HS3

Wow. I love Ulrich Lang Nightscape.

I wasn’t really sure what to expect when I first sampled it, but reading reviews about its icy patchouli, I had to try it. At first sample, it had to be mine. I’ll try to keep this quick and simple.

Patchouli lovers – you need to try it. It’s not like head shop patchouli, but rather a smooth, crisp, woodsy patchouli. I can totally buy into their marketing; a man out on the town, dressed in great jeans, a dark cotton blazer, a white button down, and an air of confidence. It dries into this gorgeously sleek leather/musk/amber with just a gentle touch of citrus to give a tart, bright element. By the way, if you like this, you might like Montale Pure Gold. And if you like Pure Gold, you might like Chanel Coromandel. Nightscape smells nothing like Coromandel, but just saying… if you like one, etc.

Have some pics – great bottle, with a nice feel in the hand. The cap is a let down as it’s just molded plastic, but without a considerable price hike, there’s not much else they could do with it.

There you go! A gorgeous scent and a great bottle. Check it out – Nightscape by Ulrich Lang.

I’ve done the hand sample a few times with Passion Boisée by the house of Frapin. Its notes lead me to think it would be right up my alley:

Tangerine, nutmeg, rum, oak moss, clove, leather, patchouli, cedarwood (courtesy of Luckyscent)

While it’s quite nice, it isn’t grabbing me like other scent with those notes. It opens very oddly – like freshly cut cedar with overtones of paint and fingernail polish. It’s pretty sharp and abrasive out of the gates which doesn’t bother me – it’s actually the most interesting part. It, however, dries relatively quickly into a cedar and nutmeg combo with the other notes hiding meekly behind. I think it would be perfectly suited for someone looking for a well made, close wearing cedar scent, but if you already have a couple that you love, you won’t find any surprises here. I would give it a 6/10 for my own tastes. I’d happily wear it if I had it, but wouldn’t buy it over any number of similar scents. I think an over application may be in order to try to discover some of those other notes.

This is the first in the Parfum d’Empire line and one of the first few that I’ve tried in this intriguing line. So far, I’ve only tried a few from Parfum d’Empire, but I’ve been impressed with all of them so far.

Here are the notes for Eau de Gloire:
lemon, bergamot, rosemary, orange, neroli, lavender, tea, anise, licorice, leather, tobacco, incense, immortelle, oakmoss, cistus.

This was done in honor of Napoleon Bonaparte, due to his love for fragrance. Actually, the entire line is based on the premise of mixing history with perfume. It may be a bit gimmicky, but I like it, so I guess it got me.

For the longest time, immortelle was not one of my favorite notes. It always smelled a bit off for some reason. I couldn’t describe it, but never felt comfortable with it. My tastes have done a huge 180 since then though and I’ve been thoroughly enjoying it lately (Eau Noire is perfection in a tall, green bottle). I was really intrigued by the idea of immortelle playing with the icy anise note here so had to try it. It is blended really well – it’s not easy for me to really pick out any certain notes but right off the bat, I’m treated to a gorgeous melange of woodsy tobacco, leather and anise (but more natural, less like the icy licorice style), with hints of immortelle, all introduced by a crisp, yet velvety citrus curtain that immediately begins its development and parts to reveal the heart. I had somewhat expected a sharp licorice type opening for some reason, but was pleasantly surprised with a rich natural blend that incorporates everything into a wonderfully smooth scent. Nothing is fighting for center stage, and I never felt like anything was dominating the rest. Part of me wishes there was a touch more immortelle presence in this, but I think if it did, it might throw the whole thing off kilter. The leather in the base is perfect, reminding me of a similar treatment in China White. This one is a winner – it may have to find its way onto my shelf.

Looks like I’ve managed to have two Nasomatto entries back to back. I swear, when I first tried the remaining dribbles out of a used Duro sample, I enjoyed it, but I didn’t think I would end up with my affinity for the line. I don’t even wear them that often, but I sure do enjoy sniffing them from the bottle. Perhaps I don’t want to see the dwarfed 30ml bottles lose any of their precious liquid. Yet, when I do wear them, I get a lot of good attention, and the GF loves them all (except for Absinth… she thinks it smells like dirt and unwashed bodies). Go figure.

Anyways, I recently made it through my vial of China White, and decided it needed to find a home on my shelves. I had full plans on calling my favorite SA at Barneys LV, but with her out on medical leave, I had to wait. Lucky for me, one popped up on eBay, and I snagged it for almost half the retail price. Thank you, Sir eBay.

It’s such a mesmorizing scent. I don’t know what heroine smells like, but if this is it, I suppose I can better understand the allure. It has a gorgeous leathery aura – for those familiar with Nasomatto, many of their scents have an incredible note that shimmers and teases, much like aldehydes, but a whole new take. The leather in this one reminds me of Tom Ford Tuscan Leather (that many have said smells of cocaine.. perhaps my nose has a problem?). It’s a dry, yet powdery style of leather. There is a gorgeous floral note, almost creamy in nature like that in Costume National 21, combined with the scent of the lining of a smoker’s leather coat.

This one is, as they say, strangely addicting. It’s complex, strange, and completely wearable. My kind of scent.

Chanel (Jacques Polge & Christopher Sheldrake) did it right with this one. This is in the top 5 scents I smelled in 2008.

I would describe it overall as a rich, yet accessible take on patchouli and chocolate. However, there are just so many wonderful aspects all along the way that make it as wonderful as it is. The opening has the peppery tart spray of bitter orange peel with a sweet chocolate undertone. The spices are gritty and light, not ones to hit the back of your throat.. A wonderful patchouli that you wouldn’t necessarily identify unless you knew to look for it emerges with just the slightest powdery feathering. It settles into a rich, warm leathery scent that still retains some of its top notes punch and even has a comforting, classic feel to it. I don’t know many classic Chanels, but the dry down makes me think of a complex scent with such depth a company like this would have produced.

This is really a masterpiece for me. I knew I would end up buying it within minutes of sampling it. I took a sample and wore it that night and the next day and bought a bottle the next afternoon. The bottle is gorgeous and the base of the box doubles as a Chanel stand for the bottle. The packaging is top notch – even the cap is magnetically polarized so that the Chanel logo is horizontal when you put the cap on.

Be sure you love anything you buy from Les Exclusifs line… you’re getting a jug of it. The price may seem daunting at first, but when you account for how much you’re actually getting, it’s no more expensive than any other standard designer scent.

Huge A+ from me.