To Vetiver

bundle of thyme, dry heat... a faint white smoke, nearly invisible, sweet resin-bound roots of vetiver weave together to rest in ivory light

To Vetiver surprised me. To me, it’s not really about vetiver at all. It smells like an opened pack of black tea with thyme, as if you’re inhaling that aroma straight from it. The opening is somewhat chaotic, with some dark herbal notes. At first, the scent feels a bit dirty and rough. But then it smooths out, and what remains is almost pure thyme in all its glory. I would call this fragrance To Thyme, that’s how realistically the smell of thyme is rendered here: cool, slightly smoky-leathery, very natural and earthy. So natural, in fact, that it barely feels like a perfume. It’s more like the scent you’d get if you rubbed yourself with dried thyme blossoms. An aura of a herbalist. I don’t really perceive vetiver separately, it seems woven into the thyme. As for Ambrofix in the notes, I couldn’t detect it at all. No other modern amberwoods detected. As a representation of thyme, I like To Vetiver more than Point du Jour by Serge Lutens. There, the thyme is also beautiful, but somewhat overloaded with incense. Here, the fragrance is light and transparent. It vaguely reminds me of Vétiver Extraordinaire in its airiness, coolness, and herbal character but as if most of the vetiver had been replaced by thyme. I enjoyed it as a kind of aromatherapy. I was pleased by the complete absence of synthetic notes. But in terms of vetiver, it’s a total miss. I do not get it here. This trick reminded me of Le Labo when the name suggests one thing, but the scent smells like something different. So for me it's "To Thyme". The red color doesn’t fit at all. The fragrance feels more like a murky herbal, slightly dirty dark green, a bit earthy. Calming.

This is a dry crisp vetiver. Pairs well with the tyme and pepper notes (if you can smell it). If you like clean scents that don't lean soapy or green scents that aren't too sharp/butter you might enjoy it. If you like warm cozy vetivers like myself, this isn't for you.

Guys...it’s just vetiver. Like...just vetiver. Nothing is happening here. It’s as if CDG had enough of being told they hadn’t come out with anything in a while and they made this and said “here, damn, shut up already.”

Extremely thyme-heavy & peppery at the start, like how your fingers smell after stripping thyme leaves while cooking. Quite bitter in an almost off-putting way, but then it warms up a bit and smells like incense to me. Vetiver comes out during the dry down, all nutty & rooty, and blends well with the thyme. Synthetic modern musk base lasts forever. I like this but wish it had a bit more freak to it, especially as a new CdG release. Smells like a very pleasant modern woody scent, but not sure it stands out.

Mostly black pepper. The opening is kinda nice but it dries down quickly to a very "slim" kind of resinous pepper scent. The collab with Max Richter is more fully developed and interesting. I think the thyme comes through as well, giving it a nearly savory-herbal kind of aroma. Underneath the vetiver is lending a damp, earthy aroma but it doesn't feel like the star here. No grassiness, no vetiver "freshness", and not a lot of inky, peaty aromas that could come from darker vetivers either.

A slightly more peppery Avestan. Therefore not as balanced or fine-tuned. Avestan is more subtle, and the clay note adds a dimension this doesn't have. It's also so CDG it's becoming self-parody at this point. It's a variation on Black, on Black Pepper, on some of the Monocle... If you like this, and can get to London, smell the Avestan and get it for a 1/3 of the price.

From the maker of fat electrician.... Looking forward to trying this.