Jacques Fath just launched Fath’s Essentials, a collection of four fragrances developed by perfumer Cécile Zarokian, and representing “a sensory voyage through new olfactory territories and rare emotions.” New anything is a hard assignment, especially in perfume, and what’s a rare emotion? One that’s bloody on the inside (fury? sorrow?), or an emotion experienced once in a blue moon, if we’re lucky —something like elation? And how does “new” and “rare” relate to essentials — things like socks, eggs, toothpaste? Let’s see!

Green Water (reissue): neroli, bergamot, lemon, mandarin, orange, basil, tarragon, vetiver, clove, mint, cumin, oak moss, musks, ambergris. (Wears like an Eau de Cologne.)

Green Water goes on with delicious-smelling (and vibrant) neroli front and center; it’s quickly joined by the scent of fresh/oily citrus peels. Then, Green Water focuses on orange blossom (tinged with almost-not-there cumin for a hint of dirtiness). Today’s Green Water smells good, if not as complex as versions past…

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