By Kilian
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
The Cognac hits immediately—not vodka-sharp but rounded, oaky, with that distinctive grape-spirit sweetness already married to cinnamon. There's an almost fizzy quality from the hedione, like champagne bubbles cutting through caramel sauce, whilst the praline begins its slow seduction from beneath.
The tonka bean swells into prominence, bringing its hay-like sweetness forward whilst the oak becomes more pronounced—less barrel, more woodshop. Cinnamon threads through everything with surprising restraint, warming rather than scorching, whilst candied almonds add a marzipan-adjacent richness that's more Parisian confection than Christmas market.
What remains is a skin-close haze of vanilla-laced benzoin and sandalwood, powdery without being talc-like, sweet without being juvenile. The boozy signature fades to a memory, leaving behind something that smells like expensive wooden furniture polished with almond oil, dusted with the ghost of spiced sugar.
Angels' Share is liquid opulence in a bottle—a fragrance that captures the evaporative magic happening in French oak casks, where Cognac loses volume but gains soul. Benoist Lapouza has crafted something that straddles the line between high-end patisserie and wood-panelled library with remarkable deftness. The Cognac note isn't a gimmick; it's authentic, spiritous, with that characteristic fruity-woody warmth that only aged grape spirits possess. What makes this composition sing is the way cinnamon and hedione create an airy spiciness that prevents the gourmand elements from becoming cloying—there's lift here, a surprising brightness that keeps the tonka bean and praline from collapsing into cloying sweetness.
This is the scent of someone who knows the difference between indulgence and ostentation. The oak accord works in tandem with sandalwood to provide a structural backbone that's more furniture workshop than forest floor, whilst the praline and candied almond bring a caramelised nuttiness that reads as sophisticated rather than saccharine. The benzoin and vanilla in the base add a resinous warmth that feels almost incense-like at times, creating an amber-adjacent glow without going full-on orientalism. It's unabashedly boozy and unashamedly sweet, but there's a polish here—a refinement that elevates it beyond simple gourmandise. Angels' Share is for those who wear cashmere and leather interchangeably, who understand that excess, when executed with precision, becomes elegance.
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3.9/5 (321)