Powerful sensual chypre. Just like many others that belong in the same ballpark and share similarities (Paloma, Diva, Eau du Soir..), Knowing goes from executive decisions in the morning to a theater function in the evening, before winding in an underground club. While the others feel more ‘take no prisoners’, Knowing shares the debauchery of La Nuit; they don’t smell alike but they could be sisters. Carnality is the theme du jour! Honey is majorly present in Knowing, just like in a fragrance 20 years younger and inspired by it; Soir de Lune. And if it’s not, then it must be the pitosporum which does a similar job in Blonde (Versace). Opening with a rush of aldehydes, Knowing feels animalic and honeyed from the very start; melon? Not so much, but plum adds a beautiful juiciness that wraps the whole composition. On some days, I get the florals distinctly but on most the blending is so well made that I just get lost in it. Some days it’s powdery and I think ‘oh, there’s the mimosa and the orris’. Some days the woody facets shine more, or the spicy side, and I sense the patchouli, and the sandalwood, and the spices...always floral, narcotic, and never demure. Oakmoss shines big time from the heart onwards and never fades away. Civet is a major player from the opening to the drydown, and this erotic dirtiness that never fades away, but engulfs the other notes in unashamed badness is what links it to La Nuit; elegant, well made, classy, but with a dirty side that can’t be hidden. Knowing is a gorgeously sweet chypre, less on the rose side, and more on the oakmoss and white floral one. Gorgeous on both men and women. Reviewing a first release vintage splash, and comparing with a sample I have from the mid 2000’s, up until then Knowing held pretty well. I don’t know about current bottles but my vintage packs the punch of a lifetime. And it’s all the better for it! One of the best Lauder creations; the woman knew what she was doing!