Perfume can soothe the soul with warm styles of fragrance. They are generally referred to as comfort scents. These tend to have depth through different resins. I have often referred to them as “warm milk” fragrances for their ability to calm. Molton Brown Milk Musk wants to actually be a warm milk perfume.
The past eighteen months has seen a positive change in the way Molton Brown has approached their perfume offerings. In the past they were accoutrements to their more well-known bath products. The latest releases have stood on their own as good perfume instead of an afterthought accessory. The other thing that is happening is perfumers are being given some latitude to create more interesting types. This is laudable for a mass-market brand like Molton Brown.
Maia Lernout
Milk Musk also exemplifies another reason the recent releases have succeeded, keeping it simple. I have been trying to find out if there is a single person creatively directing this because if there is, they are doing a great job. Perfumer Maia Lernout puts together a simple warm comfort scent around warm milk.
It opens with the fresh scent of elemi resin. This gives a lemony shading without getting that brightness from using a citrus ingredient. It also has a pine-like undercurrent when the resin is used. This leads into a heart where the milk accord is waiting. Mme Lernout adds in just the right amount of the dry woody ambroxan along with a lot of vanilla. As one who has become bored of ambroxan’s ubiquity this is a notably different use. It adds a dry woodiness underneath the vanilla milk. It works much better than I ever expected it to. Tonka bean accentuates the vanilla while imparting the warmth. Benzoin is the final bit of resinous warmth to complete this warm milk perfume.
Milk Musk has 8-10 hour longevity and average sillage.
I continue to be impressed with these latest releases from Molton Brown. Milk Musk is as calming as a glass of the real thing.
Disclosure: This review is based on a sample provided by Molton Brown.
–Mark Behnke
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