Bvlgari
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
Gardenia and "plant juice" (likely a green, slightly green-tinted accord) create an immediate freshness that's deceptively bright, almost a false promise of lightness. Within seconds, the jasmine sambac begins its emergence, arriving with unexpected depth and a faintly shadowy character that contradicts the opening's initial cheerfulness.
The almond and jasmine absolute form the fragrance's true character, developing into something almost creamy yet distinctly bitter, like walking through a jasmine garden at dusk where the flowers have begun their nocturnal transformation. The woody notes intensify here, grounding the florals with an austere earthiness, while the liquorice absolute adds a subtle savoury undertone that prevents any hint of saccharine sweetness.
The florals fade to impressionistic traces while precious woods and the tonka bean absolute emerge as the dominant players, the fragrance settling into a warm, resinous amber-woody base with lingering liquorice echoes. What remains is intimate and skin-scent soft, more felt than smelled, though this projection weakness is almost a design choice—this is fragrance as a personal aura rather than a declaration.
Jasmin Noir Bvlgari occupies a peculiar liminal space—it's a fragrance that whispers rather than projects, yet what it whispers is decidedly provocative. Carlos Benaïm has constructed something genuinely dark-floral, where the gardenia's creamy opening gives way to jasmine sambac absolute that carries an almost indolic richness, that slight animalic edge that separates genuine white florals from their sanitised cousins. The almond note is crucial here; rather than adding sweetness, it introduces a subtle bitterness, almost bitter-almond, that prevents the composition from ever becoming cloying.
What makes this fragrance distinctive is its woody-amber backbone. The precious woods aren't the bright, pencil-shaving cedar type—they're darker, more resinous, anchoring the florals with an earthy gravitas. The liquorice absolute (glycyrrhiza glabra) is the masterstroke, a note used sparingly in perfumery, adding an almost savoury quality that transforms what could have been a straightforward jasmine composition into something genuinely complex and mature.
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3.9/5 (191)