Best & Worst of Niche Perfumery in 2023 - Alternative Categories

Disclaimer: This article is a ~25-30 minute read. All of the categories have accompanying lists with images at the end of the relevant categories - you may want to skim the post and/or read the parts that most interest you.

Introduction

To start off, I want to thank everybody who supported the previous blog post as it took me a massive amount of time to figure out the contents, the styling, and everything in-between to make the article readable for both those highly interested and those looking to skim-read. For those looking to see my ranking criteria and the rest of the relevant introductory information on how I rank fragrances in these posts & which fragrances are included, I will again refer you to the previous post.

Since I have my 2022 rankings and my 2023 rankings, I find some categories easier to put together and others more difficult. In this post, some of these categories will be more difficult as there will be more opinion mixed in. In this post, I will be covering the following 4 categories:

• Biggest disappointments of 2023,
• Most challenging of 2023,
• Biggest surprises of 2023, and
• Fragcom hoax of 2023.

For the last category, I will be reflecting on the time I spent actively trotting along within the Parfumo, Instagram and YouTube fragrance communities during the 2023 calendar year. Make sure you read the last category to see how I really feel. As always, I hope you enjoy the read.

Biggest disappointments of 2023

All fragrances under this category are ranked purely based on my personal opinions of what I was expecting and how I ended up feeling about the final product.

Loser of 2023: Amouage Jubilation 40 - read my full review here
Ranked 17th of 101, scent profile 8.5/10

In the previous post, I ranked Jubilation 40 as the runner-up in the "Best blending" category and that is objectively true. In terms of scent, J40 feels like it would only be behind elite, premium niche brands like Royal Crown, Clive Christian and Boadicea the Victorious. The mix & match of accords and notes in J40 feels like it is among Amouage's very best. And yet somehow, J40 ends up as my biggest disappointment in 2023 for very different reasons. As the years have gone by, Jubilation XXV Man, the scent J40 is based upon, became a shadow of its former self much the same way that the modern fragrance community views Aventus. As such, the biggest expectation for many coming into J40 was for a strong fragrance with elite staying power and in the end, we got neither - we got a second version of the current J25.

It is difficult to describe just how underwhelmed I felt when the scent fell flat to the skin within moments (~30 minutes) of being applied. The retail price of €455/100ml wouldn't have been an issue, given current J25 already sells for €345 as Amouage has hiked prices twice in the aftermath of the virus, first from 300 to 330 and then from 330 to 345. The lackluster performance of Jubilation 40 is what has driven me into the vintage J25 market where old bottles from 2008-2012 retail as high as $700-800, occasionally as high as $1,200 for 100ml. That is the aftermath of J40 having a weak sillage & longevity - a world where people will be driven to pay large markups to not have to deal with the current version of the original.

---

Runner-up: Xerjoff Torino23 - read my full review here
Ranked 61st of 101, scent profile 5.0/10

Torino23 was one of my two blind-buys this year, alongside Smoking Hot. But unlike the Kilian which I had 5th in my annual rankings, the Xerjoff was a lackluster release that I instantly pushed towards the back of my shelf and the biggest reason why I felt underwhelmed is quite interesting: it doesn't feel like Torino. Xerjoff has been releasing fragrances in the Torino line to celebrate the ATP Finals being held in Turin, with the tennis tournament having Xerjoff as their biggest sponsor. The collection got off to a hit start with "Join The Club - Torino21 | XerJoff", a fresh-citrusy white floral scent with mild sweetness. They followed it up with "Join The Club - Torino22 | XerJoff", a fresh-sweet scent with eucalyptus & saffron. Mild accord overlap made me feel like they'd continue to release fragrances that had both freshness and sweetness. And they did... sort-of.

Torino23 has a different type of freshness, a cleanly one stemming from the white floral tones. But the overall feel of this scent is of an oldschool neroli bomb with a laundry detergent vibe. There are spices here that bring complexity, making it smell outdated when combined with the floral tones, especially the ylang-ylang that combined with the white floral tones brings hints of Casamorati - 1888. There is also a bizarre vegetal feel in the base from the combined effort of the spices and the patchouli. In the drydown, the cashmere wood brings a dry-ashy feel, mildly similar to base in Casamorati - Bouquet Ideale Eau de Parfum. Overall, the scent doesn't smell like the Torino products from the past and it also has a somewhat evident feminine lean. A whiff of substantial proportions.

---

3rd: Nishane Hacivat Oud - read my full review here
Ranked 60th of 101, scent profile 7.5/10

I actually enjoy the profile of Hacivat Oud. The scent opens with that all-too-familiar pineapple-oakmoss one-two from Hacivat, but there is a very mild oud to this in the top that is instantly spotable. Eventually, I begin to notice a mild vanilla that I'm sure everyone will recognize from Ani Extrait de Parfum. However, the most interesting twist here is that instead of the oakmoss from the original Hacivat I am smelling a minty-fresh patchouli in the base which brings me some resemblance of Clive Christian's Anniversary Collection - 150: Timeless.

I'm sure that all sounds fine & dandy, but ask yourselves what the comparable good is. Hacivat Oud was released in the same line with sophisticated-smelling superstar fragrances like Nefs, Shem, and Mana. In what world does it make sense to release, what is in essence, Hacivat Y into the Prestige Collection where scents retail for €525 for 50ml? This is a great example of when you hope the name sells, because nothing supports releasing this fragrance at this price point. But if it was €315/100ml, I'd own a bottle as I feel like it's distant enough from the profile of Aventus.

---

4th: Xerjoff Groove Xcape
Ranked 96th of 101, scent profile 5.5/10

I first got into niche in mid-2020 and subsequently started ranking new releases in 2022. As such, I don't have a 2021 rankings. But if I did, Tony Iommi Monkey Special would likely be top 3 and there is a chance that it would be top 1. Now imagine the anticipation people would have for a follow-up release into the same collection. This will sound familiar, because Hacivat Oud was also a follow-up into a collection of hard-hitters only to subsequently flop. Groove Xcape is a collaboration between Xerjoff and Max Casacci, the co-founder and guitarist of Subsonica. Unfortunately for Xerjoff, lightning did not strike twice as Groove Xcape was on the border for being a bottom 5 release in 2023.

The biggest reason why Groove Xcape underwhelms... well, I think the easiest way to summarize it is that it doesn't smell like Xerjoff - this fragrance smells more like Amouage as it's just spice from the very first moment. Very dry, resinous smelling; feels like it has a lot of myrrh as the dryness reminds me a bit of Ganymede Extrait. The incense/smokiness is moderate while the rose is very mild (barely there). Key accords are clearly spicy, resinous & oriental with smoky-woody somewhere behind those 3. I think the lack of sweeter tones makes this quite unwearable, but Xerjoff didn't really have much space to make this sweeter without smelling like a myrrh take of Clive Christian's Private Collection - E: Gourmande Oriental. In the end, a not-Xerjoff-like release in a collection that got off to a superstar release. I suspect this is why Xerjoff is releasing "Tony Iommi Deified" in 2024 as Tony Iommi Monkey Special was a huge success and Groove Xcape was a huge failure.

---

5th: Electimuss Vanilla Edesia
Ranked 29th of 101, scent profile 6.0/10

One part PR and one part expectations, Vanilla Edesia was the second successor to my 2023 release of the year, that being Aquila Absolute. Prior to Vanilla Edesia, Electimuss also released Gladiator Oud which is a nice rose-oud fragrance in a highly competitive market segment, especially at that price point. Expectations around Vanilla Edesia were also in part driven by the fact that it's perfumed by Cecile Zarokian, the nose behind Ani Extrait de Parfum.

I think Vanilla Edesia fell short of my expectations because I was expecting something mildly Ani-esque and I didn't get that. Vanilla Edesia is a green-herbal-spicy vanilla, relative to the sweet-spicy-citrusy one of Ani. The vanilla in the Electimuss is not as smooth nor as sweet, albeit it still tries to be creamy. In the drydown, the scent is dominated by the cumin which is bringing a mild bad body-odor vibe in the same way that it does in Burlington 1819. As such, the ultimate drydown is more-so spicy & resinous instead of the spicy & sweet tones of Ani Extrait de Parfum. This product will have demand, but not from me.

---

My biggest disappointments of 2022 list was ordered as follows:
1. "Sketchbook - P.33 | XerJoff" by Xerjoff
2. "Noble XXI: Art Deco - Blonde Amber | Clive Christian" by Clive Christian
3. "Island Lush | Goldfield & Banks" by Goldfield & Banks
4. Soleil de Jeddah Mango Kiss by Stéphane Humbert Lucas
5. Mana by Nishane

Most challenging of 2023

All fragrances under this category are ranked purely based on my personal opinions. Under "Most challenging" I am ordering based on whether I would reach for them, how wearable I deem them to be, and how self-conscious they might make me feel. Note: I'm not including feminine scents here, only unisex or masculine product.

Foreword: Are these winners or losers? You choose - a lot of niche hobbyists get into niche to smell different, to find more complex fragrances and to wear them. Within this category, I'd think of most of these fragrances more-so as losers because I struggle to find utility for them (which is why I don't own any).

"Winner" of 2023: Nasomatto Sadonaso
Ranked 91st of 101, scent profile 5.5/10

I haven't smelled it (and I most likely won't either), but this is what I think a fragrance called "Vanilla Sex | Tom Ford" should smell like. Sadonaso starts off with a creamy and mildly animalic feel, reminding me of something like Royal Crown's Khan. And when you smell it up-close, you instantly get hit with the raunchy, dirty feel that is flanking the overwhelming sweetness present in this. As it dries, I get mild resemblance to the profile of Absolute Aphrodisiac. Sweet & animalic are clearly the leading accords and the scent overall feels quite wooing in a "Hug and squeeze from behind" type of way, a bit like an actual aphrodisiac. I'd say the scent is led by a mild civet and an overpowering vanilla. To me, the final product is mildly more masculine than the aforementioned Initio. This is not only challenging, but it needs both a specific season as well as a specific scenario to be worn in. The very strong performance makes this even more challenging as others will notice this.

---

Runner-up: Masque Milano Mandala Oud - read my full review here
Ranked 100th of 101, scent profile 2.0/10

This could easily be #1 in this category because it's such an offensive fragrance. I actually moved it up from #3 to #2 as I was writing this because ranking it 3rd would be a disservice. Mandala Oud opens with the same kitchen herbal & green angelica note from the original II-II Mandala, but the sweetness from the cinnamon and cardamom are missing. That lack of sweetness and the fading greenness lead into a disastrous oud-angelica one-two. The animalic assam evokes the sensation of dead fish and it overwhelms the scent profile as the rest of the accords, outside of the angelica, effectively become invisible. This scent is so out there that I could basically use it as a smelling salt in the gym, feels like a whiff of ammonium carbonate.

---

3rd: Amouage Lineage
Ranked 93rd of 101, scent profile 4.5/10

Ever feel like people are describing something completely different than what you get? That was my experience with Lineage when the PR bottles flew in and people started calling this an aquatic. I really have to reach deep in my pocket before I find the aquatic accord with this one, because the scent is absolutely overwhelmed by the two primary accords: spicy and green. I really struggle with this profile as most fragrances that bring in fenugreek or angelica always have that kitchen spice pantry feel to them and that is no different here as the aggregate scent feels a bit like cucumber with spices, or a salad. I even saw comparisons to tarragon when Lineage came out. I genuinely don't know who would want to smell like this, especially when you consider the fact that the spices are the main thing that pops when you actually wear it outdoors.

---

4th: Amouage Opus XV - King Blue - read my full review here
Ranked 39th of 101, scent profile 6.0/10

When I first smelled Opus XV - King Blue, I instantly picked up on the same licorice-type sensation I noticed in Opus XIV - Royal Tobacco when that came out in 2022. But unlike a few other reviewers, I definitely don't feel like this has any resemblance to any takes of the BR540 profile. Instead, the licorice feel both in this and in Royal Tobacco usually has me comparing them to Initio's Oud for Happiness. But for what its worth, the wearable oud sensation that Opus XV - King Blue opens with slowly fades and the scent becomes more and more challenging, transitioning to a familiar foe from Amouage's own catalogue, that being Opus XIII - Silver Oud. Vibes of the dead-fishy oud from Silver Oud and the one I previously mentioned for Mandala Oud starts to ramp and the scent feels like a mildly more wearable flanker take of Silver Oud's profile. The performance isn't as strong as on the original Silver Oud, but it's still a very strong scent. I'd say this scent isn't the most challenging in the air, but if anybody gets too close, you are donezo.

---

5th: Maison Crivelli Oud Stallion - read my full review here
Ranked 28th of 101, scent profile 7.5/10

Some of you will be misled by the opening of Oud Stallion as it really does feel like it's the exact same scent as Oud Maracujá, at least on the strip it does. On skin, I'd say Stallion opens more animalic and aggressive than Maracuja did. But as Oud Stallion dries, the other accords really start to pop and it clearly separates itself from Oud Maracuja. What I get at first is a sophisticated leather fragrance with a rubbery saffron and general oriental feel. The saffron is blended quite poorly and smells rubbery like it was in Moresque's The Secret Collection - Scirocco. The general feel of the scent is reminiscent of a darker, more leather driven take of Initio's Blessed Baraka. The scent ultimately has an uber-masculine feel since there are some notes here that bring a specific hydrocarbon sensation. Spiciness is prominent throughout, the sweetness is tame and the florals are effectively nonexistent. A challenging wear for the fall-winter seasons, but nowhere near the top 3, much less the top 2 of this list.

---

My most challenging of 2022 list was ordered as follows:
1. Patchouli Magnetik by Maison Crivelli
2. Soleil de Jeddah Afterglow by Stéphane Humbert Lucas
3. "Guéthary | Eight & Bob" by Eight & Bob
4. Noir by Night by Atelier des Ors
5. Uncut Gem by Frédéric Malle

Biggest surprises of 2023

All fragrances under this category are ranked purely based on my personal opinions. Under "Biggest surprises" I am ordering based on how good the final result was scent wise relative to what I was expecting.

Winner of 2023: Floraiku Boyish
Ranked 18th of 101, scent profile 8.0/10

I had zero expectations for the two Floraiku samples I tried this year, largely because the existing sentiment around Floraiku within the fragrance community is that they make women's fragrances. And that definitely felt like the case after sampling Sand and Skin. Boyish didn't exactly get off to a hot start either, but in the drydown, this fragrance evokes a very unique coziness that I seldom run into in niche. The last fragrance that I smelled that has this type of a nice calming sensation was Initio's Oud for Happiness in 2021.

It took me 2 wears to nail the profile of Boyish. As I'm smelling it on strip for the 3rd time, I definitely get that 2nd wear more-so than the 1st. From the top, the scent smells like a spicy lemon; think lemon + iris/orris or as visible in the Boyish scent pyramid, lemon + cistus. There are woody undertones in the back and the scent ultimately dries a bit like honeyed lemon or lemon tea when you're ill. Boyish is a very well crafted unisex fragrance, but is let down by performance & pricing. It smells unique and has a niche feel to it.

---

Runner-up: Fragrance du Bois AM
Ranked 7th of 101, scent profile 8.0/10

As somebody participating in broader fragrance community, expectations as it relates to smelling any Fragrance du Bois are always low, because the PR-infested landscape of positive-only opinions always has me looking to be contrarian, to dislike it because everyone else got theirs for free (I'm sure most of you wouldn't mind a €300-400, sometimes even an €800 fragrance for free). You'll read more about these aspects below in the "Fragcom hoax" section.

Now Producer Michael, the collaborator behind both AM and PM, has a scent to wear 24/7. I'd say the best part of AM is the fact that it's not PM. What I strongly disliked about PM was the bizarre combination of notes that don't go together (leather, patchouli & tuberose). But what I like about AM is the fact that this product feels fougère-adjacent. It has the same type of bitter fougère feel that many will recognize from Roja's Burlington 1819, but you can also find some of these vibes/accords from B683 Extrait de Parfum and Crop Edition 2023. Some aspects of bitter fougère, some aspect of amped up fig branch or fig leaf. As such, I'd say the violet top note is very prominent here and the cypriol heart note is likely bringing some of that bitterness as well. Very enjoyable scent for older gentlemen to wear in the spring-fall, maybe winter seasons.

---

3rd: Gritti Florian
Ranked 13th of 101, scent profile 8.0/10

Who would've thought that a rose-oud would make this list? Definitely wasn't me, especially when you consider the fact that it's from Gritti, an Italian niche house with a catalogue that is driven by dupes and takes of the most popular scents within niche. But somehow, I feel like Florian has accords from a multitude of different fragrances and that's largely where this placement comes from. The ultimate scent itself is only let down by the speed at which the performance dies down and mildly by the price.

Florian opens traditional rose-cypriol so much so that you just know what the comparables are. The first and obvious one is Favonius. The rose here smells like the one Nishane has used in other scents as well, e.g. Mana. The overall aromatic feel to this may also give vibes of Akaster which is an aromatic rose-oud and my personal favorite from Marly. But it is the drydown with the mix of sweetened top notes and oriental heart-base notes that bring some unique facets here. Namely, to me the sweet tones here offer reminiscence of the nutty praline vibe in Haltane. As it dries, the mix of the Laotian oud with the civet do slowly start to bring a mild animalic flair to this, but the presence of the rose is never questioned. An interesting take on the rose-oud profile and a worthy top 3 entry to this category.

---

4th: Xerjoff Empiryan
Ranked 6th of 101, scent profile 8.5/10

Empiryan, the fragrance that finished 6th in my 2023 rankings, makes an entry in the "Biggest surprises" category. As with most things in this post, it's all about perspective. When Xerjoff announced that they were bringing Kemi in-house while simultaneously releasing the K-Blue collection, Empiryan wasn't a fragrance that I placed high expectations on - my highest expectations were reserved for Astaral and Ether with the ones placed on Empiryan and Holysm being somewhat tame.

I feel comfortable stating that Empiryan was the best tobacco fragrance of 2023 and this is quite sophisticated as a fragrance as well, much like 2022's best tobacco fragrance Opus XIV - Royal Tobacco. But unlike the Amouage, Empiryan has a lot of layers. The scent first opens medicinal & sweet. When smelled up-close, the woodiness is very prominent, but the scent feels very wearable. It subsequently begins to get more spicy, but the amber & the woodiness are always present as is the sweetness. In the ultimate drydown, smoky does become a noteworthy accord. Relative to Xerjoff's crowd-favorite tobacco "XJ 1861 Naxos | XerJoff", this has a more mature vibe and is not as bright while only fitting fall-winter.

---

5th: State of Mind Fanfarone Italiano
Ranked 77th of 101, scent profile 8.5/10

French underground niche house State of Mind makes an entry into the list with Fanfarone Italiano. This fragrance opens with a very specific orange note that reminds me of the pineapple in Aventus and then it gets sweeter, giving me a very bizarre sensation like I was smelling gourmand Aventus. But believe it or not, I suspect this was never intended to be in that scent class. The scent smells syrupy-sweet up-close and the key notes that pop are chocolate & coffee. The underlying scent feels like it's it's some sort of a cross-over between "Agneta | Eight & Bob", Aventus and Kilian's Intoxicated.

What surprised me the most about this is the fact that this is a completely unknown house. As such, I came in with 0 expectations and was very surprised by the blending quality. Several other fragrances from the 13 scent sample kit that I ordered were very smooth as well, e.g. Butterfly Mind was a lovely cherry blossom scent and I also enjoyed both Aesthetic Turbulence and Secret of Success. For a house that is nowhere near anyone's map, the quality on some of the product is definitely there. There are also plenty of letdowns which is why this ranked 77th of 101 even with an 8.5/10 profile. A house with no name recognition charging €255/100ml feels rich. The performance on this scent is very much poor, dare I say very poor. Lastly, the creativity with some of these fragrances is a huge questionmark as it feels like the product is trying to be a multi-fragrance cross-over much like Evasion - Digo de Havane from L'arc or "Imperium | Electimuss" from Electimuss, raising uniqueness into question.

---

My biggest surprises of 2022 list was ordered as follows:
1. Ingredients 072012 by Maison Crivelli
2. "Beyond The Wall | Gritti" by Gritti
3. "Purple Suede | Goldfield & Banks" by Goldfield & Banks
4. To My Father by Vilhelm Parfumerie
5. Super Moon by Carner Barcelona

Fragcom hoax of 2023

All fragrances under this category are ranked purely based on my personal opinions. Under "Fragcom hoax" I am ordering relative to the community's excessive estimations and impressions, including the influencers on YouTube and Instagram.

Noteworthy disclaimer: I did not smell certain brands that have aggressive PR tendencies like Argos, Zaharoff, Kayali etc.

Loser of 2023: Fragrance du Bois Lovers - read my full review here
Ranked 68th of 101, scent profile 6.5/10

As community sentiment on PR-driven brands (those sending free product to influencers for "reviews") continues to sour, I am pouring some cold water on what became the most infamous luxury PR brand in the Instagram and YouTube community during 2023: Fragrance du Bois. From the blatant white-washing by influencers (verbatim quote: "I get good performance of 6 hours") to the huge amount of product all over the feed, if you were a part of the Instagram fragrance community in 2023 it would not have been possible for you to avoid FDB's new releases plastered all over your feed as soon as the fragrances came out. However, as most of the product went to female influencers and as certain other products were limited to store exclusivity within the UK, there was only one unisex fragrance that was promotable across a broader range of influencers and that fragrance was Lovers.

I can't put into words how offensive it is to suggest that this fragrance has "high blend quality" as Lovers smells synthetic right off the rip. In the top, I notice a screechy saffron supported by FDB's signature soapy rose. Mind you, Fragrance du Bois has done saffron before without smelling this overtly synthetic, for example in Secret Tryst. The interesting twist with this fragrance is how the tropical fruity tones pop in the heart and drydown instead of the top, but due to the synthetic nature of the fragrance the comparables become Erba Pura and Kirkè Extrait de Parfum instead of anything smooth. The ultimate drydown is a soapy musk with hints of fruit & rose.

What Lovers did in 2023 is highlight the inability of influencers to say anything negative about a product when they're getting it for free. There was so much cannon fodder to say anything even mildly negative, whether it be the performance, or the blending, or the pricing, or the bizarrely simplistic aggregate profile that you can get by layering 3 fragrances on top of one another; yet in the end, I never saw as much as a peep of negativity so the gravy train could go on. While this same criticism can be applied to several other 2023 releases by Fragrance du Bois like Voyage à Paris and Wild Orange, nothing will top the bad taste that a fragrance leaves in your mouth as you observe a group of mindless drones offer the exact same sentiment day in, day out.

---

Runner-up: Parfums de Marly Althaïr - read my full review here
Ranked 62nd of 101, scent profile 4.5/10

I closed my review of Althaïr with the following statement: "At the end of the year, Althaïr and Lovers will be competing for biggest PR bottle darling within the YT/IG fragrance community with both products being complete jokes." The top two in this category were effectively locked in by late September. I will never forget how Althair was holding a 9.0/10 rating on Parfumo as the ratings counter went from 50 to 200 to 400. So many people were rating it so highly that this would have to be the holy grail fragrance of the last decade, not just 2023. And when I smelled it, in contrast to the ratings of others, I felt like my intelligence was being insulted. I'm a little bit annoyed that I even have to smell it again as I'm writing this.

Althaïr opens with *a huge blast* of orange blossom and it genuinely smells like a women's fragrance. It has all the makings of one - it has the florals and it has the overwhelmingly prominent sweetness with a creamy vanilla. Smells a bit like freshly laundered vanilla ice cream. I have no doubts that Althair has accord overlap with Marly's feminine catalogue which adds familiarity. I also notice some overlap with the types of accords that Goldfield & Banks have in "Silky Woods | Goldfield & Banks", but at the end of the day, this is clearly inspired by designer fragrances like Mercedes-Benz's Club Black, Nikos' Sculpture Homme Eau de Toilette and Alfred Dunhill's Desire for a Man Eau de Toilette.

Althaïr finished Parfumo's 2023 releases rankings as the 2nd most popular scent, only second to Zara's Sunrise on the Red Sand Dunes Eau de Parfum which costs around an 8th of the price of the Marly. Among the Instagram fragrance community, Althair was more liked by female influencers than male ones. But to conclude, I never felt like Althair brought anything interesting to the table - there's no blending, no nuclear performance, lackluster pricing relative to its designer comps, and even the target demographic of the product has me lost due to the accords included. The beginner may end up taking the bait, but for the experienced niche hobbyist this fragrance achieves absolutely nothing. As such, Althaïr serves as an example of the hivemind in the fragrance community when it comes to mainstream niche releases and the influence opinions of others seem to have on us. It also serves as an example of the attention Marly (and potentially Creed) gets just for having their name on the bottle, pushing influencers to cover it for the sake of likes, views, comments, engagement & such.

---

3rd: Penhaligon's Portraits - The Omniscient Mister Thompson
Ranked 49th of 101, scent profile 7.0/10

The criticism as it relates to the imitation of designer vanillas does not stop at just Althaïr, that same criticism also extends to other vanillas released by niche brands in 2023 like Vanilla Powder (below in 4th for this category), Vanille Leather and lastly Portraits - The Omniscient Mister Thompson. I will admit my experience with Penhaligon's prior to smelling Mr. Thompson was somewhat minimal, but after smelling both Mr. Thompson and the new Potions & Remedies collection, I don't think I've ever felt like a niche house was trying to smell like a designer one until this house.

I actually enjoy the opening of Portraits - The Omniscient Mister Thompson as I get this creamy smooth gourmand tonality in the top that makes me think of fresh cookies, but it is the flanking iris in this fragrance that over time becomes the prominent accord with the gourmand tonalities slowly fading. The scent becomes more and more basic, smelling of just designer equivalent iris. Very much similar to fragrances like Dior Homme Intense (2011), Iris Torréfié, Iris de Syracuse and others. Much like Althaïr, this fragrance held an 8.7/10 average on Parfumo prior to me testing it when I accurately pointed out the simplistic designer nature of this fragrance, its absurd pricing relative to what you get, and the very average performance. Completely pointless.

---

4th: Matière Première Vanilla Powder
Ranked 78th of 101, scent profile 3.5/10

Well, my previous comments on Portraits - The Omniscient Mister Thompson certainly highlight a part of the problem as it relates to niche houses trying to create designer-type linear vanillas, but Vanilla Powder steps into another pothole as it relates to the horrible blending quality of the underlying fragrance. While Matière Première isn't known for complex product, largely building scents with few accords and notes, the lack of alignment between the product name and the notes/accords doesn't help Vanilla Powder.

In terms of smelling synthetic, Vanilla Powder puts the rest of the fragrances on this list to shame. It reminds me a bit of solar floral fragrances like Soleil Blanc Eau de Parfum, just without the floral parts as the scent smells of a synthetic & creamy vanilla built on top of white musk and coconut. The performance here is formidable and the value isn't bad, but the underlying scent leaves a lot to be desired. While the scent never picked up on Parfumo as indicated by the 6.9/10 rating, this was one of the feminine releases that got good support on YouTube and Instagram when it never should have, especially when considering the other solar florals that came out this year which were blended better or lasted longer like Solaris and Sand and Skin.

---

5th: Amouage Opus XV - King Blue - read my full review here
Ranked 39th of 101, scent profile 6.0/10

While Roja Parfums used to hold a monopoly on the luxury PR brand title for the past few years, Amouage and Fragrance du Bois were right there to bring competition to that title in 2023. And competition there was. Amouage released fragrances all throughout the year, starting with Odyssey Collection Pt. 3 in January followed by 2 attars, Opus XV - King Blue and lastly the two new additions to the Extraits line, those being Jubilation 40 and Dia 40. And during every step along the way, whether you were on YouTube or Instagram, you were certain to hear about them. Certain YouTubers streamed their first impressions and simultaneously tried to avoid saying anything negative about the fragrance for an hour straight. Certain Instagrammers really tried their hardest to put emphasis on the blue part of the fragrance's name (hint: there's nothing here that aligns with fragcom's traditional definition of blue fragrance).

I already covered the scent profile and the comparables above, so I won't touch on those again here. With that being said, the reason why Opus XV - King Blue lands in 5th on this list is tied to the loudness of the message. King Blue isn't an original IP and as such, the marketing spend from Amouage to get the message out there about this release does not appear to have been as strong as the one for the subsequently released Jubilation 40 which was plastered all over my feed way more than King Blue. However, what King Blue demonstrates is that even if a fragrance is extremely complex you will still see influencers simplify the product down to make it sound like it's worth the time of their average follower and that could not be any further from the truth. When we adjust for the retail pricing (€455/100ml), there's even less space here for a recommendation. And yet, the price gets inaptly ignored and the underlying product is inaptly simplified because if the individual isn't driving sales with a positive message, they're an empty space/cost.

---

My fragcom hoax of 2022 list was ordered as follows:
1. Soleil de Jeddah Mango Kiss by Stéphane Humbert Lucas
2. Crystal Saffron Eau de Parfum by Matière Première
3. Ambre Safrano by bdk Parfums
4. 724 Eau de Parfum by Maison Francis Kurkdjian
5. Apex Eau de Parfum by Roja Parfums

Final word

We once again arrive at the end. I believe that covers all of the key categories I was looking to write about. To those that made it, I appreciate you. For the moment, I will not be posting reviews/statements on 2024 releases as nothing has released yet, so in the short term I'll be covering some of my past samples as well as my Maison Crivelli discovery set. I will be getting a Thameen set some time soon as well. Lastly, if I increased the probability that you begin to question influencers in this space then that is an added bonus. Influencers have a very funny understanding of their value in the ecosystem, failing to understand that if they're not paying for it, they are the product.

For those interested in the fully ranked list of 101 fragrances, refer to this collection on my page.
You can similarly find the 2022 rankings here. Cheers.