New Perfume Review Providence Perfume Co. Irisque- Roots Festival

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Iris is one of my favorite perfume ingredients. The fluctuating scent profile has always drawn me in. Most of the time a perfumer will choose a couple of sources. One reason is the cost of the material itself. Iris/orris is one of the most expensive ingredients in perfumery. Which is why when it is used in a high concentration it has a striking effect. What if a perfumer decided to use five different sources of iris? What would you have then? According to the perfumer, Charna Ethier it is an “orris bomb”. I think Providence Perfume Co. Irisque is more like a festival of iris.

Charna Ethier

One of the most recognizable iris effects in a perfume is as a soft powdery layer. On its own it can also have a chilly feeling. Ms. Ethier wanted to go in a different direction focusing on the earthiness of her sources of iris. Each one is derived from the root or rhizome. Through a clever bit of layering she takes us down into the earth where the rhizome exists.

One other aspect of iris in its rooty form that often gets mentioned is it has a carrot-like scent. Ms. Ethier embraces that comparison through the opening stages. Using both iris pallida and iris germanica she lets carrot seed ground things right from the start. As much as I write about this face of iris the carrot seed pulls some of the inherent sweetness underlying it all. Over this Ms. Ethier adds an opaque gauzy tincture of the rhizome. It is a bit like gilding the iris, but it adds a lilting silken veneer over everything. Things take a deeper turn as orris butter and a resinoid of orris adds an opulence as it moves to something even more complex. To further add to the earthiness a carefully titrated amount of oud along with the botanical musk of ambrette appear. They create a moist black soil accord from which all these sources of iris can nestle within.

Irisque has 10-12 hour longevity and moderate sillage.

Every time I wear this I feel as if I am in bare feet in a dark patch of soil digging up iris from the ground with my bare hands. There is a deeply satisfying harmony to what Ms. Ethier has composed. She may see it as a “bomb”. For me it is a roots festival featuring the inspiring scents of iris.

Disclosure: this review is based on a sample provided by Providence Perfujme Co.

–Mark Behnke

New Perfume Review Providence Perfume Co. Basil & Bartlett- Aromatic, Crisp, and Cool

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Mrs. C and I tend to find middle ground on most things. One place we diverge significantly is in the ripeness of a pear. I prefer a crisp version, one which has a snap when I bite into it. She likes it when the fruit gets soft and very juicy. As we come into pear season in our farm community, we each have our own bowl for our way of enjoying pears. This preference carries over into perfume. When pear is used as a fragrance ingredient, I want it to be the same way I eat it. In Providence Perfume Co. Basil & Bartlett I get what I want.

Charna Ethier

Perfumer Charna Ethier has been releasing a summer cologne for the last few years. One of the things she has held to is keeping fidelity with the origins of the form. The original cologne was fruit-herbal-floral-wood. It is simple in concept. When a talented artist like Ms. Ethier takes it on it finds new dimensions.

In the traditional recipe the fruit is citrus. Here as the name portends it is Bartlett pear. The herb is usually rosemary or sage. Again as advertised it is basil for this one. The remainder of the formula is equally inventively tweaked to form a cologne all its own.

Right from the start B&B surge to the front. The herbal aromaticity of the basil finds a contrast in the focused fruit of the Bartlett. In the note list the fruit is listed as “pear accord”. I think Ms. Ethier has modified a traditional pear with some ingredients to form a more compact version. There is a concentrated effect I haven’t experienced when pear is usually present. That specificity of effect really finds its place with the basil. Ms. Ethier goes for a heavier floral effect than most colognes have as she pairs two from the cooler at the flower shop, lily and chrysanthemum. There is a slightly cool green to their presence. They fit in well with the herb and fruit from on top. At this point there is a richness to this cologne you normally don’t find. It moves to a gorgeous sandalwood base kept on the lighter side so it doesn’t shove its way into things. It slides in quietly until the sweet dry woodiness seems to appear from out of the blue.

Basil & Bartlett has 6-8 hour longevity and average sillage.

This is a true cologne in that it developed on my skin rapidly over a short period. The upside of that is another spray in the afternoon can let me enjoy the ride for a second time in a day. I think I’ll be wearing this when I head to my local orchard to pick up my order of pears.

Disclosure: This review is based on a sample provided by Providence Perfume Co.

–Mark Behnke

New Perfume Review Providence Perfume Co. Drunk on the Moon- Tipsy Tuberose

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The independent perfumer behind Providence Perfume Co.; Charna Ethier, is one of the elite independent perfumers. When I named her as my Perfumer of the Year for 2018 the primary reason I gave is, “She has been one of the most consistently innovative perfumers I have encountered.” A reason for that is a trait which is shared by the other independent perfumers which also inhabit the top tier; they have an instinctual knowledge of the ingredients they work with. Ms. Ethier seems to always be considering what combinations can provide something different; Providence Perfume Co. Drunk on the Moon exemplifies that.

Charna Ethier

In the description from the brand Ms. Ethier says the name comes from a lyric by singer-songwriter Tom Waits. It is not the way I looked at the name after wearing it. Ms. Ethier wants to take tuberose and give it a face lift. It is one of the most divisive of white flowers among perfume lovers. It is the core of what people will derisively call “old lady perfume”. Ms. Ethier must have considered that because she accentuates the easier to like parts of the scent profile. The remainder of the construct gives it a bit of a Holiday feel, which I’ll admit I might be seeing because of the time of year I received my sample.

Ms. Ethier takes tuberose and does what many perfumers do with rose by focusing on the core of the ingredient. There is a gorgeous creamy floral in the middle of any tuberose. What makes it difficult for many is the mentholated green quality along with a fleshiness which turns it into one of the more carnal perfume pieces. Ms. Ethier manages to create a debutante tuberose. A fresher version capturing the delicate beauty. The rest of the way in Drunk on the Moon is Ms. Ethier is rebuilding that fuller tuberose with the use of alternatives. The first of those is a huge amount of nutmeg. It adds to that buttery aspect while concurrently providing a different sweetness from something like vanilla. This is such a fascinating difference from getting that menthol-like face of tuberose. It just comes together in an enchanting way. Instead of the fleshy part of tuberose Ms. Ethier chooses to find a different illicit quality as she creates a “velvet cream sherry” accord. This again accentuates the creaminess of the tuberose while also giving it a gentle booziness. It comes together to form a slightly tipsy tuberose; maybe waiting under the mistletoe.

Drunk on the Moon has 10-12 hour longevity and average sillage.

This is a perfume by a confident artist working at the highest levels. It is the best you can find anywhere. Ms. Ethier has made one of the best, maybe the best, perfumes of her illustrious career. I am impressed at the creativity it took to make this. I believe only a few could have achieved it.

Disclosure: This review was based on a sample from Providence Perfume Co.

–Mark Behnke

Colognoisseur Best of 2018: Part 2- Perfume, Perfumer, Creative Director, and Brand of the Year

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Part 1, yesterday, was my look back at the year in broad terms. Today in Part 2 I get specific naming the best of the year in four categories.

Perfume of the Year: Arquiste Esencia de El Palacio Guayabos– Arquiste Creative Director Carlos Huber and perfumer Rodrigo Flores-Roux began their exclusive collection for luxury Mexican department store El Palacio de El Hierro in 2016. As of the end of 2018 they have released eight perfumes exploring the botany of Mexico in a set of “tree stories”. Both creative minds behind this collection have always put a little bit of their homeland of Mexico in every Arquiste release they have collaborated on. Saying that, this collection feels like there is heart and soul, along with the country, within each of these excellent perfumes.

Rodrigo Flores-Roux (l.) and Carlos Huber

During the summer I received Guayabos which immediately connected with me. I have worn this weekly since I received it. I’ve sprayed my bed with it. The poodles have inadvertently ended up smelling like it. It is one of the very best perfumes ever made by Sr. Flores-Roux.

I scheduled a call with him at Givaudan to find out how this came together. The concept was to create a guava perfume which captured the ripe guava in his house as child. As an adult the perfumer had to undertake headspace analysis of green guava, ripe guava, and guava blossom. This would lead to a layered effect which captured the esencia of guava. Jasmine and osmanthus provide the perfect floral companions over a clean woody base accord.

Guayabos is my perfume of the year because it was an obra de amor (labor of love) for Srs. Flores-Roux and Huber.

Charna Ethier

Perfumer of the Year: Charna Ethier– 2018 is going to be memorable for the excellent independent perfumer releases. The independent perfumer who had the strongest year was Charna Ethier of Providence Perfume Co. She has been one of the most consistently innovative perfumers I encounter. 2018 is the year where that quality overflowed in three spectacular releases. The first was Vientiane a study in sandalwood which was elevated by a jasmine rice tincture. Next came Lemon Liada an abstraction of lemon eau de cologne with no lemon used as an ingredient. Sedona Sweetgrass captures the scent of the American desert southwest in a photorealistic manner.

The breadth of these three perfumes is not only testament to why the indies rocked 2018 but more specifically why Charna Ethier is my Perfumer of the Year.  

Runner-Ups: Rodrigo Flores-Roux, Dawn Spencer Hurwitz, Maria McElroy, Cecile Zarokian, and Sarah McCartney

Rania Naim

Creative Director of the Year: Rania Naim– How about this for a to-do list for 2018? Take on the reformulation of one of the great historic perfumes. While doing that create four new contemporary perfumes honoring that history. That would sink most creative directors. That Rania Naim succeeded makes her the easy choice as Creative Director of the Year.

The first part of the year was given over to completing the new formulation of Jacques Fath Iris Gris. Mme Naim oversaw a painstaking effort to achieve something amazing in L’Iris de Fath. She would end up trusting a young creative team to accomplish this; which succeeded spectacularly. The decision to trust in young creative perfumers extends to the Fath’s Essentials releases where perfumers Cecile Zarokian and Luca Maffei produced two perfumes each under Mme Naim’s direction. All four exemplify the creativity still able to be found in the niche sector.

Capturing the past while living in the present means the future is all that is left to Rania Naim; my choice for Creative Director of the Year.

Runner-Ups: Carlos Huber (Arquiste), Victor Wong (Zoologist Perfumes), and Celine Roux (Jo Malone)

Brand of the Year: A Lab on Fire– If other brands weren’t going to show me something different Carlos Kusubayashi allowed perfumer Dominique Ropion to capture “The Morning After” winning an Academy award in And The World Is Yours. A long night into day encapsulated by neroli and cumin. This was followed up by perfumer Emilie Coppermann combining violet along with the De Laire base of Iriseine in a gorgeous purple flower melody called Hallucinogenic Pearl. Mr. Kusubayashi has never been afraid to release what comes of giving perfumers the space to create freely. In 2018 it makes A Lab on Fire my Brand of the Year.

Runner-Ups: DSH Perfumes, 4160 Tuesdays, Arquiste, Jacques Fath, and Jo Malone

Part 1 was my broad overview of 2018

Part 3 is my Top 25 New Perfumes of 2018.

–Mark Behnke

New Perfume Review Providence Perfume Co. Sedona Sweetgrass- Sweet Dreams in the Desert

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If there is a part of the world I have grown to love it is the desert southwest of the US. For what seems like a spare landscape of dusty red rocks it has a natural scent which is indelible to me. A part of that is the combination of the low humidity along with the altitude seem to heighten what there is to smell. There are a few perfumes which capture this very well; Providence Perfume Co. Sedona Sweetgrass is a new addition to my list.

On one of my visits I bought a braid of sweetgrass from one of the Native American tribes out there. It became my companion on many hiking trips as it stayed sealed in a zip lock bag in a little compartment on top of my pack. I know lots of people use lavender to help them relax before bed. There were many nights that braid of sweetgrass was the last thing I smelled before falling asleep in my tent. I couldn’t have put my finger on it at the time but now I know what I was smelling was coumarin. Sweetgrass is one of the higher percentage botanicals containing coumarin. It is a logical place for any perfumer to start a new fragrance.

Charna Ethier

Charna Ethier is the perfumer behind her brand. She is one of the best independent perfumers we have. One reason is her knowledge of her materials along with an innate sensibility at tuning a final formula. What she has done with a perfume inspired by the desert is to make it as expansive as the stars above you on a desert night. This never becomes heavy as it could be with the ingredients she uses. Ms. Ethier finds the wide-open spaces in between her ingredients.

One of my favorite smells of the desert are the tall pine trees. There is a seemingly sharper scent profile to those desert sentinels. Ms. Ethier opens Sedona Sweetgrass with those pinon pines. The provide the green platform upon which to place the sweetgrass. I’m not sure how she makes this as soft as she does, but it is like laying my head down underneath one of those pine trees with my braid of sweetgrass under my nose. Nothing is intrusive it is all relaxing and meditative. After a while the far-off scent of the remains of the campfire swirl through along with some incense which helps the dreamy mood.

Sedona Sweetgrass has 8-10 hour longevity and moderate sillage.

Ms. Ethier has captured what I smelled on many nights in the desert. On the days I wore this I slept with some on my pillow just to remember those days. Sedona Sweetgrass allowed me to enjoy sweet dreams in the desert on those nights.

Disclosure: This review is based on a sample provided by Providence Perfume Co.

–Mark Behnke

New Perfume Review Providence Perfume Co Lemon Liada- What Modern Perfumery Is

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The origins of perfume were using what was available to add to your body to smell nice. When the era of modern perfumery began in the late 19th century the combination of new synthetic materials along with the advent of efficient extraction processes changed things. It allowed for such an expansion of ingredients perfumers had new versatility. It allowed for artists to think in abstract terms. They could re-create a natural smell through a combination of synthetic molecules and natural sources. Some of my favorite perfumes are when there is an ingredient in the name and it is nowhere to be found within the note list. The ones I like best are from the perfumers I think most highly of; Providence Perfume Co. Lemon Liada is a new addition to my list.

What I enjoy so much about perfumes like Lemon Liada is when a perfumer, in this case Charna Ethier, allows me to reconsider my thoughts on what is being abstracted. For Lemon Liada Ms. Ethier wanted to create a summery eau de cologne. Lemon is a great place to begin when you are doing that. Ms. Ethier took a different tack. How about a lemon eau de cologne which has no lemon in it? How about a true abstract of lemon? How about a lemon perfume which lies about having lemon in it? That’s what Lemon Liada translates to.

Charna Ethier

If you’re going to achieve this, you will rely on the lemon-like ingredients within your palette. Ms. Ethier does that with three of these sources; verbena, petitgrain, and citron. The verbena and citron come together to form the frame of the lemon effect in the early moments. My childhood days of picking lemons off the tree smells a lot like this, a combination of external rind and green leaves. The next two part of this are petitgrain and mimosa. The mimosa is the key ingredient to the success of Lemon Liada as it imparts a gauzy veil over the entire construction. The petitgrain provides a brilliance atop that. At this point the lemon accord is complete. The final phase of Lemon Liada is where a bit of powdery iris and watery lotus provide some contrast as the accord begins to fray over the final hours.

Lemon Liada has 6-8 hour longevity and moderate sillage.

I don’t know why I am always so enthralled by these kinds of olfactory illusions. One reason is they don’t come around that often. Another reason is they often don’t hold together. When I encounter one as good as Lemon Liada it reminds me what modern perfumery is.

Disclosure: this review is based on a sample provided by Providence Perfume Co.

–Mark Behnke

Independent Perfumery 2018

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When I was really starting my descent into perfumed obsession in the early years of the 2000’s it started with the discovery of niche perfumes. What that meant to me were small brands with distinctive artistic aesthetics. Those early years of this century saw the rapid expansion of this style of perfume. Presenting themselves as an alternative to what was available at the mall. It was, and remains, part of the reason I enjoy perfume.

Then in 2006 on the blogs I follow there was mention of this new perfume from Switzerland. A young artist by the name of Andy Tauer had released a perfume called L’Air du Desert Marocain. My perfume world changed again. I discovered there was another world of fragrance makers who worked on their own; independent perfumers. It would be the acclaim for L’Air du Desert Marocain that pointed those who love perfume to a new place.

Every year I am struck by how vital this community is. What spurred me to write this column was my editorial calendar for the next week. One of many important lessons I learned from my Editor-in-Chief at CaFleureBon, Michelyn Camen, is the importance of keeping an editorial calendar. That means I have all the different days subjects planned out in advance. Sometime when I look at my white board I can see patterns which arise out of the list. Looking over next week’s list I saw six wonderful perfumes from six different established independent perfumers. It made me think about where we are now.

One of the things I write about a lot is the concept of a brand aesthetic. It should be easier when an independent perfumer is the only voice in the room. From experience I can tell you it is not. I try a dozen or so new independent brands a year. I provide private feedback which is just between the perfumer and I. One of the more common sentences I write is, “What are you trying to achieve besides smelling good?” The brands which have succeeded have almost always had a personal answer to that. The ones who ask me “What do you mean?” is probably a reason why they don’t succeed.

Proof this has succeeded is there is a part of Hr. Tauer’s perfumes which has been dubbed a “Tauer-ade”. There is a scented fingerprint which says where this perfume came from. The same can be said for Charna Ethier of Providence Perfume Co. or Maria McElroy of Aroma M. I feel if I was handed any of these, and others, perfumes they are identifiable because of this. Independent perfumers can refine a personal vision over every release.

Mandy Aftel

Another more fractious aspect of independent perfumery is very few of them have any formal training. Like all artistic efforts there are the precocious few who are blessed with innate talent. For those the years spent making their perfumes provides its own kind of training; learning through trial and error. That same effort is also rewarded for those who learn entirely from that. Time can be a great leveler. Some of the early founders have become the teachers for those who are drawn to make their own perfume. Mandy Aftel has produced great perfume, under he Aftelier Perfumes label, and a wave of students from her California studio. AbdesSalaam Attar does the same in Europe.

One of the most important aspects of the current state of independent perfumery is the ability of the perfumers to use small batches of amazing ingredients. Particularly over the last few years there have been releases which are made from materials that have been gone from mainstream and niche perfumery due to the difficulty of sourcing enough to produce hundreds of bottles. The independent perfumer can produce tens of bottles if they desire. A good example are the perfumes of Russian Adam under his Areej Le Dore brand. He can source actual musk from the animal through a license he has. Other independent perfumers create their own tinctures, botanical hydrosols, co-distillates, or enfleurage. Each of these create magic. The botanicals sourced by Yasuyuki Shinohara from his home island of Hokkaido, Japan for his Di Ser line are what makes those perfumes unique.

The final thing which has made independent perfumery so important is it lives outside the geography of France, the US, Italy or Great Britain. For over 100 years that was where the perfume we knew came from. Independent perfumery takes place everywhere with the influences of location finding its way into the bottle. All four of the countries where modern perfume was born have their share of independent perfumers who have things to say about that history in their new perfumes. The perspective that comes from elsewhere is invaluable.

If you need the best argument for the importance of independent perfumer in 2018 follow along next week as the perfumes speak for themselves.

–Mark Behnke

New Perfume Review Providence Perfume Co. Vientiane- The Magic of Tincture

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At the beginning of the month in the Under the Radar column I wrote about Providence Perfume Co. Moss Gown. In the last paragraph I mentioned that I found I had missed a new release earlier this year. By the next morning I was contacted and told a sample had been sent but returned to sender. It was quickly dispatched back to me. What greeted me in Providence Perfume Co. Vientiane is another example of why independent perfumer Charna Ethier is among our best.

I visited Ms. Ethier a couple years ago in her home base of Providence, RI. Through her early releases there was a delicacy of certain notes I had noticed. In the ingredient roster there were always lists of tinctures. I knew what they were, but Ms. Ethier schooled me that day on them. For those who would like to learn more than I am about to write I point you to a blog post by Ms. Ethier from 2012 where she goes into greater depth. In short, a tincture is the use of dried fragrant botanical material soaked in perfumer’s alcohol. The material is continually filtered out and replaced every few days. Once it has reached a desired scent profile it can be used.

Charna Ethier

You can see how this is the ideal ingredient for an independent perfumer. It provides a uniqueness that only comes from a particular creative. For Ms. Ethier these tinctures have provided some of the most fascinating undercurrents to her perfumes. In Vientiane she uses a jasmine rice tincture as the river upon which she floats three different sources of sandalwood.

The name Vientiane comes from the capital city of Laos. The jasmine rice tincture adds a steamy humidity to the sandalwood core reminiscent of sitting on the side of the Mekong in the city itself.

Vientiane opens with an Indiana Jones-like scent of using a machete to cut through vines. It is vegetal and very green. It catches your attention and then as you hack it away you are left looking at a structure of sandalwood as if uncovered for the first time. By the coloration you see there are three types of sandalwood. A typical creamy version, a drier desiccated version, and a lighter version used as modulator. Underneath all of this is the jasmine rice tincture. Ms. Ethier sent me a little vial of it along with my sample of the perfume. Once I had the chance to smell its steamy toasty fragrance I was able to detect it sending its tendrils up through the sandalwood. This is where Vientiane remains with a surprisingly complex sandalwood on display for hours.

Vientiane has 8-10 hour longevity and moderate sillage.

If you are a colognoisseur of sandalwood perfumes Vientiane should be part of your collection. It is an entirely unique take transformed by the magic of the jasmine rice tincture into something very special.

Disclosure: This review was based on a sample provided by Providence Perfume Co.

–Mark Behnke

Under the Radar: Providence Perfume Co. Moss Gown- Bayou Fairy Tale

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I have too much perfume. I know it and there are things I own which get lost in the back of the shelf. Things I absolutely adore. A few weeks ago, while trying to excavate a bottle of something else I discovered my bottle of Providence Perfume Co. Moss Gown. When I know something has truly connected deeply is as soon as I saw the bottle I remembered the scent immediately. I was thinking if this had fallen off my radar since it got pushed to the back of the shelf it was time to give it some attention.

Providence Perfume Co. is the brand of all-natural perfumer Charna Ethier. Ms. Ethier is one of my favorite independent perfumers because of her attention to detail plus her delight in using unusual ingredients. The attention to detail comes from sourcing and producing some of them. Moss Gown is an education on doing this.

Charna Ethier

The name of the perfume came from a story by the same name Ms. Ethier read to her daughter at bedtime. It is at its core a Bayou re-telling of Cinderella. As I imagine any perfumer does when interacting with another art form she began to wonder what it smelled like. Which then propelled her to her studio to figure out how to realize it. What comes out of the finished product is one of the only perfumes I know which captures the smell of watery vegetation and wood in the height of the summer.

If you’ve ever spent time in the Everglades in Florida or the bayous of Louisiana or the Okefenokee Swamp on the Georgia-Florida line on a summer trip you will recognize Moss Gown from its first moments. Ms. Ethier uses sunflower essence as one of her keynotes. This has a bamboo-like watery quality. She supports it with chamomile. This gives the vegetal green part of the bayou accord. There is also a part of this milieu which is the scent of natural decay. Ms. Ethier uses boronia to capture this. Boronia Is not used often because of this character in Moss Gown it completes the stage for the appearance of our Bayou Cinderella. A duet of mimosa and rose crowned with cedarmoss provides the floral accord which captures the fairy tale in the swamp. It all finishes on a lovely creamy sandalwood.

Moss Gown has 8-10 hour longevity and moderate sillage.

One of the reasons I pulled Moss Gown off the shelf is it has been a while since we’ve seen a new release from Ms. Ethier. Doing my research to make sure Moss Gown was still available I found there was a new release I missed, Vientiane. Which goes to show even perfumers I admire can fall off my radar. Take the opportunity to put Providence Perfume Co. on your radar you will be delighted to find one of the best independent natural perfumers we have. If you need proof get a sample, or bottle, of Moss Gown.

Disclosure: this review is based on a bottle I purchased.

–Mark Behnke

New Perfume Review Providence Perfume Co. Heart of Darkness- The Smell of Fougere in the Morning

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I am a firm believer in the adage that the book is better than the movie; most of the time. One exception is the movie “Apocalypse Now” based on the 19th Century fin de siècle novella “Heart of Darkness” by author Joseph Conrad. The original story was based on British Colonialism in the Congo. Director Francis Ford Coppola modernized the story bringing it forward to the Vietnam War in 1969. The plots are essentially the same as a good and upright man makes a journey into the jungle looking for a man who might have become something dark. In both stories our narrator completes his journey but he is changed by confronting the darkness of the soul. The reason I prefer the movie is the milieu of the Vietnam War and the slippery ethical reasons for being there are more easily understood by me than what were the similar concepts of 19th Century British conquest of foreign lands. What also draws me to “Apocalypse Now” is the clearer sense of the absurd captured within the brutality of a war. Of the few people, I know in my life who served in Vietnam they all say “Apocalypse Now” is the best depiction of their time in country.

Charna Ethier

Independent perfumer Charna Ethier seemingly is inspired by the story for her latest release Providence Perfume Co. Heart of Darkness. In her interpretation, she wanted to create “A classic fougere for men with a dark twist”. In essence she wants to take a fougere on a journey into the jungle to return with a shadow on it. Ms. Ethier has a particularly deft touch with these green leafy accords which she has shown numerous times in the past with fragrances like Moss Gown. Heart of Darkness is another as she adds a jungle on top of a fougere.

This story opens with lavender ready to travel. It adds on nutmeg and tonka to add an unusual sweet quality. It takes the lavender towards its more floral nature as opposed to the herbal facets. Here it really is the steadfast lavender about to step into the jungle. Ms. Ethier uses a very green, slightly camphoraceous, cedar and vetiver to begin the shading towards the dark. A mixture of oakmoss and coffee is where Ms. Ethier adds the darkness. She describes the coffee note as “espresso” I would offer an alternative description as whole roasted coffee bean. Something in here adds a bit of humidity reminiscent of the tropics. Labdanum is the final ingredient which returns our fougere back to its more traditional milieu but the journey has changed it.

Heart of Darkness has 10-12 hour longevity and moderate sillage.

Heart of Darkness is another of these green triumphs from Ms. Ethier. On the days I was wearing it I wanted to paraphrase a character from “Apocalypse Now” as I applied it each day. “I love the smell of fougere in the morning.” Especially when it is done in such an original way as it is in Heart of Darkness.

Disclosure: This review was based on a sample provided by Providence Perfume Co.

–Mark Behnke