Forest of the Golden Dream Parfums Quartana 2023

Top: to me I am getting more herbal than green (I don't think those two are the same. or are they?) The resin is definitely coming through. But not resin like the dried solids on tree bark, but resin like the driving life force of a tree. With an undertone of transparent green sweetness.

Middle: Hm. There is something slightly aquatic or human smelling that reminds me of ELDO secretions magnifique, which made me slightly nauseous.

[Tried on 2. March, will update when tested again]

I recently received a comment on a video I made for YT for liturgical fragrances begging the question: "why the hell would a human want to smell like an orthodox church?"

Why? Who knows? I sure do.
Why do I want to smell like a working class man circa 1967?
Why do I want to smell like a brothel at 3am?
And why do I want to smell like I've crushed conifer needles and rubbed them all over me in a fit of ecstasy?

That brings me to the Forest of the Golden Dream. For the sake of transparency, I've befriended Joseph Quartana since he agreed to be a guest on one of my Effluvium livestreams recently, and when I expressed my admiration for FotGD after having received a sample, he offered to send me a bottle as a gift. Youtubers and social media influencers of all kinds, this is how simple transparency can be, do take note.

Yes, the rapturous evergreen milling on the skin under a forest with the filtered sunlight beaming rays and melting the snow. As our eyes travel downward, we see that the understory is filled with shadowy mystery, with club moss poking out of the white icy carpet, witch's butter glowing yellow-orange like an arc from a rotting log filled with hibernating insects.

Perfumer Celine Barel employs some brilliant trickery here: following the 'crown' (the top notes are identified as such on the accompanying insert) is bright lemon and piquant spice, with what follows in the heart the use of Pamplezest. Produced by IFF and in my collection of my materials, this has a fresh citrus zest to it, but also is camphoraceous, sap-green, earthy. What's ingenious is that it serves to "lift" the coniferous needle effect to give a true impression of the resins that exude from the foliage that just distilled oils alone cannot replicate. A eucalyptus accompanies the heart to further enhance this effect. The usage of mimosa absolute as well imparts a soft, yet granular, pollen-like texture. Olibanum (frankincense) oil ties it all together. It's spectacular.

As we reach the base (or "root" as it were), a lingering, warmer, mossier aura remains, as if night has fallen and I've retreated to a cabin to retire. It feels softer and buttery, with the evergreens still clinging lightly, a meditative balsam fir and patchouli being most evident. FotGD has a transportive effect that would be well suited to those who daydream about the mythical and primeval, who give in to the raw and elementary, speaking to one's inner forest satyr or nymph. It's some lovely stuff and among my top 10 favorite releases of 2023.

This really is a stunning fragrance, beautiful and enigmatic. To me, it's the scent of a European old growth forest with cottages tucked away, forest folk making potions, elixirs and exotic dishes. It's warm with a dash of coldness, evergreen with a dash of cardamom and pepper. Citrus notes evolving into religious olibanum. It's a journey, a rather interesting and magnificent one, one that I tremendously enjoy taking.

Sampling the latest release from Parfums Quartana, Forest of the Golden Dream, the follow-up to last year’s award-winning Ierofante and the beginning of a new collection that will continue through next year called “Les Potions D’Entelechie.” It’s fresh, green, aromatic, with a fine mix of trees—for me, a cross between a summery palm and a wintery mix of cypress and pine, slightly sharp but still quite calming and transportive. There are also spices and resins (cardamom, patchouli, fir balsam resin) that round it out and given it a more wintery character, even though, to me, it remains a very fresh and pleasant fragrance, albeit with a lot of nuance. It explores, as discussed in the CaFleureBon article, the healing properties of ancient cultures, and it really does smell like a healing fragrance, but not medicinal to be clear. Natural, green, multifaceted, with a comforting familiarity.

Forest of the Golden Dream is sold both via the house site and great boutiques like Perfumology, priced at $215 for 50ml in EDP concentration, and performs well, not quite as intense as Ierofante, for comparison, but still a very pleasant level of density and projection.
8 out of 10

(9/20/25)
Many foresty scents lean heavy and are best suited to autumn and winter, but this is a more sun-dappled, year-round interpretation of a dense, green wood. I can almost see the dust mites floating in sunbeams. Dreamy indeed.

ETA: My only "complaint" about this scent is that it is a little too clean or lacks a particular depth in the bottom end. This is perfectly remedied by layering it with Heretic Dragon's Blood.