EDT | The Scented Hound

April 3, 2012
by The Scented Hound 2 Comments

Indochine by Parfumerie Generale

Intrigued by the name and intrigued by the description of this scent, I knew I had to give this fragrance a try. Indochine is as exotic as its name. Sweet in the bottle and initially sweet on the skin, the far east is emboldened in what I would imagine a Vietnamese Buddhist temple would smell like. Honey, vanilla and incense are the primary notes combined with a smoky haze. I’m a fan or oriental scents, but the incense, as mild as it is, is not a favorite of mine. Bold, without being overpowering, I would recommend this to anyone who likes deep and rich almost gourmand incense fragrances.

From the Parfumerie Generale website:

At once sweet, vanilla-scented, resinous, powdery, milky and spicy, Benzoin Siam is a resin of great olfactory richness that is rarely used as a central theme in Perfumery. Drawing on rare notes such as Kampot Pepper, Burmese Tanakha, or Laos honey, Pierre Guillaume orchestrates a luminous, smooth and airy perfume, delicately reproducing each and every facet of the unprocessed balsam. This sepia-tinged balm infuses Indochine with the radiance of platinum…

Indochine Notes:

Wood, Fresh Spice, Sweet Amber, Powder, Benzoin Siam Resin, Kampot Pepper, Ceylon Cardamom, Burmese Tanakha, Laos Honey.

Bone Rating: 4 out of 5 possible bones
Classification: Unisex
Expense: $95 for 50ml EDT

March 27, 2012
by The Scented Hound 2 Comments

APOM Pour Homme by Maison Francis Kurkdjian

APOM, which stands for A Part of Me, is one of those “I just got out of the shower” scents. To me, it reminds me of the freshness associated with bathing and the wonderfully clean feeling that you have afterwards. So given that, what exactly does APOM smell like? The listed ingredients are simple, orange flower, amber and cedar wood. This to me is a pretty linear scent; it doesn’t change much and the orange flower is the dominating note. The amber does warm the scent and tone down the orange flower a bit, but it ultimately remains in the background. This to me is a safe fragrance; clean and fresh, but not very interesting. For those of you who like fresh; this would be a great fragrance. Me, I like it a little dirty and will stick with my Absolue Pour le Soir.

From the Maison Francis Kurkdjian website:

APOM (A Part Of Me), a bit of oneself that one leaves on others. A relationship inspired from the beauty of the Orient: movement of people, flavors, colors and scents rediscovered from Lebanon. A combination of softness and strength.

APOM Notes: orange flower, cedar wood, amber

Bone Rating: 3 out of 5 possible bones
Classification: For men, but leans unisex
Expense: From $155 for 75ml, EDT

February 25, 2012
by The Scented Hound 2 Comments

Lumiere Noire by Maison Francis Kurkdjian

Winter has come back with a vengeance today. The sun shines for a few minutes, then the sky returns to gray and the snow swirls through the heavy winds that are blowing. As it’s still February I guess this kind of weather is to be expected. But we have been spoiled by a lovely winter thus far. After reading the newspaper, feeding the cats and going for a winter walk, I put on my Saturday comfy clothes to go run my weekend errands. I thought I would check out a sample of Maison Francis Kurkdjian’s Lumiere Noire pour homme that has been sitting on my shelf for a while. When first applied, I found this to be a little spicy (most likely the cumin and cinnamon), but surprisingly green at the same time. OK, I typically love heavy scents and my husband loves the lighter green scents; so I’m thinking this is nice, but not really my cup of tea. So I go to my husband and ask him what he thinks. No surprise, he loved it. So we head out of the house, run to the stores, and I could not help finding that this scent, in a lovely dry down, wafted and swirled up and around me through the wind. Lumiere Noire is a rose scent, but it is so faintly so that you don’t immediately think “roses.” Although this is for men, I do believe this easily fits into a unisex category. This is a lovely scent that I found to be clean and fresh. I would also say that this is a safe scent; you won’t offend others or yourself when you wear this. Lumiere Noire worked perfectly for a gloomy errand running winter day, so much so that I can’t wait to see what it can do for a beautiful and warm spring day. Simply lovely.

From the Maison Francis Kurkdjian website:

Olfactory family: Rose – Cumin – Cinnamon – Patchouli – Wormwood

Play of opposites for both agreements as two extremes which meet. An eau de toilette fragrance mysterious that draws up cause the abandonment of self.

Bone Rating: 4 out of 5 possible bones
Scent: Floral
Classification: Masculine or Unisex
Expense: Moderately Expensive – $155 for 70ml EDT