For Christmas, I received a gift of patchouli soaps from India that smell like real patchouli (a scent I’ve almost forgotten in these days of clean, overly-sweet “patchouli” in perfumes). Authentic patchouli smells earthy-unclean, strong (determined to dominate other ingredients in perfumes), and has a nasal-passage-cleansing, herbal-menthol edge. What passes for patchouli in today’s fragrances shouldn’t be called “patchouli” at all; may I suggest:
iluohctap — ass-backwards patchouli…the opposite of earthy-unclean, herbal-menthol
atchou — sneeze-and-you’ll-miss-it patchouli
ou — aka “Ew!” (“This is so sweet, I think I’m going to throw up!”)
pali — patchouli with its heart, its GUTS, removed…
