Coeur de Vétiver Sacré: Thoughts and opinions

I'd like to hear some more/updated thoughts and opinions on this now that it is officially available. The perfumer behind this is a nose I just discovered recently, Karine Vinchon, who has done L'eau de Jatamansi (I've got to get a sample!) and two scents I am really enjoying, Amouage Memoir Man and Opus III.

Anyhow, would love to hear any and all opinions. I've read there is a prominent tea note. Some get violet. And there are dried fruits. Is it at all like the dried fruits in Jubilation XXV? I'm hoping they're not so prominent. What color(s) does the scent evoke for you? Is it warm or cool? Tell me all!!!

TIA!

If anyone in the US has a sample of this that they'd like to part with or trade (I've got a ton of samples including Xerjoffs!) please PM me so we can work something out.

Thanks!

Some early initial impressions:

L'Artisan Coeur de Vetiver Sacre

w/ notes (according to Now Smell This) of:

bergamot, orange, black tea, pepper, ginger, coriander, saffron, incense, birch, dates and dried apricot, rose, osmanthus, iris, vanilla, vetiver, tarragon, sandalwood, white cedar, gaiac wood, amber, tonka beans, labdanum, castoreum, and musk

8 hours after applying it I did the 90 minute P90X yoga video (a good and very sweaty workout!) and I can still smell it clearly. I don't understand Octavian's review of this at all. I think he is anosmic to some fragrances/chemicals or suffers olfactory fatigue sometimes. He also said Epic Man disappeared on him after an hour or two, and that's just unfathomable to me.

After a very nice bergamot tea opening, it picks up some dried fruit and cardamom alongside a strong black tea note. The white cedar and iris join the fray, along with a slightly wintergreen like birch note. The woody accord is similar to the cedar in the drydown of Windsor, and also calls to mind Six Scents #3, Spirit of Wood, which shares a number of notes. The vetiver here is abstract - cleaned of all dirt - it is hyper-real and almost three dimensional.

The scent also shares some structure with Gucci PH II but is brighter, more buoyant, and as mentioned more "three dimensional" than the comparatively flat Gucci PH II. I still like Gucci PH II and think it is a decent frag, and I should mention that there is enough difference in these two that CdVS is not a clone. I think fans of Gucci PH II should definitely check this scent out.

The late drydown is interesting as it takes on an almost eucalyptus feel and honestly smells quite similar to the opening of Windsor. Windsor fans need to check this scent out!

edit: I think the camphor is coming from the white cedar, which is a note that persists throughout the whole of the composition giving it a green woody edge, but also a camphorous, almost tonic-like sparkle. Yup, this is the same cedar accord used in Windsor and also the Spirit of Wood. It takes some getting used to for me because it is VERY long lasting and very bright and camphorous throughout - but I do like it and I think this scent would work great in the heat of summer. Interestingly, this is also the note that read as "watery" to me in Gucci PH II, and it also serves as a key component of the tea accord in both fragrances.

Wearing this again today. I'm getting a hint of Grey Flannel in the heart - the tea and vetiver (ok, it smells more like a fractionated vetiver... perhaps this is the "heart of vetiver"?) are intermingling with the orris and violet notes and it is very soft and beautiful. Some of the hues it evokes are white, and pastel greens and violets, yet the base is still a watercolor ocher and anchors the scent just enough.

The vetiver *is* detectable but it's so different than normal, and it sort of weaves in and out of the composition. I almost think this would have been better named "Vetiver Dance!"


edit: the opening smells a lot like a muted "Constant Comment" tea, and then the heart is this more tea/vetiver/violet/Grey Flannel phase. There is, as noted by Arwen and others, a very refreshing and bright 'sparkle' to the scent that remains throughout, too, although it's not a sharp sparkle. Actually, this may just be me being picky about semantics, but I should rephrase that. It's actually more like a radiant glow rather than a more focused, potentially blinding sparkle.