LYDEEN
HORSIKA BLUE

2021

cardamom
cinnamon
ginger
mint
rum

orris
rose
violet
heliotrope
coconut

cedarwood
crystal amber
sandalwood
Vanilla
musk

‘The dream about the cold Scandinavian Archipelago. With the fresh winds from the ocean. Sparse nature surrounding the island, solitude and distance.’ – Lydeen Parfums

Horsika Blue was a bit of a wildcard for me, but I ended up enjoying it a lot.

This has some notes that I find divisive, but they are all tamed and subtle. This is not a powerful, sharp blast of cardamom, not a sharp mintiness, nor a strong nuttiness. Personally I’ve not smelled any booziness. It has bits of each spicy, nutty, fresh green, but it’s all relatively soft, airy and powdery.

What I get most in the heart is a powdery iris/heliotrope; dry, chalky, a bit mushy even and it sits close to the skin. At first it’s most on the fresh side, some chewing gum mintiness, but the combination with spices and growing warmth and sweetness makes for a versatile scent. I wore it a second time and felt it becoming sweeter/vanillic almost instantly, but it’s in a refined, semi-sweet way. Aromatic or even slightly sour vanilla, if that makes sense. I think there’s an acidic edge from rose that’s quite prominent here, without the actual rose-florals being forward.

It dries down with a lot of heliotrope, nutty, sweet, vanillic. Somewhat in the realm of Matiere Premiere Vanilla Powder EDP, but I think overall, Horsika Blue is more interesting and nicer. Some may find that a tad boring, but I think it’s excellent as a sophisticated, office-appropriate fragrance. Which is rare for such a vanillic scent.

I think if you’re looking for a tame spicy scent or if you’re generally a fan of fresh powdery, clean iris fragrances, Horsika Blue is an interesting one to try.