Vetiver Insolent Miller Harris 2016

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8.3 / 10 150 Ratings

Vetiver Insolent is a popular perfume by Miller Harris for women and men and was released in 2016. The scent is spicy-woody. It is still available to purchase. Pronunciation

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Main accords

Spicy

Woody

Green

Resinous

Earthy

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes

Indian cardamom

Elemi resin

Black pepper

Italian bergamot

Heart Notes

Amber

Iris

Lavender

Base Notes

Haitian vetiver

Tonka bean

Moss

Perfumers

Mathieu Nardin, Robertet

Ratings

Scent

8.3150 Ratings

Longevity

7.8130 Ratings

Sillage

7.1133 Ratings

Bottle

7.6123 Ratings

Value for money

7.741 Ratings

Submitted by OPomone, last update on 08.05.2023.

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7 in-depth fragrance descriptions

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12/12/2018

10
Bottle 8
Sillage 9
Longevity 8.5
Scent

Landlord

Translated Show original

Landlord

Top Review 13

Vetiver in the Christmas bakery

As a big fan of the Vetiver fragrance complex I was very much looking forward to the test of "Vetiver Insolent". I've been strolling around Miller Harris a long time. I would like to include one of the Londoners in my collection, just because of the incredibly beautiful flacon design with its mixture of impressively clear form and slightly playful graphic design. Beautiful!

But sei´s well, first of all the inner values count - and they don't come across as insolent, cheeky and impudent, but they do know how to confuse in a pleasant way. In the beginning, pepper rises into my nose, cardamom and already at the beginning a hint of dark vetiver. A mixture to which I can think of nothing better than to call it earthy-gourmandig - which actually fits!

In the heart, the scent increases considerably in sweetness, there are hints of Christmas baking, cardamom remains and it becomes cinnamon and gingerbread. The earthy vetiver of the opening retreats discreetly. The sweetness is a bit borderline for my nose, but just in the area of the pleasant... until in the drydown fresh, earthy vetiver determines the scent again and provides for a beautiful, male drydown, which you can still enjoy after 8 - 10 hours...

After three tests, this Miller Harris still hasn't become a purchase candidate, but I will take a look at the souk. Maybe I can get hold of a bottling to enjoy this very unique vetiver scent this winter still occasionally...

11/01/2020

6
Sillage 8
Longevity 8.5
Scent

Jazzbob

Translated Show original

Jazzbob

Top Review 14

Warmth & Security

My grandfather turned 80 this summer and instead of organizing a big party, we went with him in a family group of 15 to the Bavarian Forest for a week. In his younger years he has crossed much higher mountains - he once even climbed the Elbrus, which is the highest mountain in the Caucasus at 5,642 meters - and before he started to work in various professions, he did an apprenticeship in forestry, through which he acquired an immense knowledge of the flora and fauna of the local forests.

I associate vetiver insolent with a - in the best sense - grandfatherly security. The fragrance creates a great combination of classic woody-aromatic and warm, soothing notes. In my mind's eye I see the typical autumn colours and imagine the sun's rays shining through the last remaining leaves on the trees.

As you would expect, vetiver is the dominant note from the start. It does not appear grassy-green, but has similar facets to Chanel's Sycomore (EdT): woody, earthy, slightly smoky and also a bit nutty. Black pepper is only initially recognizable as a pungent nuance and cardamom gives the fragrance a pleasant, not too strong spiciness. The heart notes are hardly noticeable - perhaps iris and lavender add a slightly powdery side. The tonka bean in the base is also far from being as loud as it is in many more modern fragrances, but the accompanying sweetness, fortunately very subtle, and the symbiosis with the spice result in a chord that is marginally reminiscent of gingerbread. The perfumers have really skilfully implemented this and demonstrated a sense for the subtleties, because here nothing really points in the direction of gourmand and the fragrance retains its natural, woodsy-aromatic qualities.

In the first two to three hours Vetiver Insolent is even relatively strong perceptible, but after that unfortunately only quite weakly skin-near with me. For me this is a little bit too little, but for some people this should be enough - especially since I can't complain about the durability.

In the autumn and winter of your life you take it easy. My grandfather would actually be physically very fit for his age, but his Parkinson's disease makes everything more strenuous and even everyday life more difficult for him. Luckily, my parents and grandparents live right on the edge of the forest, so even in these difficult times he can still enjoy nature with all its simple beauties.

12/18/2020

7
Pricing 8
Bottle 7
Sillage 8
Longevity 8.5
Scent

Carlitos01
378 Reviews

Carlitos01

Top Review 12

An appallingly insolent reply to a Vetivér request

Even if I am just a moderate lover of the vetivér aroma, I quite like this Miller Harris proposal. It is slightly dirty and with a bitter touch ... a very "gentleman" fragrance.
Usually, all vetiver perfumes are green and earthy. In addition, we may find them either "very clean", a synonym for a vetivér plant coming from the Caribbean, or quite "dirty and smoky" indicating a Southeast Asia origin.
This perfume, asserting itself as truly insolent, presents both facets (which is quite rare). In my humble opinion it may be due to the use of a very good vetivér from Haiti, but "blended" with strong and enduring cardamom with high longevity supported by the elemi resin. This accord gives a special emphasis on a dirty (but not too much), spicy, and bitter vetiver scent.
Another interesting and insolent feature is that the fragrance seems to present you with an inverted scent pyramid. The resinous and ambery chord is likely to be more present at the opening than at the drydown. I only know a perfume very similar to this one, which is the Korloff Private - Black Vetiver from Korloff's private line. Both are highly recommended although my preference is more inclined towards the Miller Harris proposal.
The Insolent perfumer - Mathieu Nardin - also proposes to us another magnific duo within the Miller Harris house: Étui Noir and La Fumée Alexandrie. I could live with those three perfumes alone...
Its aura is quite masculine, so I don't advise it for ladies. But if you are a man, I recommend you to use and abuse this insolent perfume. It's one of my best suggestions for a perfume that it is VERY good on MOST occasions.

Let's try to frame this vétiver in numbers:
___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___
- Opening: 9.0 (bitter fresh and ambery; very unique)
- DryDown: 8.5 (still fresh but smoky; in line with just a few other very good vetiver proposals)
- Longevity: 8.0 (up to 6 hours)
- Sillage: 7.0 (Up to 4~5 feet; it projects for 1.5 hours; I would expect a bit more in this fragrance type)
- Uniqueness: 9.0 (Its very elegant green, smoky and ambery bitterness does make a difference)
- Usability: 8.5 (A midseason scent but ok for an indoor Winter as well; avoid the Summer)
- Versatility: 8.5 (An elegant perfume for more formal occasions. Good for the office and general daily wear)
- Compliments: 8.0 (An elegant smell that attracts its own share of praise)
- Quality: 9.0 (above average quality ingredients, solid flask)
- Presentation: 8.0 (elegant and discrete in the traditional Miller Harris flask type)
- Price: 7.0 (100 ml / 60~70 Euros)
___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___
Overall rating: 8.23 / 10.00
- between 7 and 8 = above average;
- between 8 and 9 = recommended;
- greater than 9 = do not miss;

Recommendation: This is a very good elegant and masculine scent to use ideally in Spring or Autumn, either during the day or at night.
Blind buy? No, unless you are a vetivér enthusiast. But if you happen to try it, you will certainly love it.

Music: "It Had to Be You" by Frank Sinatra - but also hear the Billie Holiday version, please :-)

08/04/2018

8
Bottle 7
Sillage 8
Longevity 9
Scent

Minigolf

Translated Show original

Minigolf

Top Review 9

Of "hunting trophies" and chance finds

Sometimes you hunt for months after a certain scent, rummage in perfumeries, the "souk" at Parfumo and elsewhere. I don't want to miss any opportunity to get to the coveted piece (I was like this with "Bandit" and "Sortilege", for example).
And sometimes lucky coincidence plays a role in discovering a fragrance whose existence we didn't know about yet.
That's how I felt about "Vetiver Insolent" by Miller Harris.
It was recently in the souk to find, I read the side of the fragrance through, found that he would be something for my nose, and made a trade request.
To my surprise came a positive answer, so "Vetiver Insolent" landed now with me and at my exchange smell now soon another "nose" enjoys.
So far, so good.... There are many vetiver scents now, most are good to very good, but often have one thing in common: the concentration on the earthy-green properties of the fragrance Vetiver root (acetate..) with some "companions" , which vary it slightly, from company to company slightly modified.
Big exceptions are rare, but there are "Vetiver Bourbon" by Oriza Legrand, "Encre Noire" by Lalique and now "Vetiver Insolent" by the English company Miller Harris.
And the latter has the unusually surprising charisma of a kind of fougeré with fresh herby-floral-green parts of lavender, a "Zwischenbau" of balsamic-resinous "Orient-Inslays", a powdery seeming iris aura that always reappears unexpectedly up to parts of spicy-peppery sprinkles.
This makes this "English" fragrance so versatile and exciting that I can discover other little surprises each time I wear it.
Even in the current "test session" I sniffed something new...
I seem to be waving a note of laurel, from afar, not really graspable.
Occasionally appearing briefly, only to withdraw like a phantom when I think I can grasp them.
I must still smell some times completely exactly, in order to be able to "comprehend" this smell really.
I really like it and it does.
Although I wasn't chasing him "like the devil behind the poor soul".
According to the motto: "Unvehofft comes often"....

09/20/2018

10
Bottle 7
Sillage 7
Longevity 10
Scent

Hilli

Translated Show original

Hilli

Very helpful Review 7

Well-bred vetiver

Today, contrary to my principles, I took the risk of blind buying and found that it can be worth breaking principles: I have found Miller Harris interesting for a long time, but due to the lack of local sources of supply (I live in Munich!), I could only test a few of the fragrances. Since vetiver scents usually work quite well for me, I took the opportunity today to get my first fragrance from Miller Harris. Since I regard fragrances as a total work of art, I think it is nice when the bottle, packaging and name correspond to my taste. The simple, elegant packaging and flacons with stylized flower and plant illustrations by Miller Harris appeal to me very much. The name "Vetiver Insolent", on the other hand, leaves me somewhat at a loss: What is said to be cheeky about this vetiver is not at all obvious to me. On the contrary: The vetiver has a wonderful buttery and nutty softness, as I have already smelled on Givenchys Vetyver. The only cheeky thing is the cardamom that flashes out again and again and sticks out your tongue when you don't look. But this impudence is definitely of the sympathetic kind. I also think I can smell a hint of anise and fennel, which is why the scent reminds me of liquorice, but definitely not one of the gourmand kind. It is these spices that remind me of the great Yohji Homme, who unfortunately was only granted a short existence. I'm curious how Vetiver Insolent will prove itself in everyday life, but my first impression makes me very optimistic

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