Gelsomini di Capri
by Carthusia

I expected this to be a 'pretty' fragrance. Loads of floral elements. A slight shift, I find it quite handsome. The florals are vaguely high-pitched (jasmine, orange blossom, ylang-ylang) in the top-notes, but are all are all reigned-in by a leading geranium note. Into the heart, there's a good bit of a dirty, sweaty feel, but this point seems more like an inflection of the floral, and not stand-alone skanky.

Wonderfully, the sweetness fades in the heart, and a rather earthy, though not vulgar, floral tone (again, lots of the geranium still in play) carries the day. It's a very outdoorsy floral feel, more like a garden than a bouquet, and the underbelly notes (indoles, a sweaty feel) grow without ever becoming overwhelming. While not a chypre, Gelsomini becomes a down-to-earth scent, finding a well-worn feel similar in tone to the green/leather chypres.

8th September, 2011.