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"Oriental cold"
Epic woman marks the end of my review cycle for Amouage women's fragrances.
Epic woman was composed in 2009, at a time when the brand was in a great artistic and compositional ferment. The great C.Chong had just arrived and under the impulse of an oriental representing the brand, this magnificent and complex fragrance was formulated!
It is well known that I greatly admire the complexity and quality of Amouage fragrances of yesteryear, but I believe that Epic reaches the highest peak in its "humble" and perhaps banal representation of an oriental.
Epic is not just an oriental perfume, it is not just about spices and incense; Epic represents the Middle Eastern DNA of Amouage at a particular moment in the history of perfumery.
Epic is not an easy perfume to understand, interpret or wear, because Epic must be worn first and foremost with the mind and soul and secondly with the body.
Traditionally, Eastern spirituality meets the material dynamics of the West, and only the fusion of both elements leads to a balanced and highly complex path that can be achieved.
Epic is complex, profound, spiritual, wise, but also knows how to be sensual with extreme sophistication.
The fragrance notes contained in this olfactory masterpiece are first of all the spices cloves, which dominate the entire composition, black pepper and cumin, the latter emphasizing the fragrance and giving it the right depth and by no means having the animalistic characteristics typical of the fragrance.
Cloves make the fragrance spicy, sharp to menthol in the first minutes of its development and for an oriental perfume there is no proof of its complexity when its olfactory limits go beyond the warm and enveloping aspects and reach the cold ones. Oriental "coldness" is very rare and always an indication of high complexity.
Just think of some iconic fragrances in which such oriental "coldness" can be found, such as Opium, Cinnabar and Youth-Dew.
The high dose of geraniol further emphasizes this "cold" and pervasive aspect.
After the first 20 minutes, in which the spices gain the upper hand, a second olfactory phase begins in which the rose note, initially fresh, then warmer and slightly smoky, emerges in all its splendor. The rose is complemented by a subtle and very refined Omani frankincense, olibanum and green tea, which softens the smokiness of the frankincense.
After the first hour in which La Rosa unfolds all its majesty together with frankincense, the fragrance envelops the skin with an incomparable softness thanks to the arrival of iris root. The rhizome of iris, which combines with rose, is at the heart of the fragrance, which goes beyond the oriental territory to embrace the West.
Rose and iris have always been a feminine fragrance manifesto of great sophistication, especially in the French fragrance tradition.
The patchouli in the base note, combined with a very refined amber (mainly reconstructed from labdanum and vanilla), makes the perfume a whirlwind of envelopment and warmth, while retaining the very spicy aspects of the opening.
After the third hour, we experience the penultimate phase of Epic's evolution with glorious sandalwood and guaiac wood, which soften the seemingly feminine aspects and stake out a territory of "primal sanctity". The warmth of the sandalwood and the envelopment of the guaiac wood thus bring it close to a masculine universe that lasts only briefly, for the actual epilogue of Epic is a sweet and languid tragedy that ends on a glorious note of spicy vanilla supported by patchouli, maintaining the oriental and full-bodied framework of this magnificent masterpiece.
For all these reasons and because of the high complexity of the fragrance, I consider Epic to be the highest peak of the brand's compositional complexity. Of course, the review refers to an old version, as the new version has been reformulated and has therefore lost much of its complexity.
I hope I have done justice to the task of describing this olfactory monument and wish everyone who has read this so far a peaceful and happy new year. Thank you for the appreciation and constant interest with which you read my reviews.
Happy New Year to all!
Epic woman was composed in 2009, at a time when the brand was in a great artistic and compositional ferment. The great C.Chong had just arrived and under the impulse of an oriental representing the brand, this magnificent and complex fragrance was formulated!
It is well known that I greatly admire the complexity and quality of Amouage fragrances of yesteryear, but I believe that Epic reaches the highest peak in its "humble" and perhaps banal representation of an oriental.
Epic is not just an oriental perfume, it is not just about spices and incense; Epic represents the Middle Eastern DNA of Amouage at a particular moment in the history of perfumery.
Epic is not an easy perfume to understand, interpret or wear, because Epic must be worn first and foremost with the mind and soul and secondly with the body.
Traditionally, Eastern spirituality meets the material dynamics of the West, and only the fusion of both elements leads to a balanced and highly complex path that can be achieved.
Epic is complex, profound, spiritual, wise, but also knows how to be sensual with extreme sophistication.
The fragrance notes contained in this olfactory masterpiece are first of all the spices cloves, which dominate the entire composition, black pepper and cumin, the latter emphasizing the fragrance and giving it the right depth and by no means having the animalistic characteristics typical of the fragrance.
Cloves make the fragrance spicy, sharp to menthol in the first minutes of its development and for an oriental perfume there is no proof of its complexity when its olfactory limits go beyond the warm and enveloping aspects and reach the cold ones. Oriental "coldness" is very rare and always an indication of high complexity.
Just think of some iconic fragrances in which such oriental "coldness" can be found, such as Opium, Cinnabar and Youth-Dew.
The high dose of geraniol further emphasizes this "cold" and pervasive aspect.
After the first 20 minutes, in which the spices gain the upper hand, a second olfactory phase begins in which the rose note, initially fresh, then warmer and slightly smoky, emerges in all its splendor. The rose is complemented by a subtle and very refined Omani frankincense, olibanum and green tea, which softens the smokiness of the frankincense.
After the first hour in which La Rosa unfolds all its majesty together with frankincense, the fragrance envelops the skin with an incomparable softness thanks to the arrival of iris root. The rhizome of iris, which combines with rose, is at the heart of the fragrance, which goes beyond the oriental territory to embrace the West.
Rose and iris have always been a feminine fragrance manifesto of great sophistication, especially in the French fragrance tradition.
The patchouli in the base note, combined with a very refined amber (mainly reconstructed from labdanum and vanilla), makes the perfume a whirlwind of envelopment and warmth, while retaining the very spicy aspects of the opening.
After the third hour, we experience the penultimate phase of Epic's evolution with glorious sandalwood and guaiac wood, which soften the seemingly feminine aspects and stake out a territory of "primal sanctity". The warmth of the sandalwood and the envelopment of the guaiac wood thus bring it close to a masculine universe that lasts only briefly, for the actual epilogue of Epic is a sweet and languid tragedy that ends on a glorious note of spicy vanilla supported by patchouli, maintaining the oriental and full-bodied framework of this magnificent masterpiece.
For all these reasons and because of the high complexity of the fragrance, I consider Epic to be the highest peak of the brand's compositional complexity. Of course, the review refers to an old version, as the new version has been reformulated and has therefore lost much of its complexity.
I hope I have done justice to the task of describing this olfactory monument and wish everyone who has read this so far a peaceful and happy new year. Thank you for the appreciation and constant interest with which you read my reviews.
Happy New Year to all!
7 Comments
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