I discovered the April Aromatics Bohemian Spice fragrance during the “Summer of Love Patchouli Project” sponsored by Monica Miller at her Perfume Pharmer blog, an all-natural patchouli-groovin’ group project I signed-up to review, though with much trepidation due to my rather iffy relationship to the potent raw material itself.
*NOTE 1: Should I admit that I initially typed “wrong material” instead of “raw material” . . . ? I think that might provide relevant insight into how I feel about raw, straight-up patchouli. We get along best when contact is limited.
You can find my “halfway through the patchouli project marathon” post here: Summer of Patchouli LOVE Perfume Project: Initial Thoughts
One of the rules of the patchouli project was that the samples would arrive unmarked, without any perfumer’s name or any indication of the composition’s formula beyond the 25% minimum required dosage of patchouli oil, so I was to evaluate strictly on the scent alone with no assist from packaging, brand image or ingredients list.
Which is harder than it sounds when all I could smell was patchouli, patchouli and more patchouli.
I sat at my desk day after day, testing samples in a smog-cloud of free-love hippie funk and wondering just what I’d gotten myself into. There were lemony patchoulis and musky patchoulis and herbal patchoulis and great big patchouli patchoulis, but then Tanja Bochnig’s gourmand-centered vanilla patchouli hit my testing schedule and all was suddenly well with the world.
Softer and more polished than its dreadlocked counterparts, Bochnig’s Bohemian Spice was a layer cake of citrus, incense and spice accords slathered in a thick patchouli cream.
But don’t let words like “cream” and “incense” and “spice” fool you — Bohemian Spice is first and foremost about the patchouli, so you’re going to need to be a genuine patchouli fan to enjoy the ride on its Woodstock cape.
I chose Bochnig’s entry as my personal winner in the “Summer of Patchouli Love” sweepstakes because it came across as so much kinder and gentler than the rest of the entries — yet several months later (and completely removed from the context of Monica Miller’s group project), I’m realizing that Bohemian Spice is about the heaviest dose of patch in my collection.
Just so you know.
And I have to say that the packaging for the April Aromatics brand is surprisingly nice, especially for a small, indie brand that specializes in 100% natural and organic skincare and fragrance products.
Sometimes independently produced brands can get a bit sloppy when it comes to presentation or the quality of their bottles, but Bochnig offers a clean, efficient packaging design and a spray atomizer that’s as good as any I’ve encountered from high-end commercial outfits, producing an exceptionally fine, easy to control mist with no leaking.
*NOTE 2: Leaky atomizers are a pet peeve, so I’m always grateful when a brand goes that extra mile to provide a high-quality atomizer that sprays without drips or mess.
Trish at Scent Hive writes that Bohemian Spice “is a patchouli fragrance for even the most ardent patchouli-phobes. It’s soft and soothing and does not exude any of the overbearing qualities one might anticipate from a 25% concentration patchouli perfume . . . The best part though, is the cuddly vanilla-benzoin drydown. What begins as a lush sandalwood/patchouli pairing, ends with sweet smooth woods.”
And I completely agree. The vanilla-benzoin infused homestretch is pretty darn cuddly.
April Aromatics is based out of Berlin, but they do ship internationally. You can order a full bottle of Bohemian Spice EDP from their website, or opt for a smaller, travel-friendly roll-on version of the scent at Etsy.
***Tanja Bochnig includes crystal fragments in her bottles, and you can see a picture of what that looks like at my Flickr account. The bottle pictured was provided free of charge from April Aromatics.
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