Escale à Portofino
Christian Dior (2008)

The power of waves on the windy sea that erases everything except the present moment. The versatility of this one will easily make it a popular signature scent, particularly if you live somewhere warm. It shines when the weather gets hot. It is not an original composition, preciesly because it is structured according to a very traditional formula.

Starts off like a cold drink on a hot day and then it dries down to a musky woody that is irresistible. The bergamot plays an important role in this fragrance for which i would not exactly classify this scent as a floral fragrance. A fragrance intended for the warmer months, it puts the other summer/blue scents to shame as far as performance goes. It will easily last you the day, and has a sillage that will follow you from blocks away in the heat. Perfectly unisex scent.

This can almost fool you into thinking you're getting a chic, exotic-sounding Eau de Cologne, when in reality, you're getting a terrific, juicy citrus topnote, followed by a laundry musk so powerful Tide would run screaming.

For those of us trying to avoid smelling like a dryer exhaust, beware.

Genre: Citrus

Escale à Portofino is an eau de Cologne variant with a lemony top note that's natural enough not to smell like furniture polish. What follows is exactly the sort of citrus, herb, and jasmine accord one expects in an eau de Cologne formula, still pleasantly natural, but also well-balanced and sufficiently potent to carry a small distance without smelling loud or intrusive.

On the other hand, I don't smell anything that makes Escale à Portofino stand out among the many, many other well crafted eaux de Cologne on the market, so I'm not sure what justifies its limited-release status. Why hunt down Escale à Portofino when you can get an outstanding citrus scent from Guerlain, Acqua di Parma, Balmain, or Annick Goutal (to name just a few,) with much less effort? Citrus connoisseurs, Dior fans, eau de Cologne completists, or maybe just those with more sensitive noses than mine may find some attraction here that I'm missing, but pleasant as this fragrance is, I don't get the point. Thumbs up (with hesitation) because it's well done, not because I recommend acquiring it.

Unisex but more to the side of feminine, this fragrance promises much and nearly delivers but suffers from lack of longevity.

Starting with a light and airy neroli this turns rapidly into a soft almond base which unfortunately only stays around for an hour or so before vanishing. Very pleasant summer aroma but not worth purchase price in my opinion.

More lemon and petitgrain than orange and a final woody-milky and musky dry down with the almond's boozy-nutty undertone. Light and breezy with a cologny sparkling vibe and an old-school soul (because of the starring role played by a classy bergamot). The juice is essentially citric and energizing while the final almondy-woody muskiness holds on to be light and is just necessary to develop hints of smoothness. Its fresh and highly aromatic projection  makes us guessing about something minty and spicy in the blend ( Blood-orange writes about juniper berries and  caraway and i say that it's possible) cause i live that feeling. Pepper and mint? I guess. Effectively the juice teleports us back in Portofino or Capri, in the 60's, the years of italian Dolcevita full of good quality of life and huge projects for future. The juice is not fully complex or luxurious but is well crafted and joyful for a carefree hot mediterranean summer in the riviera.

I am currently in mourning for Nina Ricci's Signoricci. I recently discovered (thanks to Basenotes !) that they've decided as of this year to stop producing this citrus legend. Having tried Escale à Portofino on two or three occasions in airports, I have to say that it comes pretty close to Signoricci. Delicious citrus notes, perfect for summer.