L'Homme Infini Divine 2012

One should be cautious with calling a perfume “best of”, but in this case I really do not know where to start. The brand Divine is still an insider's tip (maybe L'Homme Infini will change that). Without exception, their perfumes have that kind of elegance which one misses so much amongst so many of the new releases – this is French perfumery at its best! Divine's perfumes are elegant without exception. With their still small line-up of fine, unhurriedly developed perfumes Divine IMHO has already closed the gap to the acknowledged top dog Guerlain. Except that only few people know about it yet.

In the perfume market, the appearance of Divine is more than discreet: only few shops have their perfumes, and if so, they are usually more expensive than in Divine's own web shop which, by the way, is still lacking a Paypal option. Right in time for the release of L'Homme Infini, the buying function was down or had a glitch. Only their previous customers got mail: a small paper card, discreetly perfumed with the new fragrance. However, what I smelled was thrilling enough to very soon send back the order form.

L'Homme Infini is a woody green fragrance, and in the pyramid shipped with the perfume there is one note highlighted that you hardly find elsewhere: chêne – oak! This can denominate only one specific accord: the one that is usually being described by the combination of cedarwood and vetiver. Yes, you may regard L'Homme Infini as another Terre d'Hermès clone – but what a terrific one!

The attribute “puristic” has already been attached to J.C Ellena's fragrance but L'Homme Infini beats this approach with more elegance and discretion. They both take a ride out into the autumn forest. L'Homme Infini enjoys this calm mood of earthiness and autumn caducity from the back of his horse, while his companion descends to rummage around in mud and foliage. A direct comparison shows the difference: The Hermès fragrance is sensual, almost opulent, and citric notes and a spiciness reminiscent of aniseed make it juicy and rounded. The perfumer of L'Homme Infini - I read the name Yann Vasnier at Now Smell This – showed his talent by not contrasting the bitter oak note with something else. Instead, he rather further fathomed the potential of this accord. So, the other notes only join the oak accord, their job is to absorb the robust, less elegant side of the oak and put it behind a pale, steel blue haze.

I find the top note very innovative. Instead of the obligatory citruses the perfumer shows us a coriander accord which consists both of the seed and the leaf. In spite of pepper, the result is not sharpness, it is rather a mild, almost fresh aspect. You may feel vaguely reminded of the strange smell and taste of coriander leaf. For me, this start is somewhat nutty - walnut, to be precise.

From this starting point, L'Homme Infini protrudes into an elegant space with dry and dusty hints reminiscent of paper and cardboard. In doing so, there may be another reference: Dior's successful Homme. With that dusty and musty foxy paper appeal, the perfumer calls the best part of that Dior fragrance into action. However, L'Homme Infini has nothing in common with the Dior's cosy oriental character. The dustiness is present during the complete development of L'Homme Infini, and it strongly modifies the oak note. This is what makes L'Homme Infini so noble and elegant.

Apparently, the perfumer had been given the specification to include oud. I suppose also Divine does not want to completely miss the hype. Let us recall the fact that the oud bases provided by the big manufacturers do not really imitate the precious woody oil, but instead the supposedly cancerous substitutes that Arab perfumers use for their cheapest fragrances. Insiders may have their problems with this very questionable fashion. The solution for L'Homme Infini was that the oud note is far from being dominant, in fact, its concentration is at the limits of perceptibility. Presumably, the oud note slightly darkens the fragrance. But one will smell it as such only if one knows about it. I take this “Bois d'Agar” as a statement that assigns L'Homme Infini to the class of the darker, tart and woody gents' perfumes. Whoever, for understandable reasons, does not appreciate oud perfumes nevertheless should not refrain from looking at L'Homme Infini.

L'Homme Infini seems to have a weaker concentration than the Hermès role model. Under the aspect of keeping the elegance I find an Eau de Toilette strength very appropriate. The denominated somewhat general amber and benzoin base is hardly detectable and does not contain a statement of its own. So, it is allowed to spray or apply a bit more. Divine is sort of conservative: there are perfume bottles of various sizes, but only one steel blue 50 ml spray flacon. It is refillable, and a tiny funnel is coming along with it.

Now for the announced “Best of”: L'Homme Infini is the lucky strike of the year. At lot has been released lately in the group of puristic, woody and tart gents' perfumes – sometimes with, sometimes without oud. Nothing of that was really fascinating. To me, most approaches seemed like stumbling about in the dark: either everything was too tart and robust, or too musty, too opulent and always without a good balance. L'Homme Infini looks like a breakthrough. There is progress in perfumery after all. Whoever is looking for a bitter woody gents' cologne with style and elegance cannot ignore L'Homme Infini. Currently, I see nothing that can compete with it. Terre d'Hermès is a matter of the past now!

L'Homme Infini opens with a slightly green coriander with an initially subtle but quickly growing black peppery undertone before the black pepper becomes dominant as the scent enters its early heart phase, coupling with softened cedar that co-stars. The featured peppered cedar is now joined by a somewhat effervescent vetiver that adds some sparkle and earthiness to the composition, additionally joined by resinous facets of dry balmy amber rising from the base and elemi that play more of a supporting role but underpin the composition. While the official note listing has both oud and oak as key ingredients I did not really detect either, as the black pepper and cedar really drive the scent's development for most of its life cycle. Projection is below average and longevity is average.

L'Homme Infini is a competent composition. As I love black pepper and cedar generally, it is a given this kind of scent appeals to my tastes and it indeed does. The main problem I have with L'Homme Infini is despite its list of some different notes, it really feels all too similar to a favorite of mine, Terre d'Hermes that has done this before, and dare I say better. It is not that L'Homme Infini is an outright Terre d'Hermes copy, as it adds some green facets early and the resinous elements later, but these make the composition less appealing to me in truth, as they do not mix well with the cedar. L'Homme Infini is much less vociferous than the modern day powerhouse that is Terre, but Tzora by Anat Fritz also released this year (2012) has set a very high standard if that is what you are going for (not to mention it is a far superior overall composition). In any case, L'Homme Infini is worth a sniff if you like or love Terre d'Hermes but want a different take on the scent, just don't expect anything really new here, and do try some of the other recent entrants, as they may be more to your taste as at least one was more to mine. L'Homme Infini gets a "good" 3 stars out of 5 rating and a tepid recommendation.

A school enrollment day is an exciting thing, even for a soon-to-be fifth grader. The parents are not indifferent to this either, as a botched start day at the new school would not be helpful for all that follows.

But there was no reason to worry. Our son came out of class with a beaming face and announced, “I’ve already found two friends!” Pause. “And a...theoretical girlfriend.” We didn’t press for details, so we never found out exactly what makes a girlfriend “theoretical.” But we probably all have a pretty accurate idea of what a nine-year-old boy means by that.

Perhaps I feel quite similarly about L'Homme Infini. On one hand, I am astonished that I can enjoy a distinguished scent, but on the other hand, I perceive a personal barrier that likely stems from (here: scent) socialization. Those who have jumped straight into niche fragrances and have been joyfully riding the rollercoaster there might feel, with a more classically composed fragrance, that it lacks a certain “kick” more than usual.

Nevertheless, it must be said, L'Homme Infini is, in its own way, a complete success. The bitter-spicy opening, which initially made me guess lemongrass instead of coriander green, at least brushes the edge of originality - freshness with a slight variation. Only as the morning progresses do warmth and spice develop more, and then the core notes fit as well. A tiny, sweaty hint prevents the scent from becoming too smooth. However, for heaven’s sake, it never smells like curry! Gradually, vetiver takes over, contributing not only fresh green but also its part to the core theme of “wood.”

On a long path towards evening, the wood darkens, and of course, in a gentlemanly calmness. A barbershop attitude of still considerable freshness accompanies it into the afternoon; however, the sweetness that the base notes might suggest is limited to hints. That L'Homme Infini does not suffer any qualitative losses towards the end is almost a given.

Speaking of “theoretical friend”: Recently for Halloween, my daughter lovingly painted her face pale and applied bold red lipstick to appropriately greet the children at the door. But even absolutely speaking, it looked quite good, though for a twelve-year-old, it was naturally a bit beyond the everyday. It was already executed very neatly in terms of craftsmanship.

Soon, she will attend her first real evening party, scheduled until 11 PM. We have warned her that she might - all dressed up accordingly - attract some interest there. A still noticeably uncomfortable topic; some from her class seem to be clearly further along... Should a cautious contact arise, it would then also be a “theoretical friend.”

I thank Bartholomeo for the sample.

Can you write a comment when you don't have a single drop of a fragrance in front of you? Actually not, but I’ll do it anyway, because I’ve been enchanted for a few hours by a scent strip that lies on my kitchen table. It arrived last night with mail from Divine in my mailbox. I was actually going to toss the envelope along with its contents into the recycling bin after a quick glance. Order form and product descriptions in French - unfortunately, I can't make use of that. An envelope for returning the order - of course, they want to sell after all. A letter starting with "Chère Madame" was already hovering over the trash can, but wait - it’s written in English, they’ve seen through me, and I actually find that very considerate this time. And while I’m still skimming through the usual rather effusive text about a new men's fragrance, a wonderful aura rises from a folded scent strip. Dark, mossy, woody, and yet infinitely soft. Desire awakens in me for this fragrance and if that’s not possible, at least for the closeness of a man who wears this scent... L'Homme Infini radiates a calm serenity and strength that I have rarely experienced in a perfume.

Of course, with this kind of encounter with a fragrance, I can't tell anything about its development. I'm not even sure if what I’m sensing is still the heart note or the base, which I rather assume, but just this hint of nonchalance that hovers over my kitchen table leaves no room for anything else but that I must get a proper sample of L'Homme Infini as soon as possible. I will then supplement this preliminary comment and am curious to see if the perfume lives up to what the scent mail from France promised.

This comment probably can't be helpful (yet). I will also wait with the classification and evaluation until I can really test it properly. But I want to pique your curiosity, because so far, no fragrance from the house of Divine has disappointed me, and I recommend everyone who is not yet familiar with the range to take a look at it.

I didn't even know that I had a sample of Infini, I must have received it at Sage a few weeks ago... What a stroke of luck, because I like Infini exquisitely well, almost even better than Sage. I absolutely have to take a closer look at this newcomer brand Divine soon or buy something. Because these gentlemen offer quality in abundance, even if it lacks a bit of individuality. Here with Infini, the TdH theme has been taken up and refined. As if I haven't already smelled enough similar scents. But this woody-earthy note has not been captured so finely and delicately yet, while still being consistent. Anyone who says it smells cheap and unskilled should probably spend a few more months exploring the fragrance world and learning. But when it comes to ideas, one can really criticize here; I’m curious when their independent masterpiece will finally appear. All the qualitative foundations for that are laid.

L'Homme Infini is basically TdH minus citrus plus balsamic qualities. I first smell a lot of pepper, which, despite its high dosage, walks softly here as well. Now the main part quickly comes in: a full load of sandy-balsamic, dry wood and vetiver. Just as beautiful as in the Ellena composition, only for me a bit clearer and stricter. Towards the end, the fragrance becomes sweet and reveals a slightly woody amber base for the sweeter undertone. By the way, there is no trace of oud here, a bit more might have uncovered darker nuances and less TdH. But even so, it's a great scent that I like to reach for as a slightly different, sweeter but also calmer alternative when TdH is empty.

Bottle: very beautiful, clear lines and design + good craftsmanship. Just like the fragrance!
Sillage: at most mediocre. Sweetness doesn’t always make a scent more potent.
Longevity: a clear point of criticism with < 6 hours!

Longevity is an unpleasant scratch on the surface. But despite the competition and lack of ideas, the fragrance is one of the most beautiful woody scents of recent years for me!