Parfum d’Empire, for those who are not familiar with the line, creates fragrances inspired by historical empires. They’ve covered quite a bit of ground already, having taken us to Tsarist Russia (Ambre Russe), the Ottoman Empire (Cuir Ottoman) and the Napoleanic Empire (Eau de Gloire), among others. The perfumes are lovely — Ambre Russe particularly so — but none of them have explored themes likely to capture my heart entirely, and so up until now, I’ve admired the line in an abstract sort of way.

Osmanthus Interdite, on paper, looked like the kind of thing that might finally win me over: it takes the Chinese empire, past and present, as its inspiration, and the fruity floral scent features notes of green tea, citrus, osmanthus, rose, jasmine, musk and leather. Lee over at Perfume Posse told me he would eat his hat (well, strictly speaking, he said he’d eat his hat if he had one) if I didn’t like it, and I must apologize (again) for my predictability, but his “hat” is perfectly safe…

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