Goat, Bear & Boar by Wolf Brothers

We continue with the Wolf Brothers from the Polish mountains and forests. After yesterday’s deer, wolf and bison, there are still three creatures left. Goat, Bear and Boar. I have already been warned about the goat by friendly colleagues. It should really smell like goat. That’s exactly why I’m starting with this sympathetic horned beast.

Oh my Goat

In the case of Goat, created by Laurent Marrone, the difficulty may also lie precisely in the fact that almost everyone knows what goat smells or tastes like. Such a piece of goat cheese or a sip of goat milk has now once a distinctive taste and smell. Can you imitate this fragrance and in such a way that you still want to wear it as a perfume?

In Goat, the fragrance notes are not particularly revealing, as the individual components blend into each other quite quickly. I still want to give it a try. It starts with green plant notes, cool floral and lactic notes, which then quickly move into mushroomy. Not at all musty, more like freshly cut porcini or mushrooms. Then it becomes difficult, I perceive something spicy as well as patchouli. In contrast, there is a leathery, wild and animalistic side that holds sway until the end. As I said, leathery, but also sweet and balsamic, with a hint, an association of pee, as is often seen in particularly animalic fragrances. Zero icky, but it’s there.

Goat smells like goat, yes, but only enough so that it still remains a perfume, in any case a refined, abstracted form. Certainly not for everyone, but who likes animal scents and finds exciting, is exactly right here.

Goat fragrance notes

Top notes: violet leaves, osmanthus, milk, mushroom, truffle
Heart notes: clove, caraway, cedar, fir, patchouli
Base notes: vetiver, moss, animal notes, agarwood (oud), costus, leather

Bear – strong, powerful glowing

The Bear was created by Laure Santantoni, who says she had the dark bear skin in mind, as well as the respect that this forest dweller rightly inspires. For my part, I am immensely glad never to have encountered such a specimen in the wild. Despite their sometimes sedate appearance, they are really fast and have already eaten one or the other (too) slow hiker.

This fragrant Master Bruin starts with hot spicy notes, namely ginger and cinnamon. The heart nobly powders with iris to transition into honey and wax notes. Our hairy friend has apparently plundered a wild bee hive and made a mess of the laboriously collected honey. In the base it becomes woody, ambered with labdanum, resinous and balsamic, rounded by some vanilla.

A wonderful amber honey scent, golden and warmly luminous, a confident, introspective aura full of pleasure.

Bear fragrance notes

Top notes: cinnamon, ginger, woods
Heart notes: iris, honey, beeswax
Base notes: cedar wood, labdanum (cistus), tree bark, vanilla

Boar – let it roar

Boar is dedicated to another woodland creature that, like some others, is increasingly invading inhabited areas. In the urban area of Berlin, there are said to be thousands of them, which increasingly lose their shyness towards humans and become partly even diurnal due to the lack of hunting. Such a wild boar, especially a male, may well reach 1.8 m in length and 300 kg in weight. Not animals you want to mess with.

Perfumer Marie-Cécile Dor imagined the boar as a beast, aggressive and sneaky, eating everything in its path.

All this, what the wild boar eats, is also reflected in the composition. Fruity apple notes, green foliage (galbanum), mushrooms, then the test strip comes to its limits. On the skin, bitter green notes appear, moss, conifers, it becomes darker and more austere, woods, smoky roots, leather and animal impressions. But nothing dirty or piggish, as one might fear. A green, coniferous freshness meets tamed animalic notes and woods. Hey, that’s quite suitable for everyday use.

Boar fragrance notes

Top notes: apple, galbanum
Heart notes: truffle, moss, fir
Base notes: woods, vetiver, animal notes, leather

My conclusion about the Wolf Brothers

With Wolf Brothers, we don’t have fragrances that come directly from the lair of a wild animal, but the source of inspiration is clear. If you want to make a statement, you can certainly do so with Wolf and Goat. The others – Deer, Wisent, Bear and Boar – find their place amidst extraordinary niche fragrances, but are far from being wacky concept scents. Niche definitely, also more male yes, but not exclusively. Absolutely test, dear friends! Who has already, what was your impression?