Musc Impérial

I think the reason this is my favorite Atelier Cologne and in my top 5, is because I love great fig fragrances like Philosykos, but this is so much more. This would be my favorite fig fragrance, and I have tried most of them. MI has so many aspects that are enjoyable, all in one. I like it for myself, and it's an attractive fragrance, plenty of compliments. I think the greatest fragrances have contrasts, light and dark, fresh and warm. Musc Imperial has a slightly bitter green fig with a smooth ambrette/ leather accord, very aromatic, balanced with a fresh and fruity bergamot, black current. I could tell how my girlfriend reacted to this new fragrance that she thought it was an attractive fragrance; I think because of the leathery ambrette musc accord, and the crisp exotic fruity accord. Musc Imperial is my solid signature fragrance now, better than Aventus! For chilly Fall and Winter it won't be my signature, but still enjoy it occasionally in colder weather. How many people would use Aventus as their signature fragrance if it was 1/3 the price? I thought my review isn't going to talk about Aventus, but I'm going to talk about Aventus. What makes it like Aventus ? It is the black current and musk. The musk or ambrette (musk mallow) is a plant extract that smells musky with a metallic tone. I think Aventus may use ambrette for their musk note. Aventus and Musc Imperial have a distinct metallic tone that makes these two fragrances similar, and the black current, fig accord is mimicking a fruity pinapple. It took me a while, but I am picking up on the fig note. After ambrette musc, it is the second most dominant note, and it is a very good quality fig note. The fig is well rounded, bitter green leaf, fig tree, and fruity fig. After using this for a week as my new signature frag, I thought I will spray Aventus on my other hand and compare. Wow! I will not be getting Aventus any more. Musc Imperial has more punch and pizzaz. The sillage is stronger. The fruit accord in MI has a slight bitter green quality from the fig I guess, which I like, but some will not. This is more mature and complex than Aventus, the quality of notes is equal, and longevity is at least as good if not better. I think the 30 and under crowd will still prefer Aventus. The more I use this, the more it is becoming it's own fragrance. It is more green than Aventus, I am getting some leather making an accord with the musk, and a bit of lavender softness. PS, just remembered this allso smells like Hermes Un Jardin Mediterranee. MI is more natural with better quality notes than Hermes. Rating: 10/10 God bless. John 3:16

I thought it was a very good launch of Atelier Cologne, which already had a few a bit bland, as it somehow. It is a perfume that opens with citrus and bergamot and is quickly mixed with a fruity tone, which gives blackcurrant and especially the fig, which I think is the keynote of the fragrance and endures throughout life the same. In drying a very soft leather note subtle and sometimes hard to detect appears. All on a soft background woody and musky. Especially at the start and at some later time (even less) in which the leather is perceived, it reminds a little to Creed Aventus, being more rounded Atelier and less sharp edges, as less shrill, but this makes it perhaps something less flashy, more understated and quiet. No smoking Aventus aspect, I personally do not like too much and generally think it is better achieved than Creed (yes, you read it correctly) and with better price... This Musc Imperial, is a perfume to apply with joy, many sprays, the style so typical of the brand, type "Eau de Cologne", but with a 15% concentration (equivalent, more or less, an Eau de parfum). Longevity is very good, and can be detected in the skin more than 8 hours later, although the sillage, after passing a very good 2-3 hours is rather short and more close to the skin. Maybe a bit expensive (195 €), well, it's really expensive, perhaps too much for what it is, though it comes in the form of 200ml, with 30ml gift in a steamer trip another fragrance to choose, with the housing customizable leather. I see very versatile, perhaps better for hot weather, summer, etc .. and for all types of use, such as office and even party. Versatile enough and totally unisex. Come on, like almost everything of this brand, I see it as an appropriate and very distinctive fragrance, but above all, designed for a regular wear, daily use, office, etc ... In my opinion, it could well be the perfume "signature" for many people and I'm totally agree with @bet85 Excellent !!!

Musc Imperial is a fascinating freshie, and the name doesn't give much of an idea of just how musky it is, because it isn't that musky on my skin. Certainly musk is in the mix but it's more in the background for me. My experience of it is a mix of Creed's Aventus and Virgin Island Water, the fruitiness of blackcurrant and the sweetness of fig almost coming off as a pineapple and coconut mix. I'm pleased by the fig in that respect, as it's usually not my preferred type of sweetness, but it works very well here. Lavender is a listed note and could certainly be part of the mix, keeping it clean, but I don't get much of it. The base of cedar and musk is a safe cushion for the fragrance to dry down to, though on my skin, Musc Imperial doesn't evolve all that much. It remains the harmonious blend of citrus, blackcurrant, fig, and musk. This is certainly more of a warm-weather fragrance and is not such a strong performer that I'd use it in the winter, but it's very pleasant for casual wearing year-round, performance notwithstanding. It's more on par with the freshies than the stronger fragrances like Oud Saphir or Rose Anonyme. Musc Imperial seems to have temporarily disappeared from the market, and that's perhaps because it's in the exclusives line and Atelier Cologne itself only has the 30ml size in stock. Through YouTube I learned the pricing is $85 for 30ml, $150 for 100ml, and $225 for 200ml, so it's in the range slightly above most of the Atelier freshies. I'd certainly recommend checking this out as a potential alternative to Aventus, not because it smells truly like Aventus but because it's similar enough that some are bound to like it more than Aventus. 8 out of 10

The perfumer may have been trying to make a fragrance similar to Aventus, for sales and marketing reasons. But he made his own unique interpretation of Aventus here, so it's, it's own fragrance. What I don't like about clones, when they try to be, as exact a copy as they can; They cheapen your experience of the good stuff. Like Cool Water was so close to Creed, Green Irish Tweed, but with far inferior notes and performance. When I wore Green Irish, it reminded me of the cheap cool Water, and it lessened my appreciation for Green Irish Tweed. You don't get that with Musc Imperial. It's not trying to be an exact copy. So you may like it more than Aventus, as I do for casual wear. It is fresher, and has fig, as a main note. It is a great fragrance on it's own. I love Aventus also. It is still fresh enough for Summer, yet it's a bit darker and classier, than Musc Imperial. This did not strike me as sweet the first year I used it, now I do notice it's quite sweet, but it's there to soften the vegetal Musc I think. So as I don't like sweet frags, this feels fine.

I may be in the minority, but I actually enjoy this more than Aventus. Maybe it's because I'm a woman and this fragrance is has more traditionally feminine and unisex notes compared to the masculine Aventus. This is like Aventus with the zingy pineapple toned down, as well as little to no birch and ambergris. Instead, Musc Impérial feels smoother, not sharp, but rounded and gently buffed down with the milky fig and soft leather. It's also greener smelling than Aventus, probably due to the sage and fig leaf notes. This does indeed have the same structure and feel as Aventus, but with different notes. Aventus opens up much more zesty, bright, and fruity, whereas Musc Impérial does have a bergamot tanginess but it is muted by some creamy fig. This basically smells like a mixture of Aventus and Philosykos by Diptyque, two contrasting fragrances that happen to be among my favorites.