Mémoires D'une Palmeraie 08, from FO'AH was released in 2018. The perfumer behind this creation is Olivier Pescheux. It has the top notes of Bergamot and Juniper Berries, middle notes of Jasmine and Rose, and base notes of Musk, Palm Leaf, and Patchouli.
Rose is hard for me. I appreciate the skill of making a good rose fragrance without owning or wearing a lot. I know what I like and enjoy about rose, and what I don't. This is tickling something within me. I think it's really elegant. The initail waft smells like a Muller fruit corner. Seriously a kind of lactonic, fruity, yogurt, infused with a hint of rose. Then the rose accord comes on more and has a naturalism I like but it's very well pitched, sweetish, pretty drying down to a soapy rose musk. Not overpowering or ostentatious like roses often are, Pescheux has given it a shimmer and green, transparency. It's the palm again. I'm not imaging this or needlessly buying into this brands BS about a palm theme (or am I subconsciously?) NO!!! NO!!! I'm really not! seriously these really do have the cohesion and strong thread of a concept album like Marvin Gaye's 'What's goin on?' They are sort of all the same song, in the same key but who gives a shit, they sound great (or smell, pretty good) in this case. I mean that's where the analogy breaks down because these are not the genius of Gaye, they're just good. And this snarled slightly pathetic, pedantic, cynic would've taken real pleasure in giving Fo'ah a dressing down, but I quite like this. It's not a boring rose. It's not a rubbish off the shelf Montale rose to tick a box. Feels worked, earned, thought about.
Rose is hard for me. I appreciate the skill of making a good rose fragrance without owning or wearing a lot. I know what I like and enjoy about rose, and what I don't. This is tickling something within me. I think it's really elegant. The initail waft smells like a Muller fruit corner. Seriously a kind of lactonic, fruity, yogurt, infused with a hint of rose. Then the rose accord comes on more and has a naturalism I like but it's very well pitched, sweetish, pretty drying down to a soapy rose musk. Not overpowering or ostentatious like roses often are, Pescheux has given it a shimmer and green, transparency. It's the palm again. I'm not imaging this or needlessly buying into this brands BS about a palm theme (or am I subconsciously?) NO!!! NO!!! I'm really not! seriously these really do have the cohesion and strong thread of a concept album like Marvin Gaye's 'What's goin on?' They are sort of all the same song, in the same key but who gives a shit, they sound great (or smell, pretty good) in this case. I mean that's where the analogy breaks down because these are not the genius of Gaye, they're just good. And this snarled slightly pathetic, pedantic, cynic would've taken real pleasure in giving Fo'ah a dressing down, but I quite like this. It's not a boring rose. It's not a rubbish off the shelf Montale rose to tick a box. Feels worked, earned, thought about.