I have a small problem with Mr. Duchaufour: he is a bit too active for me. Or to put it another way: hardly do I start to engage with a new fragrance of his, and the next one is already here. This restless activity, which seems to give birth to new works almost monthly, does not appear to me as separable phases of engagement with this or that, but rather as an expression of thorough, and therefore somewhat lengthy exploration of a rather narrowly defined motif complex. The fragrances launched in such quick succession do not present themselves to me as self-contained, conclusive results, but rather as studies of an idea, as variations on a fundamental thought, as a ‘work in progress’.
Betrand Duchaufour is also in high demand - everyone wants him and seems to get him: Artisan, Penhaligon’s, Amouage, Eau d’Italie, and recently The Different Company. He is probably the most sought-after and courted perfumer of our time, and so it is hardly surprising that he composes with great vigor, delivering works that one would - like a good wine - gladly allow a phase of aging.
But not only his astonishingly quickly created works, one would also like to grant him a creative break, a pause amidst the firework-like burning of his creative potential, which indeed evokes wonder. However, those who intend to entertain their audience in staccato with increasingly similar rockets risk not only the weary turning away of the same but also their own artistic ‘burn out’.
And not only the eye needs phases of recovery, but also the nose. One might navigate from ‘Baume du Doge’ to ‘Havana Vanille’, ‘Amaranthine’, ‘Nuit de Tuberose’, ‘Traversée du Bosphore’ to ‘Frapin 1697’, to name just a part of the Duchaufour creations launched in the last two or three years - I believe even the most hardened perfumistas will say: ufff, that’s enough!
The problem is primarily: the fragrances no longer surprise. In a way, they even become predictable, and one catches oneself during the first sniff thinking: aha, I thought so.
As good as they may be, the sometimes striking similarities, combined with the tight rhythm of their appearance, make it difficult to assign the few characteristic features to the respective fragrances in retrospect.
‘Frapin 1697’ is yet another fragrance that has emerged from the pool of thematically intertwined recent projects - large portions of ‘Baume du Doge’ can be found in it, but also a lot of ‘Havana Vanille’ and some of ‘Traversée du Bosphore’. And since the motto for this fragrance is richness and opulence as an olfactory counterpart to the lavish hedonism at the court of the French king in 1697, the perfumer has accordingly fished unabashedly in his pool. Indeed, an enormous amount of the finest, palate-tickling delights has been conjured up - exquisite spices, sweet fruits, bitter-sweet chocolate, dark rum, and heavy wine. All of this is served in a room adorned with playful Rococo draperies and beautiful floral bouquets, in the center of which one settles on a recamière upholstered in the finest leather, to indulge in culinary pleasures in a manner reminiscent of the ancient Romans, half reclining.
Yet amidst all the indulgence, there is no grease dripping from the fingers, just as no tiring feeling of fullness wants to set in, as the sauces are carefully defatted, the intermediate courses invigorating, and the accompanying wine is of stimulating quality.
Taken on its own, all of this is wonderful, if I didn’t constantly have to sniff all the preceding fragrances in parallel: the tobacco-laden Cuban vanilla, the rich aromas of Venetian spice shops, and the air saturated with the heavy sweetness of dried fruits from Ottoman bazaars.
But perhaps it is just my inability to see this fragrance in isolation, completely detached from previous works.
Now and then, however, I manage to do so, and what I then get to smell is more than just something; it is a blast! Then the fragrance reminds me of the taste of an exquisite cognac praline dusted with dark chocolate, I smell the finest leather since ‘Tabac Blond’, I can wonderfully indulge in warm woody and sensually ambered notes, I enjoy the overflowing opulence that never overwhelms - I must admit: a magnificent fragrance!
Perhaps all the other fragrances before it were merely trial balloons for this one, now fully composed and completed opus - who knows.
I hope so, because please Mr. Duchaufour, no more fresh-fruity, spicy gourmand-orientals!
A well-deserved break, and then surprise us all with something completely new - that would be something, wouldn’t it?!
Top Notes 
Rum
Davana
Labdanum
Rose
Woods
Heart Notes 
Cinnamon
Clove
Dried fruits
Hawthorn
Jasmine
Ylang-ylang
Base Notes 
Vanilla
Patchouli
Tonka bean
White musk
Ambergris
Cedarwood
Scentist
Taurus
Sensual
Seerose
Serafina
Whadelse89
