WHAT I SMELL: Encore Une Fois opens with a wonderfully rich bergamot sprinkled with a sparkling brown sugar sweetness. Very quickly, a swirl of light florals rise to the top along with a tinge of greenish stems. It’s lush without being heavy and it seems to bounce off of the skin. As its journey continues, a cedar note takes the perfume from the garden to the edge of the forest. Here, the sunshine of the golden ambergris makes the perfume radiate with a warmish hue of splendor and security. After a bit, a chalky flattened note begins to tone down the golden aspects of the perfume and moves it to the more woody. After quite some time, a caramelized incense rises lightly off the skin making the perfume more refined and rather mysterious with just the right amount of perfection. From beginning to end, Encore Une Fois is an interesting perfume in the most beautiful and original way.
From the Art of Perfume website :
Top Notes: bergamot, orange flower leaves
Heart Notes: purple, incense, peony, Lily of the Valley, saffron flower
Base Notes: ambergris, patchouli, cedar, benzoin, balsam perals, caramel, white musk
WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Sunlit woodscape.
THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE ENCORE UNE FOIS: journeyed, semi-bright, mysterious
WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT ENCORE UNE FOIS: Australian Perfume Junkies , Colognoisseur
BOTTOM LINE: At first spritz you do not expect that Encore Une Fois will transform from the bright and light to the more woody and mysterious. Such a transition might be jolting in many perfumes. Here, the movement in development is so seamless it feels completely natural. Encore Une Fois is a beautiful perfume that’s worth the journey.
- Bone Rating: 3.5 out of possible 5 bones
- Scent: Floral Woody Musk
- Classification: Unisex
- Expense: Approximately $200 for 50 ml perfume extrait.
WHAT I SMELL: Chameleon unfolds on first spritz all soft and warm with delicious, bergamot, edible fruits and ylang ylang. Surprisingly it’s not too juicy or really sweet…instead it’s just so very inviting. In fact, it feels as if you’re walking down the street and you catch a whiff of a fragrant tree whose rapturous scent grabs your attention with its intoxicating spell. After a short while, the perfume delivers a creamy accord of frangipani that really begins to radiate off the skin. Underneath it floats a layer of sandalwood in the same vein of Guerlain’s Samsara (and that’s a good thing). After some more time, a light chalkiness enters which soon begins to powder slightly after which the creaminess returns which a small dose of sweet. The perfume then quiets to the perfect stage of just the right amount of creamy, sweet and floral. Chameleon is everything tropical, but instead of overpowering the wearer with heavy handed florals, instead you seem to float in sun drenched flowers dancing in a sun-kissed breeze.
WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Vintage tropical florals.
WHAT I SMELL: ELENYA gold opens with a soft, smooth, rich and opulent bergamot combined with a subdued but very creamy black orchid. A perfectly subtle cardamom joins the bergamot and black orchid helping to even out the citrus and floral to make a beautifully flattened, but rounded presence. The perfume at this time is weighty without being heavy and is exotic in a very controlled manner. In addition, there are no sharp edges as the perfume takes it time in developing which makes the perfume feel that more substantive. After some time, the black orchid peeks his head out again along with the most creamy of unsweetened coconut. After some more time, a light sandalwood begins to buzz underneath the creaminess. A little sour, but just perfectly so, the sandalwood brings the right amount of depth to the perfume along with a woody vetiver. For me, ELENYA gold is hard to pin down because its overall mix of notes makes for a very smooth, almost custard-like perfume…it’s easy, yet grand.
WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Gold leaf. When applied to the skin, the most razor thin coating of luxury is now yours to wear.
The Scented Hound 