Missoni (new) (2006)
by Missoni

Missoni opens with a buxom honeyed fruit note that’s rescued from triviality by a judicious helping of …bittersweet chocolate. I can just imagine perfumer Maurice Roucel deciding to show off his brilliance by taking up the fruity floral cliché that now dominates the realm of mass market women’s fragrances, and through virtuosic sleight-of-hand transforming it into something original and beautiful. This grand initial flourish left me curious as to what might follow, and if Roucel could possibly sustain the act. As it happens, the next episode is a cool, bright, yet paradoxically indolic/animalic floral accord that’s at the same time both heady and refreshing. Meanwhile, the fruit takes on an exotic, tropical character as it recedes a few steps to further expose the floral blend. The honey and dark chocolate march on steadily beneath it all.

With its tropical fruit and blossoms, Missoni brings to mind Estee Lauder’s Beyond Paradise, but Missoni is a richer, weightier scent. Where Beyond Paradise has hints of green aquatics in its background, Missoni rests on what smells like a trimmed down oriental amber base, and where Beyond Paradise is cool, abstracted, and ethereal, Missoni seems comparatively warm, grounded, and organic. Fruity floral oriental is how I’d sum up Missoni, and I enjoy it for the fact that it avoids on one hand the ponderous, opaque gourmand style, and on the other the crude, excessively cheerful banality that typifies the modern fruity floral. Nice.

Luca Turin was so taken by this gem that not only did he give Maurice Roucel's Missoni a well-deserved 5-star but also enthused that "I'll make sure I have enough of this perfume to last me a lifetime." I am so glad I listened to LT and bought a tester bottle blind and it is ravishingly superb! The chocolate note is excellently realized and the overall structure achieves what LT termed "harmony and melody' in a perfume composition perfectly. Strange that this wonderful frag is so rarely mentioned here in BN. A shame really when it's so, so good. It deserves a better fate.

I have a generous sample vial of this perfume and I just LOVE it! It is floral fruity but not nauseatingly like many of the current department store fragrances these days. Instead you become engulfed in the bergamot, mandarin and zesty orange notes while slowly the peony and magnolia settle in. Most of all I notice it's tanginess with the Japanese apple aroma and the finally the amber and chocolate reveal themselves. It's intoxicating! I only wish it was not so expensive and hard to find. It will definitely be mine soon!

The surprise in Missoni is that at first is seems as if is is going to play out as a fresh fruity-floral, but at its heart is the most delicious, warm milk chocolate note. It's a little bit like your best friend suddenly jumping out of one of those fake cakes. I'm not a fan of sugary perfumes and dislike a cotton candy note, nor do I like perfumes that smell too foodie (who wants to smell like they've been eating chocolate ice cream all afternoon?), but the chocolate at the heart of Missoni is not sugary or foodie: it's warm, friendly and glowing. The only downside is that the chocolate note faded on me after about an hour, and the dry-down was less notable. I'm not sure that this will be become a wardrobe staple but is definitely worth a try at the perfume counter. It's a surprisingly complex, quality and delightful frag considering it's major fashionista credentials.

This quite reminds me of (are you ready?) Britney Spears' Fantasy although they have no notes in common and Missoni is lighter with no gourmand-y shades. I think the peony/bergamot is lychee-like - it's great for summer. Fresh and floral, it wears well.

Listed notes for Missoni include: Bergamot, Magnolia. Loquat, Chocolate, Amber, Peony, Mandarin, Bitter Orange, Persimmon AND Radiant Yellow Accord & Brown & Pink! WOW, what a list! This is the first time I've seen colors singled out as fragrance notes. Bizarre. My first impression of this scent is that I've smelled nothing else quite like it...which is an accomplishment in itself as I've sampled many fragrances. The best general description I can give is that it's MODERN and SUNNY. Haven't really decided if I like to wear it or not, but Missoni has captured my attention. The bottle is very attractive & the price is high too. $110. for 3.4 oz. edp spray or $80. for 1.7 oz. edp spray at Nordstrom. For this kind of money I'll have to take a longer test run. For now, I'm giving this one a "thumbs up" - but just barely.