Visar inlägg med etikett Musc Intense. Visa alla inlägg
Visar inlägg med etikett Musc Intense. Visa alla inlägg

torsdag 15 november 2012

Ramón Monegal – White Musk

Picture: Gardenia jasminoides
Photo by Erin Silversmith (cc) Wikimedia Commons,
some rights reserved

If  Musc Intense by Parfums de Nicolaï that I reviewed earlier this week is a subtle, classical musk which evokes associations to the 18th centruary and the powder-pastels of Madame de Pompadour, Barcelonean perfumer, Ramon Monegals White Musk is the opposite. It’s a true contemporary, high quality, imaginative, interpretation of a flowery white musk that certainly stands out even from the white musk niche-crowd. Just as with Musc Intense, the musk in White Musk is not the typical “mainstream white musk” if anyone can’t stand that interpretation of this interesting basenote.

White Musk starts with a intense cascade of gardenina blended with vanilla and the musk accompanying in a moist, creamy way, it’s like the gardenia is cracked and mixed together with cream and vanilla. The opening is an almost gourmand accord also somehow resembeling the smell and also the texture of coconut. This coconutty texture remains during the whole dry down of White Musk.In the middlenotes the gardenia note is becoming increasingly clearer, the sweetness from the vanilla is tuned down and a light, perfectly balanced, resiny peppery note is accompanying in the background, adding an interesting contrast to the creamy flower. The gardenia note is that of a perfectly fresh gardenia, a gardenia that just have entered the full blooming stage, it’s not the gardenia just started to wilting as in Serge Lutens Une Voix Noire. There are also some subdued, green, crispy notes that could be sensed, just like some of the leaves also are crushed down in the blend. Later on the gardenia gets more fragile, almost papery in texture, similar to the gardenia in the beautiful Gardenia by Isabey. All these notes are mingeling with a well balanced white musk that anchors and depening this sensual blend together with dry resinnotes, almost light blond woody in character. Later on in the further development of the basenotes, there is a sort of clear, a bit wet accord, that in smell and texture reminds me of the Helmt Lang cult-frag Cuiron.

White Musk, even if loud, requires lot of space and is not wellmannered as my top Monegal Impossible Iris, is definitly one of my favourites after testing almost all from the wellcrafted and beautiful Ramon Monegal line. I remember this was the one that immadiately caught my attention when I was “screening” all of the Mongeals samples by just sniffing them from the outside. As almost all Monegals, White Musk is a fragrance that involves the wearer during the dry down, there are many interesting twists and nuances to be find during the journey. White Musk almost also rivals my favoritemusk so far: Mona di Orio Les Nombres d’Or Musc but fortunately they are in quite different musk-genres: White Musk is a bold tropical musk when LNd’O Musc is a traditional, elegant, slight flowery, subdued musk.

White Musk is wearable the year around, I can image it will blooms perfectly a warm summer evening as it will warm up a grey and cold winterday. Not suitable for scentofobic offices, its more of a comfort, casual- or a great evening fragrance. White Musk is, like most of the RM:s, a concentrated fragrance and as it’s very intense, (a changes of name with Musc Intense would be appropriate :-) ) it has to be applied sparingly to avoid knockning the ambient. Sillage is huge (if not careful in application) and longevity extraordinary, 24h+.

I don’t find any “alikes” at the moment but I can image that those who likes Montale Intense Tiare and Les Nez Manoumalia will like this unusual, stunning creation.

Rating: 5

Notes: Rose, gardenia, olibanum, vetiver, vanilla, white musk

måndag 12 november 2012

Parfums de Nicolaï – Musc Intense

Picture: Portrait of Madame de Pompdour (1721-1764)
Francois Boucher, 1756
Musc Intense is a sensual flowery, high quality white musk created by the great parfumer Patricia de Nicolaï for her own house, Parfumes de Nicolaï in 2012.

First of all I want to calm those readers down that don’t like the white musk performed in many of the reacent years mainstream offerings. Musc Intense is nothing of that characteristic almost wet slight chemichal note that could be too much in some offerings but that I like in many, if handled with care. Instead Musc Intense is all about a dry, powdery, luxary musk that integrating the flowers and other ingredients in a subtle manner.

Musc Intense starts with a pleasant, very dry almost gun powdery accord. It’s not the distinct wet gunpowder as in Lorenzo Villoresis Teint de Neige neither the less harsh but anyway close opening accord of the beautiful Temps d’Hiver by Antonio Visconti. But Musc Intense has similarities with both this fragrance openings but is lighter and smoother, just like an elegant loose powder on a powder puff. There is a lighter version of the typical gunpowderaccord of the two former ones,  which I think (just speculating I’m no chemist) consists of rose, carnation and maybe the musc or some other ingredient that could show powdery facetts. As Musc Intense reaches its heart, the powdery, subdued, flowery notes slightly reminds me of the beautiful powdery violet of Opardu by Puredistance. Some subdued liquery notes deepening the accord in a finetuned manner.At last, Musc Intense is anchored in a dry, powdery, not especially sweet musk and there is a deep but at the same time light, pink rosenote that emerges on my skin.

Musc Intense is a subtle and elegant fragrance, well blended of high quality ingredients as we are used to when it comes to creations of Patricia de Nicolaï. The only weakness is that it seems like my skin just eats Musc Intense and the scent therefore is faint to me, even if described as sensual and subtle it’s a bit too subtle to me. The longevity is for about a day and the sillage is very close.

To me Musc Intense is a scent as was it created exclusive for Madame de Pompadour.It’s the essence of the rococoera, delicate fabrics, pastels, powder and musk. Musk Intense is a fragrance for those who likes some of the fragrances mentioned above but also my own favorite musk Les Nombres d’Or Musc by Mona di Orio, also a slight flowery musk but more distinct and less powdery. Also Les Nombres d’Or Ambre by Mona di Orio has a similar drieness and some of the gunpowder of the opening.  If you like Les Nereides Musc Samarkand and Annick Goutal Musc Nomade you probably also will like Musc Intense.

Rating: 4

Notes: Liquer, different types of roses and white musks, carnation, violet, jasmine