Reviews of Dilmun (2000)
by Lorenzo Villoresi

Dilmun is a rich, refreshing orange blossom fragrance. It is much richer than a typical citrus style cologne. I enjoy the smell of orange blossoms very much, and Dilmun is fairly true to a fresh orange blossom. It reminds me of the type of orange blossom found in very high quality cooking/baking waters. It has a nice light, spicy dry down, that ends up somewhere in a vanilla neighborhood, but not sweet or cloying. Wearing it reminds me of being in an excellent patisserie - beautiful, fragrant, flavorful, satisfying.

Well, skin chemistry reactions are certainly interesting! On me, this has a gorgeous neroli opening. There are lovely orange blossom notes, of both fruit and flowers. It then develops an airy, light green note from the incense and laurel. This phase is quite interesting. The vanilla is faint and not cloying. The orange blossom note has great longevity, and I enjoyed it for many hours. I guess this is definitely a scent that each person has to try. I have a sensitive sniffer, and I can find no odd-ball components here.

Wonderful citrus, floral, and green opening—there’s an excellent tangy green stab of sharpness in the midst of the citrus and flowers. As the citruses fade, the green loses its sharpness and sweetness, and it becomes a more mature, full, rich fragrance dominated by a laurel that is mellowed by the florals. Usually I don’t care for too obvious florals in a fragrance, but I find the floral element in Dilmun to be quite pleasurable and not at all too feminine. I think it’s the lasting prominent citrus note and the resinous feel to the fragrance that keeps the florals from taking over completely. The citrus holds almost through the entire run of the fragrance, and the florals last even longer—all the way through the dry down. Dilmun is an enticing fragrance—one of the few where I really love a strong floral presence.

According to the Villoresi web site, there are 13 ingredients in Dilmun:

Top: Citrus, Rose, Neroli, Green Leaves
Middle: Petitgrain, Laurel, Opoponax, Incense
Base: Floral extracts, Elemi, Vanilla, Cedarwood, Sandalwood

This is the third Villoresi scent I have tried and I find it to be quite nice. Most reminiscent of Floris #127, although not as strong as the Floris. They both share the neroli, softened by rose, and with a petitgrain support. A very light and pleasant neroli, which in the drydown is softened by vanilla notes.

I was surprised to find that Truefitt and Hill's West Indian Limes is really a neroli based scent with citrus evident only at the beginning. This too is similar to Dilmun, but Dilmun is more subtle and sophisticated.

A very fine neroli on a par with Floris #127.

This is my favorite orange blossom scent, heightened and spiced with elemi and resins. Good lasting power, and very elegant. An extremely light touch of laurel gives it a good lift. Very bright and rich.

I love orange blossom, grew up in Orange County in the 50s and 60s when you could still catch a whiff of it in the air. This one struck me on first try as a very masculine fragrance - the woods and dry herbs came out strongly and it seemed very dry - but on second wearing I fell for it, and sensed its feminine side. It is very broadly composed around its orange flower heart. Unlike Serge Lutens' Fleurs d'Oranger which is so creamy and solid you can almost taste it, this one invites you to expand your lungs, extend your awareness over the entire pastoral landscape.

a treasure divinely crafted to delight your senses ,definitely my most beloved orange blossoms fragrance in the world

I just picked this up in Milan. I was loking for something else entirely, but fell for this with the first sniff. Great citrus and green start, with a warm heart of orange flower and whispers of woods and resins...outstanding and longlasting, especially if you like orange flower scents.

Just ordered this along with P. Nigrum. I like it very much; it will be alongside Acqua di Parma (which it resembles somewhat) for an interesting and fun weekend and relaxation scent.

I have not worn this scent since last summer and "forgot" about how beautiful it is. I have never seen it discussed here, so I thought maybe I should introduce Dilmun to you.
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Dilmun was an ancient civilization located on the crossroads of the trading routes between the Indus Valley and Mesopotamia.(todays Bahrein). We know from Mesopotamian inscriptions and successive archaeological excavations that Dilmun was a major link between these early civilizations. According to Mesopotamian records, particularly the Gilgamesh epic, Dilmun was regarded as a Holy Land. It played a significant role in the history of the ancient world as a main trader of incenses and spices. Between 2200 - 1600, its "Golden Age", Dilmun controlled the trading routes and built fortified cities, magnificent temples and thousands of burial mounds, then started to decline and vanished around 330 BC.
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Although incense and spices are named as notes in Villoresi's composition, Dilmun is above all an orange blossom scent - maybe THE orange blossom scent. It is not deep and creamy like SL Fleurs d'Oranger or the new Fleurs de Citronnier nor is it a Cologne style interpretation such as SMN Zagara or PdN Cologne Sologne. Dilmun is an etheral and bright orange blossom, mixed with lemon and mandarine zest in the top notes. Oppoponax and sweet honey in the heart notes are only here to bring out the best of the orange blossom that is dominating the dry down. If there is incense in the base, it is used sparely and can hardly been detected. Dried laurel leaves hold the overall scent together.
First spritz out of the bottle comes out VERY sweet and may discourage you from further investigation. Dilmun however is NOT a gourmand fragrance, it just renders the soft sweetness of the orange blossom so perfectly and naturally.
I always like to refer to Dilmun as "Marrakesh in a bottle".
This is indeed what you smell in the evening sitting in the patio of one of the hidden palaces in Marrakesh, after a lunch, waiting for your mint tea and honey baklavas to be brought. The air is still warm but a little breeze fills the air bringing distant whiffs of sweet spice from the kitchen.
Your host brings you a richely decorated silver carafe with macerated orange blossoms and spritzes the content on your open hands : an old rite that is said to bring you health, wealth and happiness.
If you love orange blossom - the true thing - Dilmun is a must.

Dilmun is a unique scent in that, at first, I thought it was only a feminie scent, yet it clearly bears some fantastic qualities that would best be brought out on the masculine skin. Whle the citrus notes permeate throughout the opening citrus fades in potency to introduce the floral side, which has a welcome place in men's fragrance. My next acquisition.