In Part 1 I introduced owner-creative director Nadia Benaisa along with perfumers Jerome Epinette and Pierre Wulff who produced the first five releases for Les Soeurs de Noe. Today I will finish with reviews of the remaining three; Amazing Jade, Bohemian Absinthe, and Jardin de Macarons.
One of the things I have been hopeful for from this trend towards transparency is the opportunity to find a new style. Two which seem to have become more prevalent have been gourmands and floral gourmands It is in those areas where Les Soeurs de Noe really takes off.
Amazing Jade is the gourmand one of the three. I was caught right from the top as the perfumers used pistachio and hazelnut as their top accord. They create a toasted nutty effect that is ideally realized. I don’t have too many perfumes which have such an enticingly nut-based opening. They then encase those nuts in swirls of incense and a supple opaque leather accord. The nuts find a harmonic with the leather that was a joy all day. It all ends on a musky base. This is a remarkably light perfume despite the presence of things like leather and incense. I think once the weather turns a tiny bit cooler, I will really find the spot where this perfume excels.
Amazing Jade has 12-14 hour longevity and average sillage.
Bohemian Absinthe is the fruity floral member of the debut collection. It is not a typical version of that style as the perfumers pair the tart juiciness of kumquat with the gentle floral quality of apple blossom. Where this begins to feel different is through the mentholated verdancy of eucalyptus adding lift to the fruit and floral. To provide contrast a base accord which grounds this comes courtesy of sandalwood, leather, and vetiver. The woodiness is bracketed with a smoky version of vetiver to give texture while leather provides a more refined effect. This is another which will be fantastic in the cooler weather
Bohemian Absinthe has 12-14 hour longevity and average sillage.
That leaves my favorite of these initial releases, Jardin de Macarons. This is the floral gourmand I mentioned earlier. What makes this style the right choice for transparent aesthetics is by keeping both the floral and the gourmand on the opaquer side it gives more room for both sides of the coin to shine. In the case of Jardin de Macarons it is the combination of rooty orris with a sugary candy floss which holds the center. Prior to that a luscious plum lead into it while an earthy patchouli and sweet woody palo santo support it. All of that is great but it is the sugared orris which takes this to a new level. It felt like I was trying a gourmet macaron of orris all the while I had this on my skin.
Jardin de Macarons has 10-12 hour longevity and average sillage.
As I said in Part 1, I am looking for those brands and creative teams who will grab this transparency aesthetic and find ways to make it their own. Mme Benaisa has done this through her first five releases. I can’t wait to see what comes next.
Disclosure: this review is based on a sample provided by Les Soeurs de Noe.
–Mark Behnke
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