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Pure Leather Revisited
My nose has probably become more refined from all the testing, because since I got a bottle again, I perceive Pure Leather differently than in my previous review. So much so that I quickly deleted my old comment to rewrite it.
Pure Leather is still very close to the original, yet for reasons I cannot explain, it is the closest to Pure Coffee, probably because these two flankers are close to the original and less edgy.
The sour, tar-heavy top note that some people find is not present here; instead, you immediately dive into this coffee-toffee-caramel-brownie, similar to how I described it in the review of A*Men.
What is missing in the drydown is the mint, which - quite obviously - generates the scent of mint chocolate.
For me, as soon as the alcohol evaporates, the leather note is present from start to finish.
But what is a leather note?
When I first commented on PL, I was often told to try Cuir Ottoman by Parfums d'Empire. I have done that by now. And some others as well.
The scent of leather is often recreated in perfumery by notes that smell similar to tar or asphalt. Or the black, viscous goo that comes out of coal when distilled in a glass flask.
In Cuir Ottoman, the leather note is tar-like for me. And I do not perceive any other type of leather note in PL.
And I think all the people who say "Yes, the tar note has just been toned down" are exactly the ones who miss the leather note.
They do not perceive the leather as such; they misinterpret it as a toned-down tar note.
And that is quite possible; Andy Tauer's "Loretta" is a fruity combination of leather and tuberose. The scent smells quite good from a distance, but up close, I have the image in my mind of the tuberose breaking through a freshly tarred road with all its force, so that you inhale its scent along with the fumes of the asphalt.
By testing Cuir Ottoman, I was able to better detect and define the leather note in PL. It is not as intense as in Cuir Ottoman, yet it is quite perceptible for me and gives PL a small contrast between "edgy" and "soft".
This brownie is eaten with a fine leather glove.
Performance is still monstrous: 10-12 hours of longevity, similarly intense as the original A*Men (3 sprays are completely sufficient).
Pure Leather gets a full 100% from me - now that I have grasped all the stylistic devices. It demands understanding.
Pure Leather is still very close to the original, yet for reasons I cannot explain, it is the closest to Pure Coffee, probably because these two flankers are close to the original and less edgy.
The sour, tar-heavy top note that some people find is not present here; instead, you immediately dive into this coffee-toffee-caramel-brownie, similar to how I described it in the review of A*Men.
What is missing in the drydown is the mint, which - quite obviously - generates the scent of mint chocolate.
For me, as soon as the alcohol evaporates, the leather note is present from start to finish.
But what is a leather note?
When I first commented on PL, I was often told to try Cuir Ottoman by Parfums d'Empire. I have done that by now. And some others as well.
The scent of leather is often recreated in perfumery by notes that smell similar to tar or asphalt. Or the black, viscous goo that comes out of coal when distilled in a glass flask.
In Cuir Ottoman, the leather note is tar-like for me. And I do not perceive any other type of leather note in PL.
And I think all the people who say "Yes, the tar note has just been toned down" are exactly the ones who miss the leather note.
They do not perceive the leather as such; they misinterpret it as a toned-down tar note.
And that is quite possible; Andy Tauer's "Loretta" is a fruity combination of leather and tuberose. The scent smells quite good from a distance, but up close, I have the image in my mind of the tuberose breaking through a freshly tarred road with all its force, so that you inhale its scent along with the fumes of the asphalt.
By testing Cuir Ottoman, I was able to better detect and define the leather note in PL. It is not as intense as in Cuir Ottoman, yet it is quite perceptible for me and gives PL a small contrast between "edgy" and "soft".
This brownie is eaten with a fine leather glove.
Performance is still monstrous: 10-12 hours of longevity, similarly intense as the original A*Men (3 sprays are completely sufficient).
Pure Leather gets a full 100% from me - now that I have grasped all the stylistic devices. It demands understanding.
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Mojito-Pinacolada-Hybrid
Batucada screams summer to me.
It smells fruity, sweet, and slightly sour, comparable to a hybrid of Mojito and Pinacolada: slightly minty, slightly sour, milky-sweet, and fruity, almost fizzy. On my skin, this sugary sweetness diminishes, which could remind one of Juicy Fruit gum, yet it always stays closer to the cocktail.
This salty note is probably what Lav meant, which could lean towards unwashed skin - or more precisely, sweat.
I know what she means, but I don't fully grasp it. It doesn't smell like sweat or unwashed to me; however, this note somehow evokes a certain warmth, as if one were dancing with a Brazilian belly dancer at 38°C in the blazing sun, who is practically writhing against you (and both she and you are sweating profusely; fresh sweat doesn't stink).
THIS is what I get from Batucada:
A party at 38°C in the height of summer, dancing half-naked skin to skin with hot girls and drinking cocktails to music with plenty of rhythm and bass.
I was initially convinced that Ananas Fizz was THE summer scent from L'Artisan. But Batucada is better.
Both are somewhat moderate in performance as summer scents; you can easily apply a bit more without any issues, but it becomes very close to the skin after about 4 hours.
Still, I can't imagine anything better for beach parties right now.
It smells fruity, sweet, and slightly sour, comparable to a hybrid of Mojito and Pinacolada: slightly minty, slightly sour, milky-sweet, and fruity, almost fizzy. On my skin, this sugary sweetness diminishes, which could remind one of Juicy Fruit gum, yet it always stays closer to the cocktail.
This salty note is probably what Lav meant, which could lean towards unwashed skin - or more precisely, sweat.
I know what she means, but I don't fully grasp it. It doesn't smell like sweat or unwashed to me; however, this note somehow evokes a certain warmth, as if one were dancing with a Brazilian belly dancer at 38°C in the blazing sun, who is practically writhing against you (and both she and you are sweating profusely; fresh sweat doesn't stink).
THIS is what I get from Batucada:
A party at 38°C in the height of summer, dancing half-naked skin to skin with hot girls and drinking cocktails to music with plenty of rhythm and bass.
I was initially convinced that Ananas Fizz was THE summer scent from L'Artisan. But Batucada is better.
Both are somewhat moderate in performance as summer scents; you can easily apply a bit more without any issues, but it becomes very close to the skin after about 4 hours.
Still, I can't imagine anything better for beach parties right now.
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Aventus EdT
Yep. I can actually keep this comment very short: TdF smells like an EdT version of Aventus. Buy it. Done.
But that would be too boring. I compared the fragrance with Aventus, and on 5-minute-old test strips, they are indistinguishable from a distance. Only upon closer sniffing do you notice that Aventus is denser/higher concentrated and that TdF has a touch more bergamot, which makes it seem lighter and more citrusy.
1-2 days later, you can also tell on the paper strips that TdF is weaker on the skin than Aventus. Nevertheless, both drydowns are somehow smoky-leathery and again underlaid with musk and vanilla. I suspect the smoky-leathery aspect comes from some birch tar.
On the skin, the situation looks quite similar. At first, there is a sweet and naturally appearing pineapple note, fruity and "juicy" made by apple and currant.
However, then follows a pretty fresh, green section. For some reason, it reminds me of Creed's Original Vetiver; in any case, this is where it deviates the most from Aventus. The drydown, however, is almost identical again.
I’m not quite sure how it behaves with nose habituation, but after 3 hours, I actually don’t perceive TdF anymore; it seems to transition into a skin scent for me.
However, if I start to sweat/get warm due to work, for example, the fragrance reactivates with its lovely pineapple top note. And that even after 6 hours. So it seems the scent is indeed more persistent.
I would compare the performance to that of YSL L'Homme. For the price segment, it’s completely fine and definitely a very good designer fragrance.
I’m excited, anyway; it’s still the closest thing to Aventus. And anyone looking for a great signature scent should at least give it a try. There has never been a better pineapple note in the designer segment.
But that would be too boring. I compared the fragrance with Aventus, and on 5-minute-old test strips, they are indistinguishable from a distance. Only upon closer sniffing do you notice that Aventus is denser/higher concentrated and that TdF has a touch more bergamot, which makes it seem lighter and more citrusy.
1-2 days later, you can also tell on the paper strips that TdF is weaker on the skin than Aventus. Nevertheless, both drydowns are somehow smoky-leathery and again underlaid with musk and vanilla. I suspect the smoky-leathery aspect comes from some birch tar.
On the skin, the situation looks quite similar. At first, there is a sweet and naturally appearing pineapple note, fruity and "juicy" made by apple and currant.
However, then follows a pretty fresh, green section. For some reason, it reminds me of Creed's Original Vetiver; in any case, this is where it deviates the most from Aventus. The drydown, however, is almost identical again.
I’m not quite sure how it behaves with nose habituation, but after 3 hours, I actually don’t perceive TdF anymore; it seems to transition into a skin scent for me.
However, if I start to sweat/get warm due to work, for example, the fragrance reactivates with its lovely pineapple top note. And that even after 6 hours. So it seems the scent is indeed more persistent.
I would compare the performance to that of YSL L'Homme. For the price segment, it’s completely fine and definitely a very good designer fragrance.
I’m excited, anyway; it’s still the closest thing to Aventus. And anyone looking for a great signature scent should at least give it a try. There has never been a better pineapple note in the designer segment.
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Gray Velvet
Since I want to distract myself from university stuff, I finally want to write the comment on Iris De Nuit, which I've been planning to do for ages, because this fragrance simply fascinates me and I think it is one of the most beautiful Heeleys.
At the beginning, I definitely perceive violet and carrot seed, underscored by that creamy-buttery quality that Iris has (which others refer to as "lipstick accord"). Carrot seed here essentially has a mild scent of carrots, like when you bite into them and the cell juice is released.
Since Iris in other iris fragrances - especially in Iris Silver Mist - by Serge Lutens lends the scent a very melancholic quality, this contrast with the violets and carrot seed is relatively important and also good, as it refreshes and livens up the iris.
After a few minutes, the violets and carrot seeds recede while iris and ambrette - a plant-based musk - come out a bit more. Ambrette also gives it a slight, very light earthy touch.
The ambrette is also relatively persistent, as one of the best tricks of the fragrance relies on it.
The iris is perceptible throughout, only its characteristics change with the progression of the other components.
After a while, Iris De Nuit merges with the skin, for me a sign that this is not "amber" but "ambergris." The packaging also states "Grey Amber," a synonym for ambergris.
Ambergris has - similar to Creed fragrances - a way of making a scent smell very clean. The combination of ambergris with musk (here ambrette, as it is a plant-based musk) - like in D&G Light Blue - smells like human skin.
And that's exactly what happens here: The initially fresh and lively iris becomes warmer and settles on the skin, but never loses its density and complexity.
Luca Turin describes it quite aptly: top notes extraordinarily wine-like, in the drydown, however, like a gray velvet veil that settles on the skin.
Although Heeley fragrances are very light and transparent, IdN has a very good contrast program.
Iris De Nuit actually has good longevity, but the sillage completely disappears after about 3 hours. I have never tried spraying it on textiles, but in any case, the scent will make both clothes and oneself smell clean. And I mean really clean, very tidy, downright impeccably groomed.
The fragrance is for quiet connoisseurs and for one's own comfort zone, not for the environment.
In my opinion, Iris De Nuit is pure elegance in a bottle. And I own one of those. You should too.
Oh yes, I want to preemptively write something about ambrette before anyone screams "That stuff is banned!":
First of all, these are EU regulations. Regulations are not laws. They stipulate that at least a warning label must be placed on the packaging. And that is the case here: The packaging warns not to spray the fragrance on skin areas exposed to strong sunlight.
Ambrette can react with the skin under UV radiation and can therefore - CAN, but does not have to - trigger allergic reactions.
The warning label leads me to assume that good musk ambrette is still used here. If you're worried, it's best to spray your clothes instead, then the clothes will smell clean, pure, and unblemished.
But please don't let this discourage you from testing the fragrance, because this can essentially happen with any other ingredient in perfumes.
I practically bathed in IdN last summer and spent most of the time in the sun, and I'm doing fine.
At the beginning, I definitely perceive violet and carrot seed, underscored by that creamy-buttery quality that Iris has (which others refer to as "lipstick accord"). Carrot seed here essentially has a mild scent of carrots, like when you bite into them and the cell juice is released.
Since Iris in other iris fragrances - especially in Iris Silver Mist - by Serge Lutens lends the scent a very melancholic quality, this contrast with the violets and carrot seed is relatively important and also good, as it refreshes and livens up the iris.
After a few minutes, the violets and carrot seeds recede while iris and ambrette - a plant-based musk - come out a bit more. Ambrette also gives it a slight, very light earthy touch.
The ambrette is also relatively persistent, as one of the best tricks of the fragrance relies on it.
The iris is perceptible throughout, only its characteristics change with the progression of the other components.
After a while, Iris De Nuit merges with the skin, for me a sign that this is not "amber" but "ambergris." The packaging also states "Grey Amber," a synonym for ambergris.
Ambergris has - similar to Creed fragrances - a way of making a scent smell very clean. The combination of ambergris with musk (here ambrette, as it is a plant-based musk) - like in D&G Light Blue - smells like human skin.
And that's exactly what happens here: The initially fresh and lively iris becomes warmer and settles on the skin, but never loses its density and complexity.
Luca Turin describes it quite aptly: top notes extraordinarily wine-like, in the drydown, however, like a gray velvet veil that settles on the skin.
Although Heeley fragrances are very light and transparent, IdN has a very good contrast program.
Iris De Nuit actually has good longevity, but the sillage completely disappears after about 3 hours. I have never tried spraying it on textiles, but in any case, the scent will make both clothes and oneself smell clean. And I mean really clean, very tidy, downright impeccably groomed.
The fragrance is for quiet connoisseurs and for one's own comfort zone, not for the environment.
In my opinion, Iris De Nuit is pure elegance in a bottle. And I own one of those. You should too.
Oh yes, I want to preemptively write something about ambrette before anyone screams "That stuff is banned!":
First of all, these are EU regulations. Regulations are not laws. They stipulate that at least a warning label must be placed on the packaging. And that is the case here: The packaging warns not to spray the fragrance on skin areas exposed to strong sunlight.
Ambrette can react with the skin under UV radiation and can therefore - CAN, but does not have to - trigger allergic reactions.
The warning label leads me to assume that good musk ambrette is still used here. If you're worried, it's best to spray your clothes instead, then the clothes will smell clean, pure, and unblemished.
But please don't let this discourage you from testing the fragrance, because this can essentially happen with any other ingredient in perfumes.
I practically bathed in IdN last summer and spent most of the time in the sun, and I'm doing fine.
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Boozy Vanilla
After it has been on me for 14 hours now and I can still clearly perceive it, it's time for another review, which hopefully shows others that it’s worth testing a fragrance every now and then and actually spraying it on the skin and monitoring it.
When I first tested Spiritueuse Double Vanille, I was disgusted. The top note smells alcoholic, almost like fermented fruit. However, I now have a good comparison: My girlfriend just made apple turnovers for us last week. The filling was slightly sour, had a faintly fermented smell (and it attracted flies, something I have never seen before) and she told me that her bottle of rum had gone a bit off. Not unappetizing at all, the turnovers were delicious, but they smelled "unnatural".
But that’s roughly how you can imagine the opening of SDV: fermented apple puree with rum, slightly unpleasant and "sharp" for the nose.
This "sharpness" is probably caused by the pepper; some noses might suspect it to be peppermint.
I can't explain which components of the fragrance pyramid emulate this rum-and-fermented-fruit note, but that’s my impression.
However, this fermented aspect fades after 10-15 minutes to the point where it is perceived as fruity, while the rum remains and the vanilla comes to the forefront. And I must say, this vanilla seems even sweeter and more powerful from a distance than up close; it’s absolutely hard to put into words. It is incredibly powerful and strongly present, but never intrusive, very sweet, but never sticky, very warm, but never oppressively humid, precisely because it is lightened up by this fruitiness.
Additionally, I must say that something slightly caramel-like is added in the drydown, somewhat related to Pure Malt.
It therefore reminds me a bit of the old Dior Homme Intense, with the difference that SDV has a much stranger quality:
It seems to create a vanilla hologram around you. Strangely, the intensity decreases with diminishing distance. So you can approach me without suffocating. And that is fascinating, as you are guaranteed to stand out, but not too offensively and definitely not "cheap" smelling.
For me, an astonishingly well-balanced vanilla fragrance, possibly one of the best. Possibly. Definitely comparable to Un Bois Vanille by Serge Lutens.
Longevity is monstrous as I already said; right now it has been 14 hours and I can still smell it on me. Sillage is very good; I was standing on the platform 2 hours ago with a fellow student and complained about someone who walked past us, as his bottle of One in a Million seemed to have gone off. She, on the other hand, said, "Well, I only smell you." - "Oh, that's cool - is it pleasant or too intrusive?" - "Smells good, as long as you don't smoke out a room with it again ;)"
(This comment was a reference to my Royal Oud).
All in all, I am thrilled with SDV and its performance; I have heard worse.
A little bonus: I have the retro bottle, which is très chic.
Recommended for people who like the following fragrances:
Un Bois Vanille by Serge Lutens
Dior Homme Intense
A*Men Pure Malt
the following L'art et la matieres: Cuir Beluga, Tonka Imperiale & Iris Ganache.
And of course vanilla fragrances in general. ;)
When I first tested Spiritueuse Double Vanille, I was disgusted. The top note smells alcoholic, almost like fermented fruit. However, I now have a good comparison: My girlfriend just made apple turnovers for us last week. The filling was slightly sour, had a faintly fermented smell (and it attracted flies, something I have never seen before) and she told me that her bottle of rum had gone a bit off. Not unappetizing at all, the turnovers were delicious, but they smelled "unnatural".
But that’s roughly how you can imagine the opening of SDV: fermented apple puree with rum, slightly unpleasant and "sharp" for the nose.
This "sharpness" is probably caused by the pepper; some noses might suspect it to be peppermint.
I can't explain which components of the fragrance pyramid emulate this rum-and-fermented-fruit note, but that’s my impression.
However, this fermented aspect fades after 10-15 minutes to the point where it is perceived as fruity, while the rum remains and the vanilla comes to the forefront. And I must say, this vanilla seems even sweeter and more powerful from a distance than up close; it’s absolutely hard to put into words. It is incredibly powerful and strongly present, but never intrusive, very sweet, but never sticky, very warm, but never oppressively humid, precisely because it is lightened up by this fruitiness.
Additionally, I must say that something slightly caramel-like is added in the drydown, somewhat related to Pure Malt.
It therefore reminds me a bit of the old Dior Homme Intense, with the difference that SDV has a much stranger quality:
It seems to create a vanilla hologram around you. Strangely, the intensity decreases with diminishing distance. So you can approach me without suffocating. And that is fascinating, as you are guaranteed to stand out, but not too offensively and definitely not "cheap" smelling.
For me, an astonishingly well-balanced vanilla fragrance, possibly one of the best. Possibly. Definitely comparable to Un Bois Vanille by Serge Lutens.
Longevity is monstrous as I already said; right now it has been 14 hours and I can still smell it on me. Sillage is very good; I was standing on the platform 2 hours ago with a fellow student and complained about someone who walked past us, as his bottle of One in a Million seemed to have gone off. She, on the other hand, said, "Well, I only smell you." - "Oh, that's cool - is it pleasant or too intrusive?" - "Smells good, as long as you don't smoke out a room with it again ;)"
(This comment was a reference to my Royal Oud).
All in all, I am thrilled with SDV and its performance; I have heard worse.
A little bonus: I have the retro bottle, which is très chic.
Recommended for people who like the following fragrances:
Un Bois Vanille by Serge Lutens
Dior Homme Intense
A*Men Pure Malt
the following L'art et la matieres: Cuir Beluga, Tonka Imperiale & Iris Ganache.
And of course vanilla fragrances in general. ;)
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