Chypre Shot Olfactive Studio 2018

Chypre seems to be 'in' again: 'Mojito Chypre', 'Chypre 21', 'Chypre Siam', or this one: 'Chypre Shot'.
All modern creations, and there are many more.
Just a few years ago, the death knell was ringing loudly: Chypre was dead, slaughtered by the treacherous IFRA, it echoed everywhere! But, as we know, the dead live longer, and not only does the good old 'Mitsouko' smell as chypre as ever.

'Chypre Shot' is now a typical Duchaufour: saffron and cardamom, ingredients he likes, are included, as well as coffee and tea notes that he also enjoys showcasing. The spice seems to borrow a bit from his 'Traversée du Bosphore', and like that one, some fruity notes resonate as well, while his 'Noir Exquis' likely inspired the gourmand coffee aspect.
That Monsieur Duchaufour can also do Chypre has been proven, and here inevitably 'Chypre Palatin' comes into play.
The three mentioned Duchaufour fragrances share something that one might call the typical Duchaufour sound: a texture as if everything were equally bathed in milk or covered with milky veils.
Milky desserts keep coming to my mind: rice pudding with fruits, panna cotta, yogurt mousse, or even milky-spicy drinks like chai latte or the good old Yogi tea.
This sound permeates 'Chypre Shot' as well, and one must like this sound to appreciate 'Chypre Shot' at all.

For my part, I like it, but not all the time.
'Chypre Shot' is not a scent I could wear constantly. Sometimes, yes, because it is once again a good Duchaufour, a very good one, I think, but I also belong to the Chypre lovers.
And Duchaufour, as mentioned, can do Chypre. Whether he will one day be counted among the great Chypre creators like Roudnitska or Chant remains to be seen, the future will tell, but his efforts for a modern interpretation of this rather old and somewhat overused fragrance category are certainly recognizable.
He has shown how one can - see his sensational 'Timbuktu' - realize the Chypre idea entirely without oakmoss. But he has also demonstrated how with a modern, quasi-castrated, i.e., largely freed from the allergen Atranol, IFRA-compliant 'low atranol oakmoss', in conjunction with oakmoss substitutes like Veramoss or Evernyl, one can indeed conjure up a rich Chypre: et voilà - 'Chypre Palatin'.

And now he has proven it again: Chypre is still going strong.
Apart from fruity Chypres like 'Mitsouko', the citrus-fresh ones like 'Diorella', or the green ones like 'Aliage', Duchaufour locates his Chypre creations more in the oriental realm ('Chypre Palatin') or in the area of gourmand fragrances ('Chypre Shot'), with an oriental twist. Comparisons with the aforementioned historical Chypre masterpieces do not really push themselves too much.
And fundamentally, it is also unfair to measure all Chypre fragrances against 'Mitsouko' or Chanel's 'Pour Monsieur': it is as if one were to compare every soprano in the realm of Belcanto and Verismo with Maria Callas.
One does so, but it is unjust.

So, better not to sing the Norma at all - to forge one's own paths.
That, in turn, is what Duchaufour does, regardless of what one may think about it.
I, for one, like 'Chypre Shot'. I also like the other two from the Sepia series, but this one especially.
I do not find the scent to be cacophonous at all, as some might think. Of course, a Duchaufour-typical multitude of contributors populates the olfactory stage - the composer has been fond of going all out for a few years now. It wasn't always like that, see his beginnings at Comme des Garçons, but now he loves the big ensembles.
However, 'Chypre Shot' is not a grand Amouage-like fragrance opera, no, the massive orchestra in permanent fortissimo is not his thing. Nevertheless, quite a few voices swirl together. Well-tuned, of course, and veiled with the Duchaufour-typical milky soft focus, but still setting many accents: floral, fruity, gourmand, resinous, bitter, woody, sweet - everything is there.
Not loud, but very persistent and incredibly long-lasting. No wonder, the fragrance is, according to the manufacturer, an Extrait de Parfum, and it behaves accordingly: discreet but enduring, while radiating moderately. Even the next morning, I can easily perceive it on my skin, now as a soft, vanilla-toned oriental, underlaid with only the faintest Chypre bitterness.

The term 'Chypre' is rightly carried in the name of the fragrance: 'Chypre Shot' is consistently an original Chypre scent, from the spicy-floral opening to the oriental finish.
'Shot' here does not mean a 'shot' in the sense of a vodka shot or the like, no, the 'shot' refers to taking a photograph, to 'shoot' an image. And 'Sepia', in turn, the name of the trio, is meant to evoke in us a nostalgically tinged, possibly historical photo in sepia tones.
The entire series is, in a way, a reminiscence of a 'past', and even the leather-clad bottle, with its hole in the middle, has something of an old pinhole camera. Presumably, one wants to direct our gaze, or rather our nose, towards a sepia-tinted past, as we are supposed to peer through 'Vanilla Shot' towards 'Shalimar', through 'Leather Shot' towards 'Knize Ten', and through 'Chypre Shot' of course towards 'Mitsouko'.

Does that work?

Well, a little bit, at least for me, after I have been dealing with this fragrance for a while. At first glance, I did not see these connections - but must one always immediately and literally be hit on the nose by something?
No, sometimes it is also fun to go on a journey of discovery - quite possible that one sniffs out something interesting.

As in this case.