Tendre Pallida Emmanuel Levain 2014

Pallida refers to the iris as a prominent fragrance ingredient. Iris pallida is a common garden plant. The Latin adjective pallidus or pallida means pale or wan and appears, by the way, as part of the scientific names of various plants and animals. It is also used as part of cultivar names. Similar to the Florentine iris, the root of the iris pallida is said to have a scent reminiscent of violets.

Et sentilà (that is - DIY! - 'voilà' in smelling): A start of gasoline-biting violet-leather flies around my nose. The attack quickly subsides in favor of a merely prickly-sour-leathery violet note. After five minutes, vanilla-like heliotrope makes an appearance, which, of course, already transforms into a gently sweetening base within the first hour and, to preemptively mention, prevents a slide into the overly bitter, at least in projection.

For this iris is truly no nose-pleaser. There is already that rather unsour, more austere hesperidic note that I can't quite grasp. A gummy bergamot-neroli-something would be my guess. The aforementioned pairs (of course with gum) completely flower-sex-free with the bitter part of the iris. So much for 'Tendre'... I actually looked up this word, which I know despite my lack of French language skills, just to be sure. Yes indeed: Tender. Tender pallor? Well, there may be people who tenderly love freshly produced whitewall tires, but not like this!

Sour-bitter-gum. Phew. The fragrance needs distance from the skin. At least a few centimeters of separation are required for a more pleasant blend to form. Which incidentally demonstrates the ambivalence of the comparative: If the recovering person is 'better,' they may not feel 'good' at all. 'More pleasant' is to be understood in exactly this sense.

But no reason for reassurance (no, I haven't forgotten an "un") - there's more to come. Over the course of about three or four hours, it seems that even daffodil or something similar joins in. Not exactly an olfactory cuddle bunny either. Hey, folks! That's enough now.

Late in the morning, a timid rose peeks out. I only notice it directly on the skin. By early afternoon, it has disappeared again. The creamy companions from the base also fail to tame the bitter overall impression. At best, it is slightly softened, yet after six or seven hours, it resembles more than ever the stinky daffodil. Even blackcurrant leaf is conceivable.

In the remaining approximately two hours, on the one hand, the volume gradually dims, and on the other hand, the milder gentlemen finally get a foothold and round off the fragrance. A bitter sting lingers until the end. Even a note of unwashed-ness (I am reminded of Emir by Micaleff!) can be diagnosed right at the end in the evening residue. Oh dear.

Conclusion: Very demanding. Nothing against drastic ingredients, but I miss the antagonist here. And I really don't like the optional unwashed twist at the end. Undoubtedly an original test tip for iris lovers, but I will pass - especially at this price.

I thank Ergoproxy for the sample.