Ice and Vice

Phil Rosenthal invites Elaine May to sample ice-cream flavours at Ice and Vice, New York 

~ Basic B: Mexican vanilla with black lava sea salt.

Elaine's comments: Tastes very white. Creamy yet with a slight fruity taste that I can't define. It has a lot of textures, a lot of depth.

~ Buckwheat honey with tumeric and sunflower seed butterscotch chip.

Elaine's comments:  A very dramatic taste but with humour.

~Opium Den. Inside is lemon bread crouton with poppy seed and white sesame.

Elaine's comments: It is an opium like flavour from my experience.

~ 9am. It is a Vietnamese coffee with doughnut truffle.

Elaine's comments: There are hints, oddly enough, of Cuban tobacco. Just the lightest bit.

~ Shade. A smoked dark chocolate, caramelised white chocolate ganache.

Elaine's comments: Yum. Well I'm trying to be brief.

Most unusual flavours:

~ Peach jalapeno.

~ Blue/Purple: Butterfly pea flower, yuzu, coconut sorbet

~ Swedish fish.

Elaine's final verdict: For complexity, for depth, for originality, I would have to go with the 9am.

Information derived from Season 2 of Somebody Feed Phil.

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Other flavours not mentioned on the show:

~ The Wa Wa: Watermelon sorbet soft serve, balsamic drizzle, lemon cake pop.

~ Milk Money: Toasted milk, sea salt chocolate ganache.

~ Lady Luck: Mint ice cream, chocolate mint cookie swirl.

~ Milk & Honey: Goat cheese sherbet, lavender honeycomb candy.

~ American Beauty: Creme fraiche, rose petal jam.

~ Mitey Toast: Toasted bread, marmite caramel.

~ Coffee & Champagne: Almond, champagne marshmallow fluff, espresso chip.

~ Tea Cake: Molasses, yellow cake, bergamot chocolate flake.

~ Three Ring Circus: Cotton candy, animal cracker crumble.

~ Love & Hate: Rootbeer, ginger molasses soil.

~ Violet: Graham cracker, blueberry jam, violet marshmallow.

~ Tea Dance: Nilgiri black tea, lemon charcoal caramel.

~ Joy Luck: Lychee, li hing mui, candied cashew.

~ Giving Tree: Green apple, matcha, apple cider ganache.

~ Persephone: Pomegranate, apricot jam.

~ 1001: Moroccan mint tea, cardomon soil.

~ Crack O Lantern: Pumpkin seed oil, crystallised ginger.

* Unfortunately, Ice and Vice closed permanently in November 2020 *

The Perfume Gal

The Domestic Goblin had taken a hiatus in terms of fragrance sampling/sniffing but has now renewed her interest...

~ Bal d'Afrique by Byredo

Warm generic perfumey skin scent. Unable to decipher specific notes.

Verdict: ❌

~ Philosykos by Diptyque

Linear tomato stems.

Verdict: ❌

~ Another 13 by Le Labo

Strong saline nothingness.

Verdict: ❌

~ Oud Wood by Tom Ford

Polite oud.

Verdict: ✅ but probably won't purchase a full sized bottle due to longevity issues and the price.

~ Tobacco Oud by Tom Ford

Sweet oud.

Verdict: ✅ but probably won't purchase a full sized bottle due to longevity issues and the price.

~ Pomegranate Noir by Jo Malone

The clove dominates and overpowers everything else. It's like eating sweets in the middle of a petrol station.

Verdict: ❌❌

~ English Pear and Freesia by Jo Malone

Smells like you're eating a ripe, floral pear.

Verdict: ✅✅

~ Scarlet Poppy Intense by Jo Malone

Smells gloriously sweet, floral and nutty at the same time. 

Verdict: ✅ ✅ DGs only hesitation is the price.

ATH Unicorn: Project, Imprint & Last

The Domestic Goblin only discovered Aaron Terence Hughes in February 2023 via a YouTube fragrance review video.

Aaron used to be a Cosmetic Chemist and has since evolved into a Perfumer and launched his own independent perfume house.

Some information from his website:

Aaron does use ethical ambergris in some of his fragrance. But does not use any other animal biproducts. 

​​​​​​​Aaron Terence Hughes is passionate about ethics and deeply cares about the world he lives in. His perfumes will never be sold in countries that demand animal testing. He will never use a secondary company to test his products on animals on his behalf.

"I create perfume to suit my mood. All my perfumes have been created from direct experience. I am never directed by anyone other than my intuition and love for creating beauty.​​​​​​​"

"I feel that perfumery sits beautifully on the edge of art, chemistry and maths. It utilises all my abilities and constantly ignites my creativity and passion."

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After some careful consideration, the Domestic Goblin decided to buy Carbon and Onyx, followed by Ozone and Tabac in the 10ml Extract de Parfum.

~ Carbon

Described as Clean, Fresh, Light and Airy. 

"Carbon has been designed to increase the longevity and projection of the fragrances you already own and love, but which might need a little help radiating and lasting. Carbon can now be worn on its own for a very clean scent that lasts!" (ATH)

Top notes: Bergamot

Middle notes: White Floral Notes, Amber, Ylang Ylang, Radiant Woods, Heliotropin, Vanilla

Base notes: Musks, Clean Skin Accord, Ethical Ambergris.

DGs comments: When sprayed onto warm skin after a hot bubble bath, it is how DG imagined Suskind's baby to smell like: milky caramel. When sprayed onto cold skin, all DG gets is clean musk.

Works better layered underneath other scents that need help projecting/radiating.

DGs verdict: ❌ as standalone scent.

DGs verdict:  ✅ will only repurchase to help with projection and longevity of other scents.

~ Onyx

"Dark, brooding and very sexy. When I created Onyx I wanted it to do three things. Project, imprint and last. Onyx lasts over 12 hours, projects in a huge way and touching another person imprints Onyx onto them making this a perfect date or sex fragrance. You will get noticed wearing Onyx." (ATH)

Top notes: Rose Absolute.

Middle notes: Vanilla Absolute, Plum, Chocolate.

Base notes: Patchouli, Thai Oud, Ethical Ambergris, Sandalwood, Musk.

DG's comments: Creates a beautiful aura around the wearer. It definitely imprints 😉🙃

DG's verdict: ✅✅ Worthy of a repurchase 🙂

~ Ozone

"Ozone is my first 'commercial' fragrance. Ozone is bright, ozonic, massively projecting and long lasting. Ozone is fun and packed full of summer." (ATH)

"ATH wanted to bridge the gap between designer and niche fragrances. So it's got designer sensibilities (easy to wear, very mass-appealing) but it has the quality and complexity of a niche fragrance." (FRAG-MENTAL)

Top notes: Bergamot (blended for the house of ATH), Lemon, Lime, Spearmint.

Middle notes: Ozone, Coconut, Mocha Accord, Ambroxan.

Base notes: Ethical Ambergris / White Musk  / Driftwood / Patchouli

DGs comments: Smells like drinking a milky coffee straight after brushing your teeth. 

DGs verdict: ❌ Not a bad scent, but DG did not want to pay money to smell like toothpaste and cappuccino.

~ Tabac

"I developed Tabac for people with class and who understand what a well crafted fragrance smells like. This fragrance is suitable for all occasions from a day off walking your dogs, to the office to going out for a drink. I designed Tabac to be a signature scent for all people." (ATH)

Top notes: Tobacco Leaf

Middle note: Madagascan Vanilla Absolute, Tobacco, Turkish Rose.

Base notes: Burmese Oud, Cedar Wood, Ethical Ambergris.

DGs comments: The oud dominates for hours. Can't detect any tobacco or vanilla. Smells like temple incense inside a gentleman's club, but not in a good way. 

DGs verdict: ❌❌

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April 2024 purchase/update:

~ Aurora

Described as Sweet, Clean and Evocative.

Top notes: Bergamot, Pear, Neroli.

Middle notes: Peach, Vanilla, Rhubarb, Jasmine Sambac.

Base notes: Amber, Blond Wood, Sandalwood.

DGs comments: On cold skin, it smells like a clean jasmine solifore with no drydown. On warmed up skin/in warmer weather, the fruity notes come through which was a pleasant surprise after the first few days of underwhelming performance. Like a totally different scent.

DGs verdict: ✅

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