Got a vintage 10ml. Love it! It's old-school aldehydic floral complexity with an emphasis on minty, green patchouli (clean). Perhaps I'm romanticising it to myself but I can really see how this and other such perfumes shaped the course of things to come. Here we also have quite strong violet, and there's something about the whole composition that reminds me of Lipstick Rose. Update: Chypre Palatin! That's what this resembles too, gorgeous mossy sweetness.
This is a pretty pale leathery thing. Undoubtedly a saffronic, suederal leatherette, thingy and it’s a decent (if slightly pedestrian) leather accord. Fine. It has no remarkable or unique features to it. There’s an offness and offsetting of sweetness with something akin to the papryrus note you get in certain sandalwood based fragrances which shall remain nameless, but this avoids being totally awful for it. I mean it’s okay. It’s not a softy, fleshy iris leather, nor is it an animalic castoreum or particularly saffron twanging leather (yes I do realise I mentioned saffron at the beginning) it’s very sanitised to me, minimal and simple to the point it feels a bit empty, emotionally and in a very real sense. ‘Clean’ suede is perhaps the most on the nose name they could’ve come up with, and perhaps that is the point? It’s a well made perfume and just about creative enough (doesn’t seem to copy anything I can immediately think of) and I didn’t hate wearing it, don’t get me wrong.
Tested in the boutique today, on card and on my skin. The opening seems delicate, but in fact this is super strong, heavy honey. It's VERY similar to Tobacolor, too close to warrant buying it, for me at least, as I already own the latter. At home I put one on each arm and they're indistinguible. Perhaps Dior has a very slightly richer opening, but after an hour they're identical to my nose.
Incredíble opening which goes from Guerlain to generic Xerjoff crap within 1 hour. Cheap synthetic oud accord. Boring, screechy and bland, great opening though.
Cringeworthy sexual marketing aside, I've just tested this in the boutique and it's wonderful. On the card I don't get much, but on the skin, it's very complex and interesting. There's powdery iris, but the carrot seed and ambrette make for a unique blend, and the powderiness doesn't last long. After 20 minutes, a sort of metallic sheen becomes apparent. I'd say this perfume doesn't fit into a genre other than bearing the stylistic hallmarks of the great JC Ellena. I'm not sure this is for me, but I applaud the release of another beautiful, interesting and unique scent from FM. 2 hours in, and the vetiver and plum are much more apparent. I'm not generally a fan of vetiver dry-downs, but this one hasn't become pickley so that's a plus in my book. 3 hours in... well, it's fully transformed into the dry-down of Guerlain's Vetiver. Hmmmmm Update- Wearing it in public and within minutes people in the metro are muttring about how great it smells.
It does remind me of old school lipstick, and most of the reviews here are spot on, but I also get a sort of fudgy, sweet, sticky undertone which is delicious and addictive (benzoin with orris?). It makes the florals jammy but In a different way to most jammy roses I've come across. The raspberry and grapefruit are fleeting and unidentifiable to me (i.e. If I hadn't read the notes..), and make the opening quite sharp and screechy, but only for a couple of minutes. It seems a shame to call this lipstick rose, as it's much more complex than that suggests. To me, it's also less powdery than many here are claiming, although there is powdery iris, it's just the warm, almost spicy, caramel underbelly smooths the powder out so it's not dominant.
To me this is an interesting citrus/floral perfume with a woody, sweet amber effect in the base and that hay like warm Pissara likes to get into her perfumes. The most interesting thing for me is that nutty, vetiver-ish effect achieved in this perfume and it reminds me of somewhat of a recent trend (but not really) like that new Jardin one from Hermes, a fresh fruity/citrus but with quite a dense, sweet woods & amber base. Looking at the notes here I'd say yes! Yuzu definitely, the signature floral heart of jasmine yada yada...sure. then we have the vetiver I mentioned, absolutely! Just to speak to the comparisons to BR540 which in a very, crude way, I understand but I'd say it's misleading to say it smells like BR540. This is way less oppressively sweet and cloying and has virtually none of the ambroxan, or 'push' of Baccarat rouge I think there's a maltol sweetness and perhaps mossiness which they have in common and in that sense is more modern and align These qualities some will associate with BR540 but in terms of naturalism and lightness/floracy there's no comparison at all. I say this as someone who doesn't hate the Kurkdjian perfume either. (Although it is irritatingly ubiquitous on the high street these days) I'm enjoying wearing this today but it doesn't blow my skirt up.
It smells exactly like 4711, so I'm paying 250 times more (yes, I worked it out) simply for improved performance. I'd rather keep buying 1 litre of 4711 for 20 euros and carrying a little decant around.
44 Gerrard Street sets out to become a unique, interesting take on a classical smelling masculine woody-citrus, however instead it just smells like orange sherbet. It opens with a heavy dose of lime and ginger which are actually good quality, it’s this combination which comes across like candied orange to me. The scent has a soft floral heart or eucalyptus, rose, jasmine and orchid, before settling on a masculine woody base. Unfortunately to me, this fragrance smells very one dimensional and linear with little to no development. As I said before it straight up smells like hard boiled orange sweets or orange sherbet. It’s synthetically sweet and intense with the ginger, while it’s not an unpleasant fragrance - I can’t see it being worn by myself.
Not my favourite. I'm not keen on the combination of oud and vetiver, it comes off a bit pickley, especially with the apple. I'm a fan of animal skank but this is bin-juice skank, and at best I feel like I'm wearing spiced chutney.
Uden is a more expensive, overpriced version of Chanel Allure Homme Edition Blanche. It opens with a combination of tart lemon and juicy grapefruit, which actually come across quite harsh and abrasive to me, before quickly settling into a base of creamy vanilla, sandalwood and ambergris. The darker notes of rum and coffee which are listed are more or less non-existent, perhaps only adding very vague, distant nuances to the base. Overall this dries down to Edition Blanche as I said. You would expect this to be of a much higher quality than the Chanel given the price, but it’s not. Xerjoff can sometimes be very hit and miss with their quality of ingredients and blending I find, and unfortunately on this occasion it’s a miss.
Pierre de Velay No. 25 is an aromatic woody citrus made for the modern man who wants to make a statement whilst still smelling classic. It opens with a gorgeous cocktail of grapefruit, clementine, lemon and lime alongside airy, soapy aldehydes before the green aromatics set in. Davana, fir, cypriol and patchouli emerge creating an intensely green, earthy, forest-esque aura. The citrus, most prominently the clementine, powers through alongside the green notes as a soft touch of bitter coffee joins a woody and masculine cedar accord. With some florals, resins and balsams in the background you’re left with something very classically masculine and mature, with a contemporary and wearable twist. Personally I feel this scent is too green for me, this is not the style of perfumery I enjoy wearing for myself - however I cannot deny the quality and mastery of this scent. If you love classical smelling men’s fragrances then this is definitely one to try.
Came across a bunch of my mum's miniatures from the mid 80's - mid 90's and OH MY GOD I've just tried this one, probably not in the best storage conditions but still wearable and I am absolutely in love! It opened with an animalic blast which knocked me off my feet and I've finally understood the true meaning of "this fragrance smells dirty", so if nothing else I'm glad I got to experience a perfume with real civet and castoreum. Which leads me to the fact that the opening was borderline fecal in the best possible way (I sound deranged, I'm aware, but it's one thing reading how these notes behave, another one experiencing it) plus some nondescript white flowers. I couldn't stop smelling my arm every couple of minutes. Minimal oakmoss in my miniature and frankly couldn't be more grateful because I hate the stuff, which is only starting to emerge after nearly an hour alongside some plum that reads quite jammy to me, or it could be the effect of the honey note. Tried this at night and could still smell it in the morning with a quite dry drydown, tempered a bit by musks and amber. Reapplied in the morning and I got the same results throughout the day. I only wish it were more opulent in the drydown, don't know if it's due to the storage conditions, its age or if it's really the fragrance but even so I would gladly get a full bottle of this if it didn't cost an enormity and in any case I will try it again when the weather is cooler, although in the sticky 40*C summer heat is a beast and I love it!
Nothing like Sauvage Elixir 😂😂😂😂
Pierre de Velay No. 23 is an incredibly underrated release from the line and such a fantastic recreation of an iconic scent profile. The top is comprised of intensely soapy and powdery aldehydes alongside soft citrus which seems comfortingly familiar. In the heart, a heavy dose of thick ylang and powdery violet can be found mingling with the aldehydes beautifully, before developing into a base of amber, animalic leather and civet, woods, oakmoss, clove and ambergris. An incredibly deep and complex base bursting with character which is executed perfectly. Overall I believe this is Roja’s take on the Chanel No. 5 scent profile. The opening is very similar to this but as the scent develops you soon realise the base is very different to No. 5 and adds such intense distinction from the array of added notes. I think this is a fantastic creation, building on a cultural classic and paying homage to one of the most famous fragrances of all time.
Pierre de Velay No. 16 is the fruitier, more playful cousin of Les Clochettes du Bonheur. It opens with some fleeting citrus before Roja’s favourite and most iconic note of sweet peach emerges, alongside juicy rhubarb and a heavy dose of lily-of-the-valley adding that hint of the Clochettes scent profile. There’s an added range of soft and powdery florals such as ylang, jasmine, violet and orris, before settling into a soft woody base and creamy vanilla. If you found Clochettes too linear then this is a great alternative in my opinion. The peach and violet combination also slightly reminds me of RDHP15, only here there is no chypre base and the addition of rhubarb is a welcome one - this is a very calming and serene scent which leans feminine but smells absolutely divine on the skin of anyone who wears it.
Pierre de Velay No. 9 takes a fresh approach to an amber scent profile which is pleasant, but I don’t feel succeeds in what it sets out to do. It opens with a prominent lemon and bergamot combination before soon developing an overly-synthetic smelling cashmeran note. The base is comprised of a classic Amber accord - vanilla, benzoin and labdanum, however this is overshadowed by the overdose of cashmeran combined with the citrus and some cedar as well. I don’t feel this fragrance matches the quality and blending of other releases in the PDV line, it smells more like something Paco Rabanne or Hugo Boss would release. It unfortunately comes across very cheap and forgettable.
Just like the packaging, Douleur!2 is so much fun & probably one of the few fragrances that kept me sniffing my arms after putting it on. Came in totally blind without any ideas of the notes, Douleur!2 started off quite strong, with the green metallic combo, but a few minutes later, it smells exactly like the juiciest, ripest mango and it stays like that on the skin. A total love from me and so glad I was able to get my hands on a bottle!
Agar Royal is an extremely underrated fresh, clean and sophisticated oud which easily beats others in this category such as Oud Wood. Straight away you’re greeted with dark, earthy, slightly animalic oud which is blended perfectly with earthy notes of cypriol, vetiver and patchouli. This scent also has a prominent white floral touch, mainly tuberose which is slightly fruity - with a light jasmine to support this. Finally, there’s a fleeting citrus and black pepper which adds a sharp kick to the opening. This is a wonderfully executed oud scent, both clean and sophisticated whilst maintaining just the right amount of dirty animalic characteristics. The materials are very high quality and this definitely smells very luxurious and captivating.
Uncut Gem is not so much of a gem, more of an abrasive mess of gingery aromatics. It opens initially with fresh bergamot and mandarin with a zingy ginger, however rather strangely combined with a rooty, herbaceous Angelica which simply does not have a place here and seems to stick out. From here a harsh and untamed leather emerges alongside spicy nutmeg and resinous olibanum, resting on a base of earthy vetiver. The notes in here don’t look too bad on paper but on skin just come across like a jumbled mess. I don’t doubt Maurice Roucel’s skill as a perfumer, after all he created Musc Ravageur which is a masterpiece - I also can’t deny the quality of materials here is very good. However, the scent itself is abrasive and lacks direction I feel.
Cédrat de Diamante is a fairly simple perfume when looking at the composition, however I have to admit the quality and blending of the materials is fantastic. It opens straight away with a hyperrealistic combination of juicy grapefruit and sour lemon, before a woody base of cedar and vetiver emerges. I cannot deny that the lemon in here smells fantastic, in fact one of the best I’ve come across however at the end of the day it’s still a simplistic citrus fragrance and I cannot see why this costs £320, despite the quality. Overall this is a very pleasant and well made fragrance, potentially worth it if you’re a die-hard fan of lemon; but otherwise I cannot see any need for this fragrance to cost as much as it does.
Wulong Cha has got to be one of the most beautiful citruses out there, it’s exceedingly delicate and gentle whilst being perfectly blended throughout. It opens with a gorgeously soft bergamot and mandarin combination, with a unique note of litsea cubeba which adds an earthy lemon accord. From here a subtle breeze of earthy, steamy oolong tea makes up the heart and blends amazingly well with the citrus. In the base there’s a slight fruity touch of fig however this isn’t particularly prominent. This is a brilliant citrus fragrance and one of my favourites for summer, the quality and blending is fantastic and despite having a simple structure it’s so addictive. Will definitely be looking to add this to my collection soon.
Wonderful for half an hour after which it settles into a standard chemical wood base (probably ambrocenide or similar). Pass.
Encens Suave is one of the best incense fragrances on the market, while simultaneously being one of my favourite ambers at the same time. Right from the first spray you’re blasted with a powerful incense note which is strong, smoky, dark and slightly bitter. The incense persists as the star of the show here yet develops a beautiful amber accord in the base to sweeten things up - vanilla, benzoin and labdanum are used to create this classic accord. While coffee is listed, it’s not detectable at all, I find it likely adds to the smoky bitterness of the incense and that’s all. The incense isn’t old, churchy or dirty at all - it’s dark, brooding and dry but the sweetness of the other notes balances this perfectly. Matiere Premier presents a main singular note in all its glory with each of his releases, and he has perfected incense here while also releasing a fantastic Amber into the market.
Grand Soir is probably the most praised amber on the market and for good reason. It perfects the classic Amber accord and presents you with something relatively simple in terms of notes, but with so much depth and alluring captivity. In the opening I’m greeted by a very powerful, earthy labdanum with a touch of aromatic lavender. This is short lived however as fizzy, resinous benzoin and sweet vanilla join the party to create that classic amber accord. After about 30 minutes the scent stays relatively linear, maintaining its warm, cosy, sweet and delicious nature for a good amount of time. The quality of ingredients here is fantastic, this is simply one addicting fragrance and it’s perfect for evenings out or to warm yourself up on a cold winters day. Grand Soir makes a great reference fragrance to those that want to experience pure amber in all its greatness, with very little else getting in the way of that.
