I’ve “smoked” myself with incense perfumes since they first appeared on the market. I can’t believe it’s been over 20 years since Etro Messe de Minuit was released; I always think of it as the grand-daddy of incense fragrances and as my first ‘incense boyfriend.’ (Yes, in perfume years you can go from BOYfriend to grand-daddy in two decades.) Along with Messe de Minuit, I was a big fan of Comme des Garçons Avignon (2002) and Armani Privé Bois d’Encens (2004). All these fragrances, and today’s — UNUM LAVS¹ — are based on incense you would smell in a European Roman Catholic church.

The brand UNUM was founded by Filippo Sorcinelli (see image above). Sorcinelli is an artist, tailor and organist (his new perfume line SAUF has bottles in the shape of the stop knobs of the great organ of Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris). LAVS (Laus) stands for Laboratorio Atelier Vesti Sacri and is the Latin word for “praise” (as in, Praise God/Laus Deo). Sorcinelli has made vestments for Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis, and before delivery, these vestments were scented with what is now the perfume LAVS…

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