Perfume as something indulging, something that brings pure pleasure. Perfume as a symbol of hedonism was the idea Hungarian perfumer Viktoria Minya had in her mind when she established her own fragrance house and launched her 1st composition simply named – Hedonist. Over two years have passed since then and the range is slowly getting bigger. After Hedonist met two sisters in 2014, in 2015 a third sister joins the family. She comes dressed in purple.
Hedonist Cassis opens with a very specific aroma of cut grass. First of all it smells very fresh and green. I also find something slightly sappy and juicy about this note. You are probably familiar with the smell of lawn mowing. That’s how the opening smells to me – green sap from grass, the feeling of freshness. There is also something a bit watery, dewy in the opening. Just as if someone decided to mow the lawn really early in the morning before the Sun helps a morning dew to evaporate.
Just a few minutes later green cut grass accord is followed by cassis. It quickly starts to dominate in the composition of new Hedonist, pushing forward this interesting tart aroma. Personally I am not a fan of cassis perfumes. In this particular creation I find this accord to be a bit chilly in its initial stage. Once it settles on the skin it turns a little bit camphorous and mentholated on me. What I smell kind of reminds me of Airwaves Cool Cassis chewing gum. I even liked the way it smelled and tasted and Hedonist Cassis goes a bit that way for me. After some period of time I seem to notice very faint fruity facet of black currant but it’s not in official notes. It’s probably a side effect from cassis.
After 1,5 hours Hedonist Cassis starts to smell more of rose and this aroma is gradually growing stronger, though it doesn’t become dominating at all. Rose introduces a nice floral touch to the blend by effusing the aroma that is gentle and serene. Petals are silky here, a little bit dewy also. Their color would be some shade between beige and light pink – definitely nothing bright and bold when it comes to color. Going down the structure of Viktoria’s new fragrance I finally reach the base. It’s woody thanks to cedar wood. It feels substantial but in a mellow way. You can smell its presence there but the weight of the note had to be kept low to match the whole concept. Also I find this cedar to be well-mannered: woodsy and not dirty.
Hedonist Cassis by Viktoria Minya embodies serene and grace in the fragrance universe. It’s a pretty and nice combination of fresh, green and aromatic notes with floral and woody touches. Obviously this new offering is more modest than its rich, lush & opulent predecessor. Saying that it fits well together with Hedonist Rose and Hedonist Iris which were also lighter. I would rate sillage or Cassis as moderate and longevity as good. I could smell it for around 6 hours after using 2-3 small smudges from my sample. One more note – this is a very feminine, very girly perfume. I don’t see too many gents wearing it on regular basis. This review finishes with a mini story I came up with:
There was this young lady. Cassie was her name. She was a little bit more than just an average girl. She was not a star as shyness was her biggest, invisible scar. Surrounded by old friends, not many, but faithful ones; she knew she’d open up to people, that this will happen once. Her voice was sweet like berries and lips were pink as rose; Pale skin, round cheeks and little graceful nose. She loved wearing girly dresses in her favorite purple hue; One day when she grows up she’ll break a heart or two.
New fragrance is available in eau de parfum concentration. Bottle is 45 ml and has purple bohemian crystals immersed in the fragrant juice. Do you think you might like it?
I loved the original Hedonist for all its sweetness. The rose and iris ones were nice but i did not buy them. I am looking forward to sampling this one. Thanks for the review.
Hope Cassis works for you just as good as earlier edition
This sounds very interesting, Lucas. I own and love Viktoria Minya’s Hedonist Iris and I like the Rose as well. Will have to give this one a try for sure. I love green, grassy openings so this sounds appealing to me. Thanks for a wonderful review.
You think so? That’s good!
I like first Hedonist the most of them all but not enough for a fb. Also I think that the bottle itself is very feminine, won’t fit into my collection
It actually does appeal to me as I like berries! I used to wear L’Artisan Mure et Musc Extreme and rather liked that, although I think mure is a different black berry to the cassis (which is blackcurrant in English). I certainly liked the blackcurrant in the original Hermes Amazone, and am always keen to sniff a green fragrance.
I also like drinking berry liqueurs and cassis mixed with sparkling wine/champagne – Kir Royale!
Your story is also appealing – I can almost imagine that Cassie is/was me as I was afflicted with shyness when very young, but good friends help. Your way with English is fantastic, Lucas, and you have a great imagination.
That’s nice. I never got along with Mure et Musc or its extreme version.
Sweetie, it seems that cassis and black currant are 2 different materials. Cassis is like… black currant leaf? It’s more mentholated while black currant absolute is fruity and tart.
Kir Royale? Never heard (not to mention tasted) of it! That would have a gorgeous color
Thanks for explaining that, Lucas, it makes sense. My mouth is watering at all this talk of tart berries!
x
Hope you get a chance to try new hedonist
For some reason I’ve never tried any of this line. Of course, a sample or two could be floating in the sample sea. 😉 I love green notes, but like you am not a cassis fan. Except for Kir Royale as jillie mentioned – I haven’t had one of those in ages so I must remedy that! (thanks jillie)
And now I’ll be really superficial and say that I hate the word “Hedonist” and I don’t like the bottles either.
What I DID really like is your charming story to illustrate your review.
Cheers, Holly! I will toast you with my next Kir Royale!
x
Me too 🙂
There’s a HUGE chance I’ll love this one: I’m very partial to black currant note in perfumes. Thank you for the heads up, dear Lucas.
When I smelled this for the first time I thought “this has written Undina’s name all over it”
Count me in with the Kir Royale! I will try to acquire a sample when I get a chance but I got the motherlode of perfumes just today — the new limited edition set of Frederic Malle perfumes. I know it was indulgent of me but hey I am worth it 🙂
I love your little story!
Of course you’re worth it! I will toast you too, H, along with all my perfume friends.
x
Sweet of you
Is there anything special about that FM set?
All 20 perfumes in a 10 mL travel spray with a cap (the regular ones are capless) and a limited edition Philip Low illustrated book about all the perfumes…could be a coffee table book if it was hard-covered. I am tempted to get a Pierre Hardy case but I think I would rather spend the money on perfume.
Not a fan of FM myself. Only L’Eau d’Hiver is good for me
The review is poetic, but I don’t think I could like the perfume (and the bottle is not to my taste). I like fruity, tart berries, for ex. in Fleur des Comores MPG. But berries + green grass?
I see
Cassie (along with melon for example) is the note/ingredient I can’t stand in any form, be it fresh fruits, leaves or any processed derivatives. I would like to try original Hedonist and Iris and Rose versions.
Lovely story about Cassie.
Hope you’ll get a Chance to try Hedonist Rose and Iris
This is how dense I am, never knew Viktoria Minya was Hungarian. How fabulous.
Portia xx
We learn something new everyday.
Hi again Lucas, I’m getting a candle from LuckyScent so I’m going to get a sample of this one, too. One cassis/tart black currant perfume I love is Enchanted Forest by The Vagabond Prince. It’s so green and tart and foresty smelling. I didn’t expect Viktoria to come up with a scent like this, but I want to try it.
What candle are you ordering if I may ask? Enchanted Forest is not my style (but you should talk with Undina, she adores it).
Honestly I didn’t expect Cassis at all. Some time ago I talked with Viktoria that I would be curious to smell Hedonist Cuir/Leather 😀 Maybe it will be the next one
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