Parfum d’Empire has launched two more fragrances, Aziyadé and Yuzu Fou:
Erotic and fruity nectar, AZIYADÉ offers a blend of pomegranate before delivering the rich and lush note of crystallized dates, almonds, oranges, and prunes…
Parfum d’Empire Fougere Bengale ~ fragrance review
I’m often amazed, shocked, confused or amused by perfume advertising. For instance, Parfum d’Empire’s Eau de Gloire pays homage to the great warmonger-plunderer-egomaniac Napoléon Bonaparte; and its latest fragrance release, Fougère Bengale, celebrates the pompous tiger hunts of colonial India.
Before the early part of the 20th century, (truly glorious) Bengal tigers were not endangered; but even if you feel it was acceptable to slaughter hundreds, thousands, of magnificent animals for “sport” (or for body parts used in folk medicines), tiger hunts devastated local economies in India. As huge maharajah-led or British-sponsored hunting expeditions traveled through the Indian countryside — elephants, horses, carriages and marching men damaged farmlands and woodlands. To feed the large numbers of men, women and animals traveling in the procession, provisions and livestock were cheaply bought (or stolen outright) in villages along the route; the tiger-hunting parties often left hunger and poverty in their wake.
What’s next from Parfum d’Empire? Sherman’s March? “Savor the aromas of crumbling marble and smoking timbers, the animalic odor of raging horses…
Parfum d’Empire Osmanthus Interdite ~ fragrance review, with asides on Equistrius & Fougere Bengale
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…
Parfum d'Empire Osmanthus Interdite, Fougere Bengale & Equistrius ~ new fragrances
Parfum d’Empire will launch a new trio of fragrances in September: Osmanthus Interdite, Fougère Bengale and Equistrius.
Osmanthus Interdite takes the Chinese empire as its inspiration, and the fruity floral features notes of green tea, osmanthus, rose, jasmine, musk and leather…
Tauer Perfumes Lonestar Memories fragrance, with an aside on Parfum d’Empire Ambre Russe
Last autumn, I sampled Parfum d’Empire’s Ambre Russe fragrance. I enjoyed its vaporous waltz of faint incense, black tea, vodka “fumes”, leather, muted spices (coriander and cinnamon), and sweet vanilla. But Ambre Russe was, in the end, a tad too refined; its richness was an indoor richness — bringing to mind a world of soft, smooth leathers, sparkling crystal, polished marble, waxed paneling and gleaming silver. Ambre Russe’s opulence felt excessive and tame at the same time.
Lonestar Memories (created by perfumer Andy Tauer of Tauer Perfumes in Zurich, Switzerland) reminds me of Ambre Russe, and I’m happy that what I admired about Ambre Russe, the hints of smoke, leather and spice, has been tousled in Lonestar Memories, and made to encompass a world of outdoor opulence…