Naomi Goodsir

Bois d'Ascese

Eau de Parfum

Femme
  Unisex
Masc
Main Note

Incense, Tobacco

Fragrance Notes

tobacco, whiskey, cinnamon, amber, cistus labdanum, oakmoss, smoked cade wood, Somalian incense

Fragrance Style

Boozy, Smoky, Woody - Spicy

Scent Bar Staff Video Review for Bois d'Ascese

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Reviews
Here's what other people are saying about Bois d'Ascese...
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Platonic ideal of a personal scent - smoke, smoke, smoke. When first applied, it settles into something sweeter, with a hefty bit of spice after 30 mins to an hour. I find that it has great staying power on clothes, the perfect thing to spray on a stolen sweater, so that when you return it to its owner they have a scent memory of you.
By   - professional arguer from chicago on 1/29/2025
My HG perfume was Phlur's Hepcat, and when it was discontinued by the silly person who bought the company and proceeded to do away with all of the original scents, I was bereft (after I finally ran out of the five bottles I panic bought after finding out about its elimination). I've been on the hunt for a replacement ever since, and I've gotten very close with Bois d' Ascese. If I could alter it to make it perfect for me, personally, I'd back off intensity of the smoke just a bit and add more (but not too much!) sweetness. If you like smoke and dislike florals, give this one a try!
By   - Lady Farmer from Hobbiton on 10/29/2024
I unequivocally love this fragrance. Starts off really smoky, ends with a touch of sweet after a while, but not too much - I'm not a fan of overly saccharine stuff. You can smell it from a ways off when you first apply it, but after 30 mins-an hour it creates a nice little cocoon, maybe a foot or so, where anyone who comes near you all of the sudden goes "ooo, that's nice". Different than anything else I have. Great winter/fall scent.
By   - Freelance Arts from Seattle on 6/1/2021
This is my second time buying this scent. The first bottle I bought, still had the metal top and it’s scent was stunning. Now they’ve replaced the top and spray with what seems like a cheaper plastic dispenser. And while I’m not sure if the formula has indeed changed, I can say that it doesn’t have the same scent or staying power that the first bottle did. This one definitely lacks the smokiness the first bottle had. I went straight from using the first bottle right into the second and the difference is much more noticeable. It feels more like a cologne now than a parfum. I was excited when I came out to Toronto for business to get to wear it in the cold. Now I’m just disappointed. 3 stars
By   - Writer from Northern California on 1/30/2021
This is my second time buying this scent. The first bottle I bought, still had the metal top and it’s scent was stunning. Now they’ve replaced the top and spray with what seems like a cheaper plastic dispenser. And while I’m not sure if the formula has indeed changed, I can say that it doesn’t have the same scent or staying power that the first bottle did. This one definitely lacks the smokiness the first bottle had. I went straight from using the first bottle right into the second and the difference is more very noticeable. It feels more like a cologne now than a parfum. I was excited when I came out to Toronto for business to get to wear it in the cold. Now I’m just disappointed.
By   - Writer from Northern California on 1/30/2021
Imagine yourself near a bonfire in the Rocky Mountains, the smell resembles dark woods, spicy cinnamon, and a spicy vanilla. This is an electric scent wow. I will be purchasing.
By   - CEO from Minneapolis on 6/4/2020
I enjoy the eponymous bois, and the smoke is nicely done, but the whole thing runs out of puff pretty quickly. I don't think the price for 50ml is warranted.
By   - Musician from Bethlehem on 1/9/2020
I sampled it in the winter, and wore it outdoors, loved it. Fast forward a few months to hot weather, which is most of the year here in Australia, it's not a good wear on hot/sticky days or nights, when it's smokiness and tenaciousness very much works against it, it doesn't really go anywhere in terms of development, and frankly it bores me. But in winter cold mornings, it goes down like peppery ginger biscuits and peaty whisky. And the drydown to bare incense and cinnamon is fantastic.
By   - Designer from Australia on 2/13/2019
Smoke. Campfire smoke. Is that all this is? NO. The first, maybe, 30 minutes or so is hefty and smells as if you were just sitting by a campfire. However, on me this becomes so deliciously ambery and sweet and addictive. Maybe my skin amplifies sweeter notes but Wow! There is nothing austere about this--pure comfort, natural beauty, depth, warmth and sexy smokey sweetness. I would buy a bottle but i'm not in love just yet, still falling. The smoke is lovely but is indeed a bit of a mountain to climb. Now that it is colder, I will be wearing this more and letting it protect me from more frigid airs with its warm cozy aura.
By   - Living from Lemon City on 12/12/2018
Warm, smokey, and comforting to me. This is one of the best samples I recently received. It does have the qualities of a fine, smokey scotch. It also smells of freshly cut wood, a bit of resin, and a lovely oak moss base. It's wonderful. It is like sitting in front of a fire with a glass of scotch in a beautiful forest on a clear night. A bottle is necessary for me.
By   - Student from Nashville on 12/23/2017
Wow -- more than whiskey or that peaty smell of Laphroig scotch (which I happen to love) this is much more SMOKE. I've had it on for a half hour and it's still going super strong - if you don't like it, you'll want to scrub it off but I find that it's settling down nicely on a cold winter Vermont day. It has a sophisticated air to it - just a hint of cinnamon but certainly not at all sweet or cloying. It's specific enough that you might want to get a sample and try it on. For those who like it, it will be YOUR niche perfume. If you don't like super smokey, it's not for you. I get more Oak Moss and Smoked wood but there are other subtle notes that float in and out.
By   - consultant from Weybridge on 12/6/2017
Buckle up. The thoughts above on whisky (not whiskey; that's the Irish stuff!) are correct: This is a fragrance with facets, one that changes and opens as it warms, as whisky does when you hold the glass; this is a fragrance that encourages steadiness and contemplation, as whisky does when you drink it properly (doing Laphroaig as a shot ought to be a capital offense...I digress); this is a fragrance that will kick you hard if not used judiciously, as whisky will cheerfully do. It's hard to overstate how wonderfully Goodsir's variations on "smoke" shade into each other, and I love that cinnamon here plays the role a more conventional perfumer might have assigned to carnation. Gorgeous.
By   - editor from Seattle on 12/31/2016
It is exhausting to again find a scent that is 'you' if your HG scent betrays you and no longer excites you as it once did. A year or so ago that happened to me. Everything in my scent wardrobe didn't quite do it like it used too so I began my hunt again. I am not a flowery sweet fruity scent girl. I like mysterious scents that smell one minute one way and another in an hour. A scent that you look forward to wearing like your favorite dress. This smoky incense and slightly woody tinged yet somehow still feminine scent with a wonderful amber undertone that makes you smell your wrist over and over is perfect. Not everyone will agree but who wants that?
By   - Artist from Pittsburgh on 12/17/2016
Though I would hardly describe this fragrance as "harsh and medicinal", I do think you have to love smokey, wood fire scents to be a fan of Bois d'Ascese. The problem for me is, being that it's now Summer, my mind and appetite turn to backyard barbecues more than anything "complicated and enigmatic". I'm thinking more like, say, whiskey marinated meats over an open flame. :)
By   - Retired Artist  from New York City on 8/28/2016
I get people not liking this, but to me it's utter dryness and uncompromising intensity is a winner. It's smoke, incense, and a hint of oakmoss on me and I love it. Amazing tenacity too, although it quiets down, it doesn't go away for hours. So if it isn't your thing, it *really* won't be your thing. But when I am in the mood for something stark and beautiful, this is where I go.
By   - Writer and teacher from Cambridge on 5/23/2016
Intense blast of smoke, resin, and Dewar's upon first application. I was fairly put off, initially, however, an hour later, the dry down mellowed out and the scent became much more relaxed and clean. That being said, I could barely detect a hint of anything within a couple of hours.
By   - Advertising from Detroit on 2/18/2016
The scent is SMOKY and I love it. It can be overwhelmingly so at times, which is why you might want to use it sparingly, in terms of seasons. Definitely a cold weather masculine type but kudos to the woman brave enough to war it. (received in sample form from Essential 13 sample pack: Masculine) This is officially my first review on luckyscent and I'm super excited to review more scents in the future.
By   - Retail from Bay Area on 12/3/2015
The opening is similar to CDG Incense Avignon, dark and smoky (which turned me off initially). Once it drys down a bit more the smoke is less intense and it becomes a nice fragrance. Still a bit heavy for me personally though.
By   - Accountant from Sydney on 7/9/2015
J'ai bien aime Bois d'Ascese de Naomi Goodsir. Il vaut la peine d'etre teste. Charbonneux, austere, vous reveillez ma curiosite. C'est extraordinaire et incroyable, il me plait beaucoup mais je le trouve quand meme assez lourd...Une vraie bombe olfactive! Il faut un certain temps pour apprendre a le connaitre et l'apprivoiser.
By   - Novelist on 1/9/2015
Bois d'Ascese: wandering in the woods, earthy and smoky. The peat fades but the smoke swirls from your skin and hair for hours. Sexy on a woman.
By   - Romantic from On the ocean. on 12/26/2014
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