Kilian Intoxicated Perfume Review
Kilian Intoxicated Eau de Parfum showcased cardamom in all of all of its smoky, nutty, spicy-sweet glory. I struggled to really discern other notes throughout the development of Intoxicated; at most, a dash of nutmeg and cinnamon appeared with a vague sense of creamy vanilla and coffee about mid-way through with the coffee blending with the cardamom in the drydown.
There seemed to be mixed reviews on whether coffee was a stronger part of the composition as some experienced it as a cardamom-heavy scent and others seemed to really get coffee and vanilla.
- top notes: Turkish coffee, cardamom
- heart notes: cinnamon, nutmeg
- base notes: vanilla
It opened with a a sharp bite of lemon with a green backing before turning smoky, nutty, and slightly spicy–the opening was full of cardamom with only a flourish of coffee, sort of nutty and caramelized. The cardamom was almost savory for the first 10 minutes before turning marginally sweeter and earthier with the spiciness getting tempered. Eventually, some of the
There was a hint of nutmeg grated finely over the cardamom that appeared almost ninety minutes in with cinnamon that followed almost two hours after I applied the fragrance. At long last–three and a half hours in–the cardamom’s intensity dropped noticeably and yielded to a sense of slightly creamy, spiced coffee with vanilla. On my skin, even in the drydown, it was predominantly reminiscent of cardamom with some spiced vanilla and something that might have been a whisper of coffee.
Application
For testing, I used 1/3 of a 1ml sample vial dabbed to the underside and topside of my wrist area on my left arm. I used an unscented moisturizer prior to applying the scent as this is also my swatching arm (aka, incredibly parched at any given moment) as I found scent did not hold well here otherwise.Â
Longevity
It lasted for five hours until it was a skin-scent and about eight hours before it was quite difficult to detect on my skin. The sillage and projection were moderate with the sillage dropping faster than the projection within the first hour of wear.
Personal Thoughts
If you enjoy cardamom, I could see this being a lovely option because it seemed well-blended, but I was hoping for a more noticeable espresso/coffee note and something more on the gourmand side as a result (Kilian describes it as a “gourmand coffee perfume”). By the time the coffee seemed to show up on my skin, it was a skin scent so I didn’t feel like I was able to enjoy it as much as I wanted to.
Available Sizes
- 50ml for $240
- 50ml (refill) for $195
- 0.7ml sample for $6
This one seems to be a “either you love it or hate it” type of fragrance, as well as one that may smell very different depending on one’s particular body chemistry. Since I do enjoy warm, spicy things, I may possibly like it. However, knowing me, the coffee note would likely take over. Possibly in an unpleasant (to me!) way.
I REALLY love cardamom, but I’m not big on gourmand/food-ish scents so I might try this in person someday. Loving the perfume reviews lately!
Oh, this is one that smells a bit like a head shop on me. I do like it, but your review is so different from my experience! I don’t get a lot of sweet notes, and the underlying scent on me is probably closer to patchouli than anything. Maybe that’s the cardamom? I don’t have any other experience of cardamom in perfume. I think this one may be a definite test before buying, I decided I liked it but the first whiff would have put me off if I hadn’t had a chance to walk around first. It dries down into something quite nice within 30 minutes. Not something I’d pay full price for, but a fun sample to play around with.
All I had on my skin was Cardamom and coffee. From beginning to end.
Definitely a winter scent.
Thank you for the review, Christine. This is one I actually own, not the 50mls but the purse spray version which I got on sale. Yes, I get the lemon in the opening, never thought about it until I read your review. The dry down is where I get the coffee, it must be my skin that pulls it out more than the cardamom.
Not sure if LUSH are still in the US? But they do a perfume Cardamom Coffee, it is much sweeter and like a mocha coffee.
This. I want this. I don’t have a cardamom perfume and it’s my favorite “sweet note.” Sometimes I just throw a few pods in to my tea or lattes. Or open the jar to just inhale…..cardamom is so damn good. And, yeah, like you point out it can be savory or sweet. Kilian’s perfumes have smelled a little flat and feminine to me in the past, but I’d like to retread some of that ground to find treasures like this.