Penhaligon's
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
Pink pepper arrives first with an almost vinegary snap, cutting through initial sweetness like a critic's pen through received wisdom. The pepper is considerably sharper than its percentage might suggest, creating immediate contrast against the creamy vanilla trying to establish itself beneath.
The iris emerges gradually, softening the pepper's edge into something more spiced-flour than peppercorn whilst the sesame's subtle roastiness develops underneath, creating an unexpectedly toasted quality. By the second hour, powdery iris has become the dominant voice—delicate, somewhat chalky, making the fragrance feel lighter than its sweet accord percentages would suggest.
Sesame and vanilla form a quiet, skin-scent base that hovers between creamy and dusty. The pink pepper has largely evaporated, leaving just the faintest spiced warmth as the iris finally blends fully into the softened vanilla, creating an intimate, powdery-sweet whisper rather than a statement.
The Omniscient Mister Thompson is a fragrance that refuses easy categorisation, which seems entirely fitting for its enigmatic namesake. Fanny Bal has constructed something deliberately paradoxical: a spiced gourmand that never tips into cloying sweetness, where pink pepper's crisp bite prevents the vanilla and sesame base from becoming indulgent pastry shop wallpaper.
The genius lies in the iris-sesame dialogue. Sesame—typically deployed for its creamy, almost buttery warmth—pairs here with iris's inherent powderiness to create something altogether more refined than its component parts suggest. This isn't caraway cake or frangipani musk; it's closer to the dusty sweetness of ground spices catching light through a library window, with iris acting as the intellectual restraint that keeps things sophisticated rather than cosy.
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3.9/5 (89)