Opening on skin, Él is a throwback to vintage fougères. Upon first spritz, there's a hologram of vintage Kouros, far more realistic than current version. Honestly, closing my eyes I'm smelling Kouros in all its glory minus the bracing aldehydes and bergamot. As soon as it starts to dry down, the spicy core of geranium and bay leaves comes to the front accompanied by what seems like a very healthy dose of castoreum. I can't really smell the slightly pissy and powdery civet, but I get a leathery castoreum in spades with honey sweetening the animal behind. Smelling the flowers showing their spicy side recalls the likes of Paco Rabanne pour Homme, even Van Cleef & Arpels pour Homme in all its glory. At this point, Él is more like a barbershop fougere, a bit calmer and less in your face, showing its woody and earthy facets; vetiver predominantly with a slight talcum vibe. The hidden civet appears during the drydown to remind us that the game isn't over. Sillage is quite big, longevity very good. It's strange to find a modern release that has various stages, isn't linear and pays homage to the best of a genre; animalic in a warm way, blending the synthetic civet and castoreum to make it fuse with the skin, modern but decidedly vintage. This tanned hunk starts with a naughty blink in his eye, shows his various facets during development, but at the end of the night when sweaty bodies ask for more action he reminds us that the animal inside is ready to go prowling. It's only just the beginning!