Essence de Patchouli Eau de Parfum
Perris Monte Carlo (2012)

I don't know what this is, but it is certainly not patchouli. Vile. A scrubber

Really classy EdP by Perris Monte Carlo!

From the very start, I get an unmistakable hit of really clean patchouli proper. There is a really exotic, lovely quality to the scent, which reveals itself to be layered and rich with character. PMC does an exquisite job of blending the florals and spices in this one, where no single note stands out above another.

Essence de Patchouli evokes in me visions of walking around in some international market that sells handmade incense and prayer oils, crafted from the finest of local raw materials, with this powdery-musky patchouli enveloping me and drawing me to a proud vendor.

Many years ago, I received a sample of some mysterious, nameless prayer oil from a friend of mine that was such a delight to wear and share; Essence de Patchouli EdP strikes me as a dead-ringer to that still-unknown scent, so smooth, deep, and eliciting strong feelings of calm with every whiff. If left undisturbed, Essence de Patchouli WILL last into the next day, still smelling nice (at about 40% strength).

Wow wow wow I am enamored by Essence de Patchouli EdP by Perris Monte Carlo. Very highly recommended esp. if you want to wear an Asian patchouli fragrance that doesn't relent nor take crazy olfactory turns. :-)

A sharp and slightly dusty patchouli with a kicker iris note. They could have toned down the iris a bit. Think this made the fragrance too powdery. I get a light rose and quite a bit of geranium. Settles down to a powdery and woody fragrance. Not bad, just not my type.

Essence de Patchouli opens with rose and creamy iris with the base derived patchouli already noticeable early. As the composition moves to its early heart the patchouli takes center stage with remnants of the early rose remaining in support joined by heavy, slightly animalic musk and finely powdered relatively sweet vanilla. During the late dry-down traces of supporting cedar join the toned down musk and patchouli tandem through the finish. Projection is excellent, as is longevity at well over 12 hours on skin.

Having been quite impressed with Perris' Rose offering, when a surprise pair of their other perfumes arrived in the mail recently it was with great anticipation that each were sprayed on skin for trial, the first being Essence de Patchouli. Unfortunately, it was quite clear very early-on that this patchouli was a scrubber... The first thing that one notices on application is the patchouli presented here is sweetened heavily by vanilla in the base. The result of this pairing is an almost creamy, relatively sweet presentation with the iris used to smooth the patchouli out further. Gone are the more earthy facets of patchouli one might expect leaving one to solely contend with the cloying facets of the sweet vanilla infused patchouli instead. The musk encountered first in the heart, then in the late dry-down is not overly animalic, but it is just over-the-top in the heart section and just makes the patchouli all the more unbearable. All-in-all, this is not the patchouli expected or desired, and would have been scrubbed off in record time if the complete development was not needed to be observed for this review. The bottom line is the $155 per 100ml bottle Essence de Patchouli is one of the worst renditions of the starring ingredient I've sniffed to date, earning it a "poor" to "very poor" 1 to 1.5 stars out of 5 and a strong recommendation for folks to steer well clear of this bad patch and try a masterpiece like Patchouli by Zegna for similar cost per ml instead.

Essence de Patchouli opens with a refined patchouli accord with a subtle and graceful powdery side, melancholic and nostalgic, with talcum and iris-rose notes, slightly camphoraceous, airy and really silky. All the fragrance is actually much velvety, the patchouli note is restrained, sharp, polite and "satin", much more on the dusty-sweet side (like cocoa beans) without any earthy-rooty feature. Plus the floral powdery side brilliantly makes the scent lively and romantic. Ambroxan base providing added dusty "greyness". Pleasant and sophisticated, with a discreet but long-lasting presence on skin. A bit overpriced perhaps, but nice.

6,5-7/10

This musky articulated patchouli enchanted me by soon in a couple of minutes, jumping immediately over the top levels of my ideal luxurious patchouli based fragrances dreamy parade (despite this fragrance smells on my skin pratically identical to the previous Alyssa Ashley's Essence de Patchouli). The high quality musk-labdanum-powdery iris olfactory association manages to create a soft shelter encompassing one of the most captivating rosey/boise Patchoili of the contemporary olfactory panorama. The main note morphs down finally smooth, naïf, pure and musky/chypre over a first luxuriant stage in which the royal element appears full of decadent/baroque "cristal" nuances provided by a concert of hesperides (golden bergamot and orange), exotic mild spices, hints of almost mentholated woodsy resins, plus rosewood, probably cedarwood, ethereal rose and aristocratic geranium. I suppose minimal hints of balancing dry aromatic herbs up hold steady a sense of general (musky) mildness preventing the aroma to turn finally out overly rich, warm or heavy (it happens also due the absence of vanilla or animalic notes- just a touch of amber?). The Essence de Patchouli's dry down is slightly talky/eliotropic but still in a structured, mossy and textured/spicy way. The final aroma is an airy dry potion (emanating subtle rosey nuances) actually far from the syrupy, leathery of animalic types of patchouli around and more in line with such dry and musky patchouli out there a la Villoresi or Santa Maria Novella (with vague Heritage EdT's nuances and a tad of the Etro's landmark dry/eliotropic exoticism). Absolutely velvety and silky in its final musky wake ideally conjuring Sultan Palaces and silky fairy roads. Unisex and full bodied in longevity and sillage.

this house makes only masterpieces, excellent duration and sillage