Anyone who is interested in how the development of synthetic, modern niche fragrances continues will, like me, come across Zarkoperfume at some point. For those of you who don't already know..: Zarko Ahlmann Pavlov, a 50-year-old Dane from Yugoslavia, specializes in fragrances at the molecular level. The special thing about these molecular perfumes is that when they come into contact with the skin they fuse with the individual body odour in such a way that a unique fragrance is created, which emphasises the personality and enhances the charisma of the individual. Thereby it should also have a "pheromonic" effect, i.e. it should be attractive.
The fragrance molecules produced in the laboratory interact not only with the skin, but also with environmental influences such as temperature, air pressure, atmosphere and weather. The molecules owe this high sensitivity to the fact that they are water-based. Whereas in "conventional" perfumes, which are produced according to the classical French tradition, the fragrance oil floats on water, the situation is exactly the opposite with molecular perfumes. The - mostly discreet - fragrance should therefore last longer on the skin.
Why Zarko committed himself to these new rules of the art of scent making? He wanted to create innovative unisex fragrances that reflect the special flair of Scandinavia and Northern Europe. Fragrances that seem light and simple, clear and minimalist.
For the former fashion designer, the old triad "scent pyramid" is outdated. He focuses on fragrances that do not develop one after the other, but parallel. Zarko is one of the pioneers of perfumers who are working with the technique of molecular fragrances. He is aware that his fragrances are not suitable for the mainstream. Instead, they should appeal to people for whom the essential is more important than elaborate marketing. So Zarko.
No marketing is of course also a - very target group specific - marketing. It has reached me and made me curious.
The fragrances of Zarkoperfume are rather in the higher price segment. They are all handmade and bottled manually. So a touch of luxury is allowed despite all the reduction.
Since I wanted to get to know some Zarkos, I was offered the fragrance set Zarkoperfume 5 Star Kit, which contains 5 Zarkoparfums - 5 ml each in a spray bottle - that can be laid together well.
For the first test I choose "e'L". Zarko created this fragrance for his wife Lene. The creation of "e'L", it is said, would not have been possible according to the rules of the conventional fragrance pyramid, because the combination of the warm base note with fresh notes would allegedly never have worked out in this harmonic way.
My curiosity is aroused.
The fragrance was developed for women who want to stand their ground in the hustle and bustle of everyday life and consciously allow themselves luxury. I'm not sure if I correspond to this type.
Now how can you imagine a fragrance that wants to embody the atmosphere of the North?
I'm thinking of something maritime and aquatic, far away from everything Mediterranean like citrus notes. Flowers? Yes. Maybe a green freshness... natural, simple and clear
I'm spraying "e'L." The start is a bit sharp and unexpectedly "citrusy". Aha, the pomegranate! But immediately after that it becomes pleasantly soft and flowery. White flowers, which almost remind more of sweet grasses. Shortly afterwards aquatic tones come into play and something slightly metallic, which may be the "ozonic notes".
Unisex? I can't really picture "e'L" on a man. For me it is a feminine, delicate fragrance, light, subtle and "natural". Light means that the fragrance hardly develops any sillage.
I cannot clearly perceive the famous interplay between warm undertone and fresh notes. It is rather the case that the fragrance "shimmers" like an iso and once the flowers dominate, then again the aquatic and vice versa. The fragrance therefore has an exciting course, which actually occurs in parallel, which already has its charms.
A further attraction is that the fragrance has a natural, but at the same time synthetic effect. This creates an interesting field of tension.
I know the North. Not necessarily Denmark, but Sweden and especially Schleswig-Holstein or fishing. And suddenly it's all present. The holidays as a child with aunt Ilse in Ulsnis on the Schlei, my grandfather's home. Aunt Ilse, who was always so sunny and cheerful, and her three sons, with whom I loved to play - especially of course with the one of the same age as me. For me, as a big city kid, it was a completely new and exciting world - climbing trees and fences, fishing ... Well, it wasn't really mine. When suddenly the little perch was hanging on my rod, I felt sorry for him. I let him go back into the line - and fishing was over for me forever. In the evening, young and old gathered at Aunt Ilse's house and played "Knack", a card game where there was a few pennies to be earned. I have long forgotten the rules.
Yeah, it's north in "e'L." The summery blue sky above the idyllic village with its ancient Romanesque church, the bell tower next to it and the cemetery with a distant view of the Schlei. A tombstone with a stone cat sitting on it had particularly impressed me. I already loved cats back then and thought that under such a gravestone it must be possible to rest comfortably - if only so. I wanted to have one of those once. Compared to the huge Viennese Central Cemetery with its magnificent mausoleums and dark gravestones, which always had something dark and sinister to me, this friendly, bright cemetery seemed to take the sting out of death.
Ulsnis was so to speak my bullerbü, of which 7-year-old Lisa says she is sad that not all people can live here. I never had such thoughts as a 7-year-old. But Lisa is as much an adult invention as the whole fictional idyll Bullerbü, which we all yearned for when we read "We Children of Bullerbü".
In my Bullerbü Ulsnis it was always summer, the children always had holidays and enough time to play. Summertime and the livin is easy so to speak.
"e'L" has captured this mood - the bright colours of summer, the sluggish life, the green gardens, exuberant games and holiday feeling at its best. Even the calm waters of the Baltic Sea Fjord, colourful, beautiful, happy life all around, laughter, adventure, security.
I'm not a fan of aquatic fragrances per se, but here they are reinterpreted, so to speak. I know, the north is not only the coast, but a large part of it. And when you consider that Zarko's house, where he brews his perfumes, or rather, constructs them, is right on the sea, it must be aquatic with freshly painted boats, seagulls, seaweed, wind and waves.
It's true. Scents can sometimes bring back memories. And if you're lucky, they're pleasant ones
"e'L" can do it with me. Unfortunately durability and sillage are weak with this fragrance. On the other hand, this light, light-hearted, ethereal fragrance goes well with the cheerful note, which lifts the mood without slipping into the banal.
I like this smell. I can't quite identify with it, though. I guess I'm too urban or just not Danish enough. My signature scent will probably never be, but a friendly companion for a nice holiday.
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