Flaconneur

Marc-Antoine Corticchiato has taken his boyhood love for plant scents, combined it with his training as a perfumer, and the perfume house Parfum d’Empire was born. This house has a collection of some pretty memorable fragrances, which many of us have come to know and love. Some of my favorite perfumes from their library include Equistrius, Cuir Ottoman and Aziyadé. One of their relatively recent creation is called Musc Tonkin. This perfum extrait concentration was a limited edition release of 1000 bottles worldwide in 2012. It has come out of hiding for worldwide consumption again in 2014 as an eau de parfum. Tonkin musk is the secretion from a specific species of deer that live in the mountains of Southern Asia. It is considered the finest of all musks from an area called Tonkin. Since deer musk in no longer being harvested naturally, all scents containing musk or musk notes are synthetically engineered for our enjoyment. This is what makes Musc Tonkin unusual. This fragrance’s recipe is created without the use of real Tonkin musk. Musks, in generally, have been banned due to animal cruelty concerns since 1979. Musk perfumes have had an impressive run in popularity seen as early as ancient China, right through to modern-day fragrances. Thought to be an aphrodisiac and closely resembling the smell of testosterone, musk has played an important part in perfume history by adding depth.

Musc Tonkin opens with a bountiful profusion of skank. This skank is thick, sweet and painfully animalistic. Totally natural nonetheless, slightly leathery and somewhat urinous, making Tonkin Musk’s beginnings a guaranteed turn off to most unsuspecting individuals. For me, approaching this perfume was easy, proceed with caution. The “It looked terrible but tastes so good” adage comes to mind. I decided to give this perfume time to redeem itself before i gave up. Since the creator is doing nothing to assist us with a diagnosis of the notes for this fragrance, our noses are left to fend for themselves. Once past this general unpleasantness, the heart of Musc Tonkin is slightly sexy and definitely floral with just a bit soapy niceness. The fragrance moves slowing into floral venues with a touch of spice. I detect orange blossom, perhaps something less pungent, more spicy, like mock orange. This is where Musc Tonkin changes to something reminiscent of the smell of human skin. There is also a dusty or earthy attribute in the heart that associates this perfume with characteristics found in oakmoss. So, let’s add that to the list of unknown notes. I detect a good deal of smokiness, adding a sophisticated air with frankincense or myrrh as part of the concoction. The base of Musc Tonkin certainly contains tonka bean or a splash of vanilla, at the least, something sweet and slightly nutty. What would a perfume be without sandalwood? Yes, Musc Tonkin contain a healthy dose of wood. Can Musc Tonkin be classified as a floral chypre? Sure, Musc Tonkin display properties of soft, sweet and earthy qualities to earn the badge.

Off-putting at first, Musc Tonkin is not for the faint of heart. It is sexy, warm and naturalistic. It is fringed in white spicy flowers tied with earthly bounties of resinous woods. Longevity is fantastic with the fragrance’s zenith happening after the four hour range, after which it descends to a sweet nutty, still heavily noticeable skin scent. While the limited edition parfum extrait is no longer available, Musc Tonkin can still be enjoyed as an eau de parfum version

I recently sampled one perfume from the Trilogy Les Eaux Sanguines series by Les Liquides Imaginaires called Bloody Wood. When sampling a new perfume, I usually play a game with myself and I try to visualize the perfume’s scent based on its given name. I presumed many ghastly possibilities for Bloody Wood, but was pleasantly surprised by this perfume’s more heavenly inspiration, a gift from the gods. Take heed — never judge a book by its cover. This collection of perfumes is designed around a trio of wines; pink Champagne, grand cru Burgundy and a handsome Port. Did someone say, wine? Yes, please.

Bloody Wood opens with a relatively metallic accord, which is at odds with the softer floral notes. This accord has a smidgen of green. It’s slightly fruity, and unquestionably powdery with a sweet edge. These delicate characteristics are then slowly simmered with the dregs from a lovely grand cru Burgundy, adding a distinctive bitterness. This bitterness is a curious complement to the metallic accord. The imaginary and thought-provoking opening definitely caught my attention. Bloody Wood was dark, mysterious and ambiguous, in a déjà vu kind of way. The heart of Bloody Wood brings a bit more delectable sweetness and a fragment of warmth. There are luscious cherries and mouth-watering raspberries, all washed down with a boozy red wine with a fruity bouquet. Even with the presence of a strong dark fruit accord, the florals still lingered in the background beautifully. It certainly seems that we’ve embraced the bloody portion of this perfume profile, so what about the wood?

The bones of Bloody Wood exhibit many variations of woods. We have a damp and musty oaken barrel, giving the perfume a more earthly, naturalistic connection. This wood is rough, helping balance the metallic bitterness experienced in the opening and temper the ample sweet heart. The other wood present is sandalwood. In sharp contrast, sandalwood transports the wood notes from rustic to aromatic, and then finally to meditative. The concept of Bloody Wood would be nothing more than an empty dank barrel without the participation of a multi-dimensional wood accord. The dry-down of Bloody Wood is warm and comforting. Many of the fruity components gracefully age to a more resinous, candied quality with a side note of a nice red wine.

Bloody Wood is by far my favorite perfume between Les Eaux Sanguines and Les Eaux Delà series. All offerings appeal to a variety of sensibilities and are equally as impassioned as Bloody Wood. If you have never experienced Les Liquides Imaginaires perfumes, they are definitely worthy of a closer look. Their concepts are interesting and intelligent, retrospective and captivating. There seems to be a great deal of time invested in the background story to their perfumes. Les Liquides Imaginaires is brilliant at snagging a moment in time and seizing it into a graceful bottle.

Wood Sage & Sea Salt opens with a brightly illuminated explosion of grapefruit. This grapefruit is happy, energetically awakening the senses and saturating them in sunshine. An exceptional way to start a beach inspired fragrance. So far, so good. A lively citrus can also bring to mind sensual tropical islands, dotted with palm trees, but certainly not the pebbly, chilly beaches of England that they are trying to evoke. As the fragrance progresses, the sharp citrus note mellows and a layer of herbal sage is conjured up. This adds a pleasant sweet and savory accord, not unlike the beginning to a fantastic marinade. Wait a minute, I think my trip to the beach just got hijacked to Italy. How about some English flora like sea kale, thrift, dune helleborine, alexanders or perhaps yellow whitlow grass. I’m thinking that “Wood Thrift and Sea Salt” might have been more interesting as well as a more regionally accurate concept for this English beach inspiration. While the smell of thrift might not be as intoxicating as the smell of sage, the pretense has conceptual context. Back to the fragrance at hand. Wood Sage & Sea Salt’s heart launches with the introduction of a blonde, sun-baked driftwood vibe. This wood is desiccated, aromatic and perfect for what one might experience beachside. An enticing fruity, savory blend layered with an intensely dry wood note does create intrigue. Once a bit of surf is added with sharp sea salt, it wraps up this interesting harmony. Last but not lease, ambrette seed gives the fragrance a slightly musky note, adding a bit of nature to this otherwise unoccupied beach. Wood Sage & Sea Salt’s light aromatic nature, diffusing and clarifying, offers a nicely rounded finish.

While I really enjoyed Wood Sage & Sea Salt, I think the ad campaign’s conceptual strategy is confusing. Many people are well-read enough or, if lucky, well-traveled enough to understand the concept of the English seaside. As we all know, grapefruit nor more grows in England that mangoes grow in northern Minnesota. Jo Malone’s English beach-themed fragrance seems to be a bit of a stretch at best. Speaking of stretches, sage on the English beachside. Is this idea not just another oxymoron in Wood Sage & Sea Salt’s personality? Enough of all of this nonsense, let’s just remove the word “English” from the concept. This would make Wood Sage & Sea Salt a more generalized beach experience instead. It might give this fragrance a more universally acceptable idea for anyone who’s ever been to any beach in their life.

Cuir Velours opens with a surly blast of alcoholic molasses, a touch of fruit cake and a hint of moistened tobacco leaf. This certainly sounds like a strange holiday potpourri concoction. Nonetheless, the damp and strangely sweet confection undeniably gets your attention. As the opening notes expire, the end result is a luscious sugary rum and dry smoldering tobacco accord with an unusual underlying incense quality. The remnants of the opening notes comfortably settle on the skin as the heart of Cuir Velours boasts immortelle flower blanketed in a sun-baked hay-like haze. These elements are rather nice neutrals, resting points if you will, in preparation for the waxy and creamy suede-like notes which follow. Powdery labdanum and an unanticipated honey glaze help to weave an alluring gourmand web. In complete contrast, the base is warmed up with a touch of amber, giving us the first glimpse of this fragrance’s velvety personality. Frankincense incorporates a necessary clarifying smoky quality, definitely supporting the tobacco accord earlier in the opening. A leathery, rich, suede note successfully debuts in the heart of Cuir Velours. While detected all along, its scent paints a ghostly still life of antique books and well worn saddles. This creamy combination is a superlative complement to the luscious tobacco and rum accords experienced in the fragrance’s opening. Cuir Velours is reminiscent of some very famous “bad girl” perfumes from the art deco era. Goodsir does a fantastic job of taking the best elements of perfumes of the 1930?s and successfully modernizes the genre.

I openly admit that my opinion can be a bit skewed regarding any fragrance based on leather or suede. My love for this type of perfumes cannot hinder my honest impression of this beauty. I thoroughly enjoy Cuir Velours’ intended velvety lusciousness. From what I’ve gathered, so does everyone else I encounter when I’m wearing it. This fragrance consistently stimulates a great deal of interest. Because of the quality of the product, longevity is excellent and a little goes a long way. People find this fragrance alluring, warm and memorable. Cuir Velours is the perfect oasis in a sea of blustery Midwestern winter days.

Upon initial inspection, the note structure of The Odd Fellow’s Bouquet is by no means complex. The fragrance appears to be a seemingly simple masculine recipe. Atkinsons makes the experience a much more intricate and dimensional creation. It’s not for certain, but based on the name, the concept might have been inspired by a 17th century English fraternal organization known as The Odd Fellows. The Odd Fellows were a fraternal organization that was set up to protect and care for their members and communities. The scent profile certainly conjures up spectral images of chivalrous gentlemen Londoners, sporting starched shirts and brilliant colored ties in mahogany clad rooms, while performing their social duties of the day. If this is part of the fragrance’s storyline, the scent’s structure successfully contributes to the historical reference. The opening of The Odd Fellow’s Bouquet brings a parade of warmth and spice to woo the senses. It’s much like a savory gingersnap that keeps your taste buds persistently stimulated. The ginger note is foodie and downright consoling, and is lightly spiked with peppercorn to intensify the experience. The heart of this fragrance is a rich blend of a velvety vanilla accord, combined with an opulent, fragrant dark tobacco note. The tobacco in The Odd Fellow’s Bouquet is aged and refined. The vanilla, smoldering tobacco and the gourmand-themed top notes make for an arresting combination. In the base, there hides a vaguely medicinal quality, layered with powdery labdanum, creating a unique antiseptic freshness. It makes the finish of The Odd Fellow’s Bouquet curious and beguiling.

You don’t necessarily need to be a fan of gentlemanly scents to enjoy The Odd Fellow’s Bouquet by Atkinsons. You also don’t need to sport a velvet smoking jacket and ascot but it certainly couldn’t hurt. The Odd Fellow’s Bouquet is effortlessly masculine and perfect for someone who enjoys the spice and tobacco genres of fragrances. It smells sophisticated, just like what you might imagine every well-respected British gentleman might. The Odd Fellow’s Bouquet is a slightly more contemporary take on a reliable masculine theme, and impressively done by Atkinsons. This fragrance is quite refined and completely worthy of owning.