Areej Le Doré
Areej Le Doré
92 votes
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
A bracing slap of mineral-tinged ambergris cuts through immediately, its grey, almost petrol-like quality sharpened by violet leaf's green-edged snap. Within moments, the composition feels less like perfume and more like a scent-memory of something geological and ancient.
As the top notes recede, the woody matrix reveals itself—creamy Mysore sandalwood and austere cedarwood emerge, anchored by nagarmotha's spicy earthiness. Here the fragrance feels most substantial, most real, with oakmoss adding a damp, mossy undertone that suggests forest floors after rain.
The composition settles into a resinous, almost incense-like base where fossilised amber mingles with tonka bean's subtle sweetness, never cloying but offering a whisper of warmth. Cypress and cedarwood linger longest, creating a dry, woody halo that feels more like skin scent than fragrance, intimate and contemplative.
Baikal Gris is a fragrance that refuses sentimentality, instead offering the austere beauty of a Russian winter landscape distilled into an extrait. This is not a fragrance for those seeking comfort; it's for those who find comfort in severity. The Indian ambergris opens with an animalic whisper—not the warm embrace of typical amber compositions, but something more feral and mineral-tinged, as though rendered from ancient seas. This grey, almost spectral quality is immediately tempered by violet leaf's green-edged sharpness, which prevents the composition from ever becoming plush or inviting.
What emerges is thoroughly woody and resolutely earthy. Mysore sandalwood and cedarwood form the structural backbone, but they're kept lean and dry by the interplay of cypress and oakmoss—a pairing that evokes damp forest floors rather than cosmetic amber. The sandalwood doesn't sweeten; instead, it contributes a creamy dryness that sits uncomfortably alongside the vanilla, creating tension rather than harmony. Nagarmotha—that subtly spicy, earthy rhizome—acts as a grounding force, preventing the composition from becoming too ethereal, whilst fossilised amber and tonka bean add resinous depth without succumbing to gourmandise.
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4.0/5 (185)