The Fragrances of Christmas Eve 2022

Picture: Christmas 2022, I'm so excited
to receive this Christmas gift - despite It's NOT a perfume
Photo: Parfumista (c)

The Scent of Christmas Eve (sunny outside and daytime temprature ca - 5) ice-glaced and just a little powdery snow. Inspired from the finnish classic coated mintchocolate pastilles "Avec", cold weather, dark Midwinter nights, snow crystals and conifer , I'm wearing Annick Goutal Nuit Etoilee Edt  from the beautiful blue squarebottle. Pine and Fir with contrasing citrus (orange) and dry minty notes with traces of salty ambregris. A cold impression, yet very comforting a starry night. Somehow Mr Parfumista is  in the same mood, matching the style wearing the modern classic Comme des Garcons Kyoto from the incredible incense-line. Incense, cypress, cedar which creates a pine impression, perfect for Christmas.

Picture: The old AG Nuit Etoilee Edt square
Photo: Parfumista (c)

Below the updated list of the fragrances I've worn for the last nineteen Christmas Eves: 

2021: Tobacco Rose Papillion Artisan Perfumes ( dark red rose, over fresh moss, beewax, juniper)

2020: Rubikona Puredistance (contemporary chypre fresh - earthy and green accord, surounded and contrasted by smooth ,elegant creamy flowers). 

2019: Gold Puredistance (with a beautiful myrrhnote, a sort of smooth resin/sap and a cold (but not freezing) outdoor -in the wood - impression 

2018: Rubj Extrait by Vero Kern (warm, glowing orange in spices and elegant white flowers) 

2017: Vert de Fleur by Tom Ford (elegant retro but also contemporary austere flowery-green.)

2016: Oud Sublime Parfums de Nicolaï (quality "forest-refreshing" dark green, mossy, woody) 

2015: Rose de Taif Extrait Perris Monte Carlo (high class smooth velvety rose petals) 

2014: Impossible Iris Ramòn Monegal (an elegant, contempory iris with a delicious rasperrynote) 

2013: Quintaesensia Ramòn Monegal, (a special retro styled blend, furry, ambery, herbal/spicy) 

2012: Nothing, knocked down by the worst flu in ten years+. 

2011: Betrothal, Grossmith (classic, light and exquisite florals) 

2010: Cuir Mauresque, Serge Lutens (saddle leather, orangeblossom, jasmine, spices) 

2009: Tribute Attar, Amouage (dark leather, smoke, oud, excellent spices) 

2008: Incense rosé, Andy Tauer (rose, mandarine, cardamom, myrrh cedar, incense) 

2007: Ambre Russe, Parfum d'Empires (boozy amber, the, wood, oriental) 

2006: Jil Sander 4, Jil Sander (dark, overripe fruits, white almost withering flowers, oriental spices) 

2005: Nuit de Noël, Caron (dusky, retro flowers, moss and a furry note) 

2004: Cabochard, Parfums Grès (leathery chypre, harsh green notes and retro flowers) 

2003: Fracas Robert Piguet (the ultimate classic grand tubereuse) 

I wish you a Great Fragrant Christmas!

PS This year I've forgotten the Midsummerfragrancepost - a half  of a year  later I can announce it was Pierre Guillaume Animal Mondain which unfold surprisingly well that unusual warm Midsummereve.

UNUM - LAVS

Picture: A swedish fir in the middle of the long, cold winter
Photo: Mr Parfumista (c)

LAVS is the first fragrance from the House of UNUM. The house started as an atellier for constructing, maintaining and taking care of  liturgical vestments. The Vatican is an important cuetomer and LAVS has a fascinating backgrund. It started as a roomfragrance which is used in the atelliers and also to scent the robes and vestments when packaged for delivery. The wearer of LAVS in other words has the same olfactory aura around as the Pope himself, at least when he wears his UNUM vestments :-) . The creative director and spirit of UNUM is Filippo Sorcinelli which has many artistic skills, for example he is an a church organist and also expriments with painting. His businesspartner Marcello is a tailor who seeks perfection in the creative process creating the UNUM coustumes. More about the backgorund and inspiration of UNUM look here.

The perfumer is a person very close to UNUM’S world who prefers remain hidden, he translates in fragrances the emotions and the ideas of the creative director.

LAVS opens spectacular with an accord containing fresh and brisk birchtar, a very thick and dense, almost honeyed incense and a rubbery note close to fresh, new, tires. There is also a light, smokey note, like smoke from a campfire made of dry pinewood a cold winterdaym with high, dry air in the coniferous forest. The impression is somehow clean, outdoorsy despite the thick notes. After a while a fresh (fresh seems to be the common factor here) and soft leathernote appears followed by a metallic note that bridges over to the middlenotes. In the middle- and basenotes, LAVS calms down and connects to the ordinary incensetrack, most close to Comme des Garcons Avignon and Montale Full Incense, minus the aldehydes of the latter, but also with traces form other Commes des Garcons incenses such as the cold pine in Kyoto and the note similar to a textile band-aid from Jaisalmer. The putty, almost powdery texture in the basenotes reminds me also of Making of Cannes Rocher Princier.

Picture: The stylish bottle of LAVS
Photo: PR UNUM (c)

Not as churchy as Avignon, LAVS has more of a cold, outdoorsy aura. My sons reaction was "It smells like Finland" probably the birchtar, the smokey, sauna like notes as also the cold, airy vibes of LAVS evokes the association of our beautiful neighboring country. Robert Piguet Oud also has this cold outdoorsy feeling and even if not containing oud, LAVS has a similarity to RP Oud in its texture and expression.

LAVS is unisex, appropriate for all seasons expect in the warm days in the summer. Longevity is for more than a day, sillage is medium in the first stage, then close to skin, LAVS after all is in perfume strength.

LAVS starts incredible, the first on third is the most interesting incensefragrance I've tried so far, (and I have tested many :-). From the middlenotes to the base, LAVS to some extent "dissapoints" in the way that it doesn't live up to the extraordinary first part. But LAVS anyway, even if the originality has disappered, is a very good high quality incensefragrance also in the later stages. As I'm sick and tired of fragrances that starts exciting and then morphs into something common that I've smelled so many times before, LAVS shouldn't deserve  the highest rating. But in this case the first part is so spectacular and the rest just as good as for example Avignon (which is a favorite of mine) and therefore LAVS gets

Rating: 5

Notes: Jasmine, cardamon, black pepper, elemi, coriander, clovs, labdanum, opoponax, palisander, amber, oakmoss, tonka been

Oliver & Co - M.O.U.S.S.E and M.O.U.S.S.E II

Picture: Gewürznelkenbaum, Köhler
 Medizinal -Planzen, Franz Eugen Köhler (1897),
Wikimedia Commons

Mousse and Mousse II are slight different takes on a original fresh spicy clovetheme. Both are created by spanish indieperfumer Oliver Valverde who uses a high precentage of naturals in his, despite this, strong and lasting fragrances.

Moussse: Starts with a distinct scent of airy clove which is unsweet and natural in its interpretation. It's clean but without any detergentnotes despite its consistent supporting musky theme. Even if the clove is airy and transparent in texture, this fragrance is very strong and demands a light application. As Mousse dries down the clove is tamed by a soft sandalwood which perfectly balances the fragrance. In this stage there is a hint of the scent from a soft high quality carnation soap. To summarize Mousse it's the perfect spicy counterpart to Comme des Garcons excellent incense-pine creation Kyoto.   

As Mousse is a non sweet and fresh clove it's wearable also during the summer and the musky spicy clove blooms in warm weather. Mousse is also right to wear during the rest of the year, a versatile sort of timeless ( even if contemporary I can easily image a king of the baroque-era wearing this) unisex fragrance, despite IMO, just as Kyoto, Mousse is leaning to the masculine side. Sillage and longevity (24h+) are great.

Mousse II: This is an even more airy, almost ozonic take on the original Mousse. The clove is lighter and the whole scent is brighter and the fizzy fresh notes of mint and cardamom is added. There are also a strike of the crisp green lily of the valley accord from La Colonia. Overall Mousse II is more playful, brighter, lighter not as distinctive/sharp as the original Mousse and therefore easier to wear. It's also a more feminine unisex fragrance than the original Mousse. Sillage is good and longevity for a day. Etros transparant carnation with clove, Dianthus comes to my mind when wearing Mousse II even if Dianthus is more concentrated of the carnation than its clove notes

Even if Mousse is more masculine I prefer it as it is much more original and also genuinely highlights the clove. There is no attempts to quiet down the powerful clove as I perceive as an intention in the flanker Mousse II. But Mousse II is definitly a good choice for those who prefer a more blended and tuned down perfume featuring clove.

Rating: Mousse 5, Mousse II  3+

Notes Mousse: Lime, aldehydes, clove, lavander, oakmoss, sandalwood, musk
Notes Mousse II: Lime, aldehydes, clove, lavander, cardamom, mint, lily of the valley, sandalwood, ambergris, musk