Review: Bleu de Chanel by Chanel

Waiting for the launch of Bleu de Chanel was tough, like a boy standing outside a candy shop sans argent. Everything about this fragrance visually is right up my alley. The bottle is square, sleek, masculine and heavy with a magnetic bottle cap, and blue is my favourite colour. I badly wanted the fragrance to blow me away, just like how Egoiste did, and Bleu de Chanel was almost there in packaging  ... the final answer lies with the first spritz.

I realised how ridiculously tough Jacques Polge's job is/was. You have the world waiting and hoping for you to create another shocking masterpiece (to add on to your resume of many) but at the same time, you have these sweet guidelines from the lovely people at IFRA, and more importantly, the executives at work hounding you everyday to make sure you create a commercial success while spending as little as possible. Of course, this is pretty much the situation for most perfumers, but when you are working for a legend of a company like Chanel, the hard becomes harder.

The final answer? This is a commercially safe fragrance and should satisfy the monetary expectations of a business, but it's not one to be remembered. It's not a scent that I'd ever crave for, but it's also a scent I'm happy to wear to the office on an unassuming day. Bleu de Chanel follows the masculine 'blue' trend with woody aromatic structure, a proven winning formula as seen in Versace pour Homme and the recent toxic spray can flanker Boss Bottled Night. In a way, it is a crucial strategy to gain dominance of the men's market.

The fragrance is very smooth and well-blended, opening with sharp citruses and pink peppers, into a synthetic cocktail of virginia cedarwood, sandalwood, jasmine and incense, that extends to the base supported by labdanum, coumarin and oakmoss. The overall effect is clean, fresh, masculine and sleek. It is neither original nor revolutionary, but just another conventional men's fragrance from a luxury house tailored to sell.

Rating: ***

A Very Orange Triple Bill

Prologue

Possibly the most recognised fruit in the world, our little citrus friend has claimed its place in the kitchen, especially during breakfast, formed a strong partnership (and very delicious one too) with duck, and is to perfumers what rice is to the Chinese. The humble orange, thought to be the love child of pomelo and mandarin, plays such an important role in perfumes that I feel it is only fair to give it a mention. This cheap and widely available material is not only versatile, but indispensable in this delicate art of mix and smell.

Act 1 - Les Nuit d'Hadrien by Annick Goutal

Sitting under a cypress tree at night in Tuscany and inhaling the Mediterranean air is what Les Nuit d'Hadrien purport to express. This is a timeless story of indulging in the simple desires nature has to offer. There is no extravagance here, just a basic need to be comfortable.

Les Nuit d'Hadrien is charming and lightly European. She blooms with green citruses accompanied by spices and a teaspoon of brown sugar. This bitter-sweet ensemble transform into a cool temperate forest with wild cypress, basil and juniper before settling down to a gentle base of amber and vanilla. This sensual arrangement makes Les Nuit d'Hadrien a perfume you can wear forever, if you can only choose one. ****1/2

Act 2 - Solo Pop by Loewe

Recently introduced Solo Pop is a new generation flanker of the Loewe Solo family. Inspired by the pop-art movement and Andy Warhol, Solo Pop represents the modern man in his pursuit to balance work and pleasure. 

As I am typing this, I cannot help noticing how my writing style changes with each perfume I smell. With Solo Pop, I just want to get it over and done with. Solo Pop opens with citrus notes that in my opinion, smells bizarre. After pondering, my still-useful brain came up with an apt description - orange-scented air con cleaner. The aromatic heart notes featuring thyme, coriander, verbena, lavender and rosemary did nothing to make it smell less synthetic. Instead, the air con cleaner is smelling more like expensive Lysol. 

Matching the scent to the concept, I think Solo Pop is quite a synthetic success. Orange from a spray can. **

Finale - Little Italy by Bond No. 9

A neighbourhood area in lower Manhattan thriving with tourists and dozens of Italian restaurants and shops, Little Italy once housed a large population of Italians. I believe the general consensus is Italians are loud and passionate people. 

Bond No. 9's Little Italy certainly did not shy away from that. This is one loud and proud orange, and even more in your face than the juice-squirting Sunkist ad. Forget about top, middle and base notes. Little Italy is an epic linear orange story. Peel 100 oranges till your hands wrinkle, and smell them and you smell Little Italy. From the zest, to rind to juice, this perfume is a full tribute to our very humble orange. Do not be mistaken and think this smells like orange essential oil. It does not. The essential oil is too gentle and soft to be Italian. This is concentrated orange powered with a good dose of hair spray. Haute couture orange. ****

Review: High Line by Bond No. 9

If there's ever industrial art in a bottle, it has to be High Line. Making scents out of logical places like world famous cities, historical locations and beaches make sense and from a marketing pov, sells. Making scents out of a place described on wikipedia.org as 'The High Line is a 1.45-mile (2.33 km) New York City park built on a section of the former elevated freight railroad of the West Side Line, along the lower west side of Manhattan, which has been redesigned and planted as an aerial greenway' makes you lift an eyebrow. I did, when I caught wind that Bond No. 9 was to put the park in the bottle. 


Being a non-New Yorker, I googled and first reaction was: rust and grass?oh dear! I've never really taken much notice to the smell around our local rail tracks and to be honest, I was a little tempted to go on my knees, crawl and attempt to sniff. Fortunately, Bond No. 9 is not one to take it literally as evident in their past creations. 

High Line is a clever composition featuring notes of nature found along the tracks such as purple love grass, Indian rhubarb, red leaf rose, tulips, grape hyacinth, sea moss, teak, bur oak and musk. Might be a good thing there is no notes of rust, smoke, tar, grease, insects. Compared to the other Bonds, High Line is delicate and soft. The opening is ozonic and green, but not chopped grass. It is the beautiful cool morning breeze passing through fluttering grass, evapourating the sweetened morning dew infused with the scent of delicate freshly bloomed flowers. Towards the heart, it becomes interestingly even more aquatic and floral before settling into a light woody trail. 


I consider this an amazing creation because High Line is very wearable with fantasy notes that do not feel a bit synthetic so kudos to perfumer Laurent LeGuernec. For you bottle lovers, you will be pleased to know that the 'High Line' on the bottle is an actual metal cut-out that is glued to the bottle!

Rating: *****

Review: L'EAU by Serge Lutens

Honestly, I do not know where to start with this review. L'EAU is a fairly recent offering by Serge Lutens and is supposedly an 'anti-perfume' for the days you want to stay away from the roses, civet and patchouli. Shocking? No. This is not the first time we are hearing 'anti-perfume' as it has been marketed over and over again by CdG, Escentric Molecules was in my opinion along the same line and not forgetting CB I Hate Perfume. How about clean, linen-inspired scents? Original? No. Niche brand CLEAN has been doing it for years, and so has Demeter. Scent wise, this fragrance is hardly shocking nor original, but coming from Serge Lutens, it is both shocking and original. Thinking of analogies, perhaps an equally scary one is trying to imagine Christian Lacroix selling soft, clean, white, cotton t-shirts. Horror.

Marketing aside, the scent is more than detergent. It is lemon-scented starch spray. L'EAU smells like a spanking new luxury hotel room in all white; it smells like freshly pressed $500 shirt; it smells like you have a lot of money to spare. Compared to the harsh and sharp quality of CLEAN's scent, L'EAU is actually rather charming and refine. The clever combination of citruses, aldehydes, clary sage and magnolia smells naturally clean and the slightly salty ozonic and musk notes evokes purity and comfort.

The longevity however is a nightmare leaving me scentless in under an hour. Maybe that is the concept of the 'anti-perfume'. Regardless, I still do think this is a charming scent and it makes a perfect room spray for my clean white bedroom walls.

Rating: ***

Review: Bel Ami by Hermes

Bel Ami has got no connection to the famous porn production house but was inspired by the 1885 French novel of the same name. One can possibly argue that Bel Ami the novel in its time was as good as porn literature. Scandals upon scandals, how did this 'beautiful friend' become an inspiration for a fragrance? Beats me, but I'm glad it happened and Bel Ami the fragrance was created.

I obtained the original juice five years ago and it was out of this world beautiful, at least in my opinion. The first whiff transported me to a library in the 19th century - leather book bindings, old newspaper, acidic ink, leather upholstery, dust, fire place, tobacco and unwashed homosapiens. Never mind it broke me in rashes; I'd wear it even if my skin blisters. 

That bottle was precious, and the greatest irony of all happened: I lost it. Yes, I somehow stupidly misplaced a treasure. Fast-forward, I finally bought a new bottle today and what's better to celebrate this reunion than a well-deserved review? Sadly, the new formulation (I am pretty sure it was tweaked since I don't break into a rash anymore) 'cleaned' up Bel Ami. The scent and idea is still there, but it's lacking the depth and raunch of the original. The citrus notes are much cleaner, leather less castorum-like, and oakmoss is seriously diluted.

Bel Ami kicks off with well blended aromatic cocktail of citruses. The heart is carnation and orris, scandaled by dirty, smoky woods, and bound together by a handsome base of leather, oakmoss,vanilla and vetiver. It's truly complex and to quote Beauty and the Beast - 'bitter sweet and strange, finding you can change, learning you were wrong'. Ahhh ... scandals.

Rating: ***** (original)

           ****1/2 (new)

  

Review: Tom Ford For Men Extreme

Not many fragrances tempt me the way Tom Ford's does. If you have read my previous review on Tom Ford for Men, you will understand why I rushed home every night hoping to see the parcel. It was a very blind-buy as I refused to read any reviews nor articles before I bought it as I really needed a blind date.

The bottle is over the top sexy featuring amber glass contrasted with gold making it ostentatiously retro, luxurious and desirable. First spritz and I was glad I didn't have any preconceived idea of what this would smell like. It is nothing like Tom Ford For Men, not even a stronger more intense version.

This is literally a rich man's bonfire. Over a small fire, sprinkle some exotic spices, stick in a bunch of cistus and throw in a few leaves of basil. Inhale. It is rooty and spicy at the same time. Next, aggravate the fire with some cedarwood and while it's burning red hot, go generous with saffron and violet leaves. It's a good time to roast some plums while the fire is at it's peak. Now it's time to go all out and create trouble. Throw in your wife's Birkin and that ball of black truffle you've been saving for this big day. Pick your finest rum and douse the fire with it. Inhale. This is Tom Ford for Men Extreme.

Rating: *****

Rose, you're a man.

I assure you this is not a post about drag queens and transgenders, although it might inspire you to be more tolerant and open-minded. Associating objects with a gender drives me crazy, unless it is for the obvious. Bra for women, condoms for men. I accept that, but please don't tell me pink is for girls, eyeliner for women, and flowers for ladies. If not for the inconvenience with removing eyeliner every night, I'd gladly wear it (it's a godsend for Asian eyes). As for flowers, they should be appreciated and adored by both men and women.

The rose is perhaps the most understood of all flowers for it is a symbol of love and beauty and mentioned in the world's library of proses, poems, folklore and history. It is used in art, perfumery, beauty, medicine and is also an indispensible material in fragrances for men. As you might have already guessed, this post is an introduction to the world of roses for men.

 



Egoiste by Chanel is spicy and woody with a mysterious carnation and bulgarian rose heart. This is the playboy's rose.

Charriol Men by Charriol - sweet and distinguished, this features rose among green grass and amber. A rose for the heir born with a silver-spoon.

Dreamer by Versace is a mesmerizing fragrance that is almost too hard to describe with words. It sits up there in my top 10 and features rose infused in gin and herbs. A rose for the hopelessly romantic romeo.

Rose 31 by Le Labo is a cardboard rose with hints of spices and coconut. It smells so clean yet dirty at the same time. Perfect rose for a surgeon.

Black XS by Paco Robanne - Froot Loops for a big man. Juicy, succulent fruit platter decorated with devilish black roses, this is emo-rose.

Calamity J by Juliette had a Gun is so masculine that Romeo decides he should wear it instead. This is serious rose dealing with musks and woods so forget anything fruity and loopy. Calamity J is rose for a male rebel.

Review: Ume by Keiko Mecheri

The perfumes of Keiko Mecheri come in such stunning bottles I'd love to collect for asthetic sake. Ume is an olfactory journey to the era of Art Deco in Tokyo where the stagnant traditions of the time were uplifted by glamour, fun and fantasy. Details to interior design, extravagant costumes, works in ceramic and lacquer promoted the national identity and meaning.

Ume is a fruity floral chypre that is hardly conventional. Having lived in Art Deco apartments, this fragrance is a spot on expression of the mood in one. It opens with bright citruses, a sharp lacquer note not unlike persimmon, balanced by the sweet-salty roundness of ume (Japanese plum). The heart is a bouquet of delightful oriental florals such as wisteria, jasmine, osmanthus and sasanka that is more fresh than narcotic. Supporting this is a blend of handsome hinoki, mahagony, suede and incense.

I think this is a fantastic perfume despite a few strange notes here and there. Think a Kabuki performance in French. There is something uniquely Japanese about this fragrance, like the scent coming out of an exquisite Japanese incense box. This is not for a teenage girl (or any ladies trying too hard to be cute) and you do need to be a woman of substance and respect to carry this off. You need to have the poise, grace and decorum of a geisha.

Rating: ****1/2

Review: Andy Warhol Silver Factory by Bond No. 9

Bond No. 9 is perhaps the Louis Vuitton of niche perfumery for her speed in churning out concoctions after concoctions while keeping their statuses sky high. For a 7 year old perfumery, Bond No. 9 has accumulated more than 40 fragrances, each with such a luxurious price tag you'd need to sell your car to buy the entire collection. She is a homage to New York and her fragrances are named after locations and icons of the area.

It was a chore trying to decide which of the Bonds I should do a review on first but since I adore Andy Warhol and I love soup, it's gonna be Andy Warhol Silver Factory.

Inspired by Andy Warhol's famous Campbell soup silkscreens and his silver-walled studio, Silver Factory is the 'liquid aura' of this great icon. One would expect a loud, in your face fragrance with metallic notes contrasting against monster florals. One would be wrong. Silver Factory is no party monster but it doesn't take the fun out of this bottle for you'll spend hours smelling to find the connection between this scent and the great man.

I'm not going to bother starting the review with the usual top, middle and base notes descriptions since this fragrance is pretty linear. Like Warhol's works, you 'get it' with one look (in this case- smell). It is neither progressive nor regressive, it is all about getting it in the moment. What is in this moment? It is frankincense. Silver Factory is top grade clean burning refined frankincense sweetened with amber accessorised with subtle violet and jamine for extra dimension and colour. If this is the 'aura' of Andy Warhol, then it definitely isn't what he radiates in Studio 54, but the 'aura' of his artistic nirvana. 

On skin, Silver Factory is pure magic, like an invisible cloak that gives you comfort and power. This is religion in a bottle.

Rating: *****

Silver Factory can be found in Singapore at Sephora.

Review: Warm Cotton by CLEAN

I love the smell of laundromats. There is something really comfortable and cosy about the scent of freshly laundered fabrics and you don't need the most expensive of floral essences to feel that way. A clever combination of cheap synthetic musks is enough for you to feel good. My first laudromat inspired fragrance was Synthetic Series Six Dry Clean by Comme des Garcons and while it did provide the olfactory image of 'dry-cleaning', it was too sharp and 'plasticky' and definitely not a comfort smell.

CLEAN by Randi Shinder was inspired by soap and is supposed to make you smell like you've just stepped out from the shower. I found it a little hard to position this brand since they don't exactly fit into the mould of a niche perfumery but yet what they produce is rather niche and at the same time functional. 'Functional niche perfumery' might describe them best.

Warm Cotton by CLEAN

This is the first of the CLEAN range I tried and I picked this first because it is supposed to smell like and capture the feeling of a warm fluffy towel just out from the dryer. It opened with strong hesperidic notes and the immediate impression was lemon scented detergent. It was not as synthetic smelling as I thought it would be and you'd be able to catch whiffs of 'natural' notes such as lemon verbena and lilac. The combination of citruses provided a solar effect that did not last very long as the scent progressed to its salty marine white floral heart. The base is musky (of course) and ambery.  

This review was done on a blotter and the result was a rather disappointing one since I was really looking forward to the snuggly feeling of warm cotton but instead, it smelled more like wet laundry. What happened the next day saved this review. I wore Warm Cotton out and the effect was totally different on skin. The warmth of skin radiated the fragrance and as it diffused through my shirt, it enveloped me in soft cotton-y love. I met a friend half an hour later and she complimented on how fresh and nice I smell. This perfume works great at freshening up your bed too. The sillage and longevity is enormous so go gentle with the spritzing. 

Rating: ****

CLEAN can be found in Singapore at Sephora and Takashimaya.

Review: Aire Loco by Loewe

Known by many as a serious leather and fashion house, Loewe is undoubtedly also a serious perfume house. Like Chanel and Hermes, Loewe's appointment of an in-house perfumer, Emilio Valeros, certainly paid off big time. I personally enjoy most of their fragrances, as I usually do if they come packaged with a strong concept. The Aire family started with Aire Loewe, the classic green chypre, in 1985, which is still my favourite of the Loewe lot.

Aire Loco is the newest lady to join the Aire family and she is your modern survivor with unspeakable secrets. She is a seductress and a voyeur. She is the inner thoughts of your wives and girlfriends. It was only after reading the press release that the advertorial campaigns made sense. Even if they didn't, they were still provocatively enticing.

Aire Loco opens with a platter of fresh and energetic citrus peels that are clean, tarty, and mildy peppered. The heart is almost edible with passionfruit and sambac jasmine. It is quite a challenge to feature fruity and floral notes together without them working against each other but I think the perfumers have done a wonderful job with Aire Loco. The fruitiness and florals are so interdependant that you'd think they come from the same tree. The base is woody and spicy with notes of cardamon, patchouli and cedarwood. 

What do I think of this? I love it, because a fresh, fruity fragrance that when worn will make others still take you seriously is hard to come by. Despite the campaigns, I find this perfume very unisex. The twisted bottle and akwardly off-centered cap are symbolic of  the craziness of today's women. I agree. lol.

The perfumers of Aire Loewe are Yves Cassar and Carlos Benaim.

Rating: ****1/2

50 fragrances in a week + Review of Ambre Russe by Parfum d'Empire

It's been a real hectic week with a lot of smelling and evaluation (over 50) and it is very frustrating that I am unable to make any descriptive mention of them on this blog until the green light but nevertheless, the line up of new fragrances for this year is rather exciting. Keep your eyes (and nose) open for Voyage d'Hermes and Versus. Meanwhile, I received a request to do a review of Parfum d'Empire's Ambre Russe so here it is.

Like the other perfumes of Parfum d'Empire, Ambre Russe is an oriental olfactory time-machine back to Tsaric Russia. The opening reminds me of those whisky filled dark chocolates you buy at airports. It's a strong 'alcoholic' opening that leaves you a bit tipsy, and just as you think that's all, you get slapped face on by a thick cloud of frankincense and dark tea. You'll recognise the amber accord, but before you think - oh amber .. warm, fuzzy, snuggly, comfy, you are wrong. This is serious amber, R(21) amber rated for violence. The perfume remains smokey like a slow-burning cork and warm leather but there's not much going on here except the occasional coriander and cinnamon passing by so don't mind them and that pretty much sums up the fragrance. It is dark, gloomy and heavy, but strangely in a controlled fashion. I find this picture the best description of this fragrance.

This is not something anyone can pull off for you do need the thick jaws, thick wrists, fat fingers and furry chest to make this fragrance work for you, otherwise you will only end up awkwardly strange. Nevertheless, it is great art in a bottle thus is worth a keep. Ambre Russe is created by Marc-Antoine Corticchiato and features notes of rum, incense, coriander, cinnamon, vanilla, samovar tea, amber, honey and leather.

Rating: ****1/2                                                                                                                     image source: wikipedia.org

Review: China White by Nasomatto

Nasomatto is a niche perfumery with few words to say. They do not release fragrance notes nor give a definitive picture of how their fragrance should smell. Because they do not publicize the notes of the perfume, it gives the wearer a unique olfactory experience with total freedom in interpretation. As such, I decide to approach this review in the form of a narrative.

He stopped and in front of him stood a magnificent Chinese temple with green brick walls and white porcelain roof. The door was big and heavy but he pushed hard and got in. Immediately, he was engulfed in smoke from the many joss-sticks burning out of porcelain urns and although heavy, it did not choke him. He looked around and could not help noticing how new and clean the walls were. His guess was confirmed by the smell of fresh paint lingering in the air amidst the smoke.

He walked down a corridor lined with pots of white flowers and corn mint and before he got to the other side, he saw a little animal run across the room. Curious, he investigated and found it to a rather tame civet. He followed the civet and entered a room where he saw an exquisite day bed carved out of teak and lined with well-aged leather. It was a temptation he could not resist and he laid on it. Slowly, he drifted to sleep and the temple started to disappear, and very soon he found himself sprawled in the corner of his own bedroom. Unfortunately, it was his last hit and he had no more heroin^ left for him to return to the magical temple.

Rating: ****

^China White is a slang for refined heroin.

White Musk Midnight Iris by The Body Shop

I can't remember the last time I stepped into The Body Shop let alone recall when I last bought anything there. I do however remember that I have never purchased any of their perfumes because they were mostly dull or smell like they came out of an underground lab. Anyway, I went in there recently to check out the hype with the new Love Etc parfum and it was surprisingly pleasant. There was definitely effort in it (and undoubtfully since the nose behind it is Dominique Ropion) but still not something I'd buy and wear. As I turned to exit the store, three words caught my eye - Iris de Minuit (Midnight Iris). What is such a seductive and niche sounding name doing in The Body Shop? I picked it up and sprayed. It had such a familiar scent but my brain wasn't co-operating then so I bought it to investigate further. Yes, my first The Body Shop purchase in over 7 years.

White Musk Midnight Iris is an extension of the original White Musk and the listed notes are bergamot, water lily, muguet, clary sage, orris, musk, sandalwood and tonka bean. Reviewing this perfume was a challenge because of how fleeting the notes are. It opens with a cocktail of fresh bergamot laced with lilial and muguet aldehyde I suspect and with rubbery violet ionones. The heart is iris that is earthy with a hint of clary sage and drydown is a sweet veil of translucent iris and musk. The style of this composition has the watercolour quality as seen in many of Jean-Claude Ellena's creations but alas lacks the master's touch and longevity. This is when I remembered what was so familiar! This is the premature stillborn offspring of Lolita Lempicka without the gourmand notes. I quickly brought Lolita out for a comparison and found another similarity.

Coincidence or not, I don't know but this could have been a potentially good perfume if not for its ridiculous longevity (lack of). What a pity but at least it still cheap enough to use as a good room spray.

Rating: **1/2

Mensonge by Fragonard

 

Unless you are a fragrance enthusiast or you've taken one of those perfume tours in France, you may not have heard of Fragonard and you'll probably be surprised at how old this perfumery is. Fragonard was opened in 1926 as a tourist perfumery in Grasse and was named after famous Grasse painter Jean-Honoré Fragonard as a tribute to the town and its art. Visitors to Grasse today can do a tour featuring the Fragonard perfume museum and factory. 

Mensonge (Lie) is part of the Confidentiel line created by Givaudan for Fragonard. Fresh opening of citrus notes with well-balanced introduction of cardamon and ginger, (ginger tends to make me gag a little but it is good to note the ginger here is light and refreshing) the heart is a spicy infusion of rose water supported by a woody-lavender base.  Mensonge is the well-behaved mature but watered-down cousin of Polo Sport Extreme and the alikeness is uncanny. Don't let the name fool you for there's nothing secretive or deceitful about it. It is a safe masculine fragrance so don't expect the girls to go crazy unless you are George Clooney. Sillage is weak and it doesn't last a mile which makes this perfect to use it in place of your Brut or Old Spice aftershave or as a quick refresher after a workout at the gym.

Rating: *** 

The Fragonard range is available in Singapore at Senteurs de Provence. 

Citizen Queen by Juliette Has a Gun

Romano Ricci created the niche perfumery Juliette Has a Gun and definitely had a tough act to follow, especially since his great-grandmother is Nina Ricci and his grandfather Robert Ricci created the timeless classic L'aire du Temps. Fortunately (and a very smart move indeed) he enlisted the help of perfumery boy wonder Francis Kurkdjian of Le Male fame to create his first two fragrances - Miss Charming and Lady Vengeance. Ricci then got himself into the 'big shoes to fill' situation again by deciding to create Citizen Queen on his own.

If Chanel No. 5 is Grace Kelly doing a photo shoot in a rose and jasmine garden, then Citizen Queen is Uma Thurman (in leather bikini) sunning her hair in a stylish balcony garden of an upmarket designer loft. Classically beautiful, yet raw and edgy at the same time, Citizen Queen opens radiantly with the unmistakable C10,C11,C12 aldehydes made popular in Chanel No. 5 and Johnson&Johnson baby shampoo. The nail polish grassiness of benzyl acetate mingled and transformed the roses and violets into an arcylic bouquet, showing off the modern twist of these classic florals. Comparatively, the base notes are heaps softer, humming in supporting notes of ambery labdanum, musk and leather. There's a slight animalic note, but nothing too ferocious. In this case perhaps a fluffy purring kitten. 

Citizen Queen is a fine modern composition of the textbook chypre without much shocking modifications. A fragrance for sexy, confident women (and men) wanting to show off sophistication without compromising on edginess.

Rating: ****

Juliette Has a Gun can be found in Singapore at Sephora, Takashimaya SC and Black Market.

Encre Noire EDT by Lalique

 

 Encre Noire is an award-winning creation by Nathalie Lorson and in my opinion a masterpiece. With the introduction of ball-point pens, typewriters, printers, computers, email, sms, photoshop, facebook and twitter, black inkpots have disappeared from mainstream communication. I remembered preparing ink using an inkstick for calligraphy and being fascinated by its intense darkness and rich earthy aroma but I never mastered calligraphy for I was never the patient one. Possessing this handsome heavy bottle is a reminder of the black-ink days.

Encre Noire captured the essence of zen calligraphy. It is a soft, airy, meditative stroke of a brush dipped in vetiver, cypress, grapefruit, musk and cashmeran. The top note reveals a quiet cypress forest at dawn sweetened by morning dew leading to a well executed vetiver heart that is linear, leathery, smoky and earthy without excessive nuttiness. The clean dirt note in patchouli contributes to the realistic ink accord. Drydown is musky with cashmeran (IFF) and sweet with amber, and woody like oud.

This is a very personal fragrance as its sillage is not roaring but it envelopes the wearer in an aura of unassuming elegance. Apart from wearing it, I also find this most appropriate for scenting writing paper.

Rating: *****

Green Cousins

Here I present you two fragrances by very different companies, in very different packaging, with very different stories, but similar in story and perfume structure.

                        
&

      

A Taste of Heaven by Kilian                                                                                                                                                                     Eau de Gloire by Parfum D'Empire

I have a thing for fragrances in green and I think that's because it gives it a potion-like appeal. I once described to a friend what I do for a living and he quickly replied 'you're a witch!'. Perhaps that is why I fell in love with A Taste of Heaven. Created by the very talented Calice Becker, it was 'inspired by Absinthe, bittersweet nectar of poets.' A Taste of Heaven opens with an intoxicating dance of green bergamot and absinthe, followed with a candied lavender solo, supported by a warm bitter-sweet ensemble of amber, oakmoss and vanilla. It is as mesmerizing as the green fairy can get and this is one mysterious oriental-fougere for the modern witch with a fat wallet.

When I sampled Eau de Gloire, I knew I had to do a comparison with A Taste of Heaven. Eau de Gloire was created by Marc-Antoine Corticchiato, founder of Parfum D'Empire, and was his homage to the olfactory experiences in a day in the life of Napoleon Bonaparte. It opens citrusy and aromatic with bergamot, lemon, orange, rosemary and lavender, not unlike Guerlain's Eau de Cologne Imperiale. The heart is sweet with aniseed and tea, bearing a little resemblance to A Taste of Heaven and drydown threads lightly with tobacco, incense and oakmoss. The journey of Eau de Gloire is documented well by it's well defined exposition, climax and dénouement and is a modern take retaining characteristics of the classic colognes.

Rating:

A Taste of Heaven ****1/2
Eau de Gloire ****

Sécrétions Magnifiques by Etat Libre d'Orange

 

With a name like that, I knew I had to get it, even if it means buying it blind. Etat Libre d'Orange (Free State of Orange) is a niche perfumery founded by the suave Etienne de Swardt who brought pop art, bold language and fragrance together. According to ELdO, Sécrétions Magnifiques contains accords of iodine, adrenaline, blood, milk, iris, coconut, sandalwood and opoponax. It's no rocket science that this perfume intends to shock (or educate) and buying it blindly certainly added more suspense.

My first spray shouted 'chemical cocktail!'. It was a very haute couture type of opening. Unexpected, a little strange, slightly familiar yet distant and definitely not a everyday prêt-à-porter. The top starts sharp, astringent, oily, aldehylic, metallic, greenish-mushroom and a little aquatic. It was a little hard to describe the metallic notes, but I can paint you the perfect sensation. Stick a spoon into your mouth and let it touch the metal amalgam and stick your tongue there. You get this metallic twang and it makes your mouth waters. That's how it feels and if you still can tolerate this, what you will find next is more agreeable as it unfolds and reveals the milk and floral. Still, it's not your usual creamy goodness or rose garden, but more like milk with iron powder and anodized iris. Once you get the top notes out of the way, it is actually rather pleasant when the lactonic notes dominate and the sandalwood and opoponax performs. 

This is definitely not something for the first date, job interview, or any occasion that requires you to leave a safe impression. It is wearable and non-offensive, but only if there's at least an hour gap between time of spraying to first contact with other persons. The sillage and tenacity is monstrous so less is more and I cap it at 2 sprays max.

Rating: ***

A*Men Pure Malt, Thierry Mugler

I have to be honest here. When I first heard that Thierry Mugler was launching another A*Men flanker called Pure Malt, I was hyper excited. Why? I adore the smell of Horlicks and am one of those who wouldn't mind smelling like milk and cereal. I can definitely bathe myself in 2-Acetyl-1-pyrroline and homofuronol and be a happy man. Alas, when I found out there is not going to be any cereal, I was devastated, but only for a moment. I happen to love whisky and the smell of aged oak casks.

Pure Malt starts out sweet and diffusive and reminds me of this Asian malt candy that is mainly maltose. The first time I tried it, I didn't wait for the alcohol to evaporate and what I got was an ethereal sting up my nose. Perhaps this is why many people find the top note very boozy. As it settles, patchouli and coffee becomes very evident. I do enjoy how the cedarwood note performs in this fragrance tucking nicely between patchouli and the sweet notes. I also get a bit of tobacco which is most suitable.

This is not a complicated fragrance at all so don't expect it to change dramatically over time. It will only get softer and earthier and that's when you can find the vetiver. The sillage and tenacity is nothing compared to A*Men which is not a bad thing considering you'd be able to wear this daily without choking anyone in the elevators. It is presented in a black rubber flask with the star in transparent glass and comes in a lovely black and gold box which is, well, very limited edition looking.

Rating: ****