Alhambra Paolo Gigli

Alhambra - the world-famous castle built in Moorish style in Granada. A perfume bearing this name suggests a rather heavy, powerful, and spicy oriental scent. But none of that applies to this creation by Paolo Gigli.

Completely unaware of the composition of this fragrance, I chose it as the first of the 50 scent samples from Hasi's raffle purely based on its promising name. I was therefore completely surprised when I was initially greeted by an incredibly delicate, fresh hint of rose, shortly followed by the strong scent of (lemon) balm, which is likely due to the interplay of land mint and lemon. The rose and balm then merge in such a way that I initially have the impression of a blend of pure essential oils, which would emit a soothing touch of wellness in a fragrance lamp or in the form of a high-quality massage oil. It smells incredibly pleasant, but also has something "healthy" about it that doesn't quite fit with a perfume.

But ultimately, Alhambra is far from finished, and what is happening on my skin now is a grand olfactory spectacle. The other ingredients can hardly be distinguished individually, but they are finely tuned to ensure that the initially purely ethereal quality of the fragrance increasingly gains creaminess, warmth, and softness, without losing the freshness of the opening, which still lingers as a delicate whisper above everything. The base can truly only be described as sensual - subtle amber and musk, just barely recognizable as such, enveloped in fine cream, the whole thing bright and light, even minimally green from a drop of vetiver, yet still with depth.

Can anyone still follow me? I find myself in a similar situation as Turandot; the scent experience is hard to put into words. However, I can now establish the connection to the name. Even though I have not yet seen the Alhambra in person, I feel that I can find the scent reflected in the images of this magnificent structure: during the virtual stroll through the expansive gardens and water basins (the freshness and clarity of the opening), through the light-filled colonnades (the increasing creaminess in the heart note) into the elaborately designed interiors with the finely crafted, detail-rich vaulted ceilings, which find their correspondence in the sensual, ambered base.

It was not difficult for me to add this treasure to my wish list, even though the realization of this wish will still take quite a while given the price.