Panda (original)
Zoologist Perfumes (2014)

The opening strongly reminds me of how my clothes smelled when I worked with goats on a ranch (a dusty animal hair smell with a hint of green). I don't know what it is; I'm not familiar with shiso leaf, Buddha's hand citron, or pemou root, so maybe it's those plus potentially something about the sichuan, bourbon, musk, moss, cedar combo. Alongside that is also a fresh aquatic scent that somewhat seems like a Sea Breeze candle with bamboo and floral undertones. After a few minutes, the fresh type scent took over, but the dusty animal hair smell lingered as an undertone for a bit. After a few hours, I only smelled very faint (maybe lily and/or vetiver) soap.

I feel like it's comforting in a way, but it's not something I'd wear really. I'm not sure how realistic it is for a panda's environment.

An impressive and unique green scent! I live near a botanical garden with an indoor rainforest that is enclosed in huge greenhouse. It's very humid and warm inside all year, and it smells ripe with tropical foliage, flowers, dirt and water. The smell really smacks you when you first enter, and is exhilarating. It exudes a sort of life and health, like breathing it in is good for you...which it probably is.

Panda smells a lot like that, with the effect aided as the scent evolves by a delicate osmanthus & tea accord + a "watery" floral accord (which I guess would be the listed lily and mimosa). Dries to a nice smooth earthy-woody-musk base and retains the rainforesty effect of the opening for an impressive amount of time.

The one I smelled is the original version. There was a re-formulation that apparently made the opening sweeter and fruiter, and removed some of the foliage effect, if reviews are to be believed.

The outstanding feature here in my view is the contrast between the fruity green body and the earthy undertone. The sweet fruitiness resembles not so much apple as pineapple, there might even be a nod to Frederick Malle's Music for a While, which is also famous for its pineapple note.

The earthiness, representing the forest floor, is the same as I included in my wedding perfume for my daughter - very difficult to get the dosage exactly right, but the balance is nicely achieved. A successful marriage of fruity-green, floral and earthy: surely a recipe for happiness.

Blissfully calming. A green I actually enjoy. Watery, in a way I can't describe. Tea notes I find genuine. Mimosa, that finally I "get"; that doesn't make me nauseated (because it is not starchy here). The flowers are ethereal as though they are dipped in dew, dried by a breeze. Musky moss finishes this, on my skin. I only wish it lasted a little longer.

An absolute powerhouse of a scent. I don't find this fresh, airy or watery. It's a big, lumbering beast bursting with bold spicy greens. There's also something that packs a fruit-punch. I like it. But wow, a bottle would be a commitment. I buried a week-old test strip at the back of a drawer and I can smell it several hours later on the clothes that come out of it. Too big to wear. Good for scenting old wooden furniture.

Panda opens with an interesting mix of bamboo, green tea, vetiver, shiso and a few other organic green essences which provides a rainforest leafy aroma. Mixed with the greens and more apparent late in the fragrance evolution are dry warm nutty characteristics from Pemou root or Siam wood, incense and sandalwood which provide a nice resting spot for the pleasant greens. This is a very appropriate environmental atmosphere for a meandering Panda and the fragrance makes a convincing zoological story. It smells good but not enough to get me excited to buy a full bottle. The presentation, story and concept won me over immediately - but the fragrance is medium to above average at best. Zoologist presents that rare fragrance product line that ties together such an interesting story and presentation that I am tempted to collect the entire series just to have it in hand. However, this would never be a daily wear scent for me.