Delicious Closet Queen
Etat Libre d'Orange (2007)

This opens very sweet with a wave of raspberry violet and a little leather, but has something of a watered down feeling -- like a toy perfume for kids. But it quickly gets spicier. It has good staying power, and remains interesting - the sweet leathery spicy thing is nothing earth shattering but the odd candy note keeps it somehow in tension between a fruity floral and something almost Christmassy. I like it very much but for sporadic wearings.

Of course, it's discontinued.

ELDO - Delicious Closet Queen
They better take this out of the collection because we already have Van Gils and a 100.000 more scents that have a similar structure. Compact and rigid with a cheap and unoriginal feel to it that smells too sweet and 'juicy' - like a marinade to simmer chicken in. Nasty stuff with a penetrating radiation that makes a great candidate for a bath-soap in cheap hotels.

This is a delightful surprise. Maybe it's the violet leaf accord, but I'm instantly drawn in and held by a soft, fruity leather. I don't have a distinct memory of the notes, but I found it charming, like playing outside in the wet grass of the summer nights.

Delicious Closet Queen by Etat Libre d`Orange opens with the trademark hairspray accord with a clean masculine musk and a touch of fruit. There is definitely a leather note floating around, but I'm also getting something strange and off-putting. Fart accord? Urinal? It would not surprise me if ELdO included fart accord considering that they've exposed us to blood, semen, milk, etc.. Maybe it is supposed to smell like the men's toilet? Yes, that's it: our sweet and delicious queen is in the men's room standing at a urinal and ignoring the sidewise glances given by men wearing generic butch cologne. As the fragrance develops, the men's toilet fades to reveal the somewhat girly woody oriental; this part of the composition is not remarkable, but the note combination is definitely interesting. There is something about DCQ that reminds me of Egoiste, but the former explores the implied dichotomy more than the later, which could make it difficult to wear.

4.5/5 for the concept

3/5 for the toilet

The giddying list of notes is misleading – this has ‘man cologne' written all over it (you know, ‘fresh', woodsy, with some synthetic oompah oompah thrown in). Nicely anchored with a sandal-cedar combo that lurks gently under the surface, but, alas, no guilty secret to truly thrill. Solidly constructed, this would be a safe bet for perfume newbies.

A powdery mixture of sweet raspberry and violot tones greats you in the opening. Much too sweet and floral. Hints of sandalwood spring up, though not enough to overtake the florals. Really long lasting scent, but way too feminine for me to even think about wearing. Thumbs down.