Battaniye
Pekji (2016)

My first try of the Turkish house of Pekji is Battaniye, a rich patchouli/amber blend, as it is aptly self-described, midway between a patchouli-dominant fragrance and a medium-bodied amber, with earthy- and (as the Luckyscent description notes) a bit of textile-type qualities to it. There’s a spicy/smoky/earthy aspect, with additional notes of vetiver, soot, and musk. It’s fairly dark, and high-performing. Unsurprisingly, fans of both patchouli and amber should be extremely well-served by it. I lean toward amber much more than patchouli, myself, and resins in this fragrance (which include labdanum) are a little smoky while not being animalic yet are still provocative, a good spot to be in.

Battaniye is extrait concentration and, like most of the house, seemingly, is priced at $165 for 50ml. Five of the house’s scents, including Battaniye, are sold via Luckyscent (among other boutiques), and are also available in a discovery set of 2ml spray samples.

Overall, this a fun first impression of this house, and I look forward to trying the others in the discovery set.

7 out of 10

Overall, this fragrance leans more towards an ambery patchouli scent rather than an earthy or soil accord. The combination of ash and amber gives it a slightly animalic quality, which may be mistaken for musk or leather. In comparison to Andy Tauer's Lonestar Memories, this fragrance feels like a tamed version, replacing the leather with earthy patchouli.

In the opening, the amber and ash notes are dominant, making it easy to overlook the patchouli. As the fragrance dries down, the patchouli becomes more prominent, but the amber remains in the forefront. Although the earthy patchouli note is not as pronounced as expected, it is still a pleasant scent that is ideal for fall and winter evenings.

The fragrance has good performance with excellent longevity, making it suitable for all-day wear. However, it may be too heavy for spring and summer. If you enjoy Andy Tauer's Lonestar Memories, give this fragrance a try. However, if you already own Lonestar Memories, this fragrance may be redundant in your collection.

Amber fragrances are a sort of rite of passage in the first few years of one's fragrance journey; they are un-challenging, simple in structure, and offer the kind of dopey sweetness that's hard to pass up on when you're in need of warmth. But what makes ambers so attractive is also what limits them. One you've amassed two or three of the amber stalwarts, it's hard to find a variation that innovates or improves on the basic model to the point where you'd be happy shelling out for another.

Battaniye is that rare amber that does something new with an old idea. Meaning blanket in Turkish, Battaniye was made to evoke the feeling of restfulness and comfort of having an old wool blanket pulled over your lap, while you watch the rain bucket down outside. Omer Pekji took his inspiration from a stormy evening in Trabzon, in his native Turkey, a town on the Silk Road that served as the gateway to Persia.

The scent opens on a remarkable note of burned coffee grounds, before smoothing out into a dry, whiskeyish amber that reads more like fabric – leather, sheep's wool, hessian – than resin. In fact, it does rather smell like an old afghan or perhaps a man's battered leather jacket, something that you absentmindedly pull onto your bare knees and then spend the rest of the evening inhaling the rich humanity of smells bound up in its fibers.

Battaniye achieves a textured, layered feeling of warmth without ever spiraling into gooey sweetness, or at the other end of the scale, the sort of parched dryness that wears on the spirit. It's a masculine scent, and slightly animalic in parts, a core of medicinal Peau d'Espagne-style leather hiding out in layers of wool, resin, and cool, wet earth. Once the TCP-like nuances of the leather burn off, the patchouli really piles into the scent in a big way, reminding me of the evocative smell of rain on soil. This is a scent that just gets better and better as it ages on the skin.

It's hard to do something with amber that a) diverges from the basic model of sweet, resinous warmth, and b) doesn't in any way call to mind the spice-rack ambers of the Middle East. Battaniye shuffles the spirit of oily, macho Peau d'Espagne-style leathers into an ever-shifting deck of resin, wool, and earth, for a result that both comforts and pulls on an emotional string.

Sweet smoke. Dark gothic floral note. Darker smoke. Deep, deep fall into an enveloping warmth. There is a tobacco vibe. There is a heavy suede vibe. Neither of those notes exist here - it is only a vibration. An animal lurks - dark and heavily fur-covered. A layer of sharp vetiver and sweet honeysuckle intertwined, are amongst this blanket of aromas. Earthy, terra firma! Campfire crackling. Fireplace logs hissing.

Battaniye is very dark for the first hour or so. When it gradually settles the warmth of amber and patchouli arise. They are sweet and calming. The honeysuckle too, begins to shine, adding its floral sweet as well.

This was intriguing for me, its list of notes - I knew I would love this. As a blind buy, I chose wisely. Its deep, warm, and progressively changing character is appealing. It may be too dark for some.