Molecule 01 + Cistus

I don't typically type up reviews, nor do I really care for them. Fragrances are subjective; what I might like, someone else might despise. Despite what I just said, I MUST talk about this fragrance. In between the lines is me giving context to this review, you can skip it as it isn't too important. Only really relevant to the timeline of my discovery of M01 + Cistus. --------------------------------- For context: As someone who was born and raised in the Middle East, I grew up smelling fragrances of all sorts. Perfumes with different takes on Oud's, Floral's, Gourmand's, Fruit's, Amber's, Musk's; you name it, I've smelt it before. With that being said I also grew up smelling different iterations of Molecule 01. I always found M01(in general) quite interesting; my earliest memory of it being when I visited London in 2011. My mom had purchased it, and I had immediately associated that scent with the comfort and joy of home. Throughout the years it had also become one of my scents that I used, whether on its own or for layering with other fragrances. Such a versatile yet luxurious scent that anyone could pull off without trying. It's truly one of the only fragrances that is unique in its own respect without the tradeoff of it being polarizing. I mean, its just Iso E Super right? NOPE! I was in a Bloomingdales when a sales representative approached me and asked me if I had ever heard of the brand Eccentric Molecules. Immediately I shook my head and said of course. I also told him I was a huge fan of M01 and M01 + Iris (which I previously owned). Thats when he asked me if I had smelt their newest release in M01 + Cistus. The moment he sprayed it on my wrist, it felt like Pandora's Box had been opened for me. ------------------------------------ For the actual review of M01 + Cistus: Everything that I loved in M01; the velvety, silky, powdery woodiness, suddenly had an added kiss of amber. It sounds super straight forward until you smell it. It's truly impossible to describe. Its not overpowering, yet it's definitely radiant. I wore it today with Amouage Purpose 50, and oh my goodness. The spicy frankincense-esque soapiness of Purpose 50 combined with the subtle velvety resinous woods of M01 + Cistus invoked this mind boggling itch I cant get rid of for the life of me. Don't get it wrong, this fragrance is truly beautiful on its own. However when matched with a fragrance thats complex and with what some people might consider "abrasive", will transcend what you might have thought was possible with layering. It's a transformative experience. Suitable for both men and woman, younger or older. It's an inviting experience, and reminds me of smelling M01 for the first time.

This is a genuinely fascinating scent that you need to spend your time with to understand. First off the Fragrantica notes are doing you dirty here because if you're expecting a burst of ambery labdanum you're in the wrong place. As the name on the bottle does quite clearly state for those of you paying attention, the focus here is cistus. This is the scrubby, green aromatic bush that labdanum comes from, not the resin itself. The opening is peppery, green and a bit herby, and that confounds me. I say this because it gives me Xerjoff Zefiro vibes in the opening (which I did not enjoy when I tried it last year, if you read my review) but here the vibe is vastly more pleasant. This is all the more odd because there is no cistus in Zefiro, nor any labdanum for that matter. But the aromatics have a similar vibe to the artemisia, white wine and elemi resin in that towering Italian powerhouse. It makes me want to circle back to Zefiro now as I feel as though maybe my nose has matured and I'd enjoy it a bit more. It is fair to say you need to love green aromatics to love this one and followers of my reviews on here and elsewhere may be aware I've been on a bit of a green aromatic thing this summer after admittedly not being a fan of them previously. Molecules 01 & Cistus is an extremely well-blended fragrance that is intended to be layered and I do think the cistus is extremely well judged. In particular the way the Iso E Super, this house's hallmark note, comes in to soften, soothe and shift the whole thing in the base is really charming and endearing. I've long felt Escentric Molecules is a house for proper fragrance fans, dare I say fragrance nerds like me, and it certainly is fascinating to see and experience their inimitable style of perfumery on my skin. If taking in the experience of what happens when Iso E Super starts changing notes on your skin in real time at a molecular level interests you (and let's be honest, it is pretty cool) then this is a great example of that. Three Word Summary: Aromatic Cistus Shifted Layering suggestion: The one that leaps to mind is Le Labo's iconic Santal 33. I'd also recommend (the ridiculously underrated and sadly overlooked) Super Cedar by Byredo as a base layer here - I tried it last weekend and it is fantastic. Outfit suggestion: this is something I'd wear around the house when I'm experimenting with layering combos and messing around with samples when I should be doing something more productive. So an ancient Megadeth t-shirt with holes in and some UnderArmour gym shorts? Uh huh. Scent - 8/10 Sillage - 8/10 Drydown - 8/10 Bottle/packaging - 7/10 Performance - 6/10 37/50

If you see that the composition consists of just two notes and scoff, think again. There is SO MUCH more to this scent than what you'd expect. (Also, it annoys me that Fragrantica lists the main note as labdanum when “cistus” is literally in the name of the perfume. Huge difference between cistus and labdanum. Cistus is the flower itself whereas labdanum is the resin it produces.) Anyway, a staff member at my favorite niche perfume shop showed me this one on a whim. I hadn’t expected to fall in love with it because I usually do better picking out my own scents, but wow, this is really lovely. The initial spray is a blast of attention-grabbing yet naturalistic bright green terpenes. In time, this vivid olfactory explosion settles into a chewy, sweet, and sexy animalic smell that's slightly reminiscent of wood varnish. I could see this working in any temperature and look forward to trying it out in cooler weather. It’s wonderful in the heat. Lasts an eternity. I am obsessed.

Very very interesting creation from something so simple. Semi indolic white pepper in an onsen, with some type of tea being poured over it? There's a spiciness very similar to white pepper to me, but it's almost foggy, almost sweaty or cloudy. It's accompanied by this soft, almost warm smell, that I sort of associate with tea leaves, like some Chinese green tea or something. Overall very very comforting smell, like a warm breeze.

funny that this is least winter-rated, I think this suits winter so well... Looking forward 2 seeing how it performs in spring/summer. I've been very into whittling in this last quarter of the year and I very much enjoy wearing this to my evening whittling group. So woody and clean, smells like incense used for religious purposes with no soot or ash