Did I mention that I can be manipulated by advertising? When I read the not so few reviews and statements about Mukhallat, I immediately thought: I must have it! The scent seemed to fit me perfectly. Synthetic strawberry gum with vanilla, musk and almonds - that sounded so cheesy to me that it's beautiful again. No. I was expecting a cheeky, eccentric scent that would be an idealization, so to speak, of the artificial aroma of cheap strawberry gum. A banal theme from the pink Barbie doll's room that becomes an elite fragrance beyond any girlie image through great perfumery. I was excited to see Montale's solution to this equation. I was looking forward to Mukhallat, especially since I also really like the distinctive snow-white metallic bottle.
Then the package from the online perfumery finally arrived. True, the fragrance already looks noble and special from the outside: golden box, stylish storage bag, the playful gold closure of the spray ...
The ritual begins with the hasty removal of the cellophane wrapper. I am curious. Now it is sprayed. First, a little cautiously. Some call the perfume yes as an unbearable fragrance bomb. In principle, I have with loud, sweet and fancy no fear of contact, if the quality is convincing. I love to vary fragrances according to occasions, mood, season and time of day.
Almonds, vanilla, white musk, wild strawberry and Peru balsam - I like it all. What else can go wrong?
The fragrance is already a bit intense, right from the start. What do you mean a bit? I do not want to speak now of penetrating, but he has a - let's say it more friendly - enormous presence. Distinct, sweet, loud ... Well, that's what I expected. Just in the direction of wild strawberry or strawberry gum. But I don't perceive anything of that. Also not from almonds or vanilla and so.
30 minutes later: I'm still waiting for the promised strawberry flavor. But it does not come. Instead, the strong floral scent seems more and more familiar to me. My little gray cells begin to work, check all possible tropical or exotic scents. Wasn't there once a fragrance oil called Monoi de Tahiti by Yves Rocher? Bingo! I found the scent far too strong and sweet at the time. Today, the fragrance oil is still standing around unused somewhere. And in the meantime, I've also remembered the plant that lends its scent to the beauty product, which comes from the French Polynesian islands: Gardenia Tahitensis, the tiare - a white, large flower with an almost synthetic sweetness that I actually find intrusive. Of course, this is a matter of taste. I like intense scents, but when they also have that certain "beguiling" quality to them, it becomes too much for me - for a perfume I wear on me. And Mukhallat is such a beguiling fragrance. Heavy, sweet and warm, it catapults me right into the middle of a magical tropical night in Tahiti. Oh wait, then why is it called Mukhallat? From this Arabic name I would have expected something more oriental. Was there a false scent here?
One hour later. From strawberry still no trace. The fragrance has not changed. It reminds me of heliotrope and ylang-ylang, maybe some gardenia; so it continues to be beguiling tropical night. I am disappointed. I was expecting something completely different and am puzzled by the fragrance pyramid. Because I smell no strawberry, no almond, no nothing - except the tiare, which is supposedly not in there at all. If there was at least something gourmandiges ...
A few days later, I give Mukhallat another chance. But I'm almost afraid of the gush of sweet tropical night, which will immediately embrace me, not to say crush me. Or? Alas, no ... There it is again, the tropical night. Quite the drama: sweet, sultry, dominant, a strong, exotic floral scent that I'm apparently too mid-European for. When, where and for what occasion should a woman wear this intrusive exotic floral blend? I don't know. Maybe a summery South Seas festival? But otherwise?
Mukhallat is certainly not going to be my favorite scent. The cheeky, fun, high-spirited, of which is so often talked about and to which I was looking forward, I do not find here. Of course, they could have played ironically with cheesy melodrama, South Seas romance and magical tropical night. But that obviously did not succeed or was not even planned.
I am disappointed. I can not do much with this fragrance. In a way, it's even quite banal, because it has little to offer: nothing really eye-wateringly shocking, no emotions to touch me, no mystery or secrets to fathom, no interesting scent progression, nothing to inspire me. No challenge, at best the over-the-top passion of a pulp novel. But even that sounds more promising than it is.
If anyone wants to give this unusual, luxurious fragrance, with its truly above-average sillage and longevity, a home where it will be more respected, I'm happy to let it go, though not to give it away. Just get in touch with me.
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