Vicolo Fiori Etro 2011 Eau de Parfum

Vicolo means alley, the online translator teaches me. So this whole thing is apparently called Flower Alley. We have something like that in our town occasionally, at the weekly market. During the season, the plant vendor places his offerings far beyond his cart, and customers have to push their way through narrow alleys.

He always shops at the wholesale market at the crack of dawn, buying whatever he can get for the cheapest price and then selling it off. In return, you never know in advance what he will bring. An original character with phase-driven market crier ambitions, who would easily hold his own at any oriental bazaar. Appropriately sly: Even those who don’t haggle (my wife does - and how!) pay little. And so we have often left on Saturday afternoons, well-charmed and a little lighter in the wallet, with a family car trunk full of plants; not infrequently also with a filled footwell and pots on our laps. In this way, we have gradually transformed our garden from a cemetery look into a sea of flowers (see background image if applicable). Where else can you occasionally get branded container roses for a handful of euros each? Apparently B- and C-grade - so what? The true rose lover is rather encouraged by that.

In good weather, one can occasionally inhale an unpredictable flood of scents at the market. And now we finally come to the fragrance. A floral abundance is promised by the pyramid, which can quickly become too much. Better to sniff veeeery carefully. All clear! Immediately I smell mandarin, after a few minutes melon, rose, and soon even a bit of wood. Thus, we are not solely floral, which bodes well.

Indeed, a light floral scent emerges, but it does not overwhelm with a flowery kakosmie (the olfactory counterpart to cacophony). For a long time, it circles around a bitter center. Verbena, I would say, lemon verbena. For hours, Vicolo Fiori maintains a basic freshness. This concept is less my thing in content, but very well done and at least not strictly feminine.

I cannot come close to identifying all the listed notes; in addition to what has already been mentioned, I would only like to put a bold check next to peach and iris. The fruity aromas have a surprisingly high significance given the name. Nevertheless, there is no danger of a fruit salad attitude, all good.

The second pillar is musk, which becomes stronger over time, though never musty or animalistic. White musk would be the appropriate term for that. In contrast to a botanical bouquet and a clear, bright musk note, it seems to be similarly conceived as Musc Bleu by Il Profvmo:. But Musc Bleu is cooler, more distant, and I also find it more feminine. Vicolo Fiori is a fresh and calmly cheerful charmer that does not come across as superficial or arbitrary. This unforced lightness rather reminds me of some creations by Annick Goutal. The musk benefits greatly from the peach in this case, making it more approachable than the version from Musc Bleu.

The scent lasts a good eight hours, staying quite close to the skin before it fades into a delicate, botanically tinged musk note. It’s a shame that its most beautiful season has passed. I recommend a test starting from the warming spring. In my opinion, a must especially for fans of Musc Bleu.

I thank Pluto for the sample.