Delhi Astier de Villatte

The time in the ashram, distant and past, lies here in the echo of the singing bowls, the meditative endless loops of her scattered thoughts. Inspired, she wanders through the India store. She rummages for memories in the smells of the things, the harsh scent of the ornate boxes made of old red cedar. I wonder what they used to keep in them. Cinnamon bark perhaps, or black nails. What were they called. I seem to have forgotten, in the green bowls, the silver streaks of camphor-cool cardamom. Their wrinkled skin still breathes remnants of roses between boxes of Indian incense sticks. Her wood powders make clouds of coal dust that smell of champaca flowers, patchouli and clove cigarettes. She spills a few drops of incense oil from the small brown bottles. Then images of the past, of the ashram, flicker. She stares into space. A smile.
***
In 2008, the Parisian company Astier de Villatte, which originally mainly produced furniture, ceramics and tableware (so beautifully described as neo-retro-bourgeois by Intersport in its review of "Tucson"), delved into the world of fragrances, initially with the help of perfumer Françoise Caron, and later in collaboration with Nathalie Feisthauer, Alexandra Monet and Christophe Raynaud. Since then, a series of noteworthy fragrances have been created, which follow both the tradition of classic colognes and the path of more modern niches. Some of them are also available in a smoking stick version.
Fittingly, this also applies to "Delhi", an EdP dedicated to the fragrances of India, which combines many things that are usually associated with Indian stores in this country, but does not overuse the usual clichés, remaining more subtle. It takes a while for the fragrance to develop. Initially, there are spicy aromas of cinnamon bark, cinnamon leaf and clove on tart, austere red cedarwood, slightly camphorous, citrusy-spicy notes (cardamom, bergamot), before the champaca blossoms on the woods unfold typical incense scents, Nag Champa is obvious, as Yatagan already mentioned in his statement, but patchouli sticks are also present. With increasing duration, an incense oil-like nuance (myrrh, unsweet, lighter than usual) as well as a hint of rose clarifies the upper notes, creating more space for associations of clove cigarettes that lie between the unlit incense sticks. "Delhi" projects moderately to up close for many hours.

(With thanks to Gandix)