Reviews of Papyrus Oud / 71 
Parle Moi de Parfum (2018)

Oh man, this is literally a phoenix risen from the ashes - tried all the possible alternative variations (Bentley Absolute , CdG2, Gucci Guilty Absolute, and 2,3 others) but nothing comes closer to the original GpH as this one. Wearing both of them and going back and forth between right and left arm for the last 6 hours. There is an 5% offmark in sharpness and intensity but only a trained nose will be able to pick this up (PO more so than GpH1): Monsieur Almairac had his olfactory and memory sinapses in the right place when he worked on this modern version. Doubt it could get better. Damn expensive (reborn as a niche and 3x more expensive than its grandfather at the time) but still is a no brainer compared to the ridiculous exorbitant prices of the original hard to find nowadays. If you loved the original GpH this one won´t disappoint. Hope they´ll keep it alive enough for me to save money for backup bottles!

I've tried a few of these PMdP scents over the course of my holiday and the themes that seem to be emerging are of somewhat linear scents missing traditional top notes, but with good performance and everything speaking of high quality basic materials. Another theme is that I consistently pick up fewer notes than listed (apart from the specifically minimal Milk Musk).

PO is a case in point. There is definitely a woody accord, definitely a patchouli note for spice, and discernible incense. However, I do not detect oud, nor any of the listed comestible accords. There is something that provides an overall smoothness and sweetness that offsets what might otherwise be an overly dry and arid scent, so there is some skilful composition going on.

I don't have any compunction about giving a thumbs up here, but I would say that on this evidence, if you want to enjoy PMdP scents, you will need to get on with a particular kind of minimalism in terms of accords and development that relies upon the evolution of these few notes to keep interest, as opposed to following the transition of one set of discrete notes to another.

This fragrance is easily a reflection of Michel Almairac's earlier creation Gucci Pour Homme (2003) which was a favorite of mine. I am happy to see it return in this new incarnation. The same notes and smells of GPH are present here in the Parle Moi de Parfum version with ginger, papyrus, incense, oud, patchouli and chocolate in place of vanilla. Fewer notes are listed for Papayrus Oud and it carries less density particularly in the spice blend, but possibly just a bit improved by the oh so slight addition of Oud hidden beneath the papyrus. The oud gives some resonance to the light papyrus woods and the chocolate give a slight bit of gruff and growl to the gingery incense combination. Highly recommended!