L'Homme aux Gants

Nutmeg cracks across the skin with genuine spice, sharp and almost medicinal, demanding attention rather than seduction. Within moments, hedione's clean herbal-citrus character emerges, creating an unexpected freshness that keeps the composition from becoming immediately sweet.

The cypriol settles in around the thirty-minute mark, bringing an earthy, grassy counterpoint that transforms the scent into something grey-green and slightly austere. The tonka bean and vanilla begin their slow emergence, but they're intelligently restrained, rendered sophisticated by the gaiac wood's medicinal dryness and the oud's subtle leather-and-dark-fruit complexity.

After several hours, the composition distils into something contemplative and leathery-sweet. The patchouli and musk become more prominent, providing a skin-like quality, whilst the benzoin adds a caramelised warmth that prevents the gaiac wood and oud from becoming austere. What remains is pleasingly woody rather than ambery, with vanilla and tonka bean lingering as whispered sweetness beneath the leather and earth.