FRAGRANCE | Roaring Radcliff EDP by Penhaligon's: Lovely scent but far from roaring

halfwhiteboy - Penhaligon's Roaring Radcliff EDP 01

There's really something about these bottles from the Penhaligon's Portraits Collection that draws me in. I may not be a fan of the paper label but I adore the heavy glass bottles and of course, the ornate, gold-plated animal head stoppers. There's the menacing eagle (or is it a hawk?) of The Uncompromising Sohan, the utterly regal rooster of Monsieur Beauregard, and above all, the very imposing deer—complete with antlers—of The Tragedy of Lord George. With Roaring Radcliff, it's a lion.

So how does this fragrance supposedly roar? It opens with honeyed, dried tobacco leaves, along with a fleeting dose of citric acidity and spice. It also has a boozy undercurrent that works perfectly with the honey in lifting the inherently heavy tobacco up.

The tobacco unfolds a bit more after a few minutes but is kept at bay by the sweetness that is now taking a vanillic turn. The combo, which is basically honey/vanilla, tobacco, and spiced rum, is addictive and never cloying. From being decidedly dry in the beginning, the tobacco by this time is now moist from all the sweetness, which carries a sort of sweaty, musky element. But it's always the vanilla-like sweetness you smell first before the tobacco.

The fragrance is almost entirely linear, with very little development. Despite the sweetness, I don't find it heavy at all, which earns it a few more points in terms of versatility. Projection is mostly moderate in its first 2 or 3 hours before gradually descending into a skin scent. It can last the whole day, yes, with random soft bursts of sweet tobacco, but Roaring Radcliff is hardly the roaring lion I was expecting it to be. Rather, it's a cute and cuddly furball of a kitty.

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