Balmain - Ivoire (new)

Picture: Place Vendome, a picture of  the spirit of Ivoire.

Photo by Dimitris Distigues  (CC) Wikimedia Commons, some rights reserved

The 1980 classic Ivoire de Balmain is re-launched 2012 (this week in Sweden) in a new and very successful interpretation/formulation created by Michel Alamirac and Jacques Flori.

The new interpretation of Ivorie starts much smoother and gentler than the older galbanum-tinged formula with elegant fruity-flowery notes. The pleasant fruitiness has an accompning role inr the middlenotes where elegant flowery interpretations of are mingeled with the traditional galbanum of old Ivoire in a considerably lighter dose. An interesting twist is the addition of some slight peppery notes. It sounds hazardly for such an elgant blend as Ivoire but the pepperiness is so skillfully handled, it's acting in the background as an uplifting note that gives sparkle to Ivoire and I don't percieve the spritzy-sharpness that are present in many peppery creations.  The soapiness of the old Ivoire is tuned down a bit in the earlier stages of the new, this is not strange at all as the galbanum isn't preseant in the early stage. As Ivoire continues to dry down the similarities, among them the lovely sopainess, with the older formula are even more obvious, despite the fact that the soapiness is of a smoother and gentler kind. It intermediates the feeling of wearing a soft, white cashmerejumper, the same feeling as I precieved with the wonderful lilyinterpreation Cartier Baiser Volé. In the elegant base which mediates a vintage sense of mossiness, the new Ivoire has much in common with the old version, to me it's like the more Ivoire dries down, the closer to the old Ivoire it appears. The expression of both the fragrances is the same and I can recognise the same structure and scent but the new Ivoire has a smoother, gentler and fruitier aura as the older is greener, sharper, rougher and more edgy.

The new Ivoire also preserves the same very french elegance as the older version. Ivoire still reminds me of an elegant french lady in a well-cutted, less-is-more, ivory silkdress, dining at a likewise elegant restaurant a bit cool summer evening at a place like Place Vendome. Ivoire creates the same feeling of elegance as Puredistances Antonia even if Antonia is edgier and closer to the original Ivoire whit its charactersitic note of galbanum. The casual-chic daytime alternative to Ivoire, a scent with resembling notes but interpreted in outdoor style is one of my all time favorites Hermès Amazone.

Both versions of Ivoire is definitly worth owning for the lovers of the old Ivoire, they are great complements to each other, where the newer "contemporary" version is a bit easier to wear and I also think it appeals to a wider group of perfumebuyers than the orignal. Besides the fragrances mentioned above I also think that people that enjoys Bas de Soie by Serge Lutens will like Ivoire, both the new and old version, fans of Chanel No 19 Poudre I think will appreciate the new Ivoire.

The longevity of Ivoire is very good, it lasts over a whole day to late in the evening.

Rating: 5

Notes: mandarin, violet, orange, jasmine, rose, ylang-ylang, black pepper, galbanum, vanilla, vetiver, cedarwood, patchouli

Ramón Monegal - Kiss My Name

Picture: Rose Champagne Bubbles

Photo by Gaetan Lee (CC-BY-2.0; CC-BY-2.5.)

Wikimedia commons some rights reserved

A fizzy, peppery tubereuse-boquet is how I percieve Ramón Monegals tubereusefragrance Kiss My Name. The initial accord reminds med of the light, sight green, tubereuse boquet of Gianfranco Ferre (the fragrance has the same name as the designer himself). But very soon a blast of light, fizzy pepper appears and takes control over the blend. This stage is close to the developement of Lovely Day and just as with that fragrance, reminds me of Un Jardin apres la Mousson by Hermès. The glimpse of something that reminds me of an almost melony note is also present in Kiss My Name as in both of the former fragrances. I don't know from which ingredient the peppery note comes from, probably there is some woody note that is not mentioned among the ingredients that produces it. To me Kiss My Name, just as Gianfranco Ferre is first of all a sort of casual-chic dry, green white flower boquet where tubereuse has a leading but not predominant role. As Kiss My Name dries down the tubereusenote gets clearer. It's a clean and nice tuby-note that never reaches the dangerous dirty, fleshy, almost putty in texture, territory. In the late drydown, Kiss My Name is very close to the fizzy,airy, peppery Un Matin d'Orage by Annick Goutal.

Kiss My Name wears well during a warm summerday and I think it's proper for daytime wear year around. As it is strong in concentration, light application is recommended. A nice, happy and easy to wear fragrance, nothing complicated even if well crafted as the whole Ramón Monegal-line.

Rating: 4
Notes: Tuberose, iris, jasmine, neroli, tolu balsam

Ramón Monegal - Lovely Day

Picture: A Lovely summerday

Photo: Mr Parfumista (c)

To me the somehow dry frutiy-floral of Ramón Monegal  Lovely Day starts like a gentler and less distinctive version of Hermès Un Jardin apres la Mousson. I perceive a melon - peppery ackord that is not as tough and rough as in UJalM. As there is no melon mentioned among the notes I suspect that the black currant gives this effect. There is also no pepper among the ingredients but cedar often gives a peppery effect. Lovely Day developes the light, I image it as white pepper, peppery note continues and the melon-like note seems to go more like black curranrt. As this occurs a flowery element also becomes more evident. The flowers i somehow pink-bubbelgummy-powdery, just as an unchewed pink piece of bubblegum. The sweetness is sort of subdued, it is not sickly sweet and Lovely Day gives me the impression of a grown up almost frutiy floral. After a while in the developement of the middlenotes a coca powdery suede like iris note with light hints of the swedish paperglue "Björnklister" appears.This accord is similar to the irisinterpretation in Histoires de Parfums Tubereuse 1 Capricieuse and traces of the iris from Impossible Iris is also recognisable.  The whole blend is resting on a woody base that is well intergrated in hte blend but becomes increasingly evident as the basenotes develops. Despite just cedarwood is mentioned among the ingredients I also  percieve a woody note similar to a light oud.  The woody base gives a fine contrast and substance to Lovely Day.

Lovely Day is, as the name indicates, a happy fragrance that wears well during a warm summerday, both for office and as with most of the Ramón Monegal fragrances, for elegant casual wear. Despite Lovely Day seems a bit indefinite with its twists of  such different fragrances as Un Jardin apres la Mousson and Tubereuse 1 it's a fragrance that is easy to wear in different situations. The type of fragrance to choose for the days when I haven't got any idea of what to wear.

Rating: 4

Notes: Jasmine, rose, black licorice, iris, cedar, black currant

A Coco week

Last Sunday and the workdays Monday to Friday this week have been dedicated to the different Chanel Coco interpretations (some of them anyway, I havn't tested Coco and Coco Mademoiselle in EDT and parfume yet). During the six Coco-days I spent three with Coco Noir, two with Coco Mad and one with Coco.I have enjoyed all the Cocos to the fullest and I have to confess that I, by now at least, like Coco Noir a tiny bit better (just a very tiny little bit) than good ol' Coco. Maybe it just depends on my personal shape of the day that day, but I found Coco a bit too loud in it's orietal spiciness compared with the more subdued Coco Noir. Don't get me wrong, I still love Coco but Coco Noir is favoured these days, maybe it's just the charm of novelty.With Coco and Coco Noir struggeling in the top, Coco Mad, even if I like it much too, comes a step behind, it's somehow sharper and not so seamless blended as the both Coco:s in the top. Anyway Coco Mad is a good, wearable and comfortable fragrance which I will revisit another Coco week. Already looking forward to such a week :-)

Maître Parfumeur et Gantier - Soie Rouge

Picture: Gartennelke (Dianthus caryophyllus)

Photo: Darkone (cc) Wikimedia Commons, some rights reserved

MPG:s Soie Rouge is one of several fragrances that was launched when Jean Laporte started the MPG house in 1988. Soie Rouge is MPG::s interpretation of the, to my nose, difficult note carnation. I'm not particulary fond of carnation dominated fragrances,Carons Bellodgia is to strong and clovy, Etros Dianthus too clovy and Serge Lutens Vitrioil d'Oeillet to weak on the cranation.

Soie Rouge starts with somthing like a dry fruity mess accompanied by a slight laudry/detergent smell. Fortunately this part is passing quickly and than a more pleasent note that seems familiar to the passionflower in MPG Fraiche Passiflore passes by. After fifteen to thirty minutes the carnation takes the centerplace and the fruity notes are tuned down to a supporting background. The carnation is without that mandatory clove which I find to be a great relief. A clean carnation supported by a soft, dimmed fruitiness and a something smooth, creamy, that reminds me of a rose note, even if it's not among the ingredients. All the notes are resting on a rather pale musky, sandalwoody base. Soie Rouge recalls memories from my childhood, from dinners in my grandmothers beautiful Jugendhaus. Probably  handsome aunt Birgit was the one that wore the carnation, maybe Bellodgia. My own mother was even then faithful to Dior; mostly Diorissimo but also Miss Dior, Dioressence and Diorama. How I wish she hadn't use up those bottles....

Soie Rouge is a good carnation, the best tested so far to me. I like that it's not paired and soaked with clove and more true to the flower. The blend is soft and very polite to be a MPG of 1988, the sillage is very colse to the skin and there is some longevity issues. But on the other hand, I have put Soie Rouge on a hard test: Shuffling heavy snow during an hour in the cold swedish winter, it is probably not fair to judge.

Update August 2012: Fortunately the winter has not arrived yet here in the north, there is still summer :-) This review was written when I tested Soie Rouge last winter and has been waiting in the archives since then.
Rating: 3

Notes: Pineapple, dried fruits, carnation, iris, jasmine, heliotrophe, apricot, musk, sandalwood, amber

Chanel - Coco Noir

Photo: Mr Parfumista (c)

I really have tried to resist to like this frag as described as a disappointment in the perfumeblogosphere. There has to be a lot of weaknesses with it, something that better trained noses than mine understand
:-) . After a rapid skintesting from the tester in the store and from sniffing a scentstrip during a day, I have to confess: I really like Coco Noir and I even think it match the beautiful bottle and the story behind it quite well. I think it's a very wellcrafted floral musk with sweet fruity patchouli notes. When reading this one can be missleaded and think it's just another pink, berry/fruity, patch, but to my nose it isn't. First of all, even íf a fruity-patch-musk, it has the elegance and aura that is Chanel and that separates Coco Noir from hundereds of other in this genre. Second Coco Noir is not pink at all. It is dark, fruity, flowery, patchy which notes are contrasting the initial blast of light citrus bergamot. Third, there is tuned down traces of Coco Mademoiselle (in swedish) a fragrance that I unlike most perfumenerds like very much. Fourth the longevity is very good.

As stated above, Coco Noir starts light with the citrus/grape-bergamott infused accord. Then a moderate sweet, dark fruity-green-flowery, patchouli accord takes over and creates a distinct contrast to the topnotes. This stage is a bit dangerous because if too heavy applied, I suspect that it could be sickly sweet. After a whlie a rosy green geranium note appears and it adds a beautiful soapy quality to the blend, a soapiness that I feel very comfortable in. The soapiness creates an interesting retro vibe to Coco Noir. In the base there is a withe musk anchoring the blend, together with a soft and powdery tonka been and some light woody, slight resiny notes.

Strangely enough, I percieve Coco Noir as quite noir, other fruity-patchy blends are sweetly pink in comparison. When I first sniffed Coco Noir my first reaction was the similarity to the original muskfrag by Les Nereides, Musc de Java. The same sort of fruityness, almost berrylike, the patch and the musk are similar to each other but Musc de Java, even if more robust and rough, is thinner in it's texture and has an original hay-note that is not included in Coco Noir. Musc de Java is also brighter and lighter and is lighter on the soapy note. Coco Noir is a full and mature variation on the Musc de Java theme.

As with last year Chanel No 19 Poudré (in swedish) that also was not well received (at first anyway) in the perfumeblogosphere, I think one have to judge the flankers completely separate from the original fragrance and look at them as they where released under brand new names. Just as with Chanel No 19 Poudré compared to Chanel No 19, Coco Noir has little or no relation to the original, the beautiful oriental spicy Coco (despite the noir vibe), I think most of us perfumepundits starts to compare it with Coco and Coco Mademoiselle and therefore don't judge Coco Noir on it's own merits.

To me Coco Noir is a wearable and comfortable fragrance, definitly fbw and I just wonder for how long I will be able to resist...

Rating: 5
Rating update March 2013: 4  
Rating update April 2018: 5

Seems as CN wear better in warm and humid weather than in cold and dry. I perceive CN as less  integrated between it's different stages and that the sweet accord stands out a bit too much in the top- and middlenotes. Reaching its basenotes, CN is just as good as last late summer. 

As times has gone by and I have worn the Coco family even more and become familiar also with the Edt versions of Coco and Coco Mad as also Coco Mad Intense, Noir is back as a 5 rated member of the family.

Notes: Grapefruit, bergamot, rose, narcissus, geranium leaf, jasmine, tonka bean, sandalwood, vanilla, patchouli, white musk, frankincense

Kerosene - Whips and Roses

Picture: A frag for Lucrezia?

 Probably a portrait of Lucrezia Borgia,

oil on panel by Barolomeo Veneto

Whips and Roses is created by the Michiganbased selfmade perfumer John Pegg. John is a perfumenerd, like most of us reading posts like this, who has taken the brave step to create frags by himself and it seems like he as made a great sucess as he is very en vogue in Perfumland at the moment. John has worked in the automobile industry and the crafted Kerosene bottles are inspired by this background, they are all hand coated by the perfumer himself.

Pink roses, a tart greenery, a slight leathery note over a musky base, Whips and Roses is a fragrance that conveys creepy, spooky undertones. WaR starts with the tart greenery, as the leaves and steem is blended with the all but fresh floralwater in the vase. After a while the pink roses intensifies but they never becomes dominating. The roses are supported by a slight leathery note, just perceptible to my nose. The top and the middle stages of WaR, where the creepy graveyeard association appears, are the most exciting and imiginative phases of the fragrance. As WaR has dried down to the base the blend is transformed to a comfortable but rather common white musk.

WaR in it's earlier stages reminds me of a damp and sort of chemical Rose Splendide by Annick Goutal (review in swedish), RS conveys the same imagination of leaves and steems blended with the pink rose, but the Goutal fragrance is bright and fresh where the WaR is dark and damp (in a positive way). In the base WaR reminds me of the pink rosy musky base of Bulgari Rose Essentielle Edp but the Bulgari musk seems more delicate to me, the Kerosene is more rough edged.

To sum up: WaR is a starts as an eccentric rose but ends in a more familiar rosy-musk. When writing this I have only tried this and Copper Skies from Kerosene and of the two Copper Skies is definitly my first choice, se review earlier this week.

Rating: 3

Notes: Bergamot, blood orange, rose, jasmine, gardenia, iris, sandalwood, musk, leather

Kerosene – Copper Skies

Photo: Mr Parfumista (c)

Some amber marinated in tobacco oil, with coconutty leathery, almost medical notes surrounded by a wiff of menthol. The opening of Michigan self learned perfumer John Peggs Copper Skies is brutal and almost exaggerated, the impression is as the fragrance is blended in an old oil drum in the perfumers garage. This perfectly fits the image of John Pegg, the former automobile worker, now devoted to perfume creation for his own line of Kerosene. The leather – coconut note in Copper Skies reminds me of an accord in ELDO Rien and/or Tom of Finland, as I remember this is present in both these fragrances, with a rougher edge in Rien and smoother in Tom of Finland. Mr Parfumista also smells a dark lavendelnote maybe a concentrated lavendeloil smells like this. 

As Copper Skies calms down in the middlenotes, the amber becomes more apparent, and the blend becomes smoother and appears as a contemporary (not classic) amber surrounded by smooth and moderatly sweet honey accentuated with spices and cloves. There is no for the amber genre typical vanillanote, for example in By Kilian Amber Oud, something that differs Copper Skies from a lot off classical ambers. There is neither the obvious herbal ackord, typical for the more masculine ambers in the style of MPG  Ambre Precieux  and HdP Ambre 114. During the dry down Mr Parfumista smells traces of the note of silver polish present in Annick Goutal Vetiver and also some of the darker elements from Sables. As Copper Skies reaches the basenotes something unusual happening, it’s as the fragrance retakes, the amber/tobacco/clove accord becomes more intense and also whiffs of the menthol note appears again.

Copper Skies is a rough and tough fragrance, far from fine “haute couture perfumery”. There is a more or less muted ELDO-vibe during the whole developement of Copper Skies. But as mentioned above, some Goutals are also present and maybe there is a part of the secret of the Copper Skies sucess: Each wearer can recognise some of his/hers favoritescents.  Copper Skies also mediates a somehow homemade impression but in a positive, relieving way. The only thing that annoys me with Copper Skies and which lower its rating, is the feeling that the components doesn't blend together enough. It's like the perfumer has trown in different comfortable fragrances but haven't mixed them properly together and they are existing side by side/as followers of each other. On the other hand this gives the fragrance a own identity and as the same pattern is recognizable also in Kerosenes green creation Creature, this is mabye the characteristic mark of the Kerosenebrand.

Copper Skies is werable the year around, as it lacks the vanilla sweetness it’s also suitable for summer. Of course, as it name indicates, it’s a perfect late autumn scent, when the leaves has fallen from the trees, lying sparkling of yellow, orange and red of the ground, the air is chilly and the orange, blue, grey clouds chases across the sky. The longevity of Copper Skies is amazing 24+ , the blend is strong, heavy application is prohibited J . The development of the fragrance is interesting, the least interesting part is the middlenotes, but this is offset of the cozy feeling that this stage mediates, this is a constant wrist-sniffing stage. I’m sure Copper Skies will be a comfortable fragrance (despite it’s brutal start) to fall back upon days when I don’t know what to wear during the colder months. Copper Skies is truly unisex, even the picky Mr Parfumista sneaks from this and as there is very few new releases that please him nowadays, this is a high mark for Copper Skies. I rarely blindbuying frags, but in this case I'm glad I did it, despite it seems as Mr Parfumista has taken over the bottle :-)

Writing about the bottle: The eccentric bottle coated with car paint and the copperlabel is handpainted/ decorated by Mr Pegg himself.

Rating: 4 + on me, 5 on Mr Parfumista

Notes: Amber, tobacco, beewax, basil, clove

Update autumn 2012: Mr Parfumista has taken over the bottle for real and Copper Skies has fast advanced to one of his most preferred fragrances.

The mainstream niche

As I strolled around in the local chain-perfumstore some perfumed insights just popped up. In these days when the launches of many nichelines becomes more and more bland and not distinguishable from other niche and mainstream offerings (we can call it "mainstremification" of the niche) an opposing movement occurs automatically when it comes to some "mainstream" parfumes or maybe better referred to "designer"parfumes. Just looking around in the ordinary assortment of the chainstore I visited, I came to some conclusions:

- The classics still remaining in the assortment  is way more interesting then the majority of the new niche realeases. A perfume that have survived five to ten years or more, even if gradually reformulated, has stood the test of time and is something special. Examples: Rive Gauche (YSL), No 5 & Coco (Chanel), Angel & Alien (Thierry Mugler), Infusion d'Iris (Prada), Aromatic Elixir (Clinique)

- There are good new releases too, even if increasingly rarer (in relative terms) i.e exactly the same phenomen as in the niche sector. From the latest two years: Esprit d'Oscar (Oscar de la Renta), Le Parfum (Elie Saab),  No 19 Poudre (Chanel), Body (Burberry), Candy (Prada).

- The, in some cases quite distinctive reformulations of some fragrances, with the new Dior policy as a hallmark, suddenly makes a ten year old bottle with an pre-reformulation formula to an almost niche fragrance. Examples are of course in particualar from the Dior range: Dior Addict, Dune, Miss Dior Cherie Edp. I will  definitely treasure my (not so) old Diors :-).

-This store had a tester of Miss Dior labled as that and not the new Miss Dior Originale. I bet the MDO version formula is somehow tweaked too.

When writing this I'm yearning for these and other distinctive "mainstream" fragrances. As I'm almost always  sampling different nichefragrances, a week or two in "mainstream" would be a great relief.

Chanel Les Exclusifs - No 28 La Pausa

Pic: Iris squalens, Photo by Bernd Haynold, (cc)

Wikimedia Commons, some rights reserved

Scroll down for an english version.
Aromatiskt cederträ med citrus och lätt irisrot är mitt sammanfattande intryck av Chanels ljusa irisdoft No 28 La Pausa som skapades av Jacques Polge som en del i Les Exclusifsserien 2007. Dofter mer åt Acqua di Gio hållet (än Chanel No 19 Poudre) är herr Parfumistas spontana kommenter och jag kan delvis hålla med. Irisen är mer irisrot än blomma men en lätt och ozonisk sådan, inte morotstonad, som längre fram i doftens nedtorkning får en mycket diskret, knapp märkbar, ton av läppstift. Cederträet ger en fin ton av nyvässad blyertspenna och den är mycket väl balanserad, blir inte pepprig eller för skarp och dominant. Citrus ger en fräschör och lyfter doften medan irisen balanserar och tillför en avslappnad elegans. I basen finns slutligen en lagom grön och lätt vetiver som ett ankare för No 28 La Pausa.

La Pausa är en i mitt tycke klassiskt modern doft som mycket väl även kan användas av herrar. Den är diskret och passar därför det doftofobiska kontoret. Många klagar på dålig hållbarhet under dagen men så är inte fallet för mig. La Pausa håller ofragmenterad mer än tolv timmar men projektionen är hela tiden låg vilket också är idén bakom många moderna dofter. Den finns där för bäraren och dem som kommer mycket nära men invaderar på intet sätt det gemensamma doftutrymmet. La Pausa är sammantaget en mycket bärbar doft för dagsbruk och den passar året om.

Jämfört med Chanels No 19 Poudre är La Pausa mer aromatiskt träig, fokuserar på irisroten och är i mitt tycke unisex. No 19 Poudre fokuserar på irisblomman med jasmin och lätt apelsinblomma som fond över en välmodulerad myskbas. Poudre är en i mitt tycke mycket mer feminin doft. Båda är lätta i projektionen men håller ofragementerade på bärarens hud. Båda har en plats i samma parfymgarderob då de är sinsemellen så pass olika, iristemat till trots.

In english:
Aromatic cedar with citrus and a light orrisroth is my general impression of Chanel's bright iris fragrance No. 28 La Pausa, which was created by Jacques Polge 2007 as part of the Les Exclusifs line. Smells more like in the Aqua di Gio way than iris as in Chanel No. 19 Poudre, is Mr. Parfumistas spontaneous comment and I can partly agree with that impression. The iris in La Pausa is more of the irisroot than the flower but a light and somehow cleande up ozonic root, without the typical carroteffect. Later in the drydown of the scent the iris gives a discreet, almost not detectable note of lipstick. Cedarwood gives a nice tune of a just sharpened pencil and the cedar is very well balanced, not peppery or too sharp and dominant. Citrus gives a freshness and lift to the fragrance while the iris balances and adds a casual elegance. Finally in the clean woody base of No. 28 La Pausa there is also a moderately green and light vetiver as an anchor for the composition.

No. 28 La Pausa is in my opinion, a classic contemporary scent that also fit men as well. It is very discreet and tuned down and therefore perfectly fits the scentofobic office. Many reviewers of La Pausa complain of poor durability during the day but this is not the case for me. La Pausa is still unfragmented on my skin more than twelve hours after application but the projection is low during the whole dry down, which is also the idea behind many modern fragrances. The fragrance is there for the wearer and those who come very close but by no means invades the common scentspace. To summon up: La Pausa is a wearable fragrance for daily use and it fits all year around.

Compared to Chanel No. 19 Poudre La Pausa is more of a aromatic, woody blend that  focuses on a sort of cleaned up iris root and La Pausa is in my opinion unisex. No. 19 Poudre focuses on the iris flower supported by jasmine and a light orange flower interacting over a well modulated white muskbase. Poudre is in my opinion definitly a more feminine scent. Both fragrances are light in the projection, but the longevity is good as they are both remaining unfragemented no me after wearing them for a whole day. Both have a place in the same fragrance wardrobe as they represents so very different interpretations of the iristheme.
Rating: 4

Noter: Fruktiga noter, iris, blomnoter, vetiver, träiga noter/ Notes: Fruity notes, iris, floral notes, vetiver, woody notes

Ramón Monegal - Umbra

Photo: Mr Parfumista (c)

Umbra the vetiverinterpretation by Ramón Monegal starts like a green, clean vetiver with some deep almost citruslike notes. The citruslike is not the usual light, sparkling one, and I suspect the impression emerges from the combination of other notes. Peppery notes are also emerging as the topnotes evolves, but more as supporters and not as distinct as the ginger-peppery effect in Prada Infusion d'Vetiver. The opening ackord is the part of Umbra that reminds me most of other vetivers but soon Umbra finds its own path: Umbra gets sweeter then the common vetiverfragrance and almost resiny, balmy, floral as it developes. Probably the geranium contributes to the green floral feeling. The dry down is exciting and unusual, the vetiver doesn't stands out like in the most straightforward light, rooty green vetivers.The vetivernote is restrained of the sweet, powdery tonka been in the base and despite the tonka sweetness. there is an aura of green, refreshing, moist, woody sweetness in Umbra. In the base a beautiful mossy note, similar to the one in Mon Patchouly also emerges and is present during the rest of the extended dry down of Umbra.

In lightness and texture Umbra reminds me about Prada Infusion d'Vetiver and Mona di Orio Les Nombres d'Or Vetyver but both these fragrances are more of straight forward, contemporary representants of the classical rooty, grassy vetiver fragrance. The vetiver that comes to my mind with some similarities with Umbra later stages is Andy Tauers smooth and gentle Vetiver Dance but this is more a cosy vanillia-vetiver where Umbra is more of an elegant chypre. Both fragrances has also in comman that they follows their own interesting path in the world of vetiver. The general impression of Umbra can be summeraized as the picture and smell of the coolness of the mossy, forest floor under high pines a summerday.

Even if classified as unisex I precieve Umbra as the most feminine vetiver I have sniffed so far. Umbra is definitly a vetiver that I will be delighted to wear as I usually have some "problems" with the more sharp, rooty "manly" versions. Umbra appears to be so wellcrafted and well thought out compared to many other representatives of the genre which smells like variations of the same theme compared to Umbras individuality. Even if Umbra is somehow relaxing, it's engaging to follow what is going on and trying to figure out what's happening next, during the dry down of the fragrance.

Umbra is suitable both for office and for dressed-up casual, year around but wears very well in the summer. Heavy appliers beware: Strong in concentration as in the case of almost every RM fragrance, two - three spritzes lasts for long. Sillage is more than medium and longevity about 24h.

Rating: 5

Notes: Vetiver, oakmoss, black pepper, geranium, fir, tonka bean

Ramón Monegal - Mon Patchouly

Picture: Cacao (Theobroma cacao), Photo: Luisovalles,

(cc)  Wikimedia commons, some rights reserved

The patchouli of the Ramón Monegal line, Mon Patchouly is not a variation of the earthy,woody, fresh, almost herbal theme of the note. Nor is it the other typical warm amber-patchouli variation. Mon Patchouly is a variation of the gourmand patchoulitheme in the tradition of Serge Lutens delisious Borneo 1834, but MP is a softer and more well-behaved interpretation.

Mon Patchouly starts with a scrumptious blast of cocapowder the note is dry in texture even if some sweetness is glimpsing through. There is also a whiff of an almost "men colognish note" but in a good way, not an "old mans scent" but something more elegant with amber. There is also a subdued flowery note with slight green almost moist facets, probably the moss. Even if vanilla isn't mentioned among the ingredients there is an accord in the middelnotes/early base that reminds me of the unsweet vanillapod note like in Montale Boisée Vanille blended with some dark ruhm similar to the vanilla-ruhm accords in L'Artisan Havana Vanille and Mona di Orio Les Nombres d'Or Vanille. As the MP dries down further in the base, the mossy note becomes clearer and more dominant, a sort of dark-green freshness is added to the ruhm-patchouli-ambra. The overall impression of the texture and style is something elegant as the original Chanel Coco to mention a recent example in the wake of the launch of the new Coco Noir.

Mon Patchouly is a delicious and comfortable scent in the gourmand style. On me the patchouli is not especially dominating, it's one of the prominent notes togther with amber and moss. I think its gourmand character makes it a perfect cold weatherscent and I will definitly re-test it in autumn-winter. Mon Patchouly is a perfect choice for evening wear and even if unisex I think it (despite the man cologne note) lean towards the feminine side. As many of Ramón Monegals fragrances, Mon Patchouly is very concentrated and just a few spritzes is quite enough, it's easy to overapplicate this one. The sillage is also extensive, the wearer will be noticed, but in a good way if using the right, minimal dose. Longevity 24h+.

Rating: 4+

Notes: Patchouli, olibanum, oakmoss, geranium, jasmine, amber

Top summerfragrances 2012

Photo: Mr Parfumista (c)

Suddenly the bright and shining early summer month of June disappeared, the high summer month of July is over and sadly most of the summer is gone. Two weeks ago I also noticed the first signs of the late summer, the late evening suddenly was dark, not bright as in the beginning of the summer. One week ago the crickets started to play a true sign of the late summer. Fragrancewise I have worn just a few typical summerfragrances, most of the preferred ones up to day I enjoy the year around. Even if I almost sampling different fragrances and not have much time to wear my favourites, here they are for summer 2012:

Nuit Etoilée (Annick Goutal): Light herbal, slight smoky this one reminds me of a starry night in the asphaltjungle.

Cologne Friction (Parfums de Nicolaï): The ultimate, green, grassy, cologne for lazy summers. Perfect for vacation in the archipelago or just anywhere. And for looking at a game of tennis.

Corps et Ames Eau de Toilette Apaisante (Parfumerie Generale): A 1970s inspired chypre-light featuring the verbena note. An airy and bright interpretation of the original CeA Edp.

Rebel (Antonio Visconti): A soothing, refined patchouli with delicate notes of dark and dry chocolate.

Cristalle Edt (Chanel): There is (almost) nothing like this citrus-mossy classic when it's comes to summer casual chic.

Impossible Iris (Ramón Monegal): Year around elegant-chic. Has made a rapid career and is now among my most appreciated irises.

Rose Etoile de Hollande (Mona di Orio): Monas lovely rose is an olfactorial masterpiece is a multifacetted creation that reflects both the brightness and the dark sides of the rose.

Amoureuse (Parfums DelRae): Whith it's dark, almost decaying flowers blended with cardamon, Amoureuse is a beautiful gem suitable for alls seasons. Love it.

Ubar (Amouage): There is a golden shimmer surrounding the white flowers of this fine Amouage classic. Always right to wear in it's understated elegance, the quiet sister among Dia and Gold.

Black Oud (Montale): This classic dark rosy, leathery, patchuli oud becomes creamy in texture when worn in warm and humid weather. And never fails to attract compliments....

Amouage - Interlude Man

Picture: Rheum rhabarbum, leaves and shafts.

Photo: Dieter Weber (Uellue), (cc) Wikimedia commons,

some rights reserved

Just as its female counterpart Amouage Interlude Man starts up anything but pleasant. Interlude Man starts with a strong, burned accord, resembling a turned up version of the burned wood accord of  Mona di Orios Les Nombres d'Or Cuir (in swedish summary in english here). As the accord in Cuir is leaning to the smell of an open fire accord where some meat is grilled a grey autumnday, the burned accord in Interlude Man remids me of the smell of burnt rhubarb pie as there is a light vanillic note glimpsing in the background. When the smoke has tuned down to a more comfortable level the tart, green, rhubarb note becomes more apparent. As rhubarb is not in the notelist, I suspect there is the oregano, the pepper and the incense that creates the tart and spritzy sensation. There is also something that is close to the taste of Zig-Zag pastilles (at least swedish readers probably knows this, pached in small red boxes with white letters on.) In the basenotes Interlude Man settles in well blended, woody, among them the typical oudnote, slight leathery notes. The woody note is smell very natural to me, almost as I sniff on a just cutted down conifers. The projection is large (be warned don't overapply this one) and the longevity is great, 24h+. Interlude Man suits very well for evenings but also as a scent for the day during the colder month of the year. To me Interlude Man is unisex even if leaning to the masculine side. Just to compare, I think Mona di Orios Cuir is more masculine in its expression than Interlude Man.

All in all I think Interlude Man is to close to Mona di Orios Cuir in style and personally I like Cuir better as it's more firm and clear in it's smokey, rough leathery woody character. Interlude Man feels like more uncertain about what it wants to convey. Starts though and rough but later leans anxiously to some tarter ans also sweeter subnotes. The blend also weakens in character and becomes more common, dry, peppery, woody, oud in style, a style that is all but original these days. In the latest stage of the basenotes the blend clears up and get much more interesting: The tart note similar to a smoother geranium becomes evident and this latest stage of Interlude Man i also think is the best one, the oud is similar to that in Mona di Orios Les Nombres d'Or Oud. All in all Interlude Woman to me are more uncommon and therefore I, despite its muddly note (on me), appreciate it much more than Interlude Man.

Rating: 3

Notes:  Bergamot, oregano, pimento berry oil, amber, frankincense, opoponax, cistus, myrrh, leather, agarwood smoke, patchouli, sandalwood

Thanks to Amouage for the sample to test.

Amouage - Interlude Woman

Picture: Zyklus der Monatsbilder, Szene: Der düstere Tag (The Gloomy Day)

(Monat Februar oder März), oil on panel by Pieter Brueghel the elder, 1565

Be warned, this is the most perplexing fragrance that I have tried in many years. It indeed shows a dual personality to me and this is one of the trickiest reviews that I have written.The new Amouage  Interlude Woman doesn't start pleasent at all .When just applied there is a smell almost like fortified wine. There are grapelike and some almost fermented fruity notes. Shortly thereafter the blend turns in a grey and gloomy mud note, supported with some subdued flowers, that mediates the atmosphere of mutued grey, beige and dark red colors of a gloomy day, just like the painting above. From other reviews I have read that many of the reviewers are experiencing an explosion of a great number of bright colors in this stage, but all I percive is this messy gloominess. There is also a fuggy smell, like a sultry closet with old, wollen clothes. When wearing Interlude Women very light applicated, the muddled note is less dense but nevertheless gloomy. A whiff of an accord containing the cold flower of crysanthemum also appears and reminds me a bit of the Serge Lutens beauty De Profundis (review in swedish). Experienced from many years of perfumsniffing I know that a challenging opening of a fragrance often leads to something even more interesting and sometimes also beautful. In Interlude Woman the muddled texture slowly decreases and now and then short whiffs of the excellent Amouage frankincense appears. When reaching the basenotes Interlude Woman clears up considerable, the mud is drying to a pleasent putty note.The fermented fruits developes to a note that could be described as "preserved prunes with leather " with a glimmer of the incense and some peppery oud added. As the drydown futher progresses there is also notes that reminds me of bay leaf and pickled juniperberries. This part of Interlude Woman I experience as more masculine than feminine in style and to me the fragrance is quite unisex. The basenotes are the best part of Interlude Woman and in this stage is both interesting and enjoyable, not as the top and middlenotes, which are almost solely interesting but not particulary enjoyable. The basenotes are lasting for long, during at least a whole day. The sillage is medium.

In Interlude Woman I find some similarities, i.e the mud note and the almost messy impression, with Amouage Opus III, but for me Opus III is better. Both Opus III and Interlude Woman is created by perfumer Karine Vinchon Spehn and maybe she uses some accord that doesn't goes well with my chemistry, as obviously Interlude Woman fits so many others.

All in all Amouage Interlude Woman isn't true to me even if  my appreciation of  the basenotes is growing. As mentioned above it's probably my skinchemistry as I havn't read a negative or not even neutral review of Interlude Woman. Could I come over the first part of the fragrance...But on the other hand my wallet is reliefed as it not has to live under the constant pressure from a new Amouage (from the regular line). These bottles almost always are screaming "own me".

Despite my shortcomings wearing this fragrance, I think of Interlude Woman as an interesting and demanding fragrance of high quality that also is strangely beautiful when reaching it's basenotes. And I somehow suspect that one day I will like it, I will get back to my sample the coming winter in order to reassess it. Even if challenging in character, to be an Amouage Interlude Woman is almost subdued and it is wearable in many different situations.

Rating: 3+

Notes: Bergamot, grapefruit, ginger, tagete, rose, frankincense, jasmine, orange blossom, helichrysum, opoponax, sandalwood, nut, coffee, kiwi, honey, agarwood, vanilla, benzoin, amber, sandalwood, oakmoss, leather, tonka, musk

Thanks to Amouage for providing a sample to try.

Considerations when it comes to perfumerating

Photo: Parfumista (c)

When I rate parfumes I use the scale 1-5 where 5 is the best and 1 is the lowest rating. The ratingscale are fintuned with a "+" when a fragrances has qualities that somehow exceeds the chosen rating but don't  reaches all the way up to the next grade. I have observed that the number of 4 and 5 rated fragrances in my reviews are disproportionately high compared to the fragrances rated as "good" (ie medium, quite ok, something I would like wear). An explanation to this is that I acquires samples of fragrances that there in advance is a high probability that I will like as I read a lot about them and know my favorite houses/noses/notes. But to perform the grading more accurately in the future, I have to consider what should form the criterias be to deserve a certain rating.

In my perfumerating section I describe as follows:

"When I describe and evaluate a fragrance in a review it is concluded with a weighted rating. The components considered are: Quality of the ingredients, longivity on the skin, balance in the composition, originality of the composition, if there is an interesting development during the day, if the scent is stimulates the imagination , if the fragrance is reasonably priced (compared to what it delivers), if there is a surprise or a disappointment. Overall it provides a subjective assessment based on the experience and knowledge accumulated over several decades being interested in perfume.

5. An exellent fragrance. Something beyond the ordinary, perhaps already a classic or a future classic. Or just a beautiful fragrance that I love....
4. A very good fragrance. Or a fragrance that I like very much or almost love.
3. A good fragrance. Adequate, no reason not to buy a sample or two of it when I like it. Something that I will wear occasionally.
2. Not so good. A fragrance that does not live up to the expectations. A disappointment to me and therefore not worth buying to me.
1. Poor, a fragrance that is underperforming. "

I think all this is still relevant but I think that two factors are increasingly important to me: 1) The fragrance is challenging or otherwise interesting and keeps my interest during it's whole dry down and during a whole day ie the longevity have to be good. Or 2) The fragrance makes me feel comfortable and I'm longing to wear the fragrance. The fragrance supports me in uncomfortable situations and strengthen my self-confidence. A perfume rated 3 doesn't have these qualities to me (to my personal liking) even if smelling good and I probably would wear such a fragrance from time to time. But I could nonetheless recommend the scent to others to try as I have assessed the fragrance as good and to somebody else these two important qualities described maybe will occur.

Ramón Monegal - L'Eau de Rose

Photo: Mr Parfumista (c)

Ramón Monegals rosewater is despite of it's airy, happy, uplifting character, not a traditional dab-on rosewater L'Eau de Rose seems to me as a bright and seemlessy blended Edt composed by high quality roseoils. The scent of the rose is the scent of the rosebuds of the flower, there is no harsh green notes of the steem or leaves crushed in the blend, just the smooth and creemy rosebuds. I image there is rose buds from different colors particulary pink but also yellow, orange and red, all of them in the lighter and brigther tonality of the respective color. Soon the rosiness becomes creamy, it smells almost as the nail cream my mother used when I was a child, and as she rememered from her childhood that her grandmother used. As the delicate blend reaches the basenotes it's grounded with a light touched patchouli that gives the blend a interesting darker dept as a background. There is also musk there but so well intergrated that I don't smell it as a separate, dominate note. In fact, I was surprised when wearing L'Eau de Rose that the, for light and bright rose fragrances, mandatory rose-musk combination is missing.

To me L'Eau de Rose is sort of a delicate, fintuned, summerversion of rose, patchouli combos such as Lady Vengeance by Juliette Has a Gun (review in swedish). Also bright and light pink rose fragrances as Rose Pivoine by Patricia de Nicolï and Bulgari Rose Essentielle comes to my mind even if L'Eau de Rose is less sweet and has it's darker twist compared to the two latter fragrances.

All in all: L'Eau de Rose is a straight forward light rosefragrance, easy and comfortable to wear, suitable both for casual and officewear. The longevity is great, a full day wearing in summer, the sillage is close. The darker patchuli twist makes L'Eau de Rose staying away from the dull and meek light rose fragrance territory. A good alternative when it comes to the light and bright rose fragrance category.

Rating: 4+
Rating: 5 (June 2013)
Update: L'Eau de Rose is unusual to be a pink rose and deserves to climb the last half step to reach the highest rating 5.

Notes:  Tea rose, taif rose, neroli, patchouli, musk