Psychotrope (2006)
by Parfumerie Generale

The first time I smelled this I thought it was a drug store fragrance – it smelled cheap and somewhat crude. The testings that I did later gave me leather as the only note that I could smell, and I found that particular leather note terribly annoying… Pyschotrope is certainly not for me – the leather dominance makes it the kind of fragrance I never will enjoy or understand. Be sure to test it if you like leather... Interesting name, though.

5th April, 2010.

Psychotrope opens on a resolutely “modernist” late 20th century gesture, combining indolic green jasmine, melon, and tomato leaf. The indolic jasmine and melon immediately recall Edmond Roudnitsaka’s masterful Le Parfum de Thérèse, released posthumously by Frederic Malle, but composed (decades before its time) during the 1950s. Though both scents feature leather alongside their melon and jasmine, Pierre Guillaume’s tanned hide accord is both drier and more conspicuous than Roudnitska’s. Le Parfum de Thérèse represents the apotheosis of fruity floral compositions, but Psychotrope in its early phase is more difficult to classify. Psychotrope’s tomato leaf renders it somewhat bitter and more overtly herbaceous in character, and for a time it vacillates indecisively between leathery green and fruity floral in gestalt.

Psychotrope’s leather takes on a smoky birch tar character and intensifies progressively as it dries down, so that after a full wearing I’m comfortable calling it a leather scent. I’ve seen Psychotrope described as "dark," and Guillaume lists a “black leather” note in the pyramid, but to my nose this is a buoyant and transparent, if not necessarily bright, scent. Even in its drydown Psychotrope dispenses with the sweet amber, moss, or heavy woods that weigh down many leather scents, and its relatively reticent in both sillage and projection. I concede that there’s plenty of mystery about Psychotrope, but nothing threatening or sinister. The scent is about beguilingly soft-focus understatement rather than nocturnal drama. So much so in fact, that I think it could benefit from being more assertive. As it is now, Psychotrope requires heavy application to register much impact. Thumbs up nonetheless for its originality and an interesting development.

12nd December, 2009.

I've spent some time with it by now and while I initially was mildly impressed, the more time I spent with Psychotrope, the more it grew on me -- now it reminds me greatly of a few days I've spent at certain places, with leather jackets tainted with aromas of crushed flower petals and general flora, a rather positive association, personally, and a fulfilling olfactory experience. A slight warning though, it'll come off as rather feminine upon application. Just let it settle and prepare to be dazzled.

28th October, 2009.

Hallucinate if you will ... An alien landscape ... A mysterious deep violet nightsky. The moons fade into the mauve of the magical predawn light. The morning mist elevates from the glass still pond. Dewdrops crystalise upon the leather petals, of the odd alien cyclamen flowers, along the water's edge. The elegant blooms awaken. Their shimmering silver leather petals, slowly unfurl. An intoxicating perfume escapes. The scent, a transluscent lilac, visible in the air, like a million suspended sparkling atomic diamonds. It clings to you, your skin and mind, for eighteen hours of sensation .....
Psychotrope is yet another exquisite creation by the genius "nez" Pierre Guillaume, the nose behind PG. - His inspiration was the vision of a flower with leather petals (imagining it's scent).
It was commissioned excusively by a Russian store - Aromateka. (But I know it's available in Canada, and most probably directly from PG, if you're "privvy" to the code necessary to access the Private Collection.)
In the above "scene", I exaggerate for effect, but not the 18hrs excellent longevity. On my skin it easily lasted that long, proving to be one of PG's most tenacious scents.
It's a leather-jasmin scent, with notes in the pyramid : cyclamen , violet , "dark jasmin" , lilac wood , black leather and musk.
It stands apart from most of PG's scents, in that there is no "gourmand" anything in here. The opening is floral and green, like a cold spring morning. With a touch of grass and a slight salty "aquatic" vibe to it. The cyclamen is negligible, and the leather is quite subtle (not as strong as in his Cuir D'Iris for example). The leather is infused with a candied jasmine. As the scent developes it becomes somewhat "darker" and sweeter. Though it never quite looses it's transluscent quality. (Don't read "transluscent" to mean it's light, as it's quite an intoxicating scent). On my skin the violet and lilac become more evident toward the drydown.(more lilac than violet). Ending in a soft wood, musk and lilac, that last on me for hours and hours.
Psychotrope is a quirky, yet enigmatic scent. A sublimely sophisticated and very elegant fragrance. I'd say it could be unisex, though leaning towards the feminine ...(or if you like lilacs, you will luv it).- Another "stunner" from PG.

28th February, 2009.

Notes from Luckyscent: jasmine, cyclamen, violet, lilac wood, black leather, musk

Ok, I'll go first. It starts off innocuously like a fresh, citrussy floral cologne, very clean and soaplike. Then it intensifies as it dries down, becoming leathery, but it's a refined soft leather, with a yummy fruitiness that intensifies as time passes. I don't detect the individiual notes, as listed above. I do get the leather. The leather is a bit much for my stomach before breakfast, lol, but I think it would be a great scent for cocktails later in the day. It's pretty *and* sexy, especially toward the last phase after the leather has had its star turn and begins to fade.

12nd December, 2008.