Berdoues
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
The ginger announces itself with aggressive immediacy—sharp, almost menthol-tinged heat that makes you sit up and pay attention. Beneath this spice, the iris begins its whisper, already lending a delicate powder that contrasts strikingly with the bite above.
The ginger's initial pepper subsides into something warmer and slightly honeyed as the iris moves centre stage, its creamy, slightly soapy character now unmistakable. The cedar emerges here too, adding a clean, almost austere undertone that prevents any languor from setting in.
The composition settles into its most restrained phase—a quiet conversation between the cedar's wood-grain dryness and the iris's lingering powdery softness, with just a whisper of ginger spice remaining like a memory of its earlier aggression.
Arz El-Rab arrives as a deliberate contradiction—a fragrance that marries the incisive bite of Chinese ginger with the soft, almost talcum-like embrace of Iris Tingitana, all anchored by the austere geometry of Virginia cedar. This is not a fragrance for the faint-hearted or the chronically indecisive. Cyrill Rolland has constructed something that refuses to whisper: the ginger cuts through with a peppery edge that has real teeth, clashing pleasantly against the iris's creamy, slightly mineral character. That powdery accord (52%) isn't here to soften things; rather, it adds an almost cosmetic dryness that makes the composition feel architectural rather than sensual.
The woody base (100%) is the spine holding this all together—Virginia cedar provides a clean, almost pencil-shaving dryness rather than the warmth you might expect. There's a subtle citrus thread woven through (64%), likely from the ginger's natural top notes, providing brightness without sweetness.
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3.9/5 (239)