I lived in New York for almost thirty years and I was only in Queens maybe a dozen times at the most. I didn’t dislike the place. I just never had much reason to explore that borough. I know Bond no 9 have named most of their perfumes from all the chi chi neighborhoods of New York but I guess they are running out of places since they now have named one after Queens, but then again most of Queens have now been gentrified – it’s not as working class it used to be.
So on to the scent. This was recommended to me by a Saks SA because he knew I like white florals, and indeed Queens opens with a big burst of coconut-y tuberose – the big tropical kind. It is edged out by osmanthus and champaca and the effect to me is a bit Asian (maybe because a lot of Asians settled in Queens? Haha, I doubt) The effect is light over all, with the tuberose going front and center as it goes to the heart of the scent. Blackberries get mixed in, making this a fruity-floral, although it skews more flowers than anything else (or the berries are just not projecting as well on me) When I first tried this on at the store, I was enamoured by it a lot, but now that I am wearing it full stop from a sample, I am less so. But I still like it, and while one might think this screams ‘Summer,’ it strikes more as a cold winter perfume – it’s effect is more warm than cold.