Top Notes 
Gardenia absolute
Heliotrope
Tuberose absolute
Ylang-ylang absolute
Heart Notes 
Black caraway
Damask rose absolute
Honey
Jasmine sambac
Nutmeg
Base Notes 
Ambergris
Beeswax
Black ambergris
Castoreum
Civet
Musk
Mysore sandalwood
Resins
Rosewood
Tobacco
Tolu balm
05/20/2025
ClaireV
969 Reviews
ClaireV
1
Tribute to vintage Opium
A beautiful mukhallat that was originally composed as a tribute to vintage Opium, Rêve Narcotique turns out to be a much softer, retro-styled floral amber than the all-out spice and resin bomb I had been expecting. Vintage Opium’s floral note comes from a carnation-rose axis, shored up by a hot, powdery clove note that blows even more heat into the smoky, balsamic base. Rêve Narcotique, in contrast, builds its floral component along a warmer, creamier axis of ylang, gardenia, jasmine, and tuberose, producing a slightly grassy floral bouquet that counterpoints the smoky, balsamic basenotes more dramatically.
The predominant floral here – to my nose at least – is a dark, phenolic jasmine surrounded by smoldering resins, making it difficult not to draw a dotted line between Rêve Narcotique and Anubis (Papillon). But unlike Anubis, which ends in a fiery bath of smoldering resins and chewed-out leather, Rêve Narcotique slides into an extended gardenia-tuberose riff. The gardenia in Rêve Narcotique begins quietly but quickly gathers pace to become a surprisingly significant player in the composition. It has an almost savory thickness that is very satisfying, like wild mushroom soup with lashings of double cream. The green milkiness of the note also reminds one of the slightly grassy taste of fresh Irish butter, recalling the meadows in which the cows have grazed. It is rare to find a gardenia note as good as this, so gardenia lovers should make sampling this mukhallat a priority.
On balance, the florals in Rêve Narcotique are dark, serious, and ultimately, delicate. People who are afraid of the loudness and shrill sweetness of the Big White Floral category of fragrances need not worry about the florals in Rêve Narcotique. Natural floral enfleurages and absolutes, minus any synthetics to sharpen them into a sonic boom that can be felt several rooms over, tend to be subtly fragrant rather than loud. Furthermore, the grassiness of the gardenia and the burnt-tire smokiness of the jasmine take the florals here as far away from that big bouquet of wedding flowers as you can get.
The predominant floral here – to my nose at least – is a dark, phenolic jasmine surrounded by smoldering resins, making it difficult not to draw a dotted line between Rêve Narcotique and Anubis (Papillon). But unlike Anubis, which ends in a fiery bath of smoldering resins and chewed-out leather, Rêve Narcotique slides into an extended gardenia-tuberose riff. The gardenia in Rêve Narcotique begins quietly but quickly gathers pace to become a surprisingly significant player in the composition. It has an almost savory thickness that is very satisfying, like wild mushroom soup with lashings of double cream. The green milkiness of the note also reminds one of the slightly grassy taste of fresh Irish butter, recalling the meadows in which the cows have grazed. It is rare to find a gardenia note as good as this, so gardenia lovers should make sampling this mukhallat a priority.
On balance, the florals in Rêve Narcotique are dark, serious, and ultimately, delicate. People who are afraid of the loudness and shrill sweetness of the Big White Floral category of fragrances need not worry about the florals in Rêve Narcotique. Natural floral enfleurages and absolutes, minus any synthetics to sharpen them into a sonic boom that can be felt several rooms over, tend to be subtly fragrant rather than loud. Furthermore, the grassiness of the gardenia and the burnt-tire smokiness of the jasmine take the florals here as far away from that big bouquet of wedding flowers as you can get.
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