Real Patchouly (2005)
by Bois 1920

Patchouli. Heaven.

If I hadn't already smelled Montale's Patchouli Leaves, I would say this is the best scent ever created. Having now tried both, I would say it's a tie for first and that there really needs to be room behind Heaven's Gate for the both of them.

They're strikingly similar scents, so deep, so rich, so beautifully and shamelessly linear with their mesmerizing patchoulis. If I'm looking for distinction, it would be that this one evidences a touch more amber underneath but doesn't have quite the sillage of the Montale. If you like patchouli, you absolutely cannot go wrong with this one or the Montale. Highly recommended.

27th February, 2011. (Last Edited: 14th April, 2011.)

Real Patchouly doesn't bother much with the conventional citrus top notes. Instead, it goes right on as a surprisingly tart, brisk, and maybe even "salty" patchouli that rests on a warm, yeasty base. There are a good deal of dry amber and some prickly herbs in the mix too, but the resulting accord is much less thick and dark than the patchouli heavyweights from Mazzolari, Profumum or the Comme des Garçons Luxe line. Real Patchouli is also lighter and more woody than the sweet, viscous amber and patchouli blend that grounds, say, Ambre Sultan.

Real Patchouli remains fairly linear over the first couple hours of wear, after which point the amber moves forward and sweetens, then finally becomes dominant in the extended drydown. While it's certainly sensual, this is not one of the more animalic or earthy patchoulis on the market. On the contrary, Real Patchouli emphasizes the drier, woody aspect of the patchouli note. It strikes me as quite wearable, yet not as timid or apologetic as the polite patchouli in L'Artisan Parfumeur's Patchouli Patch. All told, this is a worthy alternative in the range of patchouli-dominated niche fragrances.

29th November, 2010.

I have often found Bois 1920 fragrances to be more style than substance, but Real Patchouly certainly bucks the trend. A briefly extroverted opening phase, allows citric, herbal and wood elements to entertain unfettered.The emergent sandalwood note imbues the fragrance with warmth, richness and quality.The patchouli seam is discernable from an early stage, but it is appropriately restrained, as if satisfied that its name is top of the bill.

There are no great strides forward beyond the heart notes, but it does lose a touch of its sweetness, and gains a mild grainy quality. Overall, there are no great surprises, but a simple concept seems to have been nicely polished. The result is a fragrance of high quality.

16th December, 2009.

This is spectacular stuff. Somerville Metro Man's review describes my experience with it perfectly. The opening is strong, sweet patchouli, tempered with a bit of citrus and what I'd call a slightly nutty note. As the patchouli note itself becomes a bit more woody in nature, a vanilla note creeps in to provide some sweetened smoothness, keeping the accord from becoming too abrasive. The final version of the patchouli is my favorite: the note becomes a little more bitter and aromatic - a soft, dry patchouli backed by a subtle dose of powdery amber. The entire evolution is pure heaven; this is the most approachable, wearable patchouli fragrance I've ever tried.

9th October, 2009.

Bois 1920 Real Patchouly

Patchouli is one of those notes that is difficult to work with, I think. It is easy to use it and come off smelling like every head shop in existence. It is a more difficult trick to get past that association and through a combination of other notes bring out a different facet to patchouli. In Real Patchouly, Enzo Galardi does this in a very slow moving and delightful way. This is a symphony of patchouli in three movements. From the top the head shop smell of patchouli is present along with a tart lemon which keeps it familiar and maybe even commonplace or boring. This is a patchouli you've seen before, many times. Then the second movement begins and while the patchouli is still the dominant figure vanilla matches it and now accentuates the sweeter aspects of patchouli; muting but not obliterating the more herbal essence one usually associates with patchouli. After an extended second movement we move into the final movement and this comes on very slowly as you notice the herbal character of the patchouli beginning to make a return but now it has brough a partner with it, amber. The effect of the amber is to bring those herbal notes to the foreground while muting the sweeter aspects thus flipping the experience of the whole from an hour or so ago. Real Patchouly is a very slowly evolving scent as it took almost two hours for all of this to happen. This is no fast-food scent here. This scent shows what a perfumer can do with one predominant note that lasts throughout but by pairing it with the right dance partners create lovely olfactory synergies that allow you to really appreciate the central note.

28th February, 2009.

Real Patchouly is real patchouli. It’s a deep, dry patchouli that seems to be quite unadorned and straightforward, which, of course, it isn’t. There is a modicum of citrus joining the opening, giving the opening a very temporary shadow of lightness and sparkle – but only in the background to the solid, dry patchouli. It doesn’t take long for a light, almost dry amber to join the patchouli in an unique and excellent accord. I don’t find this accord very similar to the patchouli accords in other patchouli scents. It it smooth rather than raw; but I wouldn’t call it refined or even tamed; It is stark and smooth, and I know that that doesn't make sense. It isn’t head shop, and it certainly isn’t macerated such as the patchouli in Montales Patchouli Leaves. It is simply a woody, full, linear, long lasting, and completely enjoyable patchouli accord. A large part of its character is the sandalwood that joins it halfway through the heart accord. The dry down is soft and masculine without a lot of sillage and with a rather limited longevity. Real Patchouly’s dry, low-keyed, arid / semi-sweet, woody, masculine presentation represents a unique interpretation of patchouli and offers a genuine alternative to other patchouli fragrances. Admirable.

19th February, 2009.