Vetiver Insolent

Calling this a vetiver fragrance would be insolent indeed. Sticky-sweet, toffee resin. Slight buttery iris, circling a warm amber base. Smells inviting, a bit too sweet (very unisex), but can't help being disappointed at the lack of vetiver.

Interesting effect with this one. I sprayed it on randomly at a store and immediately I got an interesting boozy almost licorice type effect in the top notes, quite sweet but also deeply woody and spicy and dense. Very similar to an italian herbal liqueur (Amaro) with ample warm spice, some citrus zest, and a resinous quality kind of like a pine sap almost, almost entering a wormwood-like direction. At the same time it is also intensely sweet. Unfortunately this is the definition of a 'top heavy' fragrance. As much as I love the opening, I dislike the dry down, loaded with a gnarly amberwood compound, the type you regret spraying on after the 5th hour of it booming off your skin like a truffle. Since this is a surprise amberwood composition, see Etui Noir instead from the same line as it is practically better in every way, aside from the top note.

A delightfully nutty, spicy vetiver, Miller Harris has me swooning once more: the citric incense vibe of the elemi resin note at the top is the hook that draws me in, and the piquancy of the pepper and cardamom make this is a most autumnal experience. Smokier and somewhat sweeter as it progresses, Insolent feels almost edible, but not quite (just like I want anything vaguely gourmand in fragrance to be). The tonka and iris combine to create almost a chocolate ganache that's been salted, smoked, and filtered through forest soil and wildflowers. I actually was reminded during a walk in the woods yesterday just how much certain aspects of damp woods really remind me of the danker, semi-sweet elements of vetiver, especially that of the raw vetiver absolute, which I believe MH has used in a sizable quantity here. After hours pass, there are the lingering resins, a mildly powdery mossiness, and the tenacious vetiver materials that fuse to the skin, with occasional wafts of what once was earlier in the day. A suggestion of spice and elemi sillage, quite lovely. Another one I recommend with zero reservations.

How strange - for me this is dominated by a candle wax and plasticine note with touches of incense and cinnamon. Not bad if you like that sort of thing but nothing that I’d recognise as Vetiver.

I thought this might be too peppery, but no. However, something didn't sit right with me. It turned out to be the bergamot, although the vetiver itself is a nice rooty earthy one, the bergamot top-twist spoils it for me. Slightly more on the masculine side, too. Not a blind buy, but a must check-out for fans of vetiver frags.