Diego Schlossparfumerie Wolff & Sohn Stuttgart 2008

Helmut Wolff for tomorrow's 80th & the Schlossparfümerie for this year's 100th birthday.

Diego Dalla Palma, whose name meant nothing to me until recently, is the namesake of this fragrance. The Italian jack-of-all-trades must be a public figure in his homeland, at least that is suggested by the Wikipedia article that describes him as a make-up artist, writer, entrepreneur, and TV personality. In 1978, he opened a cosmetics studio in Milan and soon created his own line of cosmetic products.

Two fragrances, one for women and one for men, were briefly marketed under this name. Both did not have a long life but probably did have a small group of loyal followers. If among the supporters of the men's fragrance Aqualambra there had not fortunately been Helmut Wolff, whom many perfume lovers may know as the owner of the Schlossparfümerie, then today there would likely be only a few forum entries reporting on this fragrance.

A visit to the Schlossparfümerie is worthwhile not only for the excellent selection of fragrances but also - or depending on personal preference especially - because of the in-house fragrance line. The fragrance line is managed by Helmut and his son Philipp Wolff. They are supported by the perfume house Micaleff. The so-called Signature Line of the Schlossparfümerie includes perfumes that are also sold under the name Micaleff in high-quality but also expensive bottles, it includes a few fragrances that were inspired by discontinued perfumes and increasingly also original creations, for which the son is particularly committed.

Among the dupes is also Diego, who allowed us to keep the Aqualambra, which also shows that dupes are not inherently something disreputable. In this case, the dupes even represent a significant achievement. Before we finally talk about the fragrance itself, it should be mentioned that Regulation (EC) No. 1223/2009 will also put an end to this fragrance. There are still 10 bottles and one liter refill stored in Stuttgart, but after that, the fragrance will no longer be available. One more reason to sign the petition!

A look at the fragrance pyramid of the original Aqualambra gives us a glimpse of what we will lose - an opulent, quite complex scent. Both are terms that often obscure the fact that the untrained sense of smell is unable to distinguish the individual fragrance components. In the initial phase of the scent development, I can still manage that, but quite soon the components weave into a scent illusion that, in my opinion, deliberately makes a secret out of the individual building blocks so that my olfactory incompetence meets with intentional deception.

The deception lies in the fact that initially well-distinguishable soft tones of bergamot oil and lavender meet with still relatively perceivable but no longer clearly assignable herbs to form a fragrant, soft alcohol note together with the aldehydes. Probably a cognac note, but connoisseurs of spirits may correct me if necessary. The second deception is partly due to the coniferous woods that emerge with the herbs. On one hand, they bridge to the later woody-mossy base, but they also seem to enter into a woody-herb mixture with the herbs that unmistakably makes me perceive tobacco without it being named as a fragrance note.

My tobacco cosmos consists of three dimensions; one dimension knows the expression dry-herbaceous to moist-moldy, the other the expressions natural to perfumed, and the third, which is oriented towards the purpose of use, knows cigarette to pipe tobacco. Here I discern a dampened but still herbaceous tobacco that has not been infused with perfume substances during fermentation, thus still has a natural quality even though the cognac scent accompanies it. The third dimension (cigarette to pipe) has more significance with lit tobacco to better define the smoke accents, but that is not the topic here.

The interplay of tobacco and cognac results in a masculine, robust but also simultaneously soft fragrance without tipping into sweetness, as one might know from some tobacco-vanilla/tonka combinations. One could draw parallels and distinctions to well-known perfumes, but this should be omitted due to the already existing length of the comment. However, it can be stated that this is not a fragrance innovation but rather a classic theme of perfumery, which has been implemented in remarkable quality. Classic could also serve as a guiding principle over the entire fragrance. Those who enjoy neon-lit consumer temples would not find joy in this fragrance, but would probably not visit the stylish Schlossparfümerie either. So, what belongs together finds its way together here.

May the two celebrants have many more wonderful years and may we perfume lovers be blessed with even more fragrances from the Signature Line.