As it gets hotter and I want a perfume which provides relief it is citrus fragrances I turn to. I have realized through the obviousness of which bottles are at lower levels I seem to prefer one over all the others. Those which feature lemon are the ones I go for when faced with a morning of high humidity and temperature. I think the reason is lemon is the most exuberant of the citrus choices. There is a sunniness which is at its height. If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like if that sun went supernova Nicolai Eau de Yuzu is here.
Patricia de Nicolai
It has been twelve years since Patricia de Nicolai has made a citrus fragrance, Cedrat Intense. That one was a lemon focused scent simmering with the energy of the fruit. This might be the lemon prior to the fireworks which appear in Eau de Yuzu. She doesn’t use regular lemon. She chooses the Japanese variety known as yuzu. It falls somewhere between lemon and grapefruit carrying some of the greener aspects of the latter. Mme de Nicolai brings it to life in a way I haven’t experienced before.
Eau de Yuzu opens on a set of grassy oximes. As if I am walking barefoot on a great greensward. As I glance up the sun seems to be pulsing. The yuzu shines in a compact ball to start. A bit of grapefruit keeps it more compact. The energy is hard to contain as the sizzle of black pepper and the acerbic scent of juniper berry warns something might be up. The classic petitgrain lights the fuse that a set of white musks use to explode the citrus into a giant yellow firework. I just close my eyes and let the intensity settle upon me. As my senses begin to recover, I feel the dirt my toes are digging in and the tree I’m holding onto as gaiac wood and patchouli ground things.
Eau de Yuzu has 8-10 hour longevity and average sillage.
All apologies to the band Oasis but the days I wore this I kept singing to myself, “someday you will find me/caught beneath the landslide/ in a yuzu supernova/ a yuzu supernova in the sky”. This is the kind of joyous perfume that makes you want to sing while you wear it. Nothing better on a hot summer day.
Disclosure: This review is based on a sample I purchased.
–Mark Behnke
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