M Puredistance 2010

M by Puredistance is the brainchild of the English nose and perfume historian Roja Dove. When talking about world-renowned perfumers, no one comes to mind more easily. Roja Dove began his career in a famous French perfume house most everyone is familiar with, Guerlain. After a lengthy stay that lasted some 20 years, he set out on his own to create Roja Parfums. Know as "Professeur de Parfums" in social circles, Roja Dove has been a counselor of sorts to many aspiring perfumers and his experience, wherever used, seems to leave an indelible mark. His name has been associated with many great contemporary perfume creations. M by Puredistance is just another example.

The inspiration for M was the sophisticated and comfortable interior of an impressive grey Aston Martin, you know, the James Bond variety. You can smell leather wafting up as the door slowly opens, exposing a chic interior. Your eye catches a beautiful and rich wood steering wheel and lavish appointments. Just as the idea of James Bond seems a bit like time travel, the philosophy of Puredistance is a throwback to fragrances reminiscent of the 1920's and 1930's. The company seems inspired by this particular time period in perfume making. They have managed to emulate that feeling throughout their current offerings. M is a perfume extract that contains 25% perfume oil and is impeccably well made.

M opens with a classic introduction of fresh citrus, bergamot and lemon. A nutty and spicy cinnamon brews mildly in the background as the heart launches with a supple suggestion of an oriental. A semi-sweet rose and jasmine bouquet slowly and subtly emerges, but never matures. At this point you know you're on your way toward a classic chypre structure. The thirsty leathery base resides comfortably alongside an earthy and slightly grubby patchouli. These two elements are warmed up with a bit of cistus. Moss adds an aromatic woodiness that is heavy, but then more polished once blended with warm, earthy, leathery notes. An animalistic musk remedies the lack of a rustic quality and makes the base complete. Just a touch of vetiver brings back a slightly green herbal note lost by the sheer weight of the base's spirited and spicy blend. It also resuscitates the oriental vibe from the opening. From beginning to end, M is a very balanced and lush masculine aroma.

So, does M stand for masculine? Yes, perhaps. It is more the structure of this leathery chypre that qualifies this as perfect for the masculine demeanor. I had the opportunity to attend a wedding this Fall and chose M as my perfume for this event. I was pleasantly surprised at the overwhelmingly positive response I received. I am fond of M myself, but experiencing how others enjoyed the scent confirmed my opinion. The longevity of this fragrance is also noteworthy. If you have yet to sample M by Puredistance, I recommend you do so soon. M is rich and decadent, yet has a cosmopolitan and masculine nature.

Just as a note of warning, be careful when applying this fragrance around lightly-colored fabrics, since there is a high percentage of oil that is amber in color, and the fragrance will stain them.

Puredistance M, created by Roja Dove. Now this, ladies and gentlemen, is a proper perfume. For me, it ranks supreme, next to Diaghilev, for olfactory works Mr. Dove has signed under his personage. However, unlike the former, this one was commissioned by another house. Once Roja realized he had given them a masterwork composition, he tried to recreate it under his brand. Unfortunately (to my taste), he fell rather far from the original design. While I enjoy his Fetish Pour Homme, I don't think it can match M in refinement and richness through restraint. I get more of a "Diaghilev-type" of aesthetic, build, and flair from M, whereas Fetish feels like a young brat overzealous in his hand gestures and dress code, trying to get all attention. M, much like Diaghilev, doesn't need to open his mouth to draw all eyes on him. The only issue is that it draws heavy inspiration (ahem, again) from a well-reputed and highly acclaimed vintage perfume. Despite that, Dove manages to take that theme, expand it, and in my opinion, perfect it. Hence, I'll forgive him once more and succumb.

M unfolds as a complex journey in three well-defined acts. I see people labeling it in many ways—a leather perfume, for the most part—yet it is difficult to categorize. It is a Leather, Oriental, and Chypre perfume—and you'll get all of that. Moreover, it has an unmistakable vintage flair.

On my skin, the first act is the "Leather." Starts with a short-lived burst of citrus, more on the juicy than the zesty side. It goes away quickly to reveal a bouquet of spices and a well-defined brown leather accord. As for the spices, I don't pick up the cinnamon just yet, but more of the cloves, and my favorite, cumin. The leather accord steers into the "naughty" territory fast, and I suspect cumin to render its dirty facet. It even feels oily at times.
Nonetheless, it plays a fine balance between an old-school Cuir-de-Russie leather accord and one of the more modern/polished varieties. In this part, I also detect the floral component, the carnation mostly. It complements the spices and helps perpetuate the "vintage" feel.

The second act emerges with the "Oriental" theme. I would call this the mid-phase of M. The leather takes a back seat while the cistus makes its way front-stage. Now, I pick up more of the cinnamon that pairs so well with the former. A slight toffee/sweet facet creeps in with a light smokiness and a glowing hue. It feels dusty and warm, with a slightly increasing sweetness without ever going over the top. At this stage, it wears like a proper Oriental perfume.

Lastly, the final stage is the "Chypre." The resins cool off while the leather makes a return, only this time, it takes its best friends with it, the oakmoss and the musk. The latter feels like a castoreum type of musk, by comparison to the heavy civet in Diaghilev. Make no mistake though, it plays just as heavily. The Oakmoss Accord is the main star, providing its inky-bitter and earthy quality, while the other two support it brilliantly. It feels so rich and decadent that you can almost chew it. It lasts like this for a long time and lingers on garments beautifully. You will smell the faint aroma on them many days after and think: "What a decadent and posh smell."

I have never been an enthusiast of Mr. Dove's craft, and yet, here I am again, bulging my eyes out for another one of his creations. M, next to Diaghilev, are, in my opinion, his finest works and two of the most thoroughly executed perfumes I was fortunate enough to experience despite being heavily inspired.

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To me Roja Dove is a genius perfumer and artist who creates his masterpieces in a very extremist pleasant way. "M" from Pure distance is an absolute luxurious leathery fragrance opens with very nice citrus notes.

The bitter facet of bergamot is a great prelude, preparing the audience for smelling a spicy-leathery scent. Although Roja created this titan using so much spice, the indispensable role of the rose in the heart could not be denied, where it gives a great and pleasant softness to the whole body of the fragrance. This is the stage you may imagine your self in a luxurious suit driving an Aston Martin, smoking a cigarette which has got vanilla as its flavor with a bouquet of roses bought for you lover on the seat.

In the dry down stage you may smell the clue of a lovely note that has been keeping you busy all through different stages from the very beginning of the perfume. Yes, that is the cinnamon which is used so artistically in this perfume in order to present a concept of a rich gentleman. Like most of Roja's creations, this is one of the best ever, benefiting a very long range of longevity and very chick sillage.

This has Got to be in my top 3 of all time, this is such a Rich scent that evokes the inner dracula in me, performance is outstanding and it has everything i want in a scent.
Funny story; when Roja made this for Puredistance, he realized that he had made a really stunning fragrance, so he went and did what he does best; making a fragrance. He made the almost exact same (fetish) and from there the collab between Puredistance and Roja stopped. To me M is better than fetish pH. Fetish pH is a good fragrance But it also has that meeh to it. Where M is just explosives in a bottle.

Overall A 10 from me.

Leather is the protagonist in this composition. I confirm extreme similarities with Fetish pour Homme, after all they were created by the same perfumer. M is the older of the two and is the one I prefer, with a more pronounced floral component, especially geranium. Labdanum, cloves and a beautiful oakmoss to give a vintage touch to the fragrance. Excellent in the cold season, both during the day and in the evening