Bortnikoff‘s Chypre du Nord is a modern twist on the traditional chypre formulation and structure. While it contains oakmoss, amber, and citrus, it lacks the floral and patchouli components which are also standard technical parts of the classical style established in the early 1900s by Coty and Guerlain. Instead, Siberian deer musk, nutmeg, birch tar leather, and Mitsouko-style peach abound. Let’s take a deeper look.
Bortnikoff Chypre Du Nord. Photo: Bortnikoff.
Guerlain‘s Vol de Nuit is legendary among chypre (and narcissus) lovers, so I was curious to see how it fared in the age of IFRA with its draconian limits on oakmoss which, as many of you know, has now been legally restricted in perfumery to practically nonexistent levels. So let’s take a look at the current parfum, a sample of which I bought in early 2021.
Guerlain Vol de Nuit parfum. Source: Fragrantica.
Rose Aqor, Oud Ulya, and Vanilla Barka are three of six new attars that Amouage has launched recently in an attempt to straddle the richness, glory, popularity, and complexity of its old legends and the increasingly draconian restrictions placed on perfumery in the eight or so years since IFRA forced Amouage to retire its original olfactory beauties. Do the new additions live up to the greatness of old? No. Do they come across as real, authentic attars? Also no, in my opinion. Are they terrible? Well, it depends on which ones you try and your personal tastes. Are they worth the money in question? That answer, like most things involving perfumery, cannot be anything but purely subjective and individual, but I will tell you that I personally have a lot of issues with these new “attars.”
Amouage attars via Amouage’s booklet on them. Photo of the photo: my own.
ATon Perfumes is a new perfume house founded by Anton Gerasimov, Russian Adam‘s younger step-brother. It launched a debut trio of scents on March 26, 2022: Roxbury, Patchouli Lave, and Bright Lights. In this post, I’ll share with you the official scent descriptions, notes, and relevant bottle, price, shipping, and sample details.
ATon Perfumes Roxbury, Patchouli Lave, Bright Lights. Photo: ATon