Smell you soon (I hope)

Under normal circumstances two weeks ago I would have travelled to the West and above the Alps to spend a magnificent weekend in Florence, Italy. There, during Pitti Fragranze, I would’ve had a chance to smell my way through a few dozens, if not a hundret of new perfume releases. We all know why it just didn’t come to be this year and why I had to stay at home, just like many other people who love frangrances as much as you or me. I miss Esxence and Pitti for obvious reasons – I can’t try as many new scents as I’d like to, I can’t meet my friends, both writers and brand owners, perfumers. Finally I can’t be in Italy, even if it were just for 2-3 days, to enjoy their delicious cuisine along with a glass of prosecco or aperol spritz. But those good days will come back, won’t they?

At times of global pandemy one can wonder how niche perfumery will deal with this new and very difficult state. I was thinking that brands might postpone their new launches & wait for better times since without these exhibitions it must be harder to bring same level of buzz & attention to the new compositions. And while I have an impression that niche brands have slowed down due to Covid-19, many have already adapted and present the fruit of their work to the public with the help of social media platforms. Of course it has less splendour than a special spotlight at the stand in Milan or Florence but curiosity of ‘hungry’ perfume fans eventually wins. I’m thankful to any brand who reached out to me during these difficult times. Without them I would write even less…

There’s a bunch of new or soon-to-be-released fragrances that I’m really looking forward to trying. Let me share a couple of them with you – maybe we’ll be together in the feeling of excitement?

• 

• 

• 

Over the years we all got accustomed to a slow-paced creation process at Puredistance and that our waiting will be rewarded with something luxurious and of highest quality. Announced for October please be introduced to Rubikona – this perfume, with a name resulting from the junction of words ruby and icon, will be an 11th composition in brand’s portfolio. For a second time Jan Ewoud Vos invited Cecile Zarokian (Sheiduna, 2016) to collaborate. This will be a spicy floral, 28% perfume.

I like Gallivant but I know some of you don’t. However there’s always a but to a but. Have you ever heard of the city of Bukhara? Worry not, neither have it. It’s somewhere in Uzbekistan and Nick Steward decided this will be another location to pinpoint on the map of his fragrant journeys. My way to convince you to try it? It’s an iris. Orris! Hello! By perfumer Ralf Schwieger at that. I love Iris Nazarena he composed for Aedes. I know Gallivant has different easthetics but I think it’ll be fab.

In my opinion Perris Monte Carlo is one of those brands that aren’t very much spoken of which is totally unfair because they make great perfume. Some time ago I was captivated by Mimosa Tanneron which I long to try. I know it’s the first day of astronomical autumn today but why can’t I have some yellow cheer all year round? Dedicated to pom-pom flowers that grow around Grasse, this watercolor-like flower is now interpreted by Jean-Claude Ellena, a master of watery scents.

• 

• 

More iris? But of course! Is there such thing as enough iris for me? To be honest I rarely get excited by the releases in the mainstream perfume segment these days. Same goes for the more exclusive boutique lines from big brands. This time my interest was tickled when I read about Iris Torrefie from Guerlain, joining Art et la Matiere line. Orris with coffee? This could either go super right or super wrong. I signed up for a decant so I hope to make my own judgements soon.

Listen, I know what you might think but I’m not a real devotee of Memo. It just happens that I like a few fragrances from the brand. I actually find Italian Leather and Winter Palace to be the only 2 that would fit in my collection. New in Art Land collection is Odeon, named after Parisian theatre. Blend of rose, candied date, tonka and sandalwood sounds promising. There’s also Sintra, also new, with a Morrocan tiles motif on the bottle – but it’s supposed to smell like marshmallow, so not for me.

Are there any fragrances you’re waiting for to smell? Or maybe any of these 5 sounds interesting?

Morning Harvest, Two from Perris Monte Carlo

At Chemist in the Bottle there’s a certain pool of fragrances that are rarely being spoken of. Like soliflores or perfume with a specific level of oddity. Simple reason for that is the fact that I like to talk to you about the fragrances that speak to me, about the notes I love, scents I want to encourage you to explore. Hence no flourishing reviews on animalics or heady florals on my blog. But from time to time the rules can be broken when you find a perfume that is worth recommending even it it’s not your usual cup of tea. So here I have for you 2 classic compositions from Perris Monte Carlo.

Rose de Mai is a tribute to may rose that grows in the valleys surrounding Grasse. This perfume begins with lush bouquet of rose which feels much more airy and fragile than rich & opulent compositions associated with the Orient. This is a rose with pink petals that are delicate, as soft as silk fabric. In the opening Rose de Mai is undeniably feminine as rose absolute steals all the spotlight. After some time it becomes more mellow and develops some unisex qualities. Handful of geranium brings a wave of freshness to this perfume. It’s crisp, almost dewy scent paints an impression of an early morning in the French countryside.

Geranium effuses its green scent around the rose bushes, turning the scenery into a magic garden. On my skin there’s a moment when it becomes almost minty in character, adding an aromatic twist to this minimalistic yet pretty perfume. At the later stage of development Rose de Mai becomes just a tiny bit spicy – when immortelle joins, it adds that specific herbaceous-spicy nuance with a hint of curry. It’s really well-behaved and enhances the rose tones. Musk gives a soft, pillow-like base to the composition. It’s a pretty interpretation of a rose theme. Sometimes it’s all you need to feel happy.

Jasmin de Pays is a straight up jasmine served on a silver platter with perfumer initials engraved on its edge. This grand bouquet is made of thousands of white flowers that intoxicate the air with their heady fragrance. There’s no doubt about the presence of indolic molecules as the perfume effuses the scent that cannot be mistaken! It’s big and demanding attention but at least this jasmine doesn’t become beasty or overly animalic after a short time. The composition of Jasmin de Pays also lists clove but it really takes some time before jasmine becomes lighter and lets a little bit of that spiciness to peek through and be noticed.

One thing about Perris Monte Carlo Jasmin de Pays I could easily notice is that similarly to Rose de Mai the perfume feels relatively green, but that verdancy smells completely different. In jasmine one it’s more of a leafy type of green, like petitgrain… mixed with the smell of crushed stems of unripe flowers. Later on the scent becomes quite creamy, as if some frangipani joined jasmine for this performance, adding a hint of something exotic. For a soliflore Jasmin de Pays is very potent and lasts through a big part of the day. When it dries down it becomes soft and fluffy thanks to musk.

Both these fragrances are really well done and I appreciate their artistry and the way they try to convey the purity of the smell of rose and jasmine. Still I don’t think I’d wear any of these on regular basis. Perris Monte Carlo made a wise, strategic decision by teaming up with perfumer Jean-Claude Ellena to evoke Grasse flowers in Rose de Mai and Jasmin de Pays. You can clearly see his hand in these fragrances, the style that is light, minimalistic, even ascetic. Both fragrances are concentrated at eau de parfum level and they are available in 100 ml bottles.