Life in Kate-Land

She’s clean and clear, but with a splash of something. This is a strong tea, sweetened with just one lump.

I am a tea fanatic on a year-long quest for a perfect pure tea scent that lasts, but I’m not looking for anything very sweet, which is why at first spritz, I was not overjoyed about Dear Polly. But after wearing it for an hour, then accidentally catching a sniff of my wrist as I reached for something, I turned my own head. She’s a revelation.

At once delicious, but not at all gourmand, and clear as a ringing bell, the sweetness comes from the apple note, but it’s almost unidentifiable as apple—just gives the scent a bit of a juicy liquidity, as it were.

The black tea accord is strong and lives in the middle, not the top, which I love so much because of the heart-feel and longevity.

The bergamot/apple top notes make Polly Earl-Grey-adjacent, but not just plain Earl Grey, and certainly not a milky, syrupy London Fog.

As it dries down, the amber, oakmoss and musk come out and grab onto the last few sips of the tea from the middle notes. I don’t get a heaving amber note, but I do get its sweet, resinous, almost incensy solidity in the base alongside the earthy, smoky dampness of the oakmoss. 

But this is just me going nerd-deep on notes; don’t be scared by my base notes schpiel if you just want something fresh without being sweet and fruity or “perfumey.” This is it. 

The notes from the perfumer say this is like a love letter to his wife as she sips her morning tea, and is meant to draw in fond remembrance. I totally see this. 

I got this with Scentbird in June. By the end of July, I’d gone through 2 travel sizes ordered from Mercari.  A 100ml bottle is on her way to me as I type this.

I may not yet have found my white whale perfect tea scent, but Polly has a forever place in my heart for sure.