Supercilium
O'Driù (2012)

Pregoni's trademark Olive Top note hits the brain cells first. As a Chef this delights my Culinary memory and grabs my attention.
Angelo continues to develop this scent as I would layer a creation. I identify Oregano prominent Dried Herbs. An acid other than an olive and together balances. A background of sweetness perhaps from Bell Pepper Roasted, no smoke though.
A hint of Vetiver draws the closing to a Perfume rather than a Edible dish.
Brilliant in idea and precision in technique.
Totally wearable to us Chef's and a must for tasting for those interested in Vetiver.
A Culinary and Olfactory delight.
Need to consult with my banker to invest though!

Again, another fragrance from the house that they listed only one note, but there is much more going on!
The scent in very familiar to my nose. something that I've tested from the house before but with a few differences.
At the opening I can smell the signature dark and exotic herbal note that you can find in most of Angelo's creations.
I can smell a semi sweet fruity note as well but because of that exotic herbal smell, it doesn't smell like a normal yummy fruit.
There are some spices in the background too but they are not that strong.
The scent is dark-green and herbal with a little bit and sweet exotic fruits and some spices in the background.
There is vetiver note in this fragrance but definitely it's not the dominate note and you can smell other notes too beside the vetiver (I mean at the opening)
As time goes by, in the mid I can smell stronger vetiver note with a dirty and earthy feeling and now spices are much easier to detect.
I believe there are two kind of spice in this fragrance. first one is caraway that give the scent a bitter dark and spicy feeling and second one is thyme that give the scent a special aroma.
I can detect thyme because I'm a big fan of pizza and thyme is a very common spice for cooking pizza.
I'm not saying that this fragrance smell like pizza! I'm talking about the special spice that people use for making pizza and that's thyme.
In the base the spices settle down and again I can smell that exotic green herbal note with that semi sweet fruits.
It's like you have a scent at the opening, you will get something a little different in the mid, then it goes back to the opening scent.
Projection is very good and longevity surprisely is awesome. I get around 10 hours and sometimes even more!

Vetiver and pepperThis is all about a beautiful, moderately earth and and dirty vetiver, initially brighter with a touch of citrus and mint, and then with a spicy peppery note added. Outwardly quite linear, but with subtle development over time. Extraordinarily quality of natural ingredients and reasonable silage and projection; very well blended. A great scent for spring days, very versatile and wearable, with excellent longevity of eight hours.

This fragrance represents a particular Pregoni's approach to the olfactory theme of the vetiver which finally appears highly lemony, woody and softenend by a bunch of sweet and spicy mysterious soothing elements. The beginning is almost traditional (anyway by far less compelling than many O'Driu' introductions, yes for instance i smell a less boisterous kind of Ladamo's beginning without the burnt licorice effect or a less anisic/fruity/spicy Laltrove 1001 type of first impression) and crossing the trademark O'Driu's blend of aromatic herbs and prickly spices. In particular i detect in the air a sort of pungent, vaguely incensey/smoky and almost minty (averagely sweet) herbal mix. Effectively the spicy/herbal presence in a second phase starts to recede a bit while a sort of lemony (due to a dominant lemongrass) vetiver takes the stage with its charge of well calibrated "tart/grassy salinity". The lemongrass tends to overwhelm (anyway, to master over) the vetiver's action and on this sphere i would not classify Supercilium as a classic and plain take on the main theme, especially when in the final part of the development a sort of spicy and smooth sandalwood starts to "embellish" the dry down supported by a minimal touch of silky balsams (benzoin?, citric amber? a la Avantgarde Fetish Perfume). The final outcome keeps on to be lemony and woody with an averagely bodied spicy (sweet cinnamon or cloves?) mildness. Not my favorite from the this prestigious brand but a great alternative for the lovers of the "creative vetivers". Another great creation from the talented perfumer Angelo Orazio Pregoni.

Supercilium goes on with a somewhat toned down presentation of the trademark O'driu house signature of culinary herbs and spice while adding a hint of fiery chile pepper (capsicum) into the mix. Underneath the herbs and spice lies very sharp woody vetiver that slowly emerges. During the early heart phase the spices slightly recede as the sharp vetiver takes the fore with warmth from the capsicum playing co-star with traces of lemongrass adding further support. As Supercilium enters the final dry-down, the vetiver remains in full force, while the spice and capsicum recede to allow a relatively dry real sandalwood note from the base to reveal itself, meshing with the vetiver and lemongrass to finish off the scent as the overall accord fades very slowly. Projection is very good and longevity is truly exceptional at over 24 hours on skin (even more-so as this is a 100% natural composition).

Vetiver is one of my favorite notes, but I really did not know what to expect with Supercilium (and its sister scent Subcilium) that O'driu bills as a "Vetyver Experience," as the note has been used just about every which way (or so I thought). I should have known that a super-talented nose like Angelo Orazio Pregoni would not be satisfied with releasing a "me too" type of vetiver scent, and certainly Supercilium is anything but. Sure, there are aspects of Supercilium that smell similar to many other O'driu concoctions with its trademark house blend of herbs that you find in one way or another in most of their compositions, but the addition of the sharp woody vetiver into the mix as the star while toning down the herbal mix just a hair a la their own Linfedele Haiku is truly something special. The vetiver is aromatic and almost woody in its nature, while the supporting lemongrass gives it a crucial slightly citric element; the notes of the overall accord blending *perfectly*. As Supercilium dries down and the sandalwood emerges, the final piece of the puzzle is unveiled as I detect just the faintest hint of sweetness late (though the scent is far from sweet on the whole). I can honestly say that Supercilium is a complete success and one of the best fragrances O'driu has released to date, taking the starring note into virgin territory. The fragrance is only available as a 44 piece limited edition and is very expensive in relative terms at 270 euros per 50ml bottle, but the amazing skill and innovation along with the resulting outstanding composition and stunning performance is very worthy of its lofty price tag. Supercilium earns an extremely enthusiastic "Top 10" caliber rating of 4.5+ stars out of 5.