Ever since its beginning in 2004 the exclusive line for Giorgio Armani fragrance, Armani Prive, has been a love it or yawn at it proposition. I have some of my favorites in the distinct bottles with the faux-stone top on them. There are others I couldn’t remember their name unless I looked it up. It does make for an interesting time whenever I receive a new sample. Turns out the latest, Armani Prive Orangerie Venise, is a love it one.
Someone is going to have to explain to me why there have been so many good neroli perfumes over the last couple of years. I wonder if there has been a new source or just a general drift towards similar themes. Whatever the explanation I have greatly increased the neroli section of my perfume collection. One of my favorites was last year’s neroli and cumin combination in A Lab on Fire And The World Is Yours. Perfumer Dominique Ropion has made one of the most indelible neroli perfumes I own. When I discovered he was the perfumer for Orangerie Venise I suspected I would get the flip side of that earlier perfume, something more genteel. Orangerie Venise does fit that description but it does not mean it doesn’t contain its own compelling moments.
Dominique Ropion
M. Ropion uses bitter orange to focus the top accord with hints of other citrus, grapefruit and lemon mostly, to provide a rounder top accord. The neroli arises out of that with a gorgeous luminescence that M. Ropion amplifies with the remnants of the citrus. Then instead of using cumin M. Ropion contrasts the neroli with the sticky green of buchu leaves. Buchu has a deeply verdant scent profile which adheres to the green quality inherent in the neroli. It offers significant push against the floral beauty of the neroli. M. Ropion further tunes this green by using moss to add shadows to this accord. All together this is a vibrant neroli accord which is where Orangerie Venise spends most of its time. It eventually moves on to a base of cedar and ambrox.
Orangerie Venise has 14-16 hour longevity and average sillage.
The joy of this perfume is that M. Ropion has taken another difficult ingredient, buchu, and made it find a place with the neroli. It makes it not your typical neroli.
Disclosure: this review is based on a sample provided by Neiman Marcus.
–Mark Behnke
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