAWAY

by: Jodi Battershell

Not even bone-chilling cold will keep fragrance fans away when there's a perfume party! Dozens of us braved the frigid temps to make our way to Twisted Lily for the launch of Euphorium Brooklyn's new Voluptuary Set on Friday, February 12, and we steamed up the shop's windows with our passion for perfumes!

The event began with a tour of the Euphorium Bile Works.

It was through these hallowed pipes that the mystical elixirs which comprise the Euphorium Brooklyn fragrance collection had their humble beginning, so to speak...

Is it clear yet that you're looking at miniature set pieces created for the stop-motion film Euphorium Bile Works by artist and Euphorium Brooklyn perfumer Stephen Dirkes? The test strips and bottles add a bit of scale, but the miniatures are remarkably detailed, down to the individual bricks and even the cobwebs and dust on the pipes. Originally crafted for use in the film, often from surprising sources (the black box with "brass" fittings was built from Maybelline cosmetics cases—Stephen turned one over and showed me the indentation where the cake of pressed powder once sat), they made a perfect showcase for this fragrance collection inspired by Victorian-era culture, philosophy and aesthetics.

Seeing all of the fragrances in person, in their original packaging (glass apothecary bottles for the oil-based scents, old-fashioned bulb atomizers for the alcohol-based fragrances) adorned with the Victorian-inspired logo and labels and hand-numbered by batch, artfully displayed amongst the set pieces from the film, I realized how complete the house's distinct aesthetic is, both visual and fragrant. Having all seven of the house's fragrances available to sniff also provides a unique opportunity to understand the brand and the intent of the perfumer. Better still, Stephen Dirkes himself was on hand to discuss his work with us and walk us through the line! (Attending an event such as the Voluptuary launch is well worth your time if an opportunity presents itself.)

Stephen and I compared favorite notes and discovered a common love of vetiver. All scents in the Euphorium Brooklyn collection are a pleasure to wear, but Usar is my particular favorite and it holds a special place in Stephen's heart, too. I learned at the event that its name is the word for "vetiver" in the region of Indonesia from which Stephen sourced the vetiver used in this fragrance.

We've discussed the concept of terroir here on Fragrantica, most notably in relation to oud, but it's applicable to vetiver as well and of huge importance for any perfumer who uses natural ingredients. After working so hard to establish a vetiver source that could ensure consistency and reliability for future production, as luck would have it, the 2015 vetiver crop from this particular region of Indonesia failed. Stephen has been on a lengthy journey to find a suitable replacement for future batches of Usar. After sampling many vetivers from around the globe, Stephen finally found what he needed in a batch of Java vetiver aged 15 years.

Which is a good thing, because Usar as well as Wald, both originally released as oil-based eaux de parfum, will be re-released in alcohol-based formats later this year, just as Cilice has been, starting with the Voluptuary Set. Both Stephen and I agree that oil-based scents have their own merits—low sillage, excellent longevity, but I admit, I love the convenience of a spray. Options are always wonderful!

The use of oil as a base is an extension of the house's Victorian-era aesthetic and also a reflection of Stephen's introduction to fragrances. A friend who made incense first introduced him to scents in oil format. Stephen uses some potent animalic aromas in his scents (castoreum, civet, ambergris—all made from animal-friendly accords) and found their performance varied greatly between oil and alchol. "Some of the musks and the larger molecules really BOOM in the alcohol," he noted. Subtle tweaks were necessary for the alcohol-based formulation of Cilice and are underway for Usar and Wald.

Stephen's partner, Tal Shpantzer, is a professional photographer and she created some of the striking photos that accompany Euphorium Brooklyn's fragrances. Tal also snapped some great photos at the party, which she kindly shared with me (look at the adorable photo of the little girl in the pink dress, holding a cookie and a bottle of choclaty Chocolatl perfume!). A long-term photo project that Tal has been working on,Petals Series, which features images of women with flowers in their mouths, actually inspired Euphorium Brooklyn's Pétales fragrance. Stephen and Tal are now working on a multi-media project that incorporates photography, perfume and dance and Fragrantica will share details of the upcoming event in the near future.

One of my favorite things about Brooklyn is how its creative and entrepreneurial communities support each other's efforts. Perfumers Dana El Masri of Jazmin Saraï(and now Joya!) and Hans Hendley of Hendley Perfumes were in attendance. A woman who owns a spa down the street from Twisted Lily stopped by to talk to Eric about some of the skin care lines they have in the store and was still there an hour later, chatting and sniffing perfumes. Goodsmella and Brooklyn Fragrance Lover Carlos Powell was there, sporting handsome new whiskers, along with CaFleureBon's Hernando Courtright, who is the embodiment of elegance and taste at any event.

Wine and soft drinks were served, there were hors d'oeuvres to nosh on and I have a new favorite snack, thanks to a barktTHINS® chocolate tasting that was offered during the party. The mood was festive, which I hope these photos show. Perfume lovers mixed and mingled with each others, recommending favorite scents and exploring new ones together. I think my wish list grew by about a dozen fragrances, including Mr. NLS's contribution of Suédois.

2015 was the creative year for Euphorium Brooklyn, with the launch of all seven fragrances, each accompanied by a detailed backstory and often, a film. Stephen indicates 2016 will bring more focus on the business side of things, of which the newVoluptuary Set, featuring 8 ml sprays of Cilice, Pétales and Chocolatl, is the first part. For a more detailed background on Stephen and Euphorium Brooklyn, please read A Story in Scent, which Stephen wrote for us back in January.

Euphorium Brooklyn scents are available in two sizes (15 ml and 30 ml for the oils, 30 ml and 50 ml for the alcohol-based scents), in the Voluptuary Set (8 ml atomizers of Cilice, Pétales and Chocolatl), Discovery Set #1 (8 ml atomizers of Pétales, Suédois,100 Tweeds and Chocolatl). Individual samples are also available for purchase. The fragrances are sold exclusively at Twisted Lily and international shipping to most countries is available.

Thanks to Euphorium Brooklyn and Twisted Lily for a wonderful fragrance event full of fragrance, food and fun! Special thanks to Tal Shpantzer for sharing her photos and snapping a few with my camera, too. 

For those who couldn't be there in person, we have some surprises in store...

One lucky winner will receive a goodie bag from the event featuring a spray sample of Pétales, a bag of barkTHINS chocolates and a beautiful photo greeting card featuring one of Tal's photos from the Petals Series. Two other lucky winners will receive a box of assorted samples courtesy of Twisted Lily. Have you tried Euphorium Brooklyn? Have a favorite scent from the line or one you're interested in sniffing? Please leave a comment on this article to enter the giveaway.

Photos by Tal Shpantzer as credited; all other photos by Jodi Battershell

Euphorium Brooklyn: New Voluptuary Set and Event at Twisted Lily

by: Jodi Battershell

Voluptuary: n. One whose life is devoted to sensual appetites, a sensualist, a pleasure-seeker.

Well, if those sensual appetites that must be gratified include olfactory ones, count me in!

Voluptuary is also the name of a new fragrance set released by Euphorium Brooklyn, just in time for Valentine's Day. Euphorium Brooklyn and Twisted Lily invite you to celebrate its release with them on Friday, February 12, 2016.

The Voluptuary Set is a trio of 8 ml bottles of Cilice (a sensual blend of beeswax, incense and leather, debuting in its new alcohol-based Eau de Parfum format),Chocolatl (a spicy dark chocolate and balsam fragrance) and Pétales (a dark unisex floral). The set will retail for $100.

"Chosen for their Sensual, Decadent, and Romantic aspects, each fragrance has its own mood to set and story to tell."

—Euphorium Brooklyn

Hmm... Sensual leather, delicious chocolate and a bouquet of flowers? Sounds like an ideal gift that covers the sexy, sweet and romantic aspects of Valentine's Day. It's also a great opportunity to explore the unique palette of Euphorium Brooklyn in smaller, travel-friendly sizes. If you discover a new favorite, each scent is individually available in 30 ml and 50 ml sizes. The entire Euphorium Brooklyn collection is available exclusively at the Twisted Lily boutique in Brooklyn's Boerum Hill, as well ason the official Twisted Lily website.

Kick off your Valentine's Day weekend by exploring the fragrant world of Euphorium Brooklyn and indulging in a delicious barkTHINS chocolate tasting at Twisted Lily. Guests will receive a gift bag featuring treats from Euphorium Brooklyn, barkTHINS,Talfoto (photographer Tal Shpantzer, who has created some of the striking images for Euphorium Brooklyn) and GRDN Bklyn (a florist and garden shop also in the Boerum Hill neighborhood).

EUPHORIUM BROOKLYN VOLUPTUARY EVENT at TWISTED LILY

Where: Twisted Lily Fragrance Boutique & Apothecary, 360 Atlantic Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11217

When: Friday, February 12, 2016, 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm

Please RSVP to info@twistedlily.com if you would like to attend.

In the meantime, Euphorium Brooklyn perfumer/filmmaker Stephen Dirkes gives us a new film to celebrate the holiday and the release of the set, with a unique meditation on the "heart" motif traditionally associated with Valentine's Day.

Photos: Tal Shpantzer

A Sweet New Treat from Euphorium Brooklyn: Chocolatl

by: Jodi Battershell

Even though we're enjoying an unseasonably warm Fall sliding into Winter here on the East Coast, it hasn't stopped us from from getting into the spirit of the season. The ice skating rinks are open. The holiday decorations are up. Boxes of chocolates and plates of cookies have begun to appear at the office. The pumpkin spice lattes of October and November have yielded to steaming cups of cocoa, topped with a dollop of whipped creme and/or a handful of marshmallows.

Cocoa (or as we often call it here in the U.S., "hot chocolate") is a popular wintertime treat and comfort food. A perfect indulgence after winter sports like skiing, sledding and iceskating, and a welcome reward for completing the unpleasant task of shoveling snow, a steaming cup of cocoa warms the hands and the belly as it delights with its pleasant taste and aroma.

In other parts of the world, the cocoa may be a bit thicker, may be seasoned a bit differently, and may even be consumed year-round, all of which prove that cocoa's appeal is universal. It has been with us in one form or another for 1000 years or more.

Gourmand scents, on the other hand, are fairly recent in the history of perfumes. However, like cocoa, they have broad appeal and are popular choices year-round, especially in wintertime.

Thus, it's wholly appropriate that artisan perfume house Euphorium Brooklynintroduces its newest scent, Chocolatl, in December, just in time for the festivities. Chocolatl is the seventh fragrance from this creative house, all seven of which have been launched this year. Founder and perfumer Stephen Dirkes is one busy man!

Stephen and I are going to sit down and chat in the near future about Euphorium Brooklyn and all his artistic endeavors inside and outside of that. I look forward to sharing more about this house in a future article. In the meantime, let's toast with Euphorium's latest scent, which offers us a cup of Mexican spiced cocoa perfect for the season.

The name of the fragrance, Chocolatl, means "warm liquid." The word "cocoa" is derived from the Spanish word cacao, which in turn originates in the Nahuatl wordcacahuatl.

(cacao + atl, Nahuatl for "water/liquid")

[Interesting side note: Nahuatl may be more familiar to you as "Aztec," and varieties of Nahuatl are still spoken today by more than 1 million people.]

Featuring accords of dark Mexican cocoa, spice, piloncillo (unrefined cane sugar),tzapotl fruit (a soft, edible fruit similar to persimmon), vanilla, balsam and musk, Chocolatl is attributed to Euphorium Brooklyn's fictional perfumer Rudolph Komodo.

"The CHOCOLATL fragrance accord came to Rudolph Komodo while convalescing in Mexico in 1855 to soothe, comfort, inspire and transcend himself. He began with a dark cocoa sweetened with palm sugar and warmed with rich Mexican vanilla bean. Deep notes of Javanese coffee and myrrh were added to support the fragrant cocoa. Bright pine notes of incense and freshly cracked black pepper offer a clangorous fanfare to introduce to the layers of spices to follow. Notes sparkle and weave like the burgundy and chocolate brown fibers in the Ikat weavings of Sumatra. Sharp Indonesian nutmeg and bright cardamon form harmonies with warm clove and 'Kayu Manis' or 'Sweet Wood' cinnamon bud. With senses awakened and piqued, now an indulgence of honeyed, ripened fermented fruits. Rich prune, raisin and dates sweeten and seduce our palette. CHOCOLATL’s final notes soften to sweet musk and the vanilla touched balsams of ancient woods. Rich spices whisper like a distant incense."

The official fragrance notes for Chocolatl are Mexican cocoa, nutmeg, clove, cassia, black pepper, myrrh, coffee, neroli, davana, raisin, prune, labdanum, angelica root, honey, vanilla, caramel, palm sugar, copal, Peru balsam, benzoin, tolu balsam, castoreum and musk.

Visit the official Euphorium Brooklyn website for the complete story of Chocolatl.

Chocolatl is availble as an eau de parfum in 30 ml and 50 ml quantities, and as part of the Euphorium Brooklyn Discovery Set, exclusively at Twisted Lily in Brooklyn. (Twisted Lily ships internationally to most countries.)

Source and product mages: Euphorium Brooklyn

100 Tweeds from Euphorium Brooklyn

by: Jodi Battershell

Has the crisp autumn breeze had you reaching for your beloved tweed jacket? The nubby, woolen fabric has a distinct texture and aroma perfectly suited for the chilly mornings and evenings of October in the Northern Hemisphere, when a sweater isn't quite enough but a parka is too much. A good tweed jacket lends a distinguished air to any outfit, without being overly formal, while its wool offers just the right amount of breathable warmth and comfort.

How would a tincture of 100 tweeds smell? This question inspired fanciful perfume house Euphorium Brooklyn to compose an answer in the form of 100 Tweeds, its newest fragrance release. 

Euphorium Brooklyn explains the inspriation behind the scent: "100 Tweeds was intended in part to evoke bucolic memories of perfumer, Christian Rosenkreuz' Bavarian study. With windows open to receive fresh heather and bitter herbs from the verdant splendour that is the end of summer, the aroma of his musty volumes of yellowed parchment and rich sweet tobacco notes from the humidor brought that time to life for Rosenkruez. Transported by the fragrance, Rosenkreuz could visit his study when the nights had become crisp and he would seek the warmth and comfort of his favorite tweed, settle into his over-sized wing chair that smelled of ancient woods and peat, and lose himself to the scent of paper, ink and vellum that lifted from the book on his lap by the crackling hearth."

The brand shares a little more about Christian Rosenkreuz:
"Christian Rosenkreuz would always remember leaning down that morning to button her top button, the one he had made from the antler of a buck he himself had stalked. He had caught the dry, herbaceous scent of his daughter’s alpine tweed and the green felt collar of her jacket. A breeze brought the smell of her freshly washed hair mixed with fragrant heather from the meadow outside across to him and he inhaled deeply."

("Christian Rosenkreuz" is a fictional alter ego of the artist and perfumer behind Euphorium Brooklyn, Stephen Dirkes. A complete backstory of Christian Rosenkreuz can be found on the Euphorium Brooklyn website.)

Stephen Dirkes

So...what would the tincture of 100 tweeds smell like? The new fragrance is rich and herbaceous, featuring main accords of heather and heath; bracken, lichen and moss; honey and balsam; and peat, mordent and musk. Those herbal tweedy notes are composed from a complex and lengthy list of notes, including Lavender, Iris, Acacia Mimosa, Clary Sage, Rosewood, Katrafay, Galbanum, Calamus, Hyssop, Hemlock, Ivy, Oregano, Black Pepper, Celery Seed, Parsley Seed, Myrrh, Wormwood, Green Yarrow, Ajowan, Oakmoss, Labdanum, Sweet Tobacco, Berry, Honey, Hay, Coumarin, Guaiacwood, Cabreuva, White Agarwood, Himalayan Cedar, Amyris, Tolu Balsam, Peru Balsam, Vanilla, Benzoin, Vetiver, Peat, Cypriol, Cade, Orris Root, Castoreum, Indole and Musk.

Newly launched this month, 100 Tweeds is available as a 50 ml or 30 ml eau de parfum.  100 Tweeds and all fragrances of Euphorium Brooklyn are available exclusively at Twisted Lily.

Source: Euphorium Brooklyn

Suédois from Euphorium Brooklyn

by: Jodi Battershell

Eclectic perfume house Euphorium Brooklyn has released its first alcohol-based fragrance, Suédois. The new fragrance is also the first to be packaged in an atomizer bottle, joining previous oil-based scents Cilice, Usar and Wald, all released in 2015.

The fragrance profile of Suédois emphasizes notes of Swedish wildflowers, Indonesian sandalwood, spiced suede, raspberry and a Bavarian cream accord. The word suédois means both "Swedish" and "suede" in French and the fragrance plays to both meanings of the word, evoking the mood of a Swedish summer with beautiful floral and sandalwood notes alongside the soft suede. Like all the fragrances of the house (and the house itself), Suédois has a colorful and imaginative backstory.

"Awakened by Miss Lind’s attendant in the early morning hours of the next day in varying states of undress to the dense aroma of sandalwood, suede, wildflowers, spice, berries, sweet cream and the soft skin of a Swede, the four had apparently no knowledge of what might had taken place in the tender hours of night. Leaving the arms of Morpheus and the grand 'Sleep of Sialam' to awake exposed, but sated and contented in the ways of a society most secret, the four remained close for the remainder of their lives."—Euphorium Brooklyn

SUÉDOIS Notes: Indonesian sandalwood, Swedish wildflowers, petitgrain sur fleurs, raspberry, raisin, labdanum, clary sage, oakmoss, cardamom, elemi, myrrh, patchouli, nutmeg, anise, cassia, benzoin, peru balsam, coumarin, vanilla cream, suede, castoreum, ambergris, tonka musk, cade and birch.

Suédois is handcrafted in Brooklyn for boutique Hayden-Harnett and is available at Hayden-Harnett as well as Twisted Lily. The unisex fragrance is an Eau de Parfum, available in a 50 ml atomizer bottle.

ABOUT EUPHORIUM BROOKLYN

"Euphorium Brooklyn is based on the story of “Euphorium Bile Works”, founded in 1860 in the Greenpoint neighborhood of Brooklyn. Inspiration, concepts, notes and notebooks from the world of “Euphorium Bile Works” have been researched to recreate the Euphorium Brooklyn Eau de Parfum collection. The Euphorium Brooklyn crest features a chimera composed of a Stag, Bear and Dragon to represent the three founders Etienne Chevreuil (Stag), Rudolph Komodo (Dragon) and Christian Rosenkreuz (Bear).

Euphorium Brooklyn is based on the fictional narrative of the Euphorium Bile Works. The story and its characters are fictional and not intended to represent any person living or deceased. Although the narrative is presented in a historical/biographical context, no actual historical events or personae are intended to be represented."

The creative force behind Euphorium Brooklyn is artist and self-taught perfumer Stephen Dirkes.

Source: Euphorium Brooklyn press release