Jovoy Paris | The Scented Hound

WHAT I SMELL: Touche Finale opens with sweet, bubblegum berries that are tamed with a gorgeous mimosa. It’s rather thick and heady and wonderfully intoxicatingly sweet without being overbearing. From first spritz, Touche Finale is feminine, lively and instantly fun as if it comes sweeping though the door letting everyone know that the party is about to begin. After a short time, the florals come to take their place with the rose and violet leaf front and center. Here, the bubblegum opening starts to dissipate but the feminine touch doesn’t seem to be bothered by its departure because the perfume moves to the more powdered. Heliotrope soon begs to be let in the party and prompts the perfume to grow and radiate. In the end, Touche Finale matures from it’s celebratory opening, but it remains florally beautiful as the powder is met with a finish of warmed peppered musk that keeps the festivities going for a very long time.

From the Jovoy Paris website:

Whenever it appears that an artist’s work is finally finished, there is always a moment where a sense of doubt overwhelms the artist. Should they change a note? Do they need any more of this? Or a little less of that?

But when the artist trusts their vision and makes their final stroke, any sense of doubt is replaced by an ultimate satisfaction. Then the only desire that follows is the will to reveal it to the world. This is the exact moment when a master decides that their work is finished. And this is the very moment that Jovoy has grasped and put into a bottle.

This new perfume is also a tribute to the seductive souls who each have their own rituals of preparation. The slow, measured method of dressing. The make up, the rice powder… these are all a prelude to seduction. And even if their gestures are different and their secrets proper, they all share a common ritual: their ‘final touch’ is the application of perfume.

Touche Finale is a reinterpretation of a perfume that has already left it’s mark in the history of the rebirth of Jovoy: 2006’s renowned Poudré.

After more than two years of work, the independent perfumer, Vanina Muracciole has managed to preserve the soul of the original Poudré, whilst exalting it, in this new, ultimate version.

Head Notes – Mimosa, Pink Berries; Heart Notes – Rose, Violet Leaf, Cedarwood, Jasmine; Base Notes – Heliotrope, Musk, Sandalwood

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Party girl!

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE TOUCHE FINALE: vivacious, captivating, delightful

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT TOUCHE FINALE: CaFleureBon

BOTTOM LINE: Touch Finale is all things feminine; powder, notes of lipstick with a light sweater of musk. It’s a joyful perfume that brings life to the wearer. Just be careful though because just like too much partying, Touche Finale requires a lighter touch. Too much of a good thing can be…well, you know the rest.

Bone Rating: 3 out of possible 5 bones
Scent: Powdery Floral
Nose: Vanina Muracciole
Classification: Feminine
Expense: 145 Euros for 100 ml eau de parfum

WHAT I SMELL: On application, Ambre Premier goes on cool to the skin, almost like the feeling when you spray on antiseptic. What is first revealed is almost what I would describe as cocoa/chocolate edge mixed with the coolness of bergemot. It’s lightly warm and a little spicy. On Fragrantica, it says the top notes evoke that of “cotton candy”. Seriously, I am missing that completely (is there such thing as chocolate cotton candy??). As it continues in its development, it become a bit more floral with a subdued rose as the amber starts to take shape. In the end Ambre Premier is amber that is sweetened with a vanilla’d patchouli. It’s cool and warm at the same time with a bit of a tang that lies at its base.

Ambre Premier Notes:

Head: spicy fresh; Heart: pink floral; Background: dominant patchouli, amber, vanilla

WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: At first, surprisingly a bit gourmand, like a bittersweet box of chocolate orange creams (you don’t really smell much of the cream, but it’s what chocolate covered creams smell like in the box). I feel like my nose is playing a trick on me so I go to my better half and tell him what I think this smells like and he disagreed. He said a box of chocolate covered orange creams smells really sweet and this does not… I reminded him that I said “bittersweet” as in dark chocolate. He still didn’t agree!

THREE ADJECTIVES THAT DESCRIBE AMBRE PREMIER: cooled-warmth, bittersweet, removed

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT AMBRE PREMIER: I was not able to find any other reviews on this!!!

BOTTOM LINE: This is a different amber in that’s it’s not the typical, warm and embracing cuddly sweater that I love so much in the note. Instead, it’s a bit distant and a bit discordant in the way the notes blend together; I feel like they are fighting with each other. I don’t hate this, but I don’t like it either.

Bone Rating: 2.5 out of 5 possible bones
Scent: Oriental Vanilla
Nose: Michelle Saramitot
Classification: Marketed as a feminine fragrance, but I believe this suits both men and women
Expense: $180 for 100ml EdP