Faces of Francis Vilhelm Parfumerie 2023

Industrial Revolution gourmand. Brass polished with brandy, rubber oiled with honey. Carved mahogany, lacquered in molasses. A clean girl Francis is not. He is dense, heady, smoky, treacly. Sweet but masculine, like a worker bee. And potent. A thimbleful could stun a hitch of Percherons. Unfortunately for me, this scent has too much of a presence and I was crestfallen not to find a compelling pistachio. The closest I can imagine is an empty tin of baklava, now repurposed as a snuffbox. It’s a scent I’d love to waft on a passing stranger, but not hot on my collar.

Mental Snapshot: The most prosperous merchant in all the Citadel. He smokes a fat wooden pipe of the finest tobacco, spiced with the riches of furthest yonder. The brocade waistcoat of a lord, the callused hands of a labourer. If you haven’t imagined a handlebar moustache yet, you’re imagining it now.

tl;dr: savoury Willy Wonka