Debaser

This is a really gorgeous earthy, juicy green fig with many parts of the whole tree; the leaves, the unripe fruit, the sap. A little hint of green clean soapiness to it. It opens a with a little green bitterness to the sweetness, sour and tart crushed fig leaves scattered amongst a bowl of fleshy green figs, some halved, some crushed, the sap oozing out. It’s honestly so photorealistic. It immediately transported me to sitting under a fig tree in the sun on the island of Kos, I had pulled an unripe green fig of the tree and pressed my nails into the fruit to pull it apart and get a good whiff at it (I like smelling everything I can! lol). As it settles, a beautiful milky fig sap is there adding a lovely green creaminess to the green fig that is held together with a wet fresh green moss and bright wood in the base. I don’t get the coconut, pear or iris on an individual level, just an understanding that various notes have been blended beautifully to create this figgy adventure. This lasted 12+ on my skin. Fun fact: David Seth Moltz (he’s the D.S. part of DS&Durga) and the nose behind the perfume, named it ‘Debaser’ because the figgy aroma he created reminded him of his year of summer camp, hanging out under the fig trees, when he was first introduced to the band The Pixies and listened to their song ‘Debaser’ on repeat. I really enjoyed sampling this - On day one of sampling I totally delighted in experiencing the opening of this juicy green fig scent but immediately thought ‘I respect you, but you’re not for me’. My initial thoughts were that it t leant a bit masculine for me. I had just finished a 3 day samplathon of Gris Charnel which was a total ‘love at first whiff’ and struggled to put the decant away in order to continue on my fig exploration. Although Debaser is sweeter and juicier than the BDK fig, for me, I like unisex and masculine leaning perfumes in autumn and winter but prefer sweet feminine florals for the summer. So Gris Charnel is a perfect mood match for autumn with its spicy, creamy woodiness, but Debaser feels more like a summer fruity fragrance that leans clean, green and masculine, not sweet and florally enough for me to wear in the heat. But I looked forward to my day of wear none the less. Debaser is a cheeky perfume, it’s different. It’s not obnoxiously loud but it’s unique enough to catch people’s attention. And indeed it did. I was at a workshop with strangers which involved up close, hands on training and through out the day I got several compliments and enquiries about what I was wearing and as the day progressed I felt myself enjoying it more and feeling that I had jumped to a hasty and incorrect conclusion that morning. So the next day, I wore it again. This time I found myself really drawn to it, I kept bringing my nose to my skin and breathing it in deeply, enjoying the various shades of fig it emitted. It again lasted all day. That evening I had a dance class and as my body warmed up and the perfume radiated of my skin, Debaser took hold of my heart and wouldn’t let it go. And I suddenly understood how this scent works well in warm and humid environments.

Debaser opens whip-sharp and very freshly green. A little like juicy green bell peppers. Intense chlorophyll zinginess. Over the next hour it stays strongly green, but I do also get a whiff of slightly sweetened coconut milk. At 1.5 hours, I'm beginning to get some light woods along with the greenness, and then a faint sense of shady darkness. It was meant to be inspired by summer camp, sitting under the fig trees and listening to the Pixies on repeat, and that's a pretty accurate evocation of the scent: green, dappled shade, summer contentment, just sharp and synthetic enough to feel casual rather than precious. I had an art teacher in high school who liked indie punk bands and whose messy studio had that green-shady vibe in summer when the windows were open; Debaser would suit him. Compared to other green fig scents I've tried, Debaser is the most basic and the most intensely green. Neela Vermeire Creations Ashoka is much more sandalwoody (and incense-y), while Bogue 10 is a complex swirl of different floral, animalic, and resinous notes along with the juicy green. Hermès Un Jardin en Mediteranée is a 50-50 blend of fig leaf and neroli, and L'Artisan Parfumeur Premier Figuier has a weird funky brown asafoetida base under the fig leaf. Debaser, by contrast, is 100% green juice, the whole way through. No fruit, very little sweetness, the barest suggestion of a woody base: just intense Fuck Yeah, Fig Leaf. D.S. & Durga makes a lot of fragrances with unusual concepts, and a lot of them are cheap-smelling, overly synthetic, watery-faint disappointments; but not all. Debaser is a real perfume, albeit a modern, minimalist, lightweight one. I can actually smell it clearly, and it smells pretty damn good. (Well, it smells good to me, a known green-lover. To my husband, it smells like "who's chopping green peppers?" -- his least favorite vegetable.) A great example of a clean-green unisex summery scent, casual and easy-wearing.

I have had a slight fig obsession for a while, but I think that this one might steal my number one spot. This is a green and fresh contender, but at the same time it is sweet and creamy, but never too sweet. It has that perfect balance between every aspect. A fruitiness and woodiness that walks hand in hand. On my skin I initially get a lot of pears, but a green and fresh one, not as juicy and sweet as I am used to in ‘pear-fragrances’. This a pear that is not completely ripe, one you pick right of the tree an early morning with dew in the grass and the sun dawning in the distant horizon. The coconut in the composition makes it sooo creamy, and gives that perfect amount of sweetness in a contrast to the partially sharp iris. I will be the first one to admit that I feel like iris tend to be a bit too sharp and powdery, at least on my skin. But, in this composition it feels like it is the only place it is supposed to be. The fragrance is woody, but never in a dry way, rather the opposite. This is a Scandinavian summer after a rain spell, and you are walking through the woods on your way to a secluded beach. Everything feels easy and carefree. I can understand why someone rates this as masculine leaning. It is herbal and woody, slightly earthy, and I know people associate that with masculine fragrances. In this scent though, it is the smell of fresh nature and you cannot put a gender to that? The drydown is very clean, almost musky in a way. It has turned into a clean, creamy woody, but everything I initially loved with that unisex dewy fig has disappeared. Nevertheless, I still like what it has become, and it is still fitting for as good as any spring and summer occasion. I had not expected to love this one as much as I do, I only wanted a more unisex fig alternative because I think that ‘Philosykos’ by Diptyque is a bit... boring? But ‘Debaser’ truly blows me away.

I have purchased a 10 ml of Debaser because I am obsessed with fig perfumes for a while and I think Debaser it’s the best fig fragrance out there! Debaser is mostly a smooth blend of sweet figs, juicy pear, milky coconut, soft, sweet tonka beans, a bit of a powdery iris and a green, fresh combo of bergamot and herbs as the scent opens. But once it’s dried down, it’s mainly creamy, powdery, sweet, fruity with tropical hints. Compared to other fig dominant perfumes from my collection, Debaser is centred around fruits: figs, pear and coconuts. It does have some iris and tonka beans but nothing stands out and overtakes the fig. In fragrances like Oasis Dawn from Estee Lauder Luxury Collection, the white flowers and pimento spices are almost equally highlighted as the figs are. In Hydra Figs by Miller Harris there’s a pronounced marine water element, there’s ginger, salt and cardamom quite at the forefront. Gris Charnel has figs in composition as well, but the black tea and the cardamom shifts attention away from the figs. To me personally, Debaser is the most realistic perfume when it comes to figs fruit! I still have to get my nose on the famous Philosykos from Diptique, before deciding if I should purchase a bottle of Debaser or not. That’s supposed to be the best fig fragrance from what I’ve heard, so I have high hopes. The only negative aspect of Debaser is the way it performs. It is long lasting, I would not deny that, but it sits very close to skin, it doesn’t radiate nicely in the air to create an enveloping scent bubble. Otherwise, divine! More of a day time wear, casual but elegant perfume. Seasons wise, it will work best in spring, summer and maybe warm fall days, it’s not a strong scent unfortunately. But it’s addictive!

23 March 2025 - tried on clean skin in the evening, a little colder today and it rained all day. - Another one I’m trying because it’s one of my sister’s favourites, and was surprised there wasn’t a super strong citrus opening as I thought that was her fav (I didn’t check the notes before). Getting pear definitely, maybe slight bergamont, and definitely some other greens. There might be the slightest bit of coconut and iris peaking through. - It feels green first, then fig (more green leaf, but fruit as well) and coconut second - meaning it’s not a fruity sweet overwhelm. It’s very light, airy sweetness, maybe like morning in early summer on a tropical island. I can see wearing this on days in spring that are not quite warm enough to be summer but I want to be reminded of summer. (It’s like a sweet memory of summer) - I would say this fully sits in the unisex category - like for a masculine woman or a feminine man, and obviously all by lovely non-binaries! - I’m not really getting the moss note everyone else is getting, but I think that’s the smell of petrichor that’s affecting that for me. - Fig fruit smell is fully gone, and I’m getting more green pear than a ripe pear now - I like it but some others don’t seem to like it. Still very creamy and lactonic - I didn’t check the time when I started, but maybe 15/20 min and it’s a nice mix of woody, green, creamy, etc. I really like it, and I think it would only really be out of place in late autumn or winter, though will try again then. Update 28 June 2025 - this has been a favourite recently, especially while I was in Mexico and Texas. It's perfect when hot. Need to record the notes again though.