The Scented Hound

January 23, 2017
by The Scented Hound 14 Comments

Rose Emois by Molinard

WHAT I SMELL: Rose Emois unfolds soft and sweet as baby’s breath with a slightly sugared bergamot and mint that is quickly met with a milky almond highlighted with the lightest of saffron. A serene floral bouquet warmed by a softened sandalwood and amber make this incredibly dreamy. The perfume is light and transparent but at the same it has a pretty powerful projection. After a few minutes, the rose begins to break out of the dreamlike haze of warmth. The rose is subdued and deep and thorny without being heavy. The sandalwood and amber anchor the perfume making the perfume feel more ambered than rose. After some more time, an oudish note is added making the perfume feel more exotic. As the perfume continues to develop, the oud note becomes more prominent and the perfume becomes more powdery, but there is a slight bite (no doubt from the oud note) that is a bit discordant. I do wish the perfume would return to the beginning, but instead, it remains in this oudish rose colored powdered haze. That’s not a bad thing, it’s just that the opening and middle phase was just so breathtakingly beautiful.

From Molinard:

Caressing scents in tender intuitions, sharing confidence for confidence … this harmonious fragrance cultivates its chosen affinities. Carved from a rose, its natural whimsicality carries it irresistibly to floral allegories … and abandons itself secretly to the enveloping waves where man and woman meet, and make no more than one …

Top notes are bergamot, mint and almond; middle notes are jasmine, rose, saffron and ylang-ylang; base notes are musk, sandalwood, amber and ylang-ylang.

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: A vibrant Indian tapestry full of color and infused with the exotic smells of the market.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE ROSE EMOIS: dreamy, royal, serious

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT ROSE EMOIS: No reviews found.

BOTTOM LINE: Rose Emois is part of Molinard’s La Collection Privee. Besides the classic Habanita, you don’t hear much about Molinard. Their perfumes, albeit somewhat hard to find, are pretty and easy to wear. This is no exception.

Bone Rating: 3.5 out of possible 5 bones
Scent: Floral Woody Musk
Classification: Unisex
Expense: Approximately $180 for 100 ml eau de parfum.

January 16, 2017
by The Scented Hound 13 Comments

V. Intense by Robert Piguet

WHAT I SMELL: V. Intense’s opening is a beautiful burst of bergamot and sweet pear which is soon mixed with a warmed saffron. Deliciously pretty, a ripe and juicy plum note soon comes to the center of the stage. Not too juicy though, the plum is lush without being saturated. Actually, it feels like it’s sitting on top of a lush green bouquet of patchouli. The perfume has an incredibly radiance, as if the plum and patchouli are pushing out this warmed, yet powdered and dried sunny hue. After some more, a hint of incense appears making the perfume mysterious and seductive. After which a pencil shaving note of sandalwood appears while the perfume increases its powdery evolution with just the hint of cream. In the end, the warmed tonka and incense make for lovely modern vintage vibe.

From Robert Piguet Parfums:

V. Intense opens with a burst of bergamot, pear and saffron, a whirling eddy of citrus and spice. Soft rose, sweet ylang ylang and sumptuous plum unlock the daring core, a dalliance of fruit and floral that lays a warm, exotic path to the fragrance’s denouement. Patchouli, incense, sandalwood and white musk create a magical dry down, as transporting as it is visceral.

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Although V. Intense was only launched in 2014, it has a very urban sophisticated 1950s nostalgic feel to me. It’s pretty and lightly sweet with just the right amount of powder and it feels ’50s fashionable in being neat, trimmed and tailored.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE V. INTENSE: vibrant, energizing, witty

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT V. INTENSE: AustralianPerfumeJunkies, Fragrance Daily

BOTTOM LINE: V Intense, full of plum, is everything I thought I would not like in a perfume. Instead, it’s understated beauty and urban sophistication is everything that I crave in a perfume. I absolutely love it.

Bone Rating: 4.5 out of possible 5 bones
Scent: Oriental Floral
Nose: Aurelien Guichard
Classification: Unisex
Expense: Approximately $180 for 100 ml eau de parfum

January 9, 2017
by The Scented Hound 17 Comments

New Release: Civet by Zoologist Perfumes

WHAT I SMELL: Civet opens with a warmed spiced orange and bergamot which reminds me of clove filled orange pomanders that you see during the winter holidays. The warmth begins to lighten quickly as the perfume beams soft and pretty with a lovely and light tuberose coming to the center. But very quickly, the perfume becomes highly radiant and makes its presence known. After a bit, a soured citrus comes forward which then melds into a light civet. The perfume moves from a pretty floral luminosity to a slightly rebellious feel. Still pretty, there’s a light bite that gives the perfume a more interesting presence and depth. As it continuous to develop, a hay like flatness keeps the perfume grounded. At the same time, the projected radiance dissipates and the perfume dances around the floral heart, along with a musky and slightly urinous interplay with hints of coffee and leather. Civet is wonderfully complex, yet so smooth and easy to wear.

From the Zoologist Perfumes website:

Zoologist Civet pays homage to the age-old ingredient, civet, as well as chypre perfumes of bygone days – perfumes that refused to be intimidated by raw, alluring, animalistic musks. Civet is a moody and complex brew entwined in mystery. It opens with a spicy floral accord, threaded through with dark coffee tones. Slowly it prowls forward, unraveling base notes of leather, moss and vanilla that combines with distinctive civet musk to create a bewildering, sophisticated scent with the promise of a sultry nighttime rendezvous.

Top Notes: Bergamot, Black Pepper, Lemon, Orange, Spices, Tarragon
Heart Notes: Carnation, Frangipani, Heliotrope, Hyacinth, Linden-blossom, Tuberose, Ylang
Base Notes: Balsams, Civet, Coffee, Incense, Labdanum, Musks, Oakmoss, Resins, Russian Leather, Vanilla, Vetiver, Woods

Nancy Spungen

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Nancy Spungen of Sid and Nancy fame…a little pretty, a little dirty, a little punk.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE CIVET: careworn, enigmatic, nuanced

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT CIVET: AustralianPerfumeJunkies, Cafleurebon

BOTTOM LINE: Perfumer Shelley Waddington has created a complex beauty that blends seamlessly to reveal many nuances throughout the wear. With the name Civet, I was worried that this would be a perfume would be rather funky. Instead, she added just the right amount of civet to enhance the subdued florals. Civet is a really lovely perfume.

Bone Rating: 4 out of possible 5 bones
Scent: Aromatic
Nose: Shelley Waddington
Classification: Unisex
Expense: $125 for 60 ml eau de parfum