Harmatan Noir 11 (2006)
by Parfumerie Generale

Citrus, mint, and a soapy white musk (maybe it's the salt). It's got some sweetness anyway. I guess it projects manly. I like it, but not enough.

Ok, I either was given a mis-labeled house scent (no less directly from France as I received it with my order of Arabian Horse), or my nose is having a REALLY bad day!

All I get when I smell this is OUD! No mint, no tea, no jasmine, no fresh, no herbal...this is beyond weird and I am so disappointed!!

Nope...labeled clearly, been on my hand for an hour now...still smells of oud. Not even a hint of mint.

GAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

Genre: Woods

Harmatan Noir begins as a rich, very smoky tea scent, heavily spiced, and sweetened by berries and perhaps cassis. The smoky fruit and tea accord rests on a foundation of powdery cedar whose dry aspect offsets the sweet berries nicely. Like Olivia Giacobetti’s otherwise much different Idole de Lubin, Harmatan Noir manages to be at once mysteriously dark and transparent. If forced to guess, I’d attribute this effect in Harmatan Noir to a tart lemon note and a very carefully integrated dab of mint.

The spiced fruit outlasts the tea, which is unfortunate, since the fruity accord is more pedestrian than the fabulous sweet smoke of the first half hour. Harmatan Noir continues for another hour or two as a spicy, jammy fruit composition over a woody base, before trailing off into a woody-musky drydown. While it’s an attractive and distinctive scent, especially toward the start, the longevity is very, very disappointing. I’d like it much better if its opening accords persisted for another hour before the more conventional fruit pie phase set in, but as it is I find the olfactory experience a letdown.

Such a nice surprise. Minty notes and citruses juxtaposed to spicy and smoky notes. It's funny how the mint takes the distance from the toothpaste-y / bubblegum-ish aspect of this ingredient. What really works is that it is paired to a smoky lapsang tea accrod that made me immediately think about maroccan mint-tea. it's grassy, herbaceous and refreshing but at the same time sort of warm. The fragrance transitions to a super-smooth woody-spicy base with smoky undertones which feels unquestionably modern and masculine. Probably not groundbreaking but a fantastic go-to fragrance for summer. Kudos to Guillame for creating some of the most original accords in modern perfumery...

I'd suggest this fragrance to anyone who likes modern takes on masculine themes. A couple keywords: Hermessence, The Different Company.

Japanese traditional atmosphere
Effectively this secret (superbly blended) gem starts shortly (just for the first part of development) fluidy, with a sort of moderately fresh --green tea-ozonic elements-citrus-- dark (licorice type)/herbal dominant accord but slides soon in to a sort of incredibly comforting and enigmatic soapy/spicy/mossy darkness, like a conceptually modern, smoother and warmer Antaeus's sort of introverted brother (with all the notable differences). Undoubtedly the initial fougere-like minty tea-citrus-ozonic-aromatic herbs accord is counteracted in a while by a soothing amber-oakmoss-spices (bath foam type of) cushion (never dense but silky a la Equipage) which is really balmy and kind of salty/laundry (a sort of hay kind of olfactory effect with hints of salt and tartness) with a minimal touch of secret floral mildness. The ozonic elements are never metallic/aquatic in a modern chip ordinary way on my skin. I detect for sure a floral spark in the final phase, the dark patchouli presence and a touch of toasted tobacco in the blend which affords its support in the "darkening-soothing-warming" progressive process. I detect elements in common with the brighter (un-salty-un-smoky) Montana Homme, more citrusy/musky and slightly less soapy and a final sheerer olfactory resemblance with the greener, spicier (and brighter) Bvlgari Pour Homme (tea, spices, amber, musk, cedar, oakmoss, floral notes etc etc). Harmatan Noir teleports us in to a sort of silent, calm and cozy japanese holy atmosphere (woody ambiences, sake, kimono, ambiental lamps, futon, tatami, fusuma, tea caremonies, fumes, harmony, fog beyond the windows in the artistic gardens etc. etc). A surprise from a remarkable brand so appreciated inside the boudaries of the niche territories.
Pros: Superbly blended
Cons: Faint sillage"</p>