WHAT I SMELL:  The 7% Solution opens with a buttery, warm and intoxicating osmanthus and the deepest almost wild mandarin that’s feels like it’s been boiled and concentrated.  The creaminess in the perfume feels like a lullaby with peppered florals that are being rocked to sleep under a warmed flicker of a candle.  The perfume stays in this dreamlike state with none of the flowers taking dominance besides a soft and pretty tiare.  You can picture the damp, cool rain from the gray skies outside your window…but The 7% Solution is like a woolen blanket of comfort keeping you warm and secure.  As the perfume slowly develops, the creaminess once again turns more towards the buttery as if remnants of hot buttered rum (without the booziness) were lingering in a mug next to the fire.  In the end, the perfume resides in this warmed creamy and lightly spice dreamlike dimension with softened florals dancing down an autumn path.  The 7% Solution is liquid opium for your skin.

From the En Voyage website:

Legal at the time, heroin and cocaine allowed Holmes to relax and refuel. Sherlock alternated between morphine and cocaine, which he always took in a 7% solution. Transcendently stimulating and clarifying to the mind, such drugs were regularly taken by aesthetes of the day, including the poet Colridge and even Queen Victoria herself.

TOP NOTES: Wild Oranges, Mandarin, Green Citron, Osmanthus, Curacao

HEART NOTES: Tiare, Frangipani, Narcissus, Summer Blooming Flowers

BASE NOTES: Sandalwood, Vanilla, Amber, Oak, White Woods and Musks

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: I will not argue with perfumer Shelley Waddington’s inspiration of Sherlock Holmes.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE THE 7% SOLUTION: easy, comforting, calming

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT THE 7% SOLUTION: CaFleureBon, Megan in Saint Maxime

BOTTOM LINE:  I fell in love with this perfume when I first smelled it as a judge for the 2015 Artisan Salon Fragrance awards.  It’s a perfume that is truly unique, interesting and like no other.  Shelley Waddington captures perfectly a dreamy state of comfort.

• Bone Rating:  3.5 out of possible 5 bones
• Nose:  Shelley Waddington
• Classification: Unisex
• Expense: $60 for 1 oz. eau de cologne.  Review based on eau de parfum version.

DRAW:  For US readers only, one 15 ml bottle of The 7% Solution Eau de Parfum to be chosen via random.org.  To enter, please provide a comment below stating who your favorite actor portrayal of Sherlock Holmes is…or list your favorite En Voyage perfume and why.  Drawing closes at midnight EST on Thursday, October 27, 2017.  Good luck!