In my to be reviewed box there are two slots for perfumes I am waiting for a specific condition to wear. One has a drawing of a snowflake and the other a thermometer popping its top. I save perfumes that I think will be better in extremes of cold or heat. One I was waiting for a typical high heat high humidity day to wear again was Parfumerie Generale 11.2 Spicematic.
Independent perfume Pierre Guillaume’s Parfumerie Generale brand has been one of my favorites. It is mostly because of M. Guillaume’s ability to challenge my thinking about perfume ingredients I know little of or don’t care for. In 2006 Parfumerie Generale 11 Harmatan Noir is one of the first times I enjoyed mint in my perfume. Most of the time it is an unwelcome intruder.
Pierre Guillaume
Since 2013 M. Guillaume has been revisiting some of his original Parfumerie Generale as part of his “Rework” collection. It has been an interesting exercise where I’ve found myself usually enjoying the new version. One of the exceptions was Parfumerie Generale 11.1 Indian Wood because the mint was so integral it got in the way of my enjoying it. Now in the first of the reworks to get a second version 11.2 Spicematic gives me a new opportunity to experience mint in M. Guillaume’s hands.
One of the reasons I wanted to save Spicematic for a hot day was, it has a prominent cedar note. That is one of my favorite warm weather perfume ingredients. The mint and spices from the previous versions remain along with the addition of perfectly chosen complements.
The mint is there right from the start. What makes it much more palatable is it is paired with an equal amount of saffron. It makes all the difference as it gives the mint a pulsating glow which draws me in. What comes next is a fraction of frankincense this is not the church incense you are used to. It is the stone of the church as it smells like the cold granite walls. Ginger wends its way through spicing things up. It ends on a glorious woody base of pine and red cedar. This is where the terpenic nature of the pine finds the clean green cedar.
Spicematic has 10-12 hour longevity and average sillage.
Spicematic is one of my favorites within the Rework series because it has a dynamic core courtesy of the ginger. That provides a lively woody perfume which is at its best when the thermometer is about to pop its top.
Disclosure: This review is based on a sample from Parfumerie Generale.
–Mark Behnke
