Landshark321

First proper sampling of Ormonde Jayne Montabaco Cuba, a fresh, spicy, slightly sweet blend that’s smooth and easygoing and highly pleasant while having just a bit of provocative sharpness at its opening. Its main notes are a blend of citruses, florals, and spices—most notably bergamot, juniper, jasmine, magnolia, and tea—with a base of tonka and tobacco. It has a great blended effect that defies categorization somewhat; it operates at the intersection of a handful of different genres and themes without being too over-the-top in terms of being a freshie or tobacco scent, but somewhere in between, with the abovementioned ensemble of citruses and florals providing a bit of a laundry-fresh aspect in contrast to the tobacco or sweetness in tonka. This is an easy one to love and I can easily see how its reputation has gotten so strong so quickly.

This particular release from Ormonde Jayne, a limited edition, is on the pricier side of the brand, at $275 for 88ml (sold via boutiques like Perfumology), but its utility is extremely high, as this could easily be an everyday type of fragrance that is nevertheless very sophisticated and special.

I quite love it but I’m not sure I’ll ever spring for it, a comparable situation for me to the Lubin Aristia collection—especially Sinbad and Galaor—that I undoubtedly regard as excellent but perhaps just do not need a full 100ml of, given the price point.

Still, this Montabaco Cuba is very special and I would highly recommend checking it out, as it could be extremely useful to some.

8 out of 10

This is a long-overdue proper sampling and review of Cult of Kaori Onsen Minerale, one of the house’s first two releases in its late 2023 debut (along with Melon Masu). For those that don’t know, Cult of Kaori was founded by owner/perfumer Chris Undi, local to Philadelphia, with inspiration from his experiences in Japan. Onsen Minerale takes its name from Japanese hot springs sometimes used for bathing, and the notes of this fresh, deep creation include some of the natural elements that coincide with the onsen, including a robust freshwater/steam accord, lychee, mandarin, and hinoki wood, among others, a fulfilling experience that has a dry drydown while also being an immersive freshwater-reminiscent journey. It has the cleanness and natural smells of a spa without the human element, an intersection of woods, citruses, and water that’s positively therapeutic, and it’s no wonder why the reception to this fragrance has been so glowing in the months since its release. Additionally, it has rich quality and very good performance, particularly for a fragrance that that shines because of its fresh and natural aspects.

Both fragrances in the Cult of Kaori line are priced at $220 for 50ml and sold via the house site and boutiques like Perfumology, at 25% concentration, generally equivalent to a parfum/extrait.

8 out of 10

Herbs & Sea Salt is a Dua inspired expression of Jo Malone Wood Sage and Sea Salt, one of that brand’s more pleasant offerings with dreadful performance, which this Dua version improves on significantly. The scent is a freshie with aquatic, aromatic, green, and herbal qualities, with a simple note breakdown of ambrette seeds, sea salt, and sage. For me, there’s a watery quality with vegetation, but smoothly blended in with a vaguely spicy, aromatic background. It’s not among my favorite Dua freshies, which tend to be original creations, anyway, but it’s a nice recreation with quite good performance for a summer freshie.

7 out of 10

Cozy Tale of Vanilla is a recent Dua original blend in the Dua Designer Line, a robust vanilla with resinous and smoky tones, a darker vanilla with bits of labdanum, guaiac, brown sugar, and vanilla orchid, the flower adding just a bit of sophistication to an otherwise gourmand-leaning mix. This is very, very nice, giving me something otherwise not provided by other Dua originals, even those featuring vanilla, in the current catalogue, and it’s an extra special treat as part of the DDL. It’s one of the standouts of the DDL, in my opinion, a great follow-up in name to Cozy Tale of Winter, which is perhaps my single favorite of the DDL to date.

Priced at $33 for 30ml, it’s an especially good deal, and sometimes additional discounts are available.

8 out of 10

This is my first proper sampling of Mahni Cassonade, one of the most recent releases from Navitus Parfums, a mostly-gourmand with a prominent toffee note that comes off as syrupy to me, reminiscent of breakfast syrup and waffles or pancakes, even. It’s quote smooth, creamy, resinous, a bit dark, and super strong, with supportive gourmand notes of brown sugar and vanilla ice cream as well as amber and amberwood.

The robust toffee component is reminiscent of Absolutio, part of the initial collection from Navitus in late 2019, and still my favorite of the line, though it has other aspects that distinguish it from Mahni Cassonade. Still, there’s some commonality to be considered, and I probably ought to do a side by side comparison,

Overall, this is excellent and very enjoyable, especially for a gourmand fan that enjoys the syrupy, resinous, toffee intersection that it’s in play in Mahni Cassonade. It’s high-performing, as the line generally tends to be, in high extrait concentration.

The pricing is the highest of the brand both in terms of overall bottle price and cost per ml, at $295 for 125ml, but I imagine it’s sometimes on sale. As with the rest of the line, it’s sold via the house site as well boutiques like Perfumology, where I bought my sample.

8 out of 10