parfums*PARFUMS Luxe: Patchouli
Comme des Garçons (2007)

Luxe: Patchouli’s opening salvo of wet teak, hickory smoke, syrupy immortelle, anisic fenugreek, and herbal patchouli is both impressive and challenging. I swooned when I first smelled this in a niche perfumery store in Belgium but should have remembered that scents that are characterful enough to push past the thick fuzz of hundreds of other perfumes being sprayed into the air are often too big for me when I get them home.

There are parts of this fragrance that I love. It is a genius idea, for example, for the perfumer to flank the patchouli with the syrupy warmth of the immortelle, the burning white pepper, the dried alfalfa sweetgrass, and the bold smokiness of the opoponax, because these notes render all the soil out of the patchouli like fat from a sausage, leaving only its vegetal facets on display. On the other hand, vegetal in patchouli speak always translates to a stewed celery-like tonality, which is not ideal, because, you know, walking around smelling like a vegetable stock cube is not something I aspire to.

And unfortunately, this is the aspect that gets further accentuated by the curryish fenugreek note, which smells like crushed celery seeds mixed with pine and mint. I can take fenugreek in spicy sandalwood settings (like Santal de Mysore by Serge Lutens) but my tolerance level plummets when it is shoved up against an already vegetal-smelling patchouli. There is nothing like this in my collection, let alone my patchouli collection, but Luxe: Patchouli gets worn too infrequently to earn a permanent place.

Genre: Chypre

Wow! Comme des Garcons Luxe Patchouli whacks you over the head with its opening. Forget about the usual top notes. This slugger hits you with smoky woods, patchouli, and sweet resins in a very heavy, dark, viscous accord that hovers between a spiced dessert and a Turkish bazaar. Fenugreek is a conspicuous component of this fragrance, and it establishes a tangy/bitter/sweaty undercurrent that runs right through into the base notes. There's plenty of the expected patchouli earthiness in this blend, but it comes wrapped in the heavy maple syrup decadence of immortelle. The drydown has the sweet, sticky, and opaque texture of molasses, and I find it oppressive wear.

A dark, gorgeous, and insanely powerful woody-sweet patchouli with prominent notes of fenugreek and warm resins. The opening is monumental and the best part of Luxe: Patchouli – velvety smooth, almost like a thick-flowing herbal balsam of spicy fenugreek that slowly gives way to supporting layers of patchouli, opoponax, and a complex combination of wood notes. The dry-down, however, is less intriguing, extremely tenacious and eventually grows a bit too staid, lacking the vibrant dynamics and fulfilling aromatic richness so characteristic of the opening.

Luxe: Patchouli is an all-dark, decadent and incredibly rich scent, decidedly modern and with that quirky woody-synthetic Comme des Garçons twist. It is also extremely expensive, and although I greatly admire the opening, the rather uninspiring drydown keeps this scent from quite qualifying as one of the very best patchoulis (such as Coromandel, Dior's Patchouli Impérial, Bornéo 1834, and Mazzolari's Patchouli). It is, however, undeniably impressive, original and quite unique. About as far away as you can get from the sensible and down-to-earth, Luxe: Patchouli is a statement of character, attitude, and mysterious charm. You cannot wear this and hide.

Note: This review is based on the original 2007 eau de parfum, not the 2013 eau de toilette version.

Myrrh-aculous Scent opens spectacularly with a complex riot of elements: opoponax and cedar, followed by patchouli, teak, oak, pepper. Fenugreek and vanilla accords give a toffee-caramel vibe, but this is not a sweet scent. Really nice and dry. If you're a sweet myrrh aficionado, you need to try this asap, because really, the main story in this fragrance is the opoponax, not patchouli. Yes, patchouli is present as the frag develops, but here it acts more like a vessel, which is one of its best roles, holding all the elements together, yet staying resolutely in the background. The opoponax and cedar thru-line of the scent stays clear throughout the drydown, with the vanilla and fenugreek becoming stronger. I also detected a touch of dusty frankincense lurking at the edges. In the final stages, the scent coalesces beautifully. An exotic, masculine fragrance. Good longevity, but after several hours this moves closer to the skin. Works better in cooler weather than in hot.Pros: A complex, masculine blendCons: The frag's misnamed–it's all about sweet myrrh "

Syrupy patchouli?? I must confess I didn't enjoy the opening. The immortelle note ruins the start for me but thankfully takes a back seat soon enough to allow a full-bodied patchouli to shine through. The patchouli here is not particularly earthy, it's more balsamic and herbal. But it wears smoothly and lasts quite a fair bit as a skin scent. If you like your patchouli with some sugary undertones, you got to try this.

A terrific patchouli/fenugreek/angelica root composition. If you dislike bold and dark fragrances you should better stay carefully away from Luxe Patchouli as it's very powerful and noticeable. The main element is blended with a strong immortelle note providing the typical burnt sugary quality while a strong resinous and moderately sweet base, adds extra body to this thick earthy composition. Less sweet than Sables but richer than Fareb, Luxe Patchouli is a perfect example of a dark fragrance with a modern twist.

Unisex, intense, long lasting and unique. Another winner from the guys at Comme Des Garcons.