Iskander
Parfum d'Empire (2006)

I’m a huge fan of classic citrus chypres, and hearing the comparison to Eau Sauvage (one of my absolute favorites) I knew I had to try this one. Unfortunately this smells to me like a modern take on the citrus chypre, with a big sharp modern barbershop-y woody amber base that gives me a headache upon close smelling. This is exactly the same problem I had with Chanel Pour Monsieur Concentree and EdP, where a beautiful citrus opening gradually gets taken over by this blue-leaning scent that I despise.

For people who are used to modern masculines with woody amber bases, this could be a great segue into more classic scents if you feel that Eau Sauvage, Pour Monsieur and similar feel too old-school for you. For the citrus chypre and vintage enthusiast, you can safely skip this one.

This opens as a lovely herbal citrus, perfect for warmer weather. It's not as aggressively synthetic as many of its peers, and the mandarin does a nice job of tempering the astringency of the grapefruit without veering into candy territory. The development isn't tremendous; but then, it's essentially a chypric eau de cologne, so the proper magic is in sustaining the top rather than in a dramatic transformation to the base, with both the sustain and transition accomplished by cultivating the orange blossom as the mandarin and grapefruit dissipate.

I have tons of vintage Eau Sauvage (and its glorious kissing cousin, Le Galion Eau Noble), which in their pre-IFRA way are more "base-heavy" for better or worse, depending on what you want. Global warming arguably tips the scales in Iskander's favor, but since I'm a sucker for a deep chypre base–and I have easily a dozen vintage eaux de cologne, as well–I'll probably stick it out with what's already in my overstuffed wardrobe.

That said, if you're looking for a current but old-school citrus chypre with good longevity and without megadoses of WACs, ambroxan, or iso E super, I would deem this nod to Alexander the Great FB-worthy. If I didn't have this ground covered and re-covered, it would be a no-brainer.

Beautifully judged citrus chypre where all the sweet backing is hidden well out of sight, giving a dry and bracing feel. The citruses here are more on the lemon side of the spectrum and rendered with an appealing bitterness of pith and peel that matches perfectly the fresh mossy impression created (quite distinct from the pines-and-prunes odour profile of something like oakmoss absolute). Harmonious aromatics (coriander and neroli), a touch of green tea mellowness and a background whisper of powdery woods lend it refinement. There's a brightness to Iskander, signalled first by the juiciness of the citruses and, when that fades, by the lively interplay of elements. What endears it to me further is that my beloved who is usually indifferent to my perfumed pursuits says I ‘smell nice' when I wear it - high praise!
Just the thing for warmer weather.

An excellent citrus, and amazingly preserved as an eau de parfum rather than an eau de cologne.

The citron, mandarin and grapefruit opening is dry and warm at the same time, reminding me a great deal of Penhaligon's Blenheim Bouquet. The coriander and tarragon waltz together perfectly to round it out with the herbal/spice component, and finally it is further warmed by the cedar, vetiver, oak moss, amber and musk in the base. Drydown is most reminiscent of Cartier's Declaration.

This is for me one of the best of this house's scents, rich and strong as are almost all their creations. If you are into citrus scents, this is a must try. However, for the pocket book, you can do just as well with Declaration at less than half the price of Iskander.

Genre: Chypre

I sampled two fragrances with big citrus openings today: this and Nicolai's New York. Though not necessarily all that similar, Iskander somehow reminds me of the old Tuscany Forte per Uomo. Iskander is very much about citrus for me, but its resinous cedar and spice underpinnings lend it a complexity rare among citrus-centered fragrances.

Interestingly enough, as robyogi points out, the citrus note persists far longer than most. The spices, woods, and citrus are in almost perfect balance here - this is a beautifully integrated scent. And though it's not listed I find a distinct cardamom component to the middle notes.

I haven't had much interest in citrus scents of late, but this is one I'd recommend to anyone who does! On me, it suggests it might work for women, too. Thumbs up for its sheer quality.

Parfum d'Empire - Iskander
Great natural, round fruity, fresh peppery-lemon opening with a fixed warmth that grows bigger by the clever use of prickly-spicy and green-herbaceous tarragon alongside coriander, that's being dipped in a bath of lavender, orangeblossom and oakmoss, creating a very smooth and soft eau de cologne-styled perfume that altogether morphs into a deep darkish green tonality with a salty labdanum/incense touch. Very simply done in a evenly effective and efficient way, smelling transparent as well as abundant with a somewhat introvert joy upon its sleeve, showing a shy playfulness that's full of liveliness and warmth. A very comfortable perfume that doesn't draw a lot of attention but says many things with few words.