Oscarine opens with a wow! Genuinely excited for a fragrance with fruity context that I enjoy so much. There’s a definitive black currant note in here, not cassis but positive Ribena, set against powdery woods, and a hint of orris/violet/iris with a creamed core of white florals, not distinct as orange blossom until dried down. Vanilla sweet drydown again...cozy. It’s all nice and civilised, nothing complex or heart racing, but I like it very much.
Oranzo has the natural greeness that I was craving but perhaps goes a touch overboard with it? The opening is a bit like galbanum maybe and heavy petitgrain/neroli with this characteristic green vine, and creeping ivy sensation. This is more in the vein of a 4711 Cologne. It’s lightly spicy too even with a vague black pepper/coffee nuance...seriously. It reminds me of Goutal’s Ninfeo mio in a sense too. Then the orange note kicks on and the orange blossom accord reveals itself but still veiled underneath an overgrowth of green and still a faint coffee. Very nice. Like a classic petigrain/white floral but more Interesting. I was diggin’ it.
Helicriss opens herbal, a bit dry like thyme or something? Then it settles to a very synthetic, woody musk, more masculine if you like, with hints of citrus accenting ISO E SUPER and soft curried spices, coriander seed, cumin that sort of thing. These instantly bond to my skin sitting nicely over uber modern, clean musks giving a more lived in feel. I really like this and it's quite familiar from escentric molecules, Ormonde Jayne, a few others. I liked it.
Immediately the name gives it away somewhat and I'd say the usual trifecta of 'exotic' floral accords (when I'm not sure what I'm smelling) I have a stab at Jasmine/tuberose jazzed up with a bit of Ylang? and nine times out of 10 I'm correct. This is cleaner though and less banana peel, waxy and more fresh, watery, bright and musky with signature vanilla. It's nicer than many perfumes in this genre but crucially not the sublime Embruns d'Ylang by Guerlain. Sorry to keep bringing up Guerlain but SD asked for it really by mentioning the fact she's ex Guerlain and that would be a perfume I'd inevitably compare it to, and sadly it doesn;t even come close for me. It's a meh.
This one freaks me out a little bit. It's an uncomfortable smell and I can't see me wearing it due to a combination of powdery florals and a strange almond note. I'm sure I heard once that some poison like strychnine or Cyanide smells/tastes sweet like almonds (am I making that up?) but this has that deadly darkness to it, despite being a mild, appealing musky vanilla on the surface. Wouldn't surprise me if there's heliotrope in here as I always get a little creeped out by it. This is strange thing like a siren beckoning a weary sailor, you know you shouldn't but but something in you lusts after it. Having said all that, there's a lot to love, the opening had me pretty floored with a lovely almost fruity notes. My tastes just won't allow for it as I ultimately find it repellent, cloying and unwearable. It's funny because most of the time bases aren't the issue and even the worst top and heart notes can subside to a nice base but when it's the other way around there's no escaping the fact that I don't enjoy it.
Dovana was a tale of two halves really and here's why... It's rare that I spray a fragrance and say that it's instantly 'Too feminine' (whetever that means?) and ultimately not for me, but this is one of those occasions. It's also, slightly acrid in the opening resembling the throat gag of hairspray and too much of a cleanly assault. Boy is it strong JEEEZ!!! Settles to a much more pleasurable, touch of iris perhaps? Rose hips, apricot aldehydic, powdery, lightly soapy, Talcum. Reminds me a little of a Chanel or Hermes I can't place...perhaps Faubourg? Maybe? In hindsight I actually would wear it, if the opening persisted like that for too long though, I definitely wouldn't. Dries down to smell like a freshly shampooed head. So some harsher, 'cheap' elements followed by more classically likeable stuff. adds up to 'meh'
Okay so...Let's review the musc collection from Sylvaine Delacourte and I have to say on the whole I found all three collections to be slightly lacking. At first I thought, good craftsmanship, realtive value for money, mild Guerlain derivatives but you could do a lot worse than to emulate Guerlain...however on balance for the few that are good there's some here (mainly in the Vanille collection) that are plain unwearable. This was my first outing in collection muscs and it's a cozy musk lovers dream come true I'd say. I'm in a phase of loving warm,clean, fuzzy, hazy, diffuse, collection of paint samples with names like 'Sugared Almond' 'Gentle slumber' and 'Cappuccino foam'. This is a gently swaying barley field of a fragrance but not before it opens with a positively fresh, juicy fig like note, giving a fruity and uplifting start to what is a lazy Sunday morning of a scent. I need to be sure not to run out of analogies because I've a feeling the entire collection is going to be like this. Descends into a touch of fruity aldehyde musk powder and a mild balmy amber and then BANG!!! Sweet, vanilla clouded, ambrette type of base but the heart is vaguely floral and sticks around. In fact the 'base' is fresher and less ambrette like as the drydown changes yet again to a transparent resin and almost aquatic, Angelique Noire. For lovers of low impact, pretty and personal musks this is a delight.
I'm not the impartial person to review this perfume because I love both the perfumer and the brand and respect the mastery of Givaudan perfumers some of whom are viewed as the old guard, or a new generation of the old guard at least. There's a perception of them churning out minimalist pieces, based around tired and well trodden paths. Playing devils advocate.... that's exactly what She was an Anomaly is. If you're familiar with Andrier's work you'd know what to expect here, iris, gentle musk, powdery, warm and very minimal. To me this smells like a Grosjman accord based, ionone and woody musk base. The interesting twist is that this formula was created with the help of 'Carto' Givaudan's AI machine which makes suggestions to perfumers and allows them to create perfume in an intuitive and interesting new way. I welcome this sort of innovation, some might say it's a gimmick or be against such things, but the geek in me finds it really cool. Apparently Carto recomended overdosing certain materials to make it more iris like, encouragement I'm sure Daniela doesn't need to be told twice, favouring it as she does. Opens with that kind of violet, iris effect, quite dry, powdery and Iso E super like, a kind of soft wood. Then settled it's a much warmer, faux orris, buttery and musky maybe even a little ambrette like? It's not overly warm but it's balanced. I think what makes it is the story passionately conveyed by Etienne and Olivier from ELDO. I still don't get what it's about but... haha!
I think this is something expected from Beaufort if you are familiar with the brands aesthetic. Smoky, brooding, naturalistic, earthy it's all here in abundance. As spiky as a Hawksmoor church spire with a rougher incense accord, Papyrus, birch tar smoke and black pepper but there's something inherently creamy and rounded about it. This doesn't have the dynamic, juxtapositions of Tonnere or Iron Duke but everything is complementary and a pleasure to wear. It's not a fragrance where the notes are masked in smoke, the Tar element being handled with a deftness of touch. Kyphi is a Ancient Egyptian incense blend I believe (I've seen a odour historian selling it) seems to have a light camphor and sharpness of Frankincense and the cream of sweeter soap myrrh. Vetiver is ever present and even though much more rounded and clearly better than anything I could do, it's similar in style to something I've been working on for several months. Heartening as it's clearly a good direction and my first experience of British perfumer Pia Long. It's decent.
Personally, my least favourite of the collection but only a taste thing really, although I did describe it as 'Orange shake n vac' in my instagram review. This subsides and it becomes quite a pedestrian, femme floral, but soapy clean jasmine approximation. Much nicer when dried all the way down because the creaminess of the orange blossom, effectively the 'base' of this perfume comes out to play and is actually very pleasant indeed. Not my bag though, the bit I liked is masked in stuff I found very passe.
This opens poorly for me, either showing how carefully crafted Orange flavour ‘shake n vac’ is or how this isn’t? I can’t decide? Clear orange note opens a clean musks & sharply soapy sort of floral scent, drying down to something which emerges as a nice Jasmine approximation. It’s a more ‘designer’ feminine affair you’ve smelled a million times, at least to my sensibilities...Does get much nicer after a couple of hours when it’s a soft Jasmine and you can actually smell the creamy Orange blossom, very pleasant indeed but can’t forgive masking that with an altogether cheaper vibe, still Not my bag.
So this is really nice. I was reluctant whether to state that Osiris wasn't the most traditional orange blossom but having tried the rest of this line I'd have to say it's the most conventional of the lot, giving light citrus and waxy, white floral creaminess at it's core. The element that threw me was the sweet, powdery, vanillic nature of the opening and first hour or two. It's very sweet but then there's a nice balance of true orange note and chalky, aldehyde normally associated with peach or apricot notes but on this occasion, firmly an orangey vibe. The orange blossom accord actually grows as it dries down into more that classic, fatty waxiness, but it's very subdued and never to the point of a truly heavy floral orange blossom. Osiris still has a vanillin, custard sweetness, a theme that's a little L'Art de la Matiere, something I will touch on in other reviews of this line, because the Guerlain ties are pretty glaring....in a positive way. This is an enjoyable wear for me today. :)
hmmmm... Odd notes here? I'd say this is a fresh, citrus, cologne type scent that morphs lower down into lavender and base leather hum. The citrus opening is misty, and coupled well with a powdery texture which could be the geranium but Marborough Cologne doesn't scream geranium in the way the notes here might suggest it should. I'm in awe of it though for some reason? It's just a soft and likeable version of your standard men's stuff from the 1960's to 90's (although this is from 1877!!!) I can't believe I've never tried it until now it's super. Actually that might be going a bit far but if I can get it really cheap, I'd consider it a bargain.
I remember this fragrance wafting around in the 90's and I'm pretty sure my mum and/or sisters owned a bottle at some point...but that really is only the top notes, the intimate drydown is less familiar but an absolute revelation to me. I'd neglected being interested in it myself but I've no idea why because Dune is FANTASTIC!!! This is much more the Frank Herbert Sci-fi novel inspired, towering sand dunes I'd often wondered why the men's version wasn't! The base of this is exquisite. Powerful but illusory and constantly shifting. The opening is almost like a more gourmand, less fresh and watery and more gourmand fig (like a fig biscuit) than the men's version. Flowing into a mature, floral smell of unsweetened, wild flowers, and even a slightly pissy, woods and aldehydes feel...but in a really good way! All this time though there's a really classy creamy woods backing the whole thing, like a blend of ho wood, rosewood, sandalwood and palo santo (minus the wierd rubber and mint) all conspiring to make the most lusciously opulent drydown but maintain the arid imagery. It's feminine for sure and has this sexy edge of straight out the bath, silk robes about it, mature but not old or stuffy. At this juncture I should perhaps point out that my mini is an early nineties example and I'm not sure what sort of reformulations it has endured since but I'm completely smitten. It's a little challenging in the mid section but hugely interesting to revisit and totally wearable for this nostalgic, 90's gentleman.
I've not tried the new reformulated Jules (why is it so expensive?) and my memories of the original have faded into obscurity so I got my hands on early 90's mini's of both the aftershave and EDT and I have to say they are SUPERB! I have a real penchant for this era, men's stuff and Jules is treating me to everything I love. Addictive, soapy, green leather and perfectly balanced aromats, a suggestion of powdery carnation, moss and twangy musk opening. These are all things you find elsewhere but with Dior there's a certain shine and sparkle to it. The drydown is smooth, clean and powerful, it's a delight and has it's own feel, separated from the Kouros's, Quorum's, Aramis's and Bijan's of the world by a not trying too hard to be too butch. I LOVE IT! Shame the vintage bottles are so pricey but this might have to be added to the list of wants. Lasts, forever and projects very well indeed without being intrusive.
What a treat! This fragrance is absolute magic. The opening is pure, fresh ginger, rough but juicy and coupled with citrus sweetness. Retreating to a smooth spicy bed of cardamom very quickly. The woods aren't particularly oud-like, more of low lying cedar to me. Cardamom looms large and it's something I like to use in my blends, but to get it to sit as comfortably as it does in this fragrance is no mean feat let me tell you. The 'vert' part does make you think it would be more green (I mean the caradmom is green) but that is somehow evoked in the bergamot and overall freshness, so even the name works well. I love it . It's discrete but somehow exudes quality and like it's been carefully considered. So the obvious gripes from folk with this are: 'where's the oud?' The character of this scent being so good could be attributed to that, But if you're after a big, blatant oud then this ain't it. It's like £300 or something? Well like I've said, FdB were not a brand that were made for me and I actually really have a problem with the whole 'Luxury' focus. However, if the perfumes were bad, I'd love nothing more than to slate them (I'm petty like that) for some emperor's new clothes shit...but they are sublime across the board and this is no different. Oh...saying something on the 'oud' element The fragrances from this brand (maybe with the exception of Santal Complet?) which don't have 'Oud' in the title are pretty nice but not at the level of the oud ones, regardless of whether they overtly smell of oud or not. My conclusion the oud must play a factor in the overall 'aura' of the scent, otherwise what would be the point?
What you expect from AdP is outstanding citrus opening and Sakura has that, with a watery, juicy, nearly green effect (I often associate with fig) but it's heavily perfumed with a dominant cherry blossom right from the get go, I actually didn't realise just how much so on first spritz, but then this is laden with fresh cherry blossom. Very nice just a bit femme and a little too 'norm' and reminscent of air fresheners for me. This speaks more to the skill and quality of air freshner formulation that it does about this being a poor fragrance because it isn't. There's Nothing wrong with a functional fragrance and the floral musk and jasmine sambac (which isn't particularly prominent) just add to what is a very pleasant and good quality, light, summer floral. I'm wearing it at the height of Autumn and it's bringing a little sunshine to an otherwise miserable day.
Finally...I hate being so broadly negative about a great brand which has captured the imagination of perfumistas and a perfumer that respect hugely for his commitment to quality and respect for materials. All incredibly admirable, so it's nice when I actually think the end product is excellently crafted and wearable perfume. I think I'm in a stage of liking soft 'pretty' things at present and Plumeria de Orris is the closest thing to pretty on the AlD agenda for this collection. I'm also a little ashamed that none of the heavier oud or leather fragrances were doing anything for me, because I seriously like that stuff, normally. I actually thought that premiering Orris as a material was a little 'French' or whatever for AlD and Adam but this is a delight! The opening has that exotic, fruity floral but it's tamed by a mildly vegetal odour for a brief time a Really powdery drydown giving a buttery, sweet leather facet of Orris root. It is floral throughout but doesn't have as characteristic frangipani as some of the Bortnikoff's for example, although I totally get how that material is in here. The clever part is that it's clearly driven by the same animal core that all of these have but it's not too apparent until it's well and truly dired down, like past 10-12 hours. This speaks to a deft touch by adam in using Castor and/or civet replacer in this because it does exactly what it should, mild background duties and twined with the orris and florals, gives a perfectly light but still animalic muskiness. I thought it was excellent.
Anyone who rode in a taxi pre mid 2000's could tell you that the drivers used to openly smoke cigarettes with you in the vehicle (SHOCKING NOW I KNOW!!!) I even shared a spliff with some of them sometimes. Anywho...reminiscing about those ashtrays on wheels, the ford Orion Ghia, furry dice and beaded seat covers, basically imagine the stale, musty odour in that vehicle, cigarettes and a million punters bums in various drunken states....well that is what War & Peace smells like. (I think Siberian Summer gave me that vibe too) Thank god for smoking bans, general standards and UBER because taxi's used to be fucking awful and if I hadn't of been a smoker myself at the time I likely would've been more bothered by them. This is an olfactively interesting endevour, the materials are clearly of great quality and contain interesting facets but overall, the perfume is a disappointment and I can't view it any other way. As thick, and long lived as the tome itself, War and Peace is an epic oud fragrance with a character like no other, but not really in a positive sense.Smells musty and old, not even barnyard or fecal just a bit stale. It's deeply faceted though and you can wallow in it's dark, dingy corridors finding odorous nuggets of interest if you're so inclined. W&P is very much of olfactory/historical interest, but has no place in my wardrobe. I don't really get much of the rose, it's muted and kinda dead, geraniol heavy rose (which I usually love) but perhaps in this instance a bit of jammy, sweetness would've been a welcome lift for what is a very dark, dusty affair. Atomically strong and long lasting but doesn't develop very much on me, although I'm somewhat charmed by it from a morbid fascination sense. Now... I only have a small quantity, purchasing the sample set and thankfully not blind buying Antiquity which I was considering doing. So I don't have a vast amount of wearing under my belt and perhaps this fragrance is one that needs to be worn several times to truly understand and if you want to dismiss my 'review' as a naive account from an unexperienced nose then that's cool, and I concede that you could indeed be right?
I perhaps hoped that this would take some of the floral approach found in Bortnikoff/Russian Adam's Amber Cologne...but no. Siberian Summer opens with a strangely fruity effect and brighter tones for sure giving a summery sense, but don't be fooled because soon enough you'll be hit pretty hard with the major themes. It's as if someone came along and poured, sharpness on to this fruity parade, almost that effect of balsamic vinegar on strawberries, it kinda works. I actually find the musk that develops slightly overbearing and pissy with the camphor and forest like accord at first, but does become more bearable and even somewhat likable. Then reverts back to being musty, with a metallic twang, I just can't stomach wearing it. Now I believe there's no deer musk in this and not to get too preachy because I can't talk (I've bought civet and such in the past) but I'm glad Adam is willing to explore other methods of producing animalic base effects, and to be fair the ones he's used it in this collection have been really well judged. Sometimes I will try a perfume that so obviously has a ton of civet replacer, not delicately woven into the tapestry of the scent but plonked in there, sinking right to the bottom and relentlessly bubbling away. Siberian summer is measured but is probably my least favourite. I honestly don't understand wanting to smell this way? It's a pass from me.
Without doubt this is a deep fragrance, but for all the aged materials and care and attention put into them, is the final result really all that great? I don't think so. Let me preface that comment by saying I was hugely anticipating this release, but maybe that expectation was unrealistic? I don't dislike the fragrance, the opening of Antiquity with those peachy aldehydes and a honied leather accord are really interesting and truly like nothing I've ever smelled before. In fact honey looms large and it smells that way for a good hour or two. There's no sparkle though, no energy in the blend, it feels flat and stale to me, not the arresting vintage perfume experience that was promised. The oud is prominent but actually very mild in terms of impact, and more woody than animal or resinous, perhaps the effects of being aged since the 70's? Don't get it twisted Antiquity is strong and lasts for days on skin. I don't get the carnation unfortunately, I was interested to see how that played a part. Now potentially, I don't know what I'm talking about and it's purely down to my tastes not being up to much & the fanfare and adoration of Areej le Dore will continue regardless, you're free to make up your own mind on that. Believe it or not, of the four this was my second favourite so it feels harsh to bash it, I don't want to do that either but I feel obliged to comment with my true feelings. I feel the care put into distilling and sourcing these materials is not necessarily being matched by the final product. I've tried several of the previous collections and they run the gamut from sublime to 'I don't get that AT ALL?' the main reason I don't get it is that 'quality' obsessed enthusiasts are willing to smell really quite muddled and funky for a piece of the exclusive luxury action.
I have an older mini of this (sort of?) which is apparently from the 60's but I'm not entirely sure? It's called Eau de Monseiur Balmain and it's absolutely stunning. The opening is a powdery lemon which could be considered confectionery like, sweet, perhaps a little sherbet lemon fizz and mine is undoubtedly old but the citruses are holding up fantastically well. There's green aspects of citrus, petitgrain and a warm underbelly, which still manages to be fresh and crucially not fougere, infact it's more EDC or Chypre territory. Then some of the most authentic oakmoss in the drydown, I mean an oakmoss lovers dream. Clearly this is a later release but the origins of this fragrance are in something truly lovely.
I remember trying the parfum years ago from a Chanel collector friend, but I don't recall ever having sprayed this EDT. It's fantastic though. Despite the peachy aldehyde, honied, musk fuzz this fragrance is inherently wearable for a man, well this man anyway, perhaps moreso than the parfum? (memory is vague) Base is clean but deep, meaningful, real, chic all that good Polge stuff. UPDATE: I bought it. Coco EDT is amazing. This is not a pretty perfume in the sense that it so easily could/should be. It’s quintessentially Chanel, and certainly feminine, but on me it gives so much from fruity apricot juice, to edible vanilla/tonka and powder, suede leather.
Oh dear Valentino. Uomo and flankers were pretty good. This is not. It’s not terrible, just makes you breathe a humongous sigh of disappointment especially if you’re jaded with a fragrance industry and perfumers who seem to list different and vibrant note combinations, but curiously seem to mix them all together and they come out the same. This has a flavour, not even if now, but a few years ago. Not a fan.
Please, please, please be good. I love Comme des Garcons even at their low points they are innovative and seemingly creating stuff that has been beamed back in time from some dystopian future. A dark echo. A warning that people (or symbiotic cyborgs organisms?) are going to smell like plastic and wet cement.I can't wait frankly! Yeah I love CdG but the last couple have left me cold, Blackpepper and Concrete...I really hope Copper is something I'm compelled to acquire.
This is CdG well and truly back on track for me, Just with this line (in the pebble bottles) you understand. It wasn't that Concrete and Blackpepper weren't alright but they were just that...alright and didn't encapsulate the avant garde, futurism and funky, artistic nature of the brand and certainly other releases. This epitomises Comme des Garcons for me. Copper doesn't have the incense themes but the sharpness and smoky bite is still coming from resins but the transparent, green and metallic, galbanum, slashing through the composition, injecting that edginess. it has a combo of my favourite top notes in cassis, pink pepper and ginger which are prominent and all in all give the main focus and a vibrant, energy to this perfume. The drydown is actually intense, brooding, resinous and with a heavy twang of myrrh which has an inimitable quality to it. Outstanding! Completely and utterly, outstanding. I don't even love it, I'm just glad that it exists and that comme des garcons are still shaking the tree of perceptions.
