Top Notes 
Italian bergamot
Ylang-ylang
Heart Notes 
White musk
Brazilian tonka bean
Bulgarian rose
Jasmine
Base Notes 
Bourbon vanilla
Cashmere wood
Indonesian patchouli
Stirling
6 Reviews
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Stirling
Very helpful Review
9
Plum pudding from Magnolia Bakery
(TL;DR: Powdery, slightly fruity, very high-quality scent with extraordinary longevity, particularly suitable for autumn, winter, and cold spring days; I don't know of any other fragrance that reminds me of this one (but there are certainly some in the vast world of perfumes), the price is a crime)
Plum pudding
Over 11 years ago, I smelled a (for me at the time absolutely) niche perfume for the first time. It was a 2ml sample of Bond No. 9's Bleecker Street. Before that, I only knew flat "budget" perfumes and had no idea how things could actually smell, and this was where it all began. I was in love. With the scent, the quality, the longevity, the fact that there are even small samples of perfumes, the infinite expanse and the enjoyment of this hobby. It's nice that on this platform, almost everyone has probably experienced this moment as well.
I still have the sample; I rarely used it and appreciated it. A few months after the first sniff, the aforementioned scent was on its way to me across the Atlantic.
Back then, it was still half as expensive as it is today. The scent still lasts. Over 11 years later, same performance, same depth, same development. Back then, I wished I could stand in a perfumery and test each of the Bonds.
Last week, it finally happened. I was lucky enough to not only be in the namesake store on 9 Bond St. in New York but also in the one at 399 Bleecker Street. And to have the best sales associate in front of me that I could have wished for. Alyssia wonderfully advised my partner and me and let us try the entire range at our own pace.
Many would say about Bond No. 9 that they throw every fragrance direction on the market and see what works. I think that's just how Americans are; they try a lot of things, and what doesn't work gets scrapped and is a lesson learned - what is well-received is celebrated accordingly. I think that's fine and don't think the brand can be blamed for that. Especially since the quality is consistently good. I don't know of a Bond that suffers from a lack of depth or insufficient longevity.
Alyssia sprayed Number One on my left inner elbow just before we left the store and Beekman Place on my right, the two new releases (end of 2024) from Bond No. 9.
Number One not only lasted all day for me, but even after my shower the next morning, the heart note was still faintly perceptible. Essentially, after this shower, I decided to spend the now tear-jerkingly high price and take this scent home as a souvenir from the vacation, especially since I had wanted this for 11 years.
As can already be inferred here, the manufacturer and this scent in particular have an emotional significance for me. The price for the new releases (440 USD or 460€) from Bond No. 9 is in no world justifiable; the synthetic fragrance materials, especially prevalent in the USA, are too cheap to produce. The marketing infrastructure is already established, as are the supply chains, and even though inflation has hit the USA harder than us in the EU, the price increase is proportionally too far removed from that. Perhaps the prices are demanded because the audience is specifically the New Yorkers, where the cost of living and income are particularly high. But we all are not just buying the scent but especially the emotion. Perfume is never a rational decision.
Why Plum Pudding?
Next to the store on Bleecker Street is a branch of the bakery chain "Magnolia Bakery," which makes a very popular "Banana Pudding." This has a hint of vanilla, contains fresh banana pieces, and a kind of soft ladyfinger, and tastes really extremely good. It's easy to eat while giving your nose a break.
For me, this scent could be just like this pudding if it contained very high-quality, very ripe plums instead of the ripe bananas. I wonder why nothing about that is mentioned in the fragrance pyramid; perhaps it's just a very old bergamot that I perceive this way. The base of vanilla is consistently present and caresses the fruity note, especially in the early phase, with tonka bean and musk.
The fruitiness slowly fades after several hours, leaving a soft, fresh, and high-quality scent feeling that takes on very light, spicy notes.
For me, it's a calm, high-quality scent profile that reminds me of really very high-quality, very expensive sweet baked goods, macarons, high-quality plum cake/pudding, and similar things. The association with the very clean and neatly decorated store comes along with it.
The manufacturer is probably hoping to have created a new flagship and classic; they likely didn't choose the name "Number One" just like that. For me, it definitely has the potential to be one.
Plum pudding
Over 11 years ago, I smelled a (for me at the time absolutely) niche perfume for the first time. It was a 2ml sample of Bond No. 9's Bleecker Street. Before that, I only knew flat "budget" perfumes and had no idea how things could actually smell, and this was where it all began. I was in love. With the scent, the quality, the longevity, the fact that there are even small samples of perfumes, the infinite expanse and the enjoyment of this hobby. It's nice that on this platform, almost everyone has probably experienced this moment as well.
I still have the sample; I rarely used it and appreciated it. A few months after the first sniff, the aforementioned scent was on its way to me across the Atlantic.
Back then, it was still half as expensive as it is today. The scent still lasts. Over 11 years later, same performance, same depth, same development. Back then, I wished I could stand in a perfumery and test each of the Bonds.
Last week, it finally happened. I was lucky enough to not only be in the namesake store on 9 Bond St. in New York but also in the one at 399 Bleecker Street. And to have the best sales associate in front of me that I could have wished for. Alyssia wonderfully advised my partner and me and let us try the entire range at our own pace.
Many would say about Bond No. 9 that they throw every fragrance direction on the market and see what works. I think that's just how Americans are; they try a lot of things, and what doesn't work gets scrapped and is a lesson learned - what is well-received is celebrated accordingly. I think that's fine and don't think the brand can be blamed for that. Especially since the quality is consistently good. I don't know of a Bond that suffers from a lack of depth or insufficient longevity.
Alyssia sprayed Number One on my left inner elbow just before we left the store and Beekman Place on my right, the two new releases (end of 2024) from Bond No. 9.
Number One not only lasted all day for me, but even after my shower the next morning, the heart note was still faintly perceptible. Essentially, after this shower, I decided to spend the now tear-jerkingly high price and take this scent home as a souvenir from the vacation, especially since I had wanted this for 11 years.
As can already be inferred here, the manufacturer and this scent in particular have an emotional significance for me. The price for the new releases (440 USD or 460€) from Bond No. 9 is in no world justifiable; the synthetic fragrance materials, especially prevalent in the USA, are too cheap to produce. The marketing infrastructure is already established, as are the supply chains, and even though inflation has hit the USA harder than us in the EU, the price increase is proportionally too far removed from that. Perhaps the prices are demanded because the audience is specifically the New Yorkers, where the cost of living and income are particularly high. But we all are not just buying the scent but especially the emotion. Perfume is never a rational decision.
Why Plum Pudding?
Next to the store on Bleecker Street is a branch of the bakery chain "Magnolia Bakery," which makes a very popular "Banana Pudding." This has a hint of vanilla, contains fresh banana pieces, and a kind of soft ladyfinger, and tastes really extremely good. It's easy to eat while giving your nose a break.
For me, this scent could be just like this pudding if it contained very high-quality, very ripe plums instead of the ripe bananas. I wonder why nothing about that is mentioned in the fragrance pyramid; perhaps it's just a very old bergamot that I perceive this way. The base of vanilla is consistently present and caresses the fruity note, especially in the early phase, with tonka bean and musk.
The fruitiness slowly fades after several hours, leaving a soft, fresh, and high-quality scent feeling that takes on very light, spicy notes.
For me, it's a calm, high-quality scent profile that reminds me of really very high-quality, very expensive sweet baked goods, macarons, high-quality plum cake/pudding, and similar things. The association with the very clean and neatly decorated store comes along with it.
The manufacturer is probably hoping to have created a new flagship and classic; they likely didn't choose the name "Number One" just like that. For me, it definitely has the potential to be one.
4 Comments
Yuzushark
Rosini
Kankuro
DANA17
Gluckspilz
