Zagara Ortigia Eau de Parfum

Zagara opens with a burst of citrus - bright lemon and petitgrain right up front. It’s luminous, cheerful, and genuinely pleasant, like a sunny morning somewhere in the South.

Then, slowly, the lemon fades, and orange blossom takes over. By the end, it’s all that remains: soft, lingering, like a warm sheet that still carries the scent of skin.

It’s one of my personal favorites from Ortigia, even if the composition is quite simple. A no-frills fragrance that delivers exactly what it promises, with ease and charm.

I came across Ortigia Sicilia in my travels through Italy. I settled on Zagara, given my limited time whilst on holiday, and this was the one that most spoke to me on paper.

Although this is described by Ortigia as an orange blossom scent, it is really the petitgrain that punches through, creating a dominant woody opening. I would describe this fragrance as a citrussy wood (at least in the opening). The scent is dense and uncomplicated. It's quite bracing, albeit not in a bright or refreshing sense. Instead, the relatively long-lasting opening is decadent and rich, almost to the point where it can come across as quite cloying.

Remarkably, the perfume transforms in the dry down. The woodiness completely gives way to a sweet, relatively gentle orange creamsicle-like scent. This I assume is the result of the interplay between orange blossom and some sandalwood in the base.

Despite the drastic change from opening to dry down, this fragrance is a little too simplistic at either end for my taste. The heaviness of it leans towards use in the colder seasons, which is not what I want out of an orange blossom scent.

That being said, Ortigia is a relatively new brand with fairly limited distribution. This is worth checking out if you happen to come across it in your travels. The bottles and branding are quite fun, and the availability of a 30ml bottle makes for a great souvenir or keepsake for your collection.

I got to know Dilmun, a fresh Eau de Cologne, from Lorenzo Villoresi.
Zagara (the flower of citrus fruits) belongs to an exclusive perfume series that is said to be inspired by the 'Sicilian Orient' and was created for Ortigia.

Sicilian Orient probably because Africa's tropical climate wafts over.

I mention the sillage first, as it is very strong and still noticeable after hours.
Zagara starts off very aldehydic with plenty of neroli. Neroli comes across so strongly to me that I don't notice the orange blossoms.
The fragrance pyramid seems incomplete to me. I find the heart note very fruity with a creamy, light sweetness. I like that and I look forward to the promised woods.
I am surprised but not very pleased with how the base presents itself to me. In my experience, I usually like woods very much, but here I only smell sandalwood and nothing else.
I had my husband sniff it; he feels the same way.
That's too little for me. With the term Orient, I expect more.
By the way, Zagara lasts for hours.