Borsari 1870
Borsari 1870
181 votes
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
The crisp bergamot and bitter orange slice through immediately with bright, almost sharp clarity, whilst the pear adds a delicate sweetness that prevents the citrus from becoming austere. Within minutes, you're confronted by tuberose's creamy density, which begins softening the opening's effervescence.
The floral accord deepens considerably as osmanthus's honeyed character intertwines with Belle De Nuit's intoxicating, almost indolic richness. Tuberose dominates this phase, developing a powdery, talc-like quality that feels decidedly vintage. The composition becomes heavier, more opulent, wrapping itself around the skin with increasingly obvious sweetness.
The base emerges with troubling character—moldy leather mingles with cedar and tonka's vanilla warmth, creating a slightly subversive, antique quality. The sweetness persists but becomes tempered by that leather's peculiar staleness, leaving a lingering impression of faded grandeur and curious decay.
Borsari 1870 Tuberosa occupies a peculiar space between Edwardian grandeur and modern sensuality. The fragrance leads with a vibrant citrus triad—bitter orange and bergamot duetting with pear's stone-fruit sweetness—but this is merely the perfume's charming deception. The true character emerges in the heart, where tuberose's creamy indolic intensity dominates, supported by Belle De Nuit's intoxicating nightflower richness and osmanthus's honeyed, almost apricot-like warmth. This floral convergence is decidedly powdery, evoking vintage face powder and the faded velvet of antique upholstery.
What sets this composition apart is its audacious base construction. Tonka bean's vanilla undertones marry with cedar in a manner that should feel warm and conventional, but the moldy leather accord introduces something genuinely unsettling—a whiff of aged hide, of objects left too long in storage. This isn't a friendly animalic; it's deliberately decayed, suggesting antique leather-bound books or wardrobes that haven't seen daylight. The effect is simultaneously sophisticated and peculiar, compelling and off-putting.
Add fragrances to your collection and unlock your personalised scent DNA, note map, and shareable identity card.
3.5/5 (104)