I am not the most educated consumer of opera. One of my more misguided attempts to try and learn more was to buy tickets to the 1989 version of Wagner’s Ring Cycle at NYC’s Metropolitan Opera. I jumped into the deep end of the pool; and drowned. If there was anything which I took away from that was the way vocals combine in ways which transcend language. Beauty represented by the comingling of specific musical notes coming from the throats of trained professionals. It is layered in a way which allow both voices their space coming together in harmony. Perfume can also do that. It also takes trained professionals to pull it off. The latest from perfumer Alberto Morillas for his own brand Mizensir is called Poudre D’Or and it a great example of what I am writing about.
If there is one thing that gets an undeservedly bad rep in perfumery it is synthetics. There has never been a definitive statement of the Mizensir aesthetic. After 21 releases it seems to me like it is an opportunity for Sr. Morillas to explore the best synthetic ingredients in operatic ways. Poudre D’Or does this with two of the most widely used and recognizable synthetic ingredients; Paradisone and Exaltone.
Alberto Morillas
Paradisone is jasmine at the top of the octave; the figurative soprano in Poudre D’Or. Exaltone is the tenor, as a softly animalic musk. Sr. Morillas allows both expansive ingredients the space to sing their duet in a full-throated way.
The performance starts with Paradisone going straight to High C in the key of jasmine. Paradisone has to be used intelligently, which Sr. Morillas’ experience in using it allows for him to achieve. It has explosive power to which Sr. Morillas adds a luminescence via tiare. It brings a constellation of light to the hard charging ingredient. As the Exaltone steps forward it provides an animalic musk which is designed to be easy. Sr. Morillas makes it more so by adding in some iris, the powder in the name, to provide a connective effect to the Paradisone. The two synthetics find a harmonious conjunction which is quite satisfying. It ends on a sweet woody base of sandalwood and vanilla.
Poudre D’Or has 12-14 hour longevity and average sillage.
As a chemist I am already predisposed to not being wary of synthetics in my perfume. Sr. Morillas has been making a case, with the Mizensir collection, that those synthetics can be used for incredible effect. Poudre D’Or is an example of two of the most famous synthetics finding their voice unleashed.
Disclosure: This review is based on a sample provided by Mizensir.
–Mark Behnke
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