Champaca Absolute (2009)
by Tom Ford

This opens rather medicinal & "perfumey" to my nose, becoming smoother & more fruity over the first 40 minutes or so. Over an hour later, it takes on a creamier, more floral aspect, & l detect a touch of amber. lt continues in this vein, settling very close to the skin & lasting overall around 6-7 hours.
l do not know what real champaca smells like, but in my imagination it is a big, rich, creamy white flower with perhaps a powdery/incensy aspect. While l don't dislike Champaca Absolute, it did not live up to these expectations, the sillage is disappointing, & l would prefer it without the fruity notes.
IMO the Commes des Garcons Luxe Champaca is a far more beautiful rendition, & worthier of my hard-earned cash.

21st January, 2012.

Scent begins with a pop to the nose—warm cognac spiked with bergamot. Not altogether pleasant. Scent then calms down a bit and one can smell the dyer’s greenweed (at least that’s what I think I’m smelling, as it is listed as one of the top notes), a pingy floral. Blessedly, the frag coalesces after about five minutes, and begins moving in an unsurprising line. The champaca dominates, and one can smell the vanilla in the distance. I could not identify the violet or the jasmine notes, but I will say the fragrance packs a sweet wallop which almost did me in. Because of this, I cannot imagine Champaca Absolute at all on a man. I became happier with the frag as it continued the drydown. It became very warm, with the amber, marron glace, and sandalwood forming a nice accord. Still, there is something off-putting to me in this frag that is hard to identify: the scent begins high-pitched, and that quality never completely goes away. In fact, after several hours it still nags on, and for that reason I give it a thumbs-down. Good sillage and longevity, though, for what it’s worth.

25th July, 2011.

I have no idea what champaca smells like, but what I can tell is that this smells chemical and thin from the get go. Total shite.

7th February, 2011.

Far too feminine for me. Champaca Absolute starts off with an insanely alcoholic smell then transforms into what smells like blowing bubbles. This smell of blowing bubbles lasts and lasts, and is just so boring. Once it dries a little more you can most definitely smell cognac; at this point I'd say it has redeemed itself from that harsh chemical opening. While the smell of "blowing bubbles" still lingers in the background, it's all that I can focus on during the middle notes. Thus far I hate the top notes, I am intrigued by the cognac in the middle but am distracted by the lingering chemicals from the opening. Onto the base, and IMO the only part that doesn't make this a "scrubber". I smell cognac, along with floral notes, vanilla, and amber. The cognac is by far the most dominating note in Champaca Absolute. Stays pretty close to the skin about 20 minutes after application. Not horrible, but more negatives than positives to me; who can resist the smell of cognac though? I give this a C-.

17th April, 2010.

TF Champaca Absolute opens with blast of champaca-scented rice in a container made of fresh-cut bamboo-stem, along with sweet ripe plum. I am a big fan of white florals and I love champaca the real flower. To my nose, champaca is never dominant here but it lingers to the end.

Comparision between TF Champaca Absolute and Ormande Jayne Champaca: OJ is "browner" and denser while TF is greener and more airy. OJ is less sweet and less rice-like. Both are well-blended and exotic. CJ is "wilder" while TF is more lady-like.

16th September, 2009.

It's very nice, it's very floral and very feminine though. Too much so for me -- wrongly categorised in my opinion.

18th August, 2009.