The Different Company Bois d'Iris

I'm not sure about you, but generally I am a fan of iris-focused perfumes. I don't know what it is about iris, but it smells like the height of sophistication for me, perfume-wise. There is something about that cool, almost haughty earthiness that thrills me. 

I must admit that iris notes are not always that approachable. In fact they are a bit of an acquired taste (or smell I suppose one should say), but once acquired, very rewarding. I find that broadly speaking iris can smell powdery, earthy/rooty and woody. Of course, very often it can borrow from all of these, and also smell buttery in the process. 

There are still a lot of iris perfumes I haven't tried. One that I haven't, but yearn to try, is Iris Silver Mist by Serge Lutens. Of those I have tried, I particularly enjoy 28 La Pausa by Chanel and Iris Taizo by Parfumerie Generale (which I think has been renamed). I think my least favourite rendition of the note is powdery/floral, a good example of which for me is Iris Nobile by Aqua di Parma.

Bois d'Iris by the Different Company to my mind falls predominantly into the woody category, but in the heart also smells richly buttery and almost fatty. I suspect that some of that 'fattiness' might come from aldehydes, which I detect a lot of in the top and heart. Bois d'Iris, along with the same-named by Van Cleef and Arpels, is possibly the most woody rendition of iris I have personally encountered. I like that. There is a phase, probably as the aldehydes dissipate, where the more rooty/earthy facets of iris emerge, but this is relatively short-lived. To my mind Bois d'Iris is not dissimilar to 28 La Pausa. Particularly with all the aldehydes it smells very 'Chanel' at one point, before the woodiness takes over.

I would say that Bois d'Iris is fairly unisex, and I think I can pull it off fairly comfortably, although I suspect it would be marginally more popular with the ladies. This is not to say that I don't like it. I actually do. My favourite part is the first half, particularly when the coolness of iris is balanced with that butteriness, gradually merging to reveal a woody heart. It is very well done.

Image credit - http://www.luckyscent.com/

The Different Company - Sel de Vetiver

Following my recent bog on vetiver, I thought I would follow it up with a review of Sel de Vetiver, by the Different Company, one of my favourite, yet eclectic vetiver fragrances. The listed notes are grapefruit, cardamom, geranium, lovage, Haitian vetiver, patchouli, iris and ylang-ylang. This note list is quite unusual, at least to me. I haven't seen lovage, geranium, iris and ylang-ylang listed together before and on paper it doesn't sound particularly appealing, but Sel de Vetiver is both an unusual and beautiful fragrance. It opens quite sweet, with a bit of grapefruit and a somewhat mineral accord. The vetiver is noticeable immediately and strikes me as more rooty than grassy, but it is fairly sheer and fresh. It does conjure up the feel of being near the ocean, like driving along a shoreline with a salt-laden breeze in your face. Or perhaps I'm just being fanciful. Sel de Vetiver was created by Celine Elena, the daughter of Jean-Claude, and it shows, using a similar sheer/minimalist style, with the use of grapefruit and vetiver in particular. Although released at almost the same time as Terre de Hermes, Sel de Vetiver is quite different in many ways and I actually prefer it, despite owning a bottle of Terre. Although fairly sheer, Sel de Vetiver is by no means a light scent and it lasts well on the skin.

The heart is particularly beautiful to me - it shimmers almost, the salty vetiver and citrus tang combining beautifully with a clean cedar and patchouli accord. It strikes me as incredibly refreshing and original, without slipping into that dreaded ozone-marine territory. In fact, smelling this, I wish that Sel de Vetiver could have been released a decade earlier to set the benchmark for what a marine fragrance should smell like. The vetiver is tempered by a floral sweetness which I thought smelled quite rosy, but I'm guessing its actually the ylang, geramium and iris in combination. Whatever it is, it combines so well with the vetiver that I find I am compelled to sniff my wrist almost constantly, which can appear a little weird, I'm sure, to my office colleagues! The dry down  maintains that juxtaposition of salty/sweet, vetiver root/mineral that is fascinating. I find it quite hard to describe exactly how this smells on the skin. To me it feels almost literally how a cooling ocean breeze would smell at dusk, as the heat of the day dissipates, the air thick with ozone and the promise of a fragrant night to come. Yes, I know that might read as a bit over-the-top, but that is how Sel de Vetiver makes me feel, which surely is a good thing.

Image credit: www.hotels-jordan-booking.com

A rose by any other name

Having written about Rose 31 yesterday, I felt the urge to try two more rose-focused scents. I'm a sucker for roses - I love them both as a flower in my garden and on my skin, but although I adore the purity of a rose in nature, when it comes to perfume, I prefer a bit of a twist, a dark shadow over the brightness that this note often evokes.

So first up is Rose Poivre, by the Different Company. Having browsed through some reviews, it seems there is a view that this has been reformulated and that the current version is not as skanky as the original. I don't know - I'm almost certain I must have a sample of the later version. Rose Poivre opens with an alcoholic blast, perhaps a smidgeon of citrus and then the rose quickly asserts itself. This is not a fresh rose though. It is quite dry and earthy and reminds me of being in a rose garden, soil freshly dug, with the rose bushes full of buds, not yet quite open. As the top notes fade, there is a rather aromatic accord, almost like potpourri, but not sickening in any way. Then it becomes spicier as cumin kicks in and this is quite a powerful cumin. Its vaguely animalic to me, a bit like dusty rugs or furs. It does sweeten a bit but the rose never asserts itself like one might expect. It's in the background, but as the scent progresses, the rose stays more like dried rose petals, aromatic and I never feel that that potpourri smell is too far away. Far into the dry down Rose Poivre still retains a hint of spice and cumin and stays subduedly dusty. I must say, I really like this one. It is unique in my opinion and I like how it never follows that rose route one might expect. It is slightly offbeat and has a hint of beast about it and I can highly recommend trying this if you are looking for a rose with a thorn and a twist.

On my other wrist is Un Rose, by Frederic Malle. This is parfum strength and it shows. It has great tenacity and lasts on my skin for ages. This perfume surprised me though. it starts off citrusy, with what I perceive to be a very brief prickle of aldehydes. Very quickly a gorgeous rose note seeps through, bright and pure. This phase is uplifting and powerful and excuse the hyperbole, but feels radiant to me, like warm sunshine. There's a sappy greenness here too, like a bruised stem and bud. Then the scent does an about turn. Just as you think it might stay joyful, a rounded sweetness emerges and the rose deepens and loses its youthfulness. It only increases in richness now, becoming spicier and resinous. There is meant to be a truffle accord in here. My association with truffle is a mushroom-like smell, peppery, a bit like fresh olive oil, so I don't quite know if I'm identifying it here. Perhaps the smooth, earthy richness I refer to here is meant to be that accord, I'm not sure. Into the drydown and the fragrance hums along like a Rolls Royce. There is a slight sourness, which could be the wine-dregs accord Edouard Flechier was trying to achiever. Is there civet in here? The richness of this perfume and its depth seem to hint at this, although looking at the notes I see Castoreum is listed. Perhaps this is it. In any event, I am moved by Un Rose. It truly is also unique and shows great depth and imagination by Mr Flechier.

Well, you may ask, which one of these would I buy? If I had the money, I would buy both. I think they both are unique and interesting and could appeal to either sex. I could see Un Rose perhaps appealing more to a woman and cumin-phobes might not appreciate Rose Poivre. So if I had to choose between the two? Without hesitation I would take Un Rose. It is da bomb!