Iris Poulsard

Between Danner & Flemming's 2026 Iris Poulsard, Altesse, & Trousseau, here's my ranking and notes from my first sampling: 1. Altesse - The most wearable and widely appealing of the three, it's definitely fresh, airy, and lively, with the iris and tuberose/jasmine shining through, giving it a youthful and eager vibe. Altesse seems to project a bit more than the other two. 2. Poulsard - Perhaps the most interesting and complex of the three, it's warm and got notes of spice and dry fruit along with a slightly different powdery iris note, and I definitely get the raspberry in the opening! It's got more of a mature, gourmand, sexy vibe than Altesse, but I can't yet say which of the two I like better. 3. Trousseau - The least appealing to me of the three, Trousseau tiptoes the line between baby powder and bug spray, that is to say, definitely not my favorite. Trousseau also seems to be the weakest projecting & shortest lasting of the three.

Poulsard is my favourite from the trio and this is why I decouple it from its sibilings: I want to give Poulsard all the attention it deserves; for those who are interested I made another post on Altesse and Trousseau. Poulsard is a grape variety characterized by delicate, light-colored red wines with aromas of red berries and spices. But the main theme of this scent are not spices and berries, but an exploration of the chocolate and slightly caffeinate aspects of orris. In this subgenre, I love Lilac Love (original version) by Amouage, Ti Amo by Roja Dove, and the beautiful Equistrius by Parfume d'Empire. Iris Poulsard stands out for the quality of the spices: an exquisite cardamom, uplifting and good quality cloves, and a stunning and sensual cinnamon which uplifts the orris and the orris butter imparting a certain gourmandish, but sexy quality to them. Together with the spices, there are also some fruity facets: a sweetish mandarine oil that lays on a cedarwood material and a subtle but evident raspberry accord. Do not expect something insuline-propelled, but what you get is a natural berry that emerges from time to time along the chocolate aspects of the iris. A hint of a clean patchouli renders the composition classy elegant. I love it because it is audacious, but remains elegant and classy: in a word, weareable. I just wish the performance would be better. While I noway advocate for invasive projective bombs, this is really too close on skin (on my skin and to my nose, I mean) and after say three hours I must turn into a greyhound to detect and enjoy the scent. I have no idea if there will be future issue of Poulsard, and I wish that its performances can be fixed without altering the scent profile. And I am say this because this is really really high on my wishlist. Follow me on IG @alexolympia6

As I have already talked about it in a previous post, I will try to be more "technical" here, especially because I was able to get a full sample this time - thanks to the generosity of a friend, p.s. I am waiting for you here to discuss about wines! - accompanied by the iris germanica extract. I will start from the latter. To get an analytical sense of how the extract smells, the first thing to do would be looking at the alpha/gamma irone ratio. The profile is in fact determined by the woody and violet-scented alpha-irone and the stronger, powdery and floral-scented gamma-irones. The ratio here is 65/35, while the most common iris pallida has a reverse ratio. The extrait smells very nutty, earthy-rooty, with very (very) pale hints of a flower component, and a slightly vaxy tone. But what surprised me was the coffee and cocoa aspects of this root. It comes to no surprise that @antoinelieolfactiveexperience enhaces this coffee and cocoa feeling with a touch of patchouli that also exhalted the iris earthy component. What is not listed, but that is definitely there, is a touch of tonka bean and vanilla; the concoction results then edible, but NOT gourmand, like the distant smell of a bitter-hot beverage of coffee and cocoa. I insist on the coffee facets because the iris-cocoa theme is already familiar to most. At this point, the composition needs to be uplifted: a bitter greeen mandarine note in the opening will do it, followed by a raspberry accord that feels tart and sexy, exactly like the grape variety named Poulsard. While the topo notes subsides, te iris emerges in a tapestry made of cedar-oil and patchouli pointed with quite a good dose of spices that imparts that alluring and almost erotic vibe to the scent; the dustiness of cinnamon, the captivating cardamom, and the best cloves ever.

Definitely a deeper & earthier Iris fragrance, not the powdery feminine aspects that I usually gravitate towards. This is more masculine/ unisex. I will give it time to marinate for a few months to make my final decision...may actually to better for me in fall/ winter months.

I look forward to trying these. Love Iris