Jehanne Rigaud - Ambre Obscure

Picture: Captain Haddock,
from "Les Aventures de Tintin"
Author: Hergé (George Remi),
picture borrowed from pinterest

Ambre Obscure is a fragrance from the relatively unknown and a bit under cover perfume house Jehanne Rigaud from Grasse. As I understand it, the house had a range of fine fragrances during the 1920s-1930s and the following decades but then focused on to produce essences, ambiences, basic colognes and eaux as also producing for other perfumehouses. In one website I can recognize bottles with the same shape and labels as some editions from the house of Les Nereides. As mentioned in the earlier post about Imperial Poudré, I smell similarities in style between Les Nereides and Jehanne Rigaud. maybe this is not a coincidence. Jehanne Rigaud, just as Les Nereides, issues really priceworthy perfumes, compared both to mainstream and niche releases. The whole Jehanne Rigaud line is avaible here at top notch niche shop Fragrance & Art.

Ambre Obscur starts and proceeds very familiar to me: I can smell an old favorite, the early 1980s oriental Prelude from Balenciaga. It's almost the same vintage smelling amber, deep and multifacetted containing notes  similar to old sherry oakbarrels.It's like looking in a caledeoscope with changing patterns in brown and ruby red nuances. As Ambre Obscur dries further down, a fine jasmine blends delicately with the dark, deep amber and balsamic notes from the basenotes. Patchouli is also present as a supporting note, well balanced and it doesn't take over the composition, the patchouli just enhances the vintage feeling. Ambre Obscur is slight powdery in texture but not at all as powdery as the powder bomb from Jehanne Rigaud Imperial Poudré. In its later stage, Amber Obscur reminds me of the discontinued gem from Estée Lauder Youth Dew Amber Nude and there is also similarities with Aramis JHL at least the vintage version I have on hand.

To me who is a bit tired of all the light and airy contemporary ambers released in later years, Ambre Obscur is a very pleasant surprise, dark, deep and vintage in style. This is a fragrance for those who wants more body in their ambers and I think those who like fragrances as Rania J. Ambre Loup and Maitre Parfumeur et Gantier Ambre Doré (with patchouli in Ambre Obscur instead of oud as in Ambre Loup and Ambre Doré), also will appreciate Ambre Obscur.

Picture: Ambre Obscur
Photo: PR Jehanne Rigaud (c)

Ambre Obscur is perfect for autumn, winter and early, chilly spring. It's also a good eveningfragrance and it's very comforting to wear for example by the fireplace a dark, snowy winterevening, Ambre Obscur is unisex even if leaning slight to the feminine side IMO. Despite that I couldn't resist to continue using a Tintin character, in this case Captain Haddock, to illustrate Ambre Obscur. I think he fits the bill as the fragrance has some dark, boozy elements..

Taken as a whole: Ambre Obscur is a very well blended, genuine, a bit wild and untamed, dark amber. Dark as its namn implies but it could, and not the new Annick Goutal amber, also be named Ambre Sauvage.

Rating: 5

Notes: Bergamot, orange, jasmine, amber, labdanum, vanilla, vetiver, patchouli, musk

Brecourt - Les éphémères - Rosa Gallica

Picture: Rosa Gallica (Romania)
Photo: From Wikimedia, user Bogdan, (cc),
some rights reserved 

Rosa Gallica is the first creation in the special collection "Les éphémères" from niche house Brecourt. The fragrances are created by perfumer and housefounder Emilie Bouge. The story behind Les éphémères is according to information from Brecourt as follows: "Each perfume in the "Les Éphémères" collection directs its focus on a rare and precious raw material. Often it involves completely forgotten substances that can only be produced in very small quantities or are too unstable to be noted on the list of popular fragrances.Whoever manufactures a fragrance under such conditions cannot guarantee that the fine raw material in the center of the composition will be available again in the required quantity or quality in the following year. No one can predict whether a perfume can ever be reproduced as the perfect equivalent to the "first edition." Therein lies the volatile nature of these creations: they are impermanent, not reproducible, available only for a short time and in limited quantities ... "éphémère". " The Rosa Gallica is a very old type of rose, known from 1100 BC and imported to Europe by the crusaders in the middleage.

Picture: Rosa Gallica
Photo: PR Brecourt (c)

The perfume Rosa Gallica starts with the for "single" roseperfumes typical, a bit oily, rubbernote, this time i percieve it as been located in the pink octaves of the note scale. The opening accord with the roseoilrubber reminds me of the opening of Annick Goutal Rose Absolue. Soon Rosa Gallica transforms to a darker (still pink), sweeter, balsamic, almost jammy rose with peppery-light spicy accents, probably the myrrh-incense combo. Here Rosa Gallica resembles another beutiful rose fragrance, this time of the oriental type: Aramis Calligraphy Rose. The roses are a bit more prominent in Rosa Gallica whereas Calligraphy Rose has a wider range of notes, also spices and herbal notes. After this stage, Rosa Gallica lightens a bit in the imagined pink nuance and the peppery note intensifies on a musky background, here I recognize a bold, oriental rosy favorite of mine: Montale Roses Musk  Either of these fragrances are containing oud according to their notelists but I think there is some involved as both has some of the woody peppery note that is involved in many oud fragrances. For a short while I percieve Rosa Gallica sweeter again, with an almost vanillic touch and Mancera Roses Vanille shows up. In the basenotes, Rosa Gallica turns back to the Aramis Calligraphy Rose phase again, but more rosy and pink than the latter when comparing the basenotes.

Picture: Rosa Gallica
Photo: PR Brecourt (c)

As indicated above, Rosa Gallica has similarities with a bunch of distinctive oriental rose fragrances, Therefore it's not particularly original or innovatory but it smells really good and is a pleasure to wear. Rosa Gallica is classified as unisex, to me it leans to the feminine side on the scale. Longevity is great about 24h and sillage is big but not overwhelming. Rosa Gallica was not at all what I've expected, when reading of the background and looking at the picture of this ancient rose. I thought it would be a relatively light but tenable natural, clean smelling pink rose in the style of Annick Goutal Rose Absolue or Rose Splendide (swe), which was the case only in the very first accord.


Rating: 5


Notes: Baie rose, incense, gallican rose, myrrh, cashmere woods, ebony, ambergris

Thanks to ParfumMaria for the sample to try

Maison Francis Kurkdjian - Masculin Pluriel

Picture: "The Dandy king",
Joachim Murat (1767-1815),  King of Naples etc
Portrait by Francois Gérard (1770-1837)

Masculin Pluriel created by one of my favorite perfumers Francis Kurkdjian for his own house, is the masculine counterpart to one of the very best feminine perfumes of 2014 Féminin Pluriel. Just as the latter, Kurkdjian in Masculin Pluriel interprets a classical theme in a contemporary setting but still retains the timeless expression of the fragrance.

Masculin Pluriel starts with a beautiful note of lavender on a light, woody background. The lavendernote is the featured note during the rest of the dry down and it shows off a bit different at different stages, influenced by the surrounding and supporting notes. Masculin Pluriel is truly aromatic, lighter in the begining and darker in the later stages. The woody notes never get sharp or chemical and interacting with the herbal notes, the fragrance explore both dark and light accords, bitter and even if an overall non-sweet fragrance, there are some sweet elements, I can smell some woody vanilla, the vanillic note coming from wood, in the middle of the fragrance. There is also a very light, smoky element present in the fragrance but it's almost not detectable as smoke, there is absolutely nothing sharp or offending about it. The patchouli in the base are dark and desert-dry, like dried patchoulileaves, no moisty texture but anyway it lends a slight earthy impression to the mix. The patchouli blends perfectly and highlighting the deep and dark facets of the lavender, here the lavender reminds me partly of the lavendernote of Vero Profumo Kiki Extrait. There is something, the bitter, slight smoky impression, in Masculin Pluriel that reminds me of  the new By Kilian "extreme" Smoke for the Soul where Masculin Pluriel is the polished, elegant and wearable one. I read on Fragrantica that the fragrance trend for the coming years are woodsy and piny notes, as for example birch and likely  there is room for woody-aromatic fragrances in this trend which Masculi Pluriel and Smoke for the Soul could be some of the forerunners to. Another fragrance that comes to my mind testing Masculin Pluriel is the classic Aramis Tuscany (vintage) even if that one is bold and big compared to the former.

Picture: Masculin Pluriel
Photo: PR Maison Francis Kurkdjian (c)

Masculin Pluriel is an elegant, understated, very wearable choice for daytime officewear. There is something dandy-ish over the whole composition. The longevity is very good, for over a day and the fragrance is suitable for every season except the warmest summermonths. As Masculin Pluriel is a very well constructed and easy to wear fragrance, it should have been included in my best of 2014 list if I had tested it properly on myself and on Mr Parfumista before year end.

Rating: 5

Notes: Lavender, cedar, patchouli, vetiver, leather, woody notes

Maison Nicolas de Barry - L`eau de Mumtaz-i Mahal

Picture: Empress consort Mumtaz Mahal (1593-1631)
Mughal painting from 17th or 18th Century
Wikimedia commons

L`eau de Mumtaz-i Mahal is a deep, oriental-floral fragrance  created of  Nicolas de Barry and Eddy Blanchet for the perfumehouse of the former, Maison Nicolas de Barry which creates perfumes inspired from the history. Nicolas de Barry has also created the historic inspired line Les Parfums Historiques for Maitre Parfumeur et Gantier George Sand and La Reine Margot, which both also are released in the Maison Nicolas de Barry - line. Later i.e next year I'm planning to review those  (thanks to samples from Fragrance & Art) and compare to the MPG issues.

L`eau de Mumtaz-i Mahal, in the following LMM, is of course dedicated to the cause of the construction of  Tai Mahal - the beloved third wife (the favorite)  of indian ruler Shah Jahan,  Mumtaz Mahal.

LMM, starts with an accord of wonderful, rubbery, roseoil with some light green elements glimpsing through. This is the rubbery rose that is also present in Annick Goutal Rose Splendide but much more rich and dense in LMM and with less of the tart greenery of the Goutal. The rubbery rose is also present in Montale Tai'f Roses but less sweet and sharper. In the Montale I imagine the rose as medium red, in texture as a stiff silk fabric as in a robe form the 14-15th century, in LMM it's medium pink with a silk, velvet finish. As LMM developes a pleasant boozy element appears as also an well integrated spicyaccord. The beautiful blend is anchored in a base of smooth sandalwood which has nothing sharp or chemical about it, it smells like a smooth piece of sandalwood, polished with sandpaper.  I also smell a gentle oud and a note I think is nagarmotha from the base.

LMM has a tickness and dept which are rare in western perfumery today, even the most expensive nichefragrances seems thinned and volatile compared with LMM. LMM has similarities in the style and smell with some oils I have tried from Arabian Oud and also with the very good but not often mentioned Aramis Perfume Calligraphy Rose which is sort of a western styled diet variation of LMM. There is also a kinship in texture and expression with Vero Profumo Rozy Voile d'Extrait.

LMM is a fragrance for the colder months of the year but I can imagine it also blooms beautiful in the indian night. Silage is grand when applied but medium when dried down to the basenotes, longevity for 24h. A very special fragrance, strong and intensive, it has to be applied carefully. Great for festive occasions as for example New Years celebration.

Rating: 5

Notes: Rose, sandalwood (according to the notelist but I smell att least Spices, boozy notes oud and nagarmotha in the blend)

Le Galion - Special for Gentlemen

Picture: Special for Gentlemen
Photo: PR Le Galion (c)

The venerable perfumehouse of the 1930s-1970s  Le Galion, was brought back to life again  in  2014. The golden days of Le Galion started in 1935 when the already then famous perfumer Paul Vacher bought the house and started to create a range of high class perfumes. Vacher is also the nose of iconic Miss Dior and Diorling for Christian Dior. Tomas Fontaine is the perfumer who has reworked the old Le Galions according to current standards. As I haven't tested any vintages, I can't comment on differences/similarities et but the new versions I've tested so far are great. Over to the object of today: Special for Gentlemen originally released 1947 and was created by Parul Vacher himself.

The fragrance starts in a traditional aromatic way with the most beautiful lemon, yellow, sunny and warm. The lemon is of course supported by aromatic, hebal notes, very fine tuned and smooth in their apperance. In this stage Special reminds me of fragrances as Givenchy Gentleman, Geoffrey  Beene Bowling Green  and Chanel Pour Monsieur. Quite contrary to most aromatic fragrances, there is absolutely no harsh or sharp edges as in Special, it's so well blended and seems to be constructed with very high quality ingredients. Among the herbal-spicy notes a smooth cinnamon is most evident and it's recognizable during the rest of the dry down. When the cinnamon appears I'm reminded of Parfums de Nicolaï  Patchouli Homme a very uncommon patchoulifragrance. After a while also balsamic notes appears, deepens the fragrance and wraps the wearer in a comfortable but still very elegant aura. There are also discrete woody-mossy  notes with a touch of something animalic which anchoring Special in the basenotes. Despite the heavy notes, Special is sort of light in texture  with a very clear presence which is never disturbing. In its later stages, Special reminds me of fragrances as Aramis Tuscany (mens version) and there is also something (but much smoother) from the legandary Guerlain Jicky present.

Special is pure elegance, for the versatile gentleman, a timeless fragrance of high class, both in construction, blending and quality of the ingredients. To me, Sean Connery in the character of 007 James Bond, personifies Special for Gentlemen. It could be worn in many (non-sporting) occasions and Special is demanding in another way: Wearing it always requires a proper outfit for the said occassion, as the whole image of the wearer has to be complete. Special is indeed a very masculine fragrance but the smoothness and balsamic structure oddly enough also make it (almost) wearable for a women.

Special is definitly a must try for those in search for a classical aromatic fragrance. Personally, after trying this, I can't remember me or Mr Parfumista have tried anything better among classical aromatics. Top notch and the best masculine fragrance tested since M.Micallef Royal Vintage spring 2013.

Rating: 5

Notes: Bergamot, citron, lavender, cinnamon, amber, labdanum, oakmoss, patchouli, vanilla, castoreum, birch, opoponax

Thanks to Fragrance & Art for the (already drained :-( ) sample to try

Fragrances for the Royal Wedding

Of course I can't resist choosing fragrances for the happy couple. Taken into account that the groom is american and both lives in the Big Apple the choices of course are from american houses:

For Chris: The classic Aramis JHL in vintage version. Maybe not a fragrance for a summerday but I think it's a fragrance for Chris. He seems to be a epicurean who wouldn't say no to a good cigar and a fine cognac or two. Exactly the impressions I get from vintage JHL.

For the coming Mrs. O'Neill, the Royal Princess Madeleine: Of course one of my favourite flowers, Parfums Delrae Amoureuse. This happy but in the same time deep and velvety floral with the distinct note of cardamom and something just a bit naughty lurking underneeth is the perfect choiche for the not at all blushing bride. The Princess had a broken engagemant some years ago, is also a well known shopper and former partygirl, which is not popular in this nation of  Jante.

And at least, I can't help choosing also the fragrance for the ambitious mother in law Eva Maria O'Neill:  Le Parfum Couture Denis Durand for M.Micallef this stunning, dark animalic rose  is a dangerous fragrance which will suit this extravagant lady perfectly.

Oscar de la Renta - Santo Domingo

Picture: Santo Domingo de Guzman 
Montage by Elvisanti1, Wikimedia commons

Santo Domingo is the unisex offering in the new Oscar de la Renta Essential Luxuries collection with fragrances created by Calice Becker. Santo Domingo is a tribute to Oscar de la Rentas birth place, the capital of the Dominican Republic. The fragrance captures the flowers, spices and colors of this island country.

Santo Domingo starts with a citrusdominated accord reminding of the start of Aramis classic Tuscany but greener and with a smoother, musky touch. As Santo Domingo dries down, the white, milky, musknote gets almost predominent as it wraps the slight smoky, spicy, tobacco into a pleasant creamy blend. It's the same construction as in Granada also from this line, where the orangeblossomnotes are wrapped in the same creamy musk. The impression of a contemporary creamy/milky Tuscany also remains during the whole dry down. Another fragrance Santo Domingo reminds me of is a much gentler and polite variation of the herbal, spicy, smoky Eau d'Iles from Maître Parfumeur et Gantier, a fragrance that also founds its inspiration from the scents of the Caribian Islands.

Santo Domingo is a well crafted fragrance, the notes interacts in a very balanced way and the fragrance has no sharp edges.  Santo Domingo, just as Tuscany, is a fragrance well suited for wearing in the office. Even if smooth in texture, Santo Domingo is clearly present during the whole dry down with a medium sillage and longevity for at least a day. The review is based on Santo Domingo worn by the picky Mr Parfumista and he likes this fragrance much.

Santo Domingo is another example of the good fragances of the Essential Luxuries line. I experience the fragrances as wellcrafted and balanced, subtle and refined in the same time as these fragrances are very easy to wear. On the other hand, they are not especially innovative or distinctive. All of the fragrances feels warm and comforting in their apperance and these fragances are well worth trying for those who are searching for a    wellmade and wearable everyday scent.

Rating: 4

Notes: Mandarin, citrus, bergamot, coriander, geranium, tobacco, vetiver, patchouli

Puredistance - M

Picture: The spirit of Puredistance M, 

Puredistance (c) all rights reserved

M is the masculine (or most masculine) fragrance in the excellent Puredistance line. It's a masculine oriental in the classical style, featuring soft leather notes. Even if classified as masculine, the elegant and smooth construction of the fragrance makes it suitable also for a brave woman, the same situation as with Aramis JHL. M is created by Roja Dove.

M starts with topnotes dominated by a natural leathernote, a leathernote like the scent of an elegant briefcase. After the leathery start, M transforms into a close wellbalanced spicyness with clear notes of carnation and clove. The leather takes a step behind but is still recognizable in the background. In this stage a very light and smooth note that reminds me of a soft, refined curry appears among the other spicy notes. On my skin anyway, this note is not clearly apparent on Mr Parfumista. In the basenotes, M get balsamic-resiny and more leathery again, a deeper and muskier leather than in the topnotes. To conclude it all: On my skin M is a harmonious mix of leather,carnation and spices.

Overall M gives me the association of resting in a wellworn armchair, nestled in a cashmereblanket, sipping an excellent cognac, in front of the fireplace at some old country estate.
M is most of all a masculine fragrance, but is so gentle and refined that it could also be worn comfortably by a women. In that sense M is unisex. M is a wellcrafted, comfortable fragrance made of quality ingredients and it suits both for formal worksituations and for festivite occasions. With its warmth M perfectly suits the colder months of the year, but I suspect it could also be fine for chillier summerevenings.

M is similar to Hermès great Bel Ami but to my and Mr Parfumistas noses, M is more leathery, darker, boozier and closer than the current version of  Bel Ami, but the style, and apperance is the same. M is even more close to the old Bel Ami-version in the "coctail-shaker-bottle" which is thicker, spicier and somehow boozier in texture. There are also similarities between M and the real leather classic Knize Ten and the contemporary but classic in style Cuir Mauresque by Serge Lutens. My nose also find some traces (the spicy cinnamon-warmth) of JHL (original formula).

M wears closer to the skin than Bel Ami but then M also is in perfumestrength whereas Bel Ami is in Edt concentration and therefore has a more extensive radiation. Longevity is about the same for both fragrances, they lasts for about 24h.

Rating: 5

Notes: Bergamot, lemon, jasmine, rose, carnation, vanilla, vetiver, patchouli, wood, labdanum, moss, cinnamon, clove, leather, musk

Vero Profumo - Onda

Ursprungligen publicerat på min tidigare blogg "Parfumistans blogg" på Damerns
Världs hemsida i juni 2009. Därav referensen till Rubj som jag då recencerat innan och alltså nu kommer i fel ordning. Återkommer till Rubj lite längre fram.

Jag har också ett litet prov på den schweiziske parfymkonstnärinnan Vero Kerns gröna härlighet Onda. Även om jag gillar Rubj (se föregående recension) snäppet bättre så är Onda av minst lika god kvalitet och faktiskt mer innovativ än Rubj. Onda innehåller bland annat vetiver, ingefära och koriander.

I Onda händer något hela tiden: Den öppnar grönt, som en uppsparkad fuktig, grästova om våren. Sedan följer gräsiga, lädriga och träiga noter innan den övergår i en grön pudrighet. Ur pudrigheten tonar en tydlig doft av geranium fram men den blir aldrig skarp eller påträngande. Onda är kontrasternas doft, råheten som skiftar med pudrigheten. Den har en påtaglig retrokänsla men faller inte in i ”tantspåret”. Eftersom Onda är en så levande doft ser jag hela tiden fram emot nästa händelse i utvecklingen när jag bär den. Näsan dras hela tiden till handleden så det här är en doft jag får använda lediga dagar.

Onda är en doft för dagtid och den passar särskilt på våren. Som den komplexa doft den är har den ändå något för varje årstid. Den tillhör samma gröna nisch som Estée Lauders Aliage och Aramis Devin. Den mjuka geraniumtonen känner jag igen från Mâitre Parfumeur et Gantiers Route de Vetiver.

Precis som med Rubj kommer det att bli jobbigt när Onda-provet är slut så det är bara att ransonera!

Betyg: 5

Kommenter vintern 2011: Som framgår av föregående inlägg får jag ungefär samma intryck av Onda Extrait som då. Våren 2009 fanns den bara i parfymkoncentrationen.

Spridda parfymtankar - februari 2011

Foto: Herr Parfumista (c)

Det cirkulerar mycket parfymerade tankar i en parfumistas vardag. Som:

*Särskilt kul när jag läser parfymbloggar tycker jag är andras reviewer och intryck av dofter som jag själv också har testat eller funderar på att testa. Ju fler reviewer av en doft, desto roligare. Alltid  framkommer någon ny infallsvinkel.

*Undrar om jag är på väg att få en släng av anosmi (doftbilndhet) för jag tycker att fler och fler dofter inte gör något större intryck på mig och att de inte riktigt känns ordentligt. Att de liksom inte har någon kropp. Gäller både niche och designerdofter. Fast det kan ju vara en följd av IFRA-restriktionerna där de numera tillåtna substanserna i allmänhet verkar vara mer bleka än sina föregångare.

*Kanske har jag nått en punkt där jag totalt sett sniffat på "för många" dofter. För så myckat av sådant jag provar ger direkt associationer till en annan doft, vilket i sig är roligt. Men problemet är att i majoriteten av fallen så tappar jag entusiasmen för doften och den får kanske inte den review den är värd pga bristande wow-känsla.

* Något som ger wow-känsla är när en kollega bär den banbrytande herr-irisen Dior Homme. Den minglar så perfekt med hans hudkemi att doften liksom höjer sig till en ytterligare nivå. Klart det bästa uppbärandet av DH som jag känt hittills.

*Förra året var januari och februari de klassiska orientalernas månader. Opium, Mecca Balsam, JHL, Prelude och Imperial Opopnax gick varma. I år har det varit en mer blandad kompott, kanske beror det på att jag började längta efter gröna blomdofter redan innan jul. Längtan efter våren och allt provande av prover bidrar nog till att parfymanvändningen just nu saknar en fast inriktning.

*Doftutgivningen verkar nästan ha spårat ur. Verkar som om alla möjliga varumärken (inte bara inom mode och skönhet) ska manifestra sig genom en doft. Många av dem som redan är etablerade dofthus formligen sprutar dessutom ur sig nya (ofärdiga) kreationer.

*Gäller alltså att begränsa sig i vad som ska provas. Det dyker hela tiden upp så många nya dofthus som vill kommersialisera på framförallt niche-trenden. Har nästan blivit så att jag knappt vill prova nytt för det är inget kul att få ytterligare en "jaha"-upplevelse (=besvikelse).Det får alltså främst bli de gamla beprövade dofthusen som jag gillar, och så Andy förstås. För ärligt talat så känns det som det räcker med dem som visat vad de går för en längre tid.

* Så till det skrivtekniska: Har märkt att mina inlägg blivit längre och längre. Räcker med hälften till en tredjedel av texten i ett inlägg för att läsaren ska orka med.

Orientaler

Kan inte låta bli att skriva lite spontaninlägg här ibland ändå. Det är så mycket smidigare än på DV bloggen där alla inlägg först ska läsas igenom av en redigerare.
Nu till ämnet: Har nu (som jag skrev i förra inlägget) burit orientaler i flera veckor och de två senaste klassiska orientelar som JHL, Prelude, Shalimar och moderna orientaler i klassisk anda som Imperial Opoponax och Youth Dew Amber Nude. Och ännu har inte längtan efter lätta, transparanta dofter som förebådar våren infunnit sig som det brukar så här i slutet av januari. I stället känns det som att jag kommer att fortsätta den klassiska orienttrenden säkert någon vecka till. Känner ingen lust att lämna gruppen nu. Men det ska medges att det tog nästan en vecka innan jag började känna mig i komfort med de här dofterna igen. Och ja, JHL är en herrdoft men vem bryr sig.

Örtigt värre

Bild: P99.com
Plötsligt kände jag att jag behöver bryta mig loss från nuvarande favoriter rökelse, ambra och vita blommor. Vad passar då bättre i sommartid än herrdoften Aramis 900 från 1973. En frisk,örtigt, träig torr och osöt chypre, en lightversion av systerföretaget Cliniques Aromatics Elixir.
I den här luktar man somrigt men samtidigt inte som alla andra. Utförlig recension finns i inlägg från trettonde januari i år.

Dagens doft - Aramis 900

Är en torr, mycket örtig doft med tydliga roseninslag. Aramis 900 från 1973 är den maskulina versionen av Cliniques Aromatics Elixir som kom två år tidigare. Både Aramis och Clinique ägs av Estee Lauder och idén att göra en dam och en herrdoftutifrån samma bas går igen även bland Estee´s dofter.
Aramis 900 är, liksom Elixir, raka motsatsen till de söta gourmanddofterna. 900:an är mindre mäktig (en lightversion) och överväldigande än Elixir. Elixir har ett större inslag av torkad ros. Örtigheten ger ett slags medicinskt inslag. Man associerar till apotek och vita rockar.
Hållbarheten över dagen är inte så bra som Elixirs. Så här på kvällen doftar 900:an svagt. Positivt är att doften inte fragmenterats utan fortfarande känns hel.
I toppnoterna i denna chypre finns citron, rosenträ, kamomill och bergamott. I hjärtat  ros, nejlika, violrot och geranium. I basen mossa, patchoulli och vetvier.

Dagens doft - Cinnabar

Hade lätt ont i halsen i morse varför en, mjuk, varm, omhändertagande doft var en nödvändighet. Valet föll på Estee Lauders Cinnabar från 1978. En underbar, kryddig oriental som ofta jämförs med YSL:s Opium. Själv tycker jag att den har mycket större likheter med Kenzos Jungle l´Elephant som är lite av en kopia introducerad nästan tjugo år efter Cinnabar. Opium upplever jag som lite blommigare än Cinnabar. Cinnabar liknar också sin manliga pedang JHL från Aramis (ägs av Estee Lauder). Spår finns också av Estee´s första doft, Youth Dew.
Cinnabar ger associationer till congac framför en stockvedsbrasa i en Ski lodge i Rocky Mountains mitt i mörkaste vintern. I toppnoterna finns mandarin, bergamot, kryddnejlika persika ock kryddor. I hjärtat jamin, ros, ylang-ylang och nejlika. I basen slutligen vetvier, rökelseträ, ambra, vanilj, patchoulli, benzoin- och tolukådor.
En mycket komplex och väl komponerad doft som står sig. En tiopoängare på mig. Vill återigen slå ett slag för Estee´s dofter. Där finns så många pärlor.