Aedes de Venustas Copal Azur

Posted on November 17, 2014 by Kafkaesque

A beach on the Yucatan Peninsula. Source: wexas.com

Copal Azur comes with the promise of all the colours of the Mayan Riviera, captured in one bottle: from the turquoise of its foaming seas to the green of its jungles, the white of its beaches and the plumes of Copal incense smoke, and the gold of fire-burning amber laid at the altars of the Jaguar God. Inspired by a Mayan citadel on Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, it is a fragrance whose aroma is painted in the most beautiful strokes, conjuring up a truly vivid image that transports you visually and mentally. Yet, words can differ from actual reality, and what sounds so good as a verbal picture may not translate to the same thing in terms of scent. There are parts of Copal Azur that I found quite enjoyable, but other parts got lost in translation. Or, to be more precise, it may have been better had they not been translated at all.

Source: Now Smell This.

Copal Azur is an eau de parfum that was created by Bertrand Duchaufour, and released on November 15th. Whomever wrote the Aedes de Venustas’ press release did a magnificent job, if only in describing the beauty of the Yucatan Peninsula and its feel. You can read the full details on the Aedes website, but I’ll cover a few of the points here. First, the company explains that Copal Azur tries to capture the scent of a Mayan incense called Copal, but that the resin “cannot be used as a perfume ingredient.” As a result, “three different extractions of frankincense are used to conjure it from top to base notes, making up an extravagant 30% of the formula.” Continue reading →

Serge Lutens L’Incendiaire: Greatest Hits Redux

Posted on October 14, 2014 by Kafkaesque

L’Incendiaire is a walk through an olfactory hall of mirrors, echoing the scents of Serge Lutens‘ greatest hits from amongst his darkest orientals. Fille en Aiguilles leads the charge, followed by the notorious Serge Noire, while Feminité du Bois brings up the rear. It’s a smoldering pastiche of all of the signature Lutens notes: plummy, stewed fruits that are dusted with spices, lashed with incense, patchouli, and sticky balsamic resins, then nestled in a dark forest where cedar trees drip a brown sugar sap. A little fly made out of oud buzzes around them, though it is inconsequential in the larger scheme of things. As time passes, the Lutens classics change their order in the troop formation, but the bottom line remains the same: L’Incendiaire feels like a mixed tape compilation of scents I’ve encountered before, only refined to a polished core. It’s very enjoyable, but I feel rather conflicted for reasons that I’ll get to later.

Photo by Fotografin CvdG – Carolin von der Gönna. Source: Her Fotografin CvdG Facebook page. (Website link embedded within.)

L’Incendiaire (“The Arsonist”) was created by Christopher Sheldrake and debuted about two weeks ago. It is notable as both the first pure parfum from Serge Lutens, as well as The Maestro’s first foray in oud. The extrait is part of a new prestige line called the Gold Label or Section d’Or Collection. (The regular export line has a cream label, while the Haute Concentration eau de parfums come with a black label.)

Source: legrante.com/blog

Earlier this year, Fragrantica posted the Lutens press release that explains why this collection is supposedly different from anything previously put out by the brand, as well as why it’s significantly more expensive than anything else in the line, including its bell-jars:

The launch of L’incendiaire marks the emergence of a new Serge Lutens collection, Section d’or, the brand’s most prestigious range yet. With bottles inspired by the original rectangular design and featuring the sharp angular lines so revered by Mr. Lutens, this exclusive collection is the brand’s ultimate creation. And when it comes to choosing ingredients, only the finest quality is used, no expense spared. Even the black and gold hues symbolize a breakaway from the classic collections. This is Serge Lutens at the culmination of his art.

Source: the Serge Lutens Facebook page.

Continue reading →

O’Driù Pathetique

Posted on October 13, 2014 by Kafkaesque

Source: truffleharvest.com.au

Pathetique is the latest creation from O’Driu and Angelo Orazio Pregoni, a scent that briefly takes you to the heart of the forest floor with black truffles, singed woods, vetiver, jasmine, and mosses that are woven together with incense, before it then segues to something very different. I liked parts of Pathetique (officially spelled with an accent as “Pathétique”) quite a bit, particularly the creamy vanilla crème anglaise that acts like a bridge between its various parts, but it is not a scent that matches up to its hyperbolic description. O’Driu describes Pathetique as everything from “performance perfume” and “contemporary artwork” to wholly “unique” in all the world and a “masterpiece” whose name was chosen as an ironic finger to critics. In reality, Pathetique is an easy, very wearable scent. It’s not a mainstream fragrance but, comparatively speaking, it’s the most commercial Pregoni creation that I’ve tried thus far. I think its approachability is a good thing, but my description would probably horrify its controversial creator.

Source: Fragrantica

It’s hard to talk about Pathetique without talking about its creator. Mr. Pregoni’s character is part of everything, from the scent to its press release description and his interviews about it. My initial impression was that Mr. Pregoni was a progressive free-spirit who sought to work outside the lines out of genuine intellectual artistry, and whose approach was driven purely by a self-deprecating, whimsical sense of humour. I think I was mistaken.

Angelo Orazio Pregoni at Pitti. Source: Fragrantica

Several recent reports from people within the perfume industry that were told to me privately show a very different side to Mr. Pregoni, as does a very telling Fragrantica interview with him which took place at the recent Pitti exhibition and concerned, among other things, Pathetique and “perfumed art.” None of this is helped by the self-aggrandizing way that the scent is described on the O’Driu website. Ultimately, though, it is not my place or business to talk about a perfumer as a person, only about the way a fragrance smells. So, I’ll leave it to you to read that Fragrantica interview and draw your own conclusions. I’ll move onto Pathetique. Continue reading →

Il Profumo Chocolat Amere & Ambre d’Or

Posted on October 6, 2014 by Kafkaesque

Pre-Columbian chocolate with chilies. Source: CaFleureBon.

Dark chocolate infused with fiery spices that transforms into patchouli woods. Or, musty myrrh infused with ambergris, honey, incense and opium flowers which puts you inside an ancient church before taking you to sweetened woods. Chocolat Amere and Ambre d’Or are two very different creations from Il Profumo, which is the focus of today’s foray into Italian perfume houses. I rather liked parts of Chocolat Amere (which is officially spelled as “Chocolat Amère,” though I’ll skip using the accent here for reasons of speed.) To my surprise, the fragrance somehow recreated a definitely patchouli vibe after a beautifully bitter, spiced Mexican chocolate opening. Ambre d’Or, however, was not my personal cup of tea, for reasons that we’ll get to later. Continue reading →