Les Heures de Cartier: L'Heure Defendue VII

This is my second scent to try from my little coffret of three miniature « Les Heures » - IV, VII and VIII. They are all beautifully formed with very distinct personalities. L'Heure Défendue (loosely translated as "forbidden hour") is suggestive and sensual - to surrender oneself to pleasure, beautifully conveyed by a rich yet restrained chocolate scent. VII opens with a mouthwatering, rich dark chocolate note. It smells realistic, just like high quality chocolate - no vanillin, no plastic and no syrup. It is like cocoa beans, just smoother and less bitter. The chocolate is bolstered by a somewhat predictable patchouli note, which gives rise to obvious comparisons to Mugler's Angel. However, VII is much more streamlined and reserved than the kitchen sink-esque (but no less great) Angel, and the chocolate note here is superior to any I have ever smelled before. Chocolate-patchouli is an oldie-but-a-goodie accord (despite not being a personal love), and in my opinion is never better than it appears here. Just the right amount of patchouli is used here - mossy, but not choking the other notes, in addition to the highest quality chocolate. VII is also slightly boozy, reminiscent of high quality liqueur-filled chocolates. As it develops, powdery iris emerges. This is inspired and unexpected - I love iris and this is an original approach to its use in perfume. The mossy chocolate remains, and as it dries down, I get a hint of sandalwood. It eventually fades to a musky chocolate skin scent. Sillage is intimate-to-moderate, but longevity is impressive. VII is definitely unisex despite the marketing - the chocolate, though sweet, is dark and rich. While it's not a scent I would typically wear, I really love it and appreciate the artistry behind it. Another exceptional scent from Mathilde Laurent. An excellent gourmand for chocolate lovers. 4/5.

If you like chocolate scent but don’t like those almondy praline accord type of chocolate scent or those chocolate hazel nut style chocolate scent you must give this a try!!! By far the richest and the most photorealistic dark liquor chocolate you will ever encounter. Most of the time chocolate accord don’t last, this one is also the same, so don’t have unrealistic expectations for it to be a chocolate that last you entire day lol. So the review of this perfume. Open with dark liquor chocolate, after 25 minutes turns into milky dark chocolate, 10 more minutes the mint will join the creamy chocolate. Around an hour the chocolate will be pretty faint more of dark coco powder. And the minty coolness come from patchouli will be the star of the show, within 3 hr the sillage will be quite close and a smooth earthy vibe will keep going for the rest of the wear. Surprisingly due to the cool minty patchouli is being utilized here, I dare to say it is a spring to summer able scent of gourmand fragrances. Also if you think this might be sweet since it’s gourmand you are wrong about this one. As usual from Mathilde’s Cartier style it is very elegant, quite, airy and sophisticated work. If you are someone like to wear the perfume and only want your close one to enjoy it you will really like it. I personally really enjoy this one after searching for a lot of chocolate scent. So yeah give it a try if you are looking for a distinguished elegant dark chocolate patchouli scent.

The most amazing chocolate in the universe. Cocoa pod, rhum, some cream, it is almost edible. But, although it is a perfume with long staying power, it lacks in sillage, unfortunately, I would have liked it a tad "louder". I like it most after an hour or two, when it turns into theater backstage after-party, when the show is over but the lights are still on. The actors are happy with the performance, they celebrate the show, scotch and chocolates abound, but it's getting late, their muscles are sour and the make-up fades out. I smell the stage wood plank, the makeup, the chiffon drapes scorched by the powerful scene lights, the brittle, worn out dresses, a bit of booze, a mint breath freshener, the dust in the carpets .. The world I would have belonged to, had I have the guts, eons ago, it's all there in a tiny 10 ml glass from eBay all the way from Latvia.. It is perfection in a bottle, and I don't even want to explain why it brings me to tears.

What an unique diamond! A cocoa & patchouli fairy tale, with boozy and floral/earthy accents. There is also an interesting soil accord in the top/middle notes. Actually it is a fine chocolate, a heart of cocoa beans inside. The quality of the ingredients and the performances are to the highest level for the first edition (now it was reformulated, the cap was changed, it is white now, also the bottle shape was slightly changed). 100% unisex, mostly in the masculine side - unique. This is one of the most beautiful and interesting fragrance in my collection. If you like it, search for the old edition, with the the transparent cap and deep yellow -colored liquid - (pictured above here), it is much potent and complex than the reformulated edition, with white cap and rope. 8-10 hours longevity on my skin. Masterpiece: 9.5/10

It's one of the most natural, and uniquely fresh, "cocoa powder" scent one can find; the patchouli brings out the earthy greenness of it (as if freshly picked from the tree) and the iris works hard to perfect the powdery effect. Here are some popular ones I've come across before finding this gem: Dior Homme (lovely but simply not enough cocoa), Mugler Angel (more like a chocolate-covered fruitcake) & its Taste of Fragrance flanker (even with added cocoa it's still too vaguely sweet), Tokyo Milk's Bittersweet (too powdery-doughy), Montale's Chocolate Greedy (too sweet & cakey), Guerlain's Gourmand Coquin (too boozy, although the chocolate note's better than the rest), and Serge Lutens' Borneo 1834 (more dry-woodsy with a lot of patchouli than anything else)