A'Suma

What a lovely discovery! The notes I smell most prominently are lavender and coumarin. Because of that, it feels kind of like a sensual, spicy, evening variation of the original Fougere Royale or some love child of Jicky and Shalimar. It has some of the vanillic leather of Shalimar, but also the somewhat smoky-sweet lavender-tonka-sandalwood drydown of Jicky. The herbs, bergamot, and camphor up top (mixed with perhaps the camphor of tuberose) complement the lavender beautifully. The incensy resins, deep woods, and well-balanced musk and civet anchor the coumarin and prevent it from being overly treacly or doughy. Beautiful and totally unisex! It's worth noting that Coty's Fougeraie au Crepuscule was another "nocturnalizing" of the Houbigant original (and it was indeed closer to the prototype fougere accord). Fans of Jicky, Shalimar, Emeraude, and just classic scents in general should seek out a bit of this!

This was my most expensive blind buy ever. Someone was selling an unopened flacon of this rare vintage perfume in the original box on Finnish online market and, because I was feeling adventurous, I decided to buy it although I was low on money and the price was ridiculously high and I had to travel by train to a small village just to pick up the flacon from the seller. But... the idea of an unopened bottle of a vintage perfume, that was discontinued half a century ago, was so intriguing that I just had to do it even if it meant that I couldn't afford to eat anything else than oat porridge for a few weeks. The opening of A'Suma feels like distant fireworks over the dark night sky. There's similarity with L'Heure Bleue - same kind of comforting melancholy and vintage beauty. Both of them are mysterious night scents to wear with heartache and silk. A'Suma is rich, complex and poetic leather oriental. Dark and peculiar. Lavender and heliotrope are the main stars in it. They are accompanied with incense, patchouli, oakmoss and civet. Mint and camphor add to the fragrance's unique and peculiar character and vanilla is there to make everything smoother and less intimidating. Sometimes the scent is almost gourmand-esque and there's something that reminds me of chocolate. I'm glad I have this treasure on my shelf.

Fragrance Review For A'Suma By Coty Top Notes: Bergamot Mint Camphor Middle Notes: Tuberose Lavender Heliotrope Incense Base Notes: Sandalwood Oak Moss Leather Patchouli Vanilla Tonka Civet Ambergris A'Suma is an exotic floral Oriental perfume. It's reminiscent of such purple and blue floral frags like L'Heure Bleue and Jaipur. The Oriental nature of this fragrance comes from the camphor and incense not to mention the patchouli. It's aromatic and smoky. The civet and musky accords are also quite strong, very unisex and I'm reminded of Passion by Elizabeth Taylor. This was first released in 1934 and has long been discontinued. An older friend of mine in London has a bottle of the vintage original and I was blown away. It turned to powder and had lost the incense but it clearly reminded me of perfumes with smoky accords and that L'Heure Bleue thing going on. Very elegant, classy, and a tad tropical and aquatic. There is an ambergris note that really stands out and smells as animalic as the civet. This is very hard to wear and I don't see how it's possible it could work in today's world but it was very magical. It smells like Ursula from the Little Mermaid, a witchy purple octopus smell. The incense, the lavender, heliotrope, the patchouli, the leather, all of it gives it a kind of strong villainous witch like nature. Not quite Poison not quite Magie Noire, something oddly in between. It's floral and feminine but with an evil bite. Gorgeous. Too bad it can't be reformulated and returned to the market again. So many gorgeous long lost perfumes out there.

Drydown is practically identical to Coty's Stetson. I question if they actually just rereleased this under that name and boosted some of the ingredients to make it ever so slightly more masculine. The main difference is that A'suma is much more natural smelling. Definite Coty DNA recognizable. The same telltale lavenders, coumarin, vanillas, bergamot, and incense notes you find in other blends. When compared to other early Coty creations, this is definitely one of the last beauties they made. Right around the 1940s there's a definite change in style and execution. Overall, I love this. 10/10. It reminds me of my dad. He wore something very similar when I was a small child. It makes me want to cuddle and snooze. Very comforting, warm, and sweet scent. Smells like a man's man or a woman who knows what she wants and is kind, approachable, trustworthy, and maternal.

I have a very old bottle in its precious box, and though it is dried out, the residue still smells lovely. Powder and leather. Obviously I'm only getting an impression and not the whole thing. But, wow. Antique perfumes are real time travel. Smelling them is like unlocking a memory from a past life.