Cuir Garamante Parfums MDCI 2013

It feels to me like I’m testing a different fragrance when I read the preceding comments. Hardly any leather? Almost femininely sweet?

Actually, I didn’t feel like writing a comment; I wanted to make a statement and maybe write a comment about the fragrance later. But Cuir Garamante is simply brilliantly crafted, and I feel the need to organize and share my impressions a bit more.

Cuir Garamante starts off for me with an alcoholic, sharp-spicy note, and right after that comes a classic, dry leather note that reminds me a bit of Tabac Blond, at least that’s how I currently associate it. I can’t say for sure anymore, but it’s definitely a leather note that I know well from more classic fragrances, quite dry and almost animalistic.

This is clearly accompanied by spices, although I couldn’t specify nutmeg distinctly. Rose... that could be. Perhaps a dirty rose like in Rose Poivrée by The Different Company, of course much softer and subtler than in that fragrance. Above all, it seems to me that these impressions serve to further elaborate and refine the leather note. It feels harmonious, rounded, and simply very high-quality.

Alongside this familiar leather comes a soft-vanilla amber. While it is sweet, it contrasts and soothes the rather rough leather note just the right amount. The overall impression remains quite dry for my taste, just not completely unyielding.

The fragrance development appears relatively linear. Cuir Garamante starts off quite dry, almost a bit brusque, but over time the balsamic base softens that harshness more and more. Eventually, it becomes relatively soft and acquires a certain sweetness that reminds me of a firm, light honey. However, the dirty, edgy leather note always remains, entering into a symbiosis with the soft nuances. The leather simply becomes significantly more socially acceptable. An exciting, erotic, and beautiful development.

I find Chypre Palatin even a bit sweeter or less dry; however, the concept seems fundamentally very similar to me. In Chypre Palatin, an animalistic chypre structure is combined with soft, oriental, and balsamic nuances, slightly modernized and perhaps made more appealing, while in Cuir Garamante, it’s the combination of animalistic leather and those oriental-balsamic notes.

In terms of opulence and noble appearance, both fragrances have gained rather through this connection. They feel dense, warm, harmonious, and incredibly high-quality.

Cuir Garamante is grand and unjustly stands in the shadow of Chypre Palatin and Invasion Barbare. Anyone who likes leather fragrances and appreciated the style of MDCI in Chypre Palatin or Invasion Barbare should definitely test Cuir Garamante.

I don’t think it’s a fragrance I would wear often. Still, I would like to have a decant when the opportunity arises, because for me, this harmony and perfection is a solid 10!