Aqua Di Casta by Testa Maura, 2008

Aqua di Casta opens with a sharp ginger note that is slightly bitter with even an almost salty quality, with a cedar wood undertone that grows over the scent's progression. The ginger and cedar hang around well into the heart, combining with just the faintest supporting rose and an almost effervescent vetiver rising from the base, giving the scent even more zip. In the dry-down the vetiver and cedar remain, now joined by very dry sandalwood as the backbone. Projection is above average and longevity is average. I am sold on both this scent and Testa Maura in general. Aqua di Casta is supposed to be a scent revolving around chestnut water, but I confess I have no idea what that smells like. What I *do* know is Aqua di Casta smells incredible and is an excellent representation of a dry cedar wood and sparkly vetiver scent with a very different relatively stark take on sandalwood to boot. I guess that is what continues to impress me with the house in general... Testa Maura approaches their entire line with providing unique takes on ingredients that I thought I knew well through sampling many other scents that present them the same way as all the others. Here, it is the sandalwood that is the standout, in others the immortelle. Aqua di Casta is another relatively minimalist composition that is far from inexpensive at $140 for a 50ml edp bottle, but I definitely recommend trying it out as it may change your perception of what to expect from prominent sandalwood compositions. Aqua di Casta earns an excellent 4 stars out of 5.