Carner Barcelona - Rose & Dragon

Picture: Saint George and the Dragon (1432-35)
Painting by Rogier van der Weyden (1399-1464)
Wikiart.com

Rose & Dragon is the third creation in the luxury, well crafted Black Collection from Carner Barcelona. Rose & Dragon is inspired from the legend of Saint George who saved the princess from the dragon. From the dragons blood, a rosebush with dark red roses grew.

And that one can imagine: Rose & Dragon is a thick, dark, rosy, spicy potion, resting over an animalic, soft leathery dept. The fragrance is sweetened with the todays it-note in contrasting leather or other dark, rough notes: Sweet berries as raspberrys and strawberrys, which could also be found in for example Masque Russian Tea, Tom Ford Tuscan Leather and Acqua di Parma Colonia Leather (not mentioned among the notes in the latter but I can smell it). Rose & Dragon has some similarities in style with these fragrance but is rosier, more animalic and spicy. It is also sweeter, has a certain liqueurish vibe, is much more deep and mysterious. When it comes to the latter; Rose & Dragon delivers the same mysticism as another dark and deep rose, Frapin Nevermore, even if that spicy rose interpretation is almost dry and less sweet than Rose & Dragon.
To my note Rose & Dragon is also the most feminine of the three fragrances in the Black Collection and also more feminine than the fragrances mentioned above. A more feminine dark and mysterious rose I come to think of when wearing Rose & Dragon is Parfumerie Générale Isparta.

Picture: Rose & Dragon
PR: Carner Barecelona (c)

As apprehensible from all associations mentioned above, Rose & Dragon isn't anything new or groundbreaking but it's a very well crafted and smooth blended fragance, one of the very best in this genre. With such heavy ingredients there is always a risk that a fragrance becomes cloying, harsh and unstable, especially if cheaper ingredients are used. Rose & Dragon is avoiding all such mistakes, it is top notch.

Wearing Rose & Dragon is a pleasure and the day is filled with constant wrist sniffing. It's wearable also for elegant evening but should'nt be restricted for such occasions. It's a quite linear fragrance and one can enjoy its mysterious and beautiful accords almost all at the same time. Longevity is about 24h and sillage is medium.
Rose & Dragon is my favorite from the Black Collection, an excellent example of the dark, deep, mysterious sort of rosefragrance which I love.

Rating: 5

Notes: Saffron, cumin, wild strawberry, cinnamon, bulgarian rose, turkish rose, honey, incense, castoreum, leather, labdanum, amber