FINESTERRE –
WHAT I SMELL: Finisterre has bergamot opening which quickly becomes salty and marine like. The projection is light, airy and fresh. After around the 10 minute mark a slight pine emerges along with a light sweetness combined with a dash of pepper. After the 30 minute mark, Finisterre adds just a hint of sandalwood to give it a light base, but overall the fragrance is pretty linear.
Finisterre notes:
Top Notes: marine accord
Heart Notes: heliochrsyum ( in the sunflower family) and pine
Base Notes: grey amber, sandalwood
WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Laundry hanging on a clothes line drying in an ocean breeze.
THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE FINISTERRE: fresh, easy, simple
WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT FINISTERRE: CaFleureBon
BOTTOM LINE: Finisterre’s uncomplicated nature is its strength. This is an easy wear that would help you strip away the worries and burdens of the day.
- Bone Rating: 3.5 out of 5 possible bones
- Scent: Marine
- Nose: Maria Candida Gentile
- Classification: Unisex
- Expense: $185 for 100ml EdP
NOIR TROPICAL –
WHAT I SMELL: Noir Tropical goes on lightly sweet and it’s a bit boozy with rum and honey. But unlike other boozy fragrances, Noir Tropical remains light rather than heavy. It’s really juicy and gourmand, but the projection at the beginning is so low that you almost wonder if you have any fragrance on. After a couple of minutes, a sweetened almond and vanilla accord comes in. But again, it’s not heavy, but rather light and airy. After around 20 minutes or so, the vanilla begins to project. Noir Tropical then remains a sweetened vanilla scent that moves in whiffs of air rather than larger wafts.
Noir Tropical notes:
Top Note: bergamot
Heart Note: almond accord
Base Notes: vanilla and rum
WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: A soft evening breeze in the South Seas carrying a light and luscious sweet scent through the air.
THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE NOIR TROPICAL: seductive, sweet, semi-boozy
WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT NOIR TROPICAL: CaFleureBon
BOTTOM LINE: The lighter projection of Noir Tropical is perfect since the fragrance is relatively sweet. More oomph in the scent could have made this obnoxious. As it is, it teases you with its sweet and seductive presence.
- Bone Rating: 3 out of 5 possible bones
- Scent: Floral
- Nose: Maria Candida Gentile
- Classification: Unisex
- Expense: $185 for 100ml EdP
The Scented Hound 
November 11, 2013 at 6:33 pm
I am intrigued by both of these and like the bottles as well. From the descriptions though, with all that lightness, do they seem worth the cash to you?
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November 11, 2013 at 7:02 pm
Well, I have issue with buying 100ml of any perfume. So the great thing about MCG is that she offers her perfumes in 15ml travel sizes (thank you MCG!). Each of the travel sizes are $25 Euros. However, I think you have to purchase a few to get shipping. Even if you do that, it’s still a great deal. Now, I don’t see these 2 new fragrances listed for sale on the website as of yet, but I’m sure they will be soon. For me, Cinabre, Exultat and Sideris are the best of the lot so far. These are wonderful, but maybe I’m in a cooler weather frame of mind and these are more summer oriented. You can check out the website here: http://www.mariacandidagentile.com/fragrances.php
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November 11, 2013 at 8:18 pm
Thanks a lot. I am quite drawn to this kind of perfume house.
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November 12, 2013 at 5:27 am
Finisterre was actually not bad considering it’s one of those clean scents. I think I prefer some of the other scents in the line more than these two. While some weren’t “me” I don’t recall any being terrible.
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November 12, 2013 at 12:25 pm
Dear Poodle – I really don’t see you with either of these. I have no idea why, but I believe that you need something with a bit more power behind it.
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November 12, 2013 at 8:57 pm
Lol. Yeah, I like more power. 😉
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November 12, 2013 at 10:24 pm
Houndy, I do think I need to revisit the line at Bendel’s. The last time I was there…July maybe…I tried all the MCG’s and they were just meh…perhaps I was just fragrance-fatigued that day as it was HOT.
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November 13, 2013 at 5:37 am
I think many of her fragrances are better suited for cooler months and in the heat of July they wouldn’t work well, especially the incense scents. Actually, both of these could work in hot weather though, especially Finisterre.
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