leetle bpal review o' The Candy Butcher

In the bottle, the Candy Butcher is that first breath of dark, bitter chocolate that you smell when you fold back the fancy foil wrapper of some small square of the expensive stuff. Like baking chocolate, but more refined, with that almost fruit-like tang that nice dark chocolate can have.

I am very sure that my cycle is doing CRAZY things to scents, because on my skin, this one's pure permanent marker. Not really plasticky, as others have mentioned, nor Play Doh-y, either. It is a chemical wet ink smell of addressing boxes with a big ol' marker.

Fortunately for me and my co workers, this phase was short-lived.

After about 20 minutes, it fades down, but I am totally confused now: what I thought was the bitter heaven of dark chocolate (the cream is hiding, apparently) is now almost exactly like Monster Bait: Underbed -- screaming cassia and all. Cassia? What the?

If I sniff really, really closely, I can just about imagine the creamy undertones, but they're just not there in the throw at all.

I'm gonna try again in a week or so, and then again once the bottle has settled a bit. I shan't give up on you, Candy Butcher! You seem like you might age awesomely!

Original description:
An exquisite, enigmatic woman sidles up to you, bearing a tray of strange, dusty curios, chocolate creatures, serpentine taffy, and candied skulls. Her skin is dusky, her eyes are heavy-lidded and sensual, her hair is the fine, soft white of spun sugar, and her skin is softly scented with cocoa. She holds a shrunken head aloft, and beckons.

Dark chocolate with a heavy cream undertone.