The Different Company
The Different Company
97 votes
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
The champagne alcohol immediately tangles with violet leaf's green, almost herbal sharpness, whilst mandarin orange provides a brief citrus flicker before nutmeg and Thai basil conspire to create something peppery and slightly astringent. It's a bracing, almost confrontational opening that smells nothing like traditional violet.
The composition's floral architecture fully emerges as iris and osmanthus bloom over the cyclamen's spicy whisper, the powdery accords building into a lush, slightly animalic cloud. The leather surfaces here too, creating a fascinating tension between soft florals and something distinctly austere, making the heart phase genuinely compelling rather than merely pleasant.
Musk, vanilla and ambergris create a softly animalic base, though the leather persists stubbornly, preventing any descent into sweetness. What remains is a faded violet memory—tender but unsentimental, intimate without being cloying, though longevity issues mean this memory fades considerably sooner than desired.
"I Miss Violet" is a fragrance that does precisely what its title promises—it mourns the absence of violet whilst simultaneously celebrating its presence. Bertrand Duchaufour has crafted something genuinely disquieting: a violet-centric composition that refuses sentimentality, instead channelling a melancholic intelligence. The champagne note doesn't announce itself with fizzy frivolity; rather, it arrives as an alcoholic shimmer that cuts through violet leaf's green, slightly bitter character, the ambrette seed adding an almost peppery warmth beneath. This is no powdery grandmother's fragrance, despite the accords suggesting otherwise. The iris emerges not as a soft iris pallida but as something earthy and slightly smoky, harmonising with cyclamen's peppery undertone whilst osmanthus contributes a honeyed floral darkness. The leather isn't ornamental—it's a genuine tanning material that grounds the powdery florals, preventing them from drifting into sentimentality. Thai basil provides a green, slightly spicy backbone that makes this composition bristle with contemporary edge rather than nostalgia.
This is for the fragrance wearer who understands violet's capacity for complexity, who appreciates florals with structural integrity. It's a scent for solitary moments—morning coffees, autumnal walks, late-night contemplation. It's achingly contemporary yet strangely timeless, speaking to those who've outgrown conventional perfumery but haven't surrendered their affection for flowers. The leather-floral combination suggests someone confident enough to wear tension rather than harmony.
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3.7/5 (74)