Gris Charnel by BDK Parfums

Hey Hey Posse! Another from my Surrender To Chance recent arrivals, I was going to include Gris Charnel in my post Sample Haul Arrived. Thing is, I loved it so much that it deserved a post of its own. I really like this house, not just for the scents. Their bottles and caps are very nice to hold and spritz. They feel solid and luxurious. From my very first sniff of them I felt an affinity. I’m not usually good at predictions but I feel that BDK Parfums are here to stay.

Gris Charnel by BDK Parfums 2019

Gris Charnel by BDK Parfums

Parfumo gives these featured accords:
Top: Cardamom, Fig, Black tea
Heart: Orris absolute, Bourbon vetiver
Base: Indian sandalwood, Tonka bean absolute

Fig is a favourite note of mine and in Gris Charnel with the black tea and iris it’s much drier than I’ve encountered before. The greenery does not smell as creamy and foody as i expect from cardamom either. If you told me they’d used coriander I’d expect more of the scent I’m getting, even hints of wormwood.

Gris Charnel is INTERESTING! It’s also a beautiful blend. I can’t exactly smell most of the notes and would pick them as something different if asked. WOW! I love it. Not carnal (charnel), at all. The tonka and sandalwood are very pretty in dry down but I feel we are not being told the whole story, it’s WAY too interesting to be just the two notes. I’m going to add vanilla, musk and some dark resins. I really want a full bottle of this so I can drench myself in it.

Obviously, I think all fragrance is unisex but Gris Charnel feels unisex with an eyelash bat at masculine. The scent projects moderately but keeps pumping a soft dry down for hours after the big opening burns off.

Do you think you could rock Gris Charnel?
Portia xx

  • Amy says:

    Hi Portia, I love Gris Charnal and had to have a bottle. To me it is close to Le Labo’s The Noir, but the latter gives me a mighty headache and this most resolutely does not. And it is just better, all around. Rouge Smoking, I have to say, I totally don’t understand. It smells exactly like root beer to me. Lol. But I too really like the line, the bottles, the caps, and already have four (eek) full bottles. (Tabac Rose, which along with Gris Charnal are my favorites, Nuit de Sable, and Jasmin Wood.)

    • Portia says:

      YAY! A hardcore BDK fan Amy.
      Did you ever try Creme de Cuir? That’s my bottle. Gris Charnel will probably upgrade soon too.
      Portia xx

  • Patty says:

    So agree with you on this one and Rouge Smoking. I kept trying to dismiss BDK with their dumb initial name, but I also believe they have staying power, and I’m interested to see what they add to the line as they go forward. I think of this one and Rouge Smoking in the pot of “addictive” fragrances, like BR540 and Byredo Gypsy Water and Hermessence Vetiver Tonka, they have a smoothness and comfort level that is really great to wear and leads to probably overapplication. 🙂

    • Portia says:

      Yeah Patty, I 100% agree. The name is crap. Like something you’d buy at TARGET.
      He he he OVERAPPLICATION? I do not know what you mean.
      Portia xx

  • Musette says:

    gosh, Portia, this sounds SO you! I was going to say it doesn’t sound like me, but I’m beginning to appreciate fig a bit. So who knows?

    xoxoxo

    • Mx.Christian says:

      Is it me, or do perfumers always make a fig note smell like COCONUT?! I assiduously avoid fig fragrances or ones with fig notes because I find coconut scent nauseating. Real figs smell (or taste) absolutely nothing like coconut. Sure, there is a sap that comes when breaking a fig from a branch (my Mission fig is wintering in my sunroom), but that sap smells nothing like coconut, either…

      • Portia says:

        Mx. Christian. It’s the milkiness that coconut imparts that makes it a perfect fit for most wearers.
        Portia xx

        • Mx.Christian says:

          Thanks Portia. I guess milkiness along with coconut are fragrance ‘no nos’ for me. To each their own, right? : )

  • Dina C. says:

    The note list is really interesting on this one. I’d give it a try for sure!

  • Tara C says:

    I have this one, it’s lovely and very easy to wear, husband complimented me too. I think BDK makes some very nice scents and I love their bottles too.

  • filomena813 says:

    I do rock Gris Charnel. I bought a sample of it and was hooked after one dab so I am anxiously awaiting receipt of my full bottle, which should arrive some time late next week. I am now interested in trying other scents from this house.

  • March says:

    This sounds absolutely amazing, and I LOVE that bottle. I wish my sniffer weren’t on the fritz!

  • Cinnamon says:

    Once again I read this initially as Gris Chanel. Anyway, it sounds very interesting. Now if I could only find a sample here … the tea and the fig in particular.