Pierre Guillaume
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
The citrus assault is immediately present—a bright, slightly sharp combination of lemon and mandarin that feels almost breakfast-like in its clarity. Within moments, though, you'll detect the patchouli rising beneath like something emerging from soil, already suggesting the earthy turn this fragrance intends.
The patchouli takes centre stage now, its slightly musty, green-leather quality becoming the dominant personality, whilst the sandalwood weaves beneath with creamy support. The spice notes—cinnamon and ginger—begin manifesting as genuine warmth rather than abstract spiciness, creating a fragrance that feels almost edible, almost tactile against the skin.
The amber and honey become increasingly prominent, softening the patchouli's sharper edges into something honeyed and almost resinous. What remains is predominantly sweet and earthy in equal measure, a skin scent that suggests autumn spices and worn suede rather than any conventional drydown sweetness.
Intrigant Patchouli announces itself as a peculiar marriage of brightness and earthiness, one that demands attention precisely because it refuses easy categorisation. The citrus opening—a zippy triumvirate of citron, lemon, and mandarin—arrives with genuine vigour, but Pierre Guillaume's masterstroke lies in how swiftly the patchouli begins its creep underneath, wrestling for dominion before the topnotes have barely settled. This isn't a patchouli fragrance that whispers; it's one that challenges, layering the earthy, slightly animalic heart note against the citrus's initial cheerfulness.
The Mysore sandalwood acts as a crucial mediator here, its creamy woody texture softening the patchouli's potential harshness whilst preventing the composition from tipping into mere sweetness. Instead, what emerges is something altogether more complex: a spicy-sweet orientation (the cinnamon and ginger in the base providing genuine heat rather than mere suggestion) that feels almost culinary in its dimensionality. The amber and honey add a honeyed warmth without rendering this saccharine—they're ingredients rather than flourishes.
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The Different Company
3.8/5 (193)