One thing I feel is that Orchid Soleil shouldn't be promoted as a Black Orchid flanker. Yes, it shows an edgy (for mainstream) character that hails to the boldness of the original, but it can perfectly stand as a new creation. What makes it stand apart is the opening foremost. Green, cool, slightly bitter and mentholated. For a niche brand, it's something we've seen before, but for a mainstream scent, even if from Tom Ford, it's edgy. When i first sprayed it on, the image I had was of a very subdued Tubereuse Criminelle. They're not alike, but the sense of cool/warm feels the same; a harsh opening followed by a slightly green tuberose. And that to me it's the main idea of Orchid Soleil, a tuberose dominant fragrance, that shows various aspects of the flower from beginning to end. After the opening, which I like a lot, the flower starts to show. The heart reminds me of Tuberose Gardenia by Lauder, but less formal, more demure. The flower has not fully bloomed but you can sense that the air around it is heavy. And soon enough, the petals start unfolding to show their narcotic side. It will bring to mind many similar based scents, but there's a small difference in this very nice looking gold bottle: an edge that is sorely missing from current perfumery (the opening; how many will be scared of it and leave the counter empty handed?) and the heart, which feels more similar to deep floral scents from the 80's than florals of 2016. What starts as an interpretation of tuberose in the blooming stage ends as a flower looking at the sky in the night. There's a slightly sweet feel to the drydown, but I don't perceive it as the chestnut whipped cream promised. It's creamy and dense but more like sandalwood/amber than vanilla. And I'm happy that it's subdued in sweetness because it doesn't distract from the flower; it enhances it. I haven't tried Soleil Blanc to see if it's similar, but Orchid Soleil feels like a complete perfume. It manages to add elements that serve to enhance the beauty of tuberose (the opening bitterness, a slight mentholated greenness) without giving in to a cheap drydown. Enjoyable from beginning to end, with good longevity and above moderate sillage. If it was just a bit stronger it would be perfect, but other than that I'm glad that it turned out different from what I had in mind, a standard white floral. Tropical and dreamy? Yes Standard? No
Very strange, sort of sharp, minty opening, kind of like if you made tuberose flavoured herbal toothpaste, with a somewhat bucolic, meadowy undertone, all the while maintaing the black orchid DNA, which is immediately apparent. I don't quite understand what I'm smelling yet. What.i can say is that all of the above listed notes are there and are strong, although not quite as muscle-bound as the tyrannical BO EDP. There's something sour under it all that I pick out more where my skin is warmest (inner elbow), a sort of off-smelling, yeasty, hoppy fizz. What is this perfume doing? One of the craziest scents I've tried and I've tried a shit ton. Bravo maybe.