Portobello Road Memo Paris 2025

When I was a child living in central Florida, in the spring and summer, it would rain every day at 4:30 pm like clockwork. We all knew it. At 5 pm it usually stopped. I would usually either walk to or from my friends house on the paved road past an Orange Grove/orchard. The rain on the asphalt, combined with the orange blossoms was a scent I would never forget. From the first time I smelled this fragrance, I was transported back to a time a 7 year old boy was walking home and unknowingly forming a life long cherished scent memory. This is one of my forever fragrances. I will repurchase it every time the bottle empties. An added plus is I have never had a time I wore Portobello Road and not had someone compliment me and/or ask me what fragrance I am wearing.

Portobello Road, certainly one of the most famous streets in Notting Hill, a district of London. An extremely busy street, especially due to the market located there.
Mainly food is offered there, but you can also find crafts and antiques.
However, I cannot establish a connection to the local scent.
Memo Paris unfortunately does not offer too much "variety," which I greatly regret.

The opening is still passable, expressed in strong green notes, a bit like finely grated green leaves, with a slight bitterness also showing. The whole thing is well flanked by mandarin, thus a slightly fruity note. Nevertheless, it remains consistently green-leafy.

Now comes the bitterly evil twist, which pushes the scent miles away from me.
Almost brutally and mercilessly, the rose (Rose Absolue) reveals itself.
I immediately recall "Toy Boy | Moschino," which I rated a 2.0, making it one of the worst-rated fragrances for me.
Although Portobello Road is by no means as penetrating as the bear in SM attire, I still cannot connect any sympathy with it.
This artificial, sweet rose cloud is omnipresent from minute 15 and, in my opinion, also prevents the development of the base notes, which could have been so beautiful.

Asphalt, rain accord, and vetiver, I had dreamt joyfully...
But it remains a dream, as none of it develops, and I cannot really recognize any of it.
Perhaps also because I react extremely critically and allergically to this rosy racket.

In summary, I completely miss balance and harmony here.
The scent lingers on my skin for a good seven hours, the sillage and projection are moderate to noticeably good.

In the end, for me, a scent to forget.