Visa (1945)
by Robert Piguet

Under review here is the 2007 release, composed by Aurélien Guichard. Guichard created Visa between his breakthrough opus Chinatown and his reformulation of Azzaro Couture. These three scents establish a distinct personal style, but they also represent different facets of a single, extremely fertile idea: a hybrid between the lactonic chypre genre, (whose antecedents go as far back as Mitsouko,) and gourmand floral orientals in the modern mold of Angel. The lynchpin note is patchouli, which appears to bind the chypre and oriental components along a common axis in each of the three scents. Besides those patchouli sutures, evidence of common paternity includes boldly three-dimensional lactone-based fruit accords and vanillic base notes so emphatically powdery they cause a pleasant, if peculiar, sensation of ground chalk in the nostrils. Of the three sisters, Visa is the darkest, the spiciest, and the most oriental in its overall flavor. In many respects it may also be the most approachable and easy to wear of the three. It should find an especially receptive audience among those who enjoy the overall structure of Chinatown, but find it too intensely sweet or dissonant to wear with comfort.

Visa’s top notes are among the most immediately captivating I’ve encountered in a long time. Lush fruit, orange blossom, vanilla, a flourish of aldehydes, a touch of smoky leather, and a subtly pungent animalic element (synthetic civet is my guess) play a grand harp glissando across the olfactory centers. The olfactory colors shift and merge into a soft, luxurious, and utterly seamless accord that simultaneously conjures brushed suede, caramelized spiced fruit, and tropical blossoms, all wrapped in Guichard’s trademark powdery vanilla. Patchouli is ever-present in the foundation, though it does not register strongly as an individual note. Instead it works alongside the quietly persistent animalic musk from the opening to imbue a sense of living warmth to the entire composition.

Visa is potent without ever seeming crass or loud, and offers substantial sillage and longevity. The beautifully soft powdery/mossy vanillic drydown remains a joy for many hours after application. Fully worthy to stand beside its Bond No. 9 and Azzaro siblings, not to mention the outstanding recent reconstructions of Bandit and Baghari. (The latter again by Guichard.)

I never had the pleasure of trying the original, so my review is for the new version which, I understand, was inspired by but not like the original. This new version is a fruity, but not too sweet, suede. The opening is all fruit, with an emphasis on pear. The second waive of fragrance reminds me a little bit of Dune, thin & arid. Next comes the suede, definately not leather, but a wonderful soft suede. And then, poof, gone! A little less fruit, a little more suede and a lot more longevity would make the new VISA a blockbuster! Order one of the Piguet reissues at robertpiguetparfums.com and get free samples of all of the reissued fragrances, including Cravache. Free shipping, too.

This is A-MA-A-ZING!!!! And what is amazing about it ( IMHO) - is the combination of peaches , helichrysum (immortelle flowers) which is smoky by nature , a trace of patchouli (perfect proportion!!! here) and leather !!! Works fine !!! I would even say it's an ideal team of ingredients. Although , of course there are many more ingredients here . And the longer it stays on your skin the better it becomes!! The drydown is DELECTABLE!!! There is one or two notes in particular that work as 'linking' notes. (So I believe). Don't know . They are just SO ideal together . It could be Sandalwood + Pear+Benzoin ( also smoky by nature). Leather accord is crucial here .It equallises all the orchard fruit and flowers. (IMHO) , Bringing them into a smoking tub rather than a Jam Jar ( like in J'aime by La PERLA . YUUCK!!!) Anyway , the overall perception is - like blossom of many tiny flowers.....Hm-m. It could be called Floriental . Easily . Leather enhanced by Helichrysum , Benzoin and Patchouli - What an amazing interpretation of modern femininity!!!! Sillage is Good, but it seems to be more of an aura scent since it's warm cozy and sexy!!!! Adore it !!!!!!! Re-buy if you can !!!

I cannot tolerate Fracas....

Oh, no! A fruity floral – not my favorite category. Except for its imposing strength, it seems modern. I was hoping for something more “yesterday.” Visa is a strong, feminine fruity floral: peach, pear, and mandarin for fruit; rose, ylang-ylang, and orange blossom for floral. None of the aforementioned seems to dominate – the accords are very nicely balanced, and of course, there’s not a trace of synthetics. It feels closer than modern fruity florals do, and by that I’m not referring to sillage… I think I mean it feels warmer, more natural, more real…It’s closer to living things. It’s base is quite remarkable: very sweet with its benzoin and vanilla, and I don’t think that the sweetness is tempered very much by the woods or moss. (I only suspect the woods and mosses.) Yet it’s a rich, not a thin “sweet” due to its “gourmand leathery accord.” Whatever is happening there, it works. Quite a complex, interesting but sweet drydown: I thought when I started this review that it would end up a neutral – not my favorite category, you know, but I’ve actually talked myself into enjoying this.

I was suprised at how much I liked Visa. I love Piguet's Bandit (in moderation) and hate Fracas (just too much) so I was a bit apprehensive to see whether Visa would evoke strong scent feelings as well.

As for the top/middle notes, I caught orange blossom, bergamtot, neroli, amber and just a touch of oak moss for depth. Visa seems similar to Annick Goutal's Nuits d'Hadrien but without the spicy cumin notes.

Overall Visa is a warm, elegant scent that would be appropriate for many occasions, casual or dressy. I also think it could work in all four seasons, even the hotter months.