My arms are finally better so today I decided to try the samples I ordered from Aus Liebe zum Duft. At the moment I can't really remember how I decided to order Parfum d'Empire (I must have read something somewhere, but I can no longer remember what or where). What I tried today are Cuir ottoman and Fougere bengale.
I'll start with Cuir because although I find it nice and wearable, it's not as fabulous as some others out there (primarily Cuir de Lancome which I love). It's just, you know, cuir-ish. It starts a bit sweet, nothing too much with a slight burnt aroma (all this being burnt styrax which I found on Aus Liebe zum Duft site) and at some point it gets really interesting, having this middle phase where you actually get hints of "Benjoin resine that massage the musky skin of languid bodies" by Aus Liebe zum Duft again, and I honestly thought, ok, this is it, it's perfect, and unfortunately, then all that went away and I was left with a light vanillish cuir. It is just, well, too soft for me.
Cuir ottoman notes: jasmine, leather, iris, benzoin, balsams, resins, incense
Now, Fougere bengale is another thing. And for someone who learns French for far too long, I am ashamed but I admit, I had to go and look up the meaning of fougere. That explained a lot! :) Sometimes I get to feel stupid at the most strangest of times. Anyway, it seems fougere is THE combination for me beacuse I just love the lavender oakmoss pairing.
The thing is, at the beginning this one roars fougere while in the drydown it simply says fougere (and since it tells the story of Bengalese tiger hunts, I find it completely appropriate). Thank God it doesn't whisper fougere. You get from it all the things all the sites list, lavender, gingerbread, oakmoss, the sweet, green, herbalish aspect given by lavender and oakmoss and my discovery today (= fougere). I kept thinking the drydown reminded me of something else, and after my discovery of what fougere means, I remembered, like Ilaun by Burren perfumery.
Fougere bengale notes:Lavender, tarragon, patchouli, geranium, tobacco, tonka beans, vanilla
P.S. For all those who, like me, don't know what's tarragon (or dragon's wort), it is a perennial plant that looks strangely a lot like rosemary and is used in cuisine.
Imageby: http://www.azurs.net/photoblogv0
I need to explore this line better, only it is so hard over here. Actually I lie, there is a spa in my city that sells the whole line, but I hate the 'hovering' type of attention you get at small spa institutes. I like to explore in peace, you know what I mean for sure!
ReplyDeleteTarragon is magic in fish dishes or sauces that accompany fish dishes! It has a herbal and yet almost balsamic sweet fragrance and a prominent anise aroma. (maybe it's called something else in Kroatia? In Greece it is called Estragon while here in the Netherlands simply "Dragon") If you like fish, try cooking with it, it adds beautiful flavor (especially to white fillet fish, not so much to oily fish like sardine, mackerel, tuna or salmon).
Some googling for estragon and I did find the Croatian word for it - tarkanj (honestly, I've never heard that before). all the sites list how great it is with certain foods and now from your experience to be used with fish - I will definitely try it (I just first need to locate it in Zagreb). :)
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