Impérial Santal Schlossparfumerie Wolff & Sohn Stuttgart 2012

As explicitly stated on the packaging, the Schlossparfümerie Stuttgart (known to niche fragrance enthusiasts) has this and other scents produced by M. Micallef in France.

Micallef, with their "Private Line," which is the part of their production where fragrances are made to order for clients (this refers to B2B clients, not to be confused with the Bespoke Line), is, if I'm correctly informed, one of the market leaders. It is not uncommon for the fragrances to have a certain recognizability - even "Imperial Santal" for the Schlossparfümerie is identical to "Imperial Santal" from the "Micallef Studio" line, except for one component in the base. Unfortunately, I do not have this scent on hand, just like "Santal Impérial," the great inspiration for Creed, and therefore cannot make a direct comparison at this time. (I hope to remedy this soon)

The opening of the Schlossparfümerie version of "Imperial Santal" features plenty of synthetic citrus notes in medium mainstream quality, with quite a strong sillage; I can interpret bergamot and grapefruit with some effort, but I do not recognize any natural scent impressions or memories from "real life." This also applies to the following heart note, where the fragrance takes on a distinctly greener and light woody character, still quite loud and synthetic, while I perceive patchouli rather subtly. In the base, the scent then shifts to a beige-green-creamy tone, still quite light but very reconciliatory.

The surprising thing is: this fragrance works surprisingly well in its woodcut-like, rough, and jagged amalgamation! The citrus-bright aura radiates, the woody sandal aspect shines through clearly and is well perceivable, and the green component enhances the experience - a bright, radiant, friendly, and very present scent that immediately calls out "Creed!!" to me, which is quite sympathetic, open, and joyful. The target audience is, in my perception, clearly the Creed clientele, and the bright, clear, citrus-sharp, direct, and often loud yet always open and precise language of these fragrances speaks "Imperial Santal" fluently, without a strong accent and surprisingly adeptly. Those who like Creed fragrances (and there are very many...) should definitely pay attention to this significantly cheaper clone (85€ per 100ml). As a Creed detractor, I am not the target audience, but I can certainly recognize and appreciate the appeal.