DrB1414

The best way to describe this scent is that of an old fireplace. Being next to the fireplace, sipping your tea, reading an old, dusty book. On my skin, this perfume unfolds as a most gorgeous Amber Fossil accord with a prominent Lapsang tea woody-smoky aroma. I get almost zero sweetness from it, although it lists honey. You have the smoky quality from the tea note, with a characteristic woody undertone adjoined to the smokiness of the amber fossil, labdanum, and other resins used. I love Amber Resin accords in perfumery, and this one is among the best I have come across. On top of that, all-natural, using actual fossilized amber resin. Hence, you get the typical facets of leather, dustiness, dryness, and toffee-like texture. There is also a slight bitter-medicinal feel to the perfume that works well with the other accords. When I smell an amber resin-themed perfume, I want it to make me think of something old and dusty. Very few managed to pull off that imagery, this one being one of them and the most realistic at that. In a market where all the Amber perfumes are overdosed on vanillin, ambrarome, and ambroxan, with the sweetness reaching sky-high limits, compositions like this are a breath of fresh air, or should I say, old air.

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Douleur from Bogue Profumo. A collaborative work between Antonio Gardoni and tattoo artist Freddie Albrighton.

A quirky and avant-garde perfume that doesn't smell challenging or experimental to me, as some have claimed. When I focus on it (gently because it is nuclear) I can detect some of the peculiar accords like the raw meat, plastic toys, and the salty seaweed accord. But if I spray it and go about my day, it smells surprisingly pleasant. It reminds me of the scent of Plum Preserves, the way they are traditionally made here in Eastern Europe. Exactly like that. If I close my eyes and enjoy its aroma in the air. Furthermore, to reinforce that scent association, my mom made the same comment when she smelled it, even adding that it smelled nice. Hence, the perception of perfume is most certainly subjective. Close-up, on the skin, however, I can pick up the quirky parts of it. Space Rangers and Barbie dolls, metallic roses, mint-flavored bubble gum, and sweet fruitiness. Raw meat at times served in blood. Overall though, not a challenging scent for me, it's rather pleasant. Now, the Achilles' heel with this perfume is the ridiculous performance. Simply put, I can't bring myself to wear it. Occasionally, I take off the cap, smell it, and tell myself "Not today!". It gives me a headache unless I spray it underneath my clothes, and if I do, I can incinerate them. Hence, as much as I love the smell, there is not much point to it unless I can enjoy it. Original, yet unwearable for me. But if you like them bigger than life, you might not have this problem.

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Ceylon Royale from Imperial Oud. Best Silani I tried alongside Ensar's Suriranka Senkoh. I used to prefer the first over the latter, but that changed with time. Still, both are amazing, and I compare any Silani that comes my way to them.

This oil has all the beautiful nuances I love so much in Suriranka Senkoh, yet they strike differently during various stages of its evolution. Overall, it feels more translucent, not as aquamarine as it is ozonic, not as floral as it is fruity, and not as creamy and incense heavy, yet both traits are present. The opening is green but lighter in color, mingled with a white ozonic hue, without stretching as much toward the ocean. The mid-phase has some floral tonalities, yet I get more exotic fruits, with an almost zesty quality and a green bitterness. The base has the nice Gyrinops creamy-vanillic signature and some faint incense. An overall exotic, pristine, and multi-faceted Walla oil that is hard to come across nowadays, maybe impossible. A treasure for this specific profile, no doubt. A vertical multi-layered progression with green, white, gray, blue, and yellow colors.

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White Kinam from Enar Oud. An all-around excellent Borneo oud oil hailing from the Malinau jungles of the North Kalimantan province of Indonesia. Many consider Malinau the most prized area for Borneo oils, and I can see why. They are very satisfying, much like Koh Kong is for Cambodia.

White Kinam is an Excellent Malinau oil, bearing the signature trait of the region and much more on top of that. Oriscent DNA meets Malinau DNA. White is a perfect way to describe this oud oil. Smelling it makes me think of white powder, white silk, white musk, white chocolate, and clear, white diamonds. You get the rich Malinau wood core, the vanilla creaminess, the honey, the white flowers, and even the blueberries in the opening. All wrapped in this huge vaporous cloud of white powder. I smell the "Oriscnet vaporous fumes" as a standard signature with almost all their oils, but here, it feels more prominent and long-lasting than with all the others.

The opening is a blast of blueberries covered by white clouds and vapors. Underneath, honey, white flowers, soft-warm spices, and a deep woody backbone. The white powdery quality dims down with time but never fades away. The blueberries soon morph into florals topped with honey, which later turn to the more familiar nutty, vanilla-flavored deep wood Malinau aroma. In the dry down, I get the "white chocolate" accord, perhaps due to the intermingling between the vanillic-sweet facet and the white powderiness. The performance is amazing with this oil. It is a strong projector with lasting power on the skin. This one always comes up when you ask people about some of their favorite Boenoes or Oriscent oils. Having tried a good amount of them, I can see why. I think it is one of the finest and among the best Oriscents from the post-2012 Ensar Oud/Oriscent Era.

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A marvelous floral chypre from Bruno Fazzolari centered around one of my favorite materials, narcissus.

What I love most about Au Delà Narcisse is how its floral repertoire extends beyond the narcissus. There is a good amount of jasmine alongside orange blossom, giving off the impression of a floral bouquet. Or it could be walking into a floral garden during springtime. I see bergamot listed as a top note, however the perfume explodes in its floral glory, and I can't pick up any citrus burst. The florals are balanced by a hefty dose of oakmoss, bitter and inky, chocolaty patchouli, caramel-like labdanum, and vanillic benzoin. The "Chypre" accord that makes up the base is tuned so well. It walks a fine balance that I have not come across often. Bitter and earthy yet with a slight dustiness and the perfect amount of warmth and sweetness from the resins. The jasmine and the orange blossom are major players and never let the narcissus lead independently. A true floral chypre composition that takes from the past and adds a significant touch of modernity.

A compelling perfume that shines during Spring and Summer or, according to Bruno, in pajamas at home. It would fit any occasion. It has the refinement and the vintage flair to suit formal events and the nostalgic feel to caress your soul in the comfort of your home.

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