>>>> Sniff 'n' Speak Saturday, Sept. 1 >>>>FOUGERE

*searches for something fougere* *nicks some live jazz*

hmmm think this one works better at a long distance... or maybe it just doesnt work on me... when other ppl wear it, it smells a bit sweeter... or maybe just less spicy

Will wear Antaeus to sleep. I bet it would blend beautifully with a rose soliflore.

Not sure if SL Un Bois Sépia can be counted as a fougere, but it has wood notes and oakmoss. I wear it today because it says autumn to me, it's a scent equivalent for a tweed coat (which I don't have).

I wear Penhaligon's English Fern. My son let me use some of his big sample.

Good morning ladies and gentleman ((stretching and yawning!!))

It's Narciso Rodriguez for Him - for me.

This is getting lots of love here on Basenotes on the Mens boards - if you haven't had a chance to sniff this yet, please do next time you're at Saks (it's exclusive there). Those who like Grey Flannel by Geoffrey Beene, Xeryus by Givenchy or Rive Gauche Pour Homme by YSL will find a nice modern-day-twist in NRFH. Francis Kurkdjian has done it once again!

Yes, indeed I do like men's Safari.
I know some of you younger people think this smells like "grandpa" but if it does, it is only because it is a classic scent that got a whole generation started on fougeres.

I only have one fougere at my disposal this morning, and that is Madini's Shadow. Like most of their oil-based parfums, it starts off strong and soapy and must settle down for awhile on the skin before it reveals its true character. It is listed as having "smoky and leathery notes over a green fougere base," but I smell lavender, citrus, and herbs over patchouli. This smells like a classic men's cologne base, but it is attractive on women, too. The patchouli makes work exceptionally well on me.

Another fougere I enjoyed recently was Ayala Moriel's l'Herbe Rouge, with notes of juniper berry, orange, lavender, lemongrass, carnation, oak moss, hay, and vetiver . This one actually smelled better than Jicky on me (oh, blasphemy, I know) because it was zingier and more outdoorsy. It did, however, lack the leather note that I love about Jicky.

Hi Sudsy, it might! Just depends on the balance of the notes and the proportions of the citrucy, herbal and mossy elements. A classic fougere HAS to be herbal!

Can i talk about Dioressense? I've always thought it was more of a Fourgère than a Floral-Chypre.

I tracked down Covet and applied it liberally to my arm.
Initially I got a burst of something sharp and green, and a touch medicinal. The notes are, apparently, wet greens, geranium leaves, Sicilian lemon, lavender, chocolate, honeysuckle, magnolia, muguet (lily of the valley), musk, vetiver, bois de cashmere, teakwood and amber. I didn't really get anything floral, though the medicinal edge may have been the geranium jiving with the vetiver.
After a while it transformed into a musky, vanillic woodsy scent, very close to the skin, and pleasant. As I was busting through Oxford Street, nipping into shops and avoiding getting shoulder-barged by other shoppers, I didn't get chance to fully trace its development.
I don't think it's one for me but it's not bad. I'm not mad on the opening, but the dry down is very nice.

Go for it, castorpollux. I suppose it would be interesting for everybody to see your perceptions of Dioressense, I am not familiar with it.

My SotD is L'Artisan Parfumeur Fou d'Absinthe (2006) with Olivia Giacobetti as a nose -- and who I believe blended it as a joke! -- and the notes of:
Top: Absinthe, star anise, angelica, blackcurrant buds;
Heart: pepper, clove, nutmeg, ginger, patchouli;
Base: pine needles, cistus, fir balsam.

It is odd, and very very bitter in the beginning. It is sharp, a bit medicinal, and definitely masculine. Green and herbal for the first 30 minutes, I would even say "mean'n'green", lacking citrus notes or honey to counterbalance Artemisia Vulgaris' distinctive bitterness! (For once i thought it would be another Aromatics Elixir or Knowing which I both like a lot, but it is not!)

After that the change of tonality starts: too early for me to be PMSing, but I think the whole PMS thing is like that -- from hot to cold in no time! Licorice, a lot of black pepper, cloves, perhaps, cardamom and somewhat smokey patchouli should be warm by definition, but they are having "out of the freezer" effect on my skin instead giving me chills. The drydown is not present in this scent, rather, it is incorporated into the middle notes too: it is creating the impression of the deep pine forest in the middle of the blazingly hot day, with soft needles under my feet and sweat streaming down my upper lip, and the gazillions of mosquitoes buzzing around. It would "sound" better with some berries or musk, or a bit more of further developing 'blackcurrant" theme from the top, although I am not much of a fan of either.

The longevity is not bad (and then everything lasts on me!), and Mr.Twolf refused to test it on his skin, he said it smells of "the witch who robbed Halloween of its candy corn", whatever he means by it, but there are no molded woods in it!

If I had a bottle of it, I would have got rid of it very fast. Do not like, not me, will not crave. Thanks!

As I said earlier, I fear I may be pushing the envelope dedsignating at least my fragrances for today/tonight as "fougere," though I think both my choices work. Please advise, more knowledgeable noses?!?

SoTD: Del Rae's Eau Illuminee. Notes include bergamot, basil, lavender, wild aromatic herbs, vanilla and tonka.

I ADORE this one, even though it doesn't get lots of love here on Basenotes. It was my splurge/birthday scent to myself last year, and I think it is one of the best warm, humid weather frags around. It is indeed a sparkling, warm weather fragrance, and also includes just a touch of rose in addition to the notes listed, to keep it even more interesting. While I can see how the creators intended it to be a scent reminiscent of San Francisco, to me, EI is also reminiscent of a classic European flower and herb garden (keep in mind I'm a Yank, and may be clueless, but I hope not!). Eau Illuminee was one of the fragrances (like Chanel's Coco) that I tested because it sounded intriguing, and had a gut-deep "YES!" response to.


SoTE: L'Occitane's L'Eau d'Occitane. Notes from the L'Occitane web site are lavender, blended with the peppery, nutmeg scent of burnt wood.

This is a new one from L'Occitane, and after recent test-fest at one of their stores, I find I can really only wear their men's scents, so far. Love the woody/spicy notes. This one is very easy to wear, and I find it to be completely unisex... Can see it gracing me at work, or out for the evening. A gentle scent, very relaxed.

Two winners!

Great! so here i go then:

Dioressence
This review is for the new reformulation of it:
A very green, somewhat spicy and very unisex (if you can get past the top notes) fragrance that shines with contemporary coolness yet still adding a little of old world class to the mix. Contrary to what standard knowledge might say, I get more of a fourgère type of fragrance than a straight-up chypre. Maybe its the new oakmoss thing. I think it was called a chypre so chypre and dioressence fans wouldnt feel cheated from the start.
The very fresh, intensely dry but flowery opening makes you wonder what has happened to those petals: they seem mixed with hay, wild grass and twigs, all moving in all directions, and the dryness of it all makes you feel that the flowers (among them a waxy violet) are drying up on your skin in real time, right there on your wrist.
After the rather rocambolesque opening, the scent settles quickly into the longest green pasture of unisex nature, combined with a pond-like air of freshness that says wet, grassy yet rocky with lots of fall winds, cool yet comfortable, with just a very soft hint of sweet. Its intensely violet-colored geraniums, hidden in between intensely green shrubs and wet earth (after that very dry opening) and with an added dash of rosemary and even juniper. I would assume that if we layer it with lavender it would fit very comfortably there.
The whole composition of this new EdT, is rather short-lasting and youll need to reapply during the day. Cool sillage. The drydown turns back to dry again, with what seems to be a very balanced marriage of patchouli and cinnamon with hints of clover. But it doesnt really feel too spicy as the overall green feel of it all never really ceases to exist. I can see very practical, nature-loving people wearing this scent. It can feel nostalgic at times. Longing might fit as well.
I like this EDT a lot. But this needs to exist in at least EDP in this new incarnation. An extrait would be even more attractive of course, like a stormy afternoon in the country.

all in all, .

Brut by Faberge. A classic fougere. The key to Brut is all in the application. Apply too little and you can barely smell it. Apply too much and you smell like a walking deodorant stick. Brut original is very clean, fresh, and slightly woody and I prefer its timeless classic smell and feel to the ocean of fresh acquatics dominating designer fragrance counters these days. I can't tell you how many years it's been since I wore a Brut product but I'm old enough to remember the Joe Namath ads. With Brut, my olfactory selective attention focuses on the lavender/anise in the top and vetiver/oakmoss in the base. My favorite note is the anise, it's amazing. Overall, Brut is very well blended, overtly masculine, and a true bargain. Sure there are other fougeres I could've worn (Antaeus, Xeryus Rouge, etc.), but they would not have been as much fun to wear nor given me nostalgic trip back to my childhood. Like Old Spice, Brut is a timeless classic comfort scent that I intend on keeping in my wardrobe for years to come.

Your boss...The nerve! hrumph..

I had a sample of Jicky EDT sitting around which - gasp - I believe I never tried! ...So I tried it yesterday and again this morning. It sits very close to my skin and is very "herbal" in a multifaceted way on me. It is very different than what I was expecting. I definitely need to spend more time with this...