M. Micallef
M. Micallef
781 votes
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
The bergamot and lemon strike first, bright and hesperidic, but cardamom's green spice immediately muddies the waters in the best possible way. Within moments, that hemp note arrives like an uninvited guest—vegetal, slightly earthy, adding an herbal buzz that makes the citrus feel less polite, more intoxicating.
Blackcurrant macerated in tonka creates a jammy sweetness that the cinnamon prickles with heat, whilst hemp continues its strange, herbaceous hum underneath. The whole thing develops a creamy spiced quality that borders on gourmand territory without tipping over—there's too much green earthiness for comfort, too much complexity for simple sweetness.
Benzoin's vanilla-like warmth melds with musk to create a skin-close sweetness, whilst patchouli and moss provide a proper earthy foundation that keeps everything grounded. What remains is a soft, resinous woodiness with ghostly traces of spice—intimate, slightly animalic, wearing close to the skin like a secret.
DesirToxic opens with a brilliant contradiction—citrus oils meeting the green, resinous bite of cardamom, creating a brightness that's immediately complicated by something darker lurking beneath. Within minutes, that hemp accord rises up, bringing an oddly narcotic herbal quality that transforms the blackcurrant from simple fruitiness into something more jammy and overripe, almost fermented. The tonka and cinnamon conspire to create a spiced-cream effect that shouldn't work with hemp's vegetal earthiness, yet somehow the collision produces a sweet heat that's genuinely intriguing. This is a fragrance that lives in the space between fresh and gourmand, never quite committing to either.
The base is where DesirToxic reveals its true nature—that prominent patchouli and moss combination grounds all the sweetness in genuine earth, whilst benzoin adds a balsamic richness that prevents the musk from going soapy. It's a thoroughly modern construction, the kind of fragrance that feels designed for people who find traditional orientals too suffocating but still want something with genuine warmth and presence. There's a slight cannabis-adjacent quality to the hemp note that gives this a louche, after-hours character—not quite rebellious, but certainly unconventional. This belongs on someone who appreciates technical perfumery but doesn't want to smell safe, who understands that spice can be as much about complexity as heat. Best suited to cooler weather when that interplay between fresh citrus and warm resinous base can properly develop without becoming cloying.
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3.9/5 (301)