Lux Visionaria

Resinous and smokey opening with some aromatic qualities In the background there are some absynth-like greens and florals that add sweetness As it dries down it is still ambery and resinous on a base of dry woods and musks and enveloped with some hints of vanilla, adding sweetness and warmth

Lux Visionaria translates to visionary light. Per the themes of the majority of what Sorcinelli composes you would likely expect a perfume emanating a near blinding glow as if The Almighty were descending upon your person. I don’t see light in this perfume, nor a divine presence, but there is plenty of dark gray light, shadows cast by candlelight, and dusty smoke wafting about ancient walls of wood and stone. In the old Roman Catholic Church I used to attend as a child the smells of frankincense lived in every single porous materials it came in contact with: wood, stone, cloth, etc. Particularly during the spring time celebrations, like Easter, the church was filled with muguet. The musky, sweet, creamy, white florals of the lilies mingled so effortlessly with the frankincense that seemed to billow from thuribles non-stop. Essentially that’s what Sorcinelli captures here. Some other materials are tossed in to make sure Visionaria isn’t too simplistic: there are some sweet, tropical, yellow florals of ylang-ylang, a touch of indolic jasmine, and something green and resinous, all sitting over a gentle bed of incense smoke that is leaning a bit green (perhaps a smokey vetiver material), vanillic benzoin, cedar, and sandalwood amber. The incense smoke and the muguet are definitely the stars of this perfume, but the smoke cloaks the otherwise sunny disposition of the muguet enough that the lights are dimmed and the entirety of the perfume is presented through a dark gray haze. The contrasts are interesting and Visionaria is nicely done, but as with so many of Sorcinelli’s compositions the accords are ill-defined and vague, and the durability and performance of the perfume - especially for an extrait - is subpar. It’s not full bottle worthy for me, but certainly appreciable nonetheless.

Incense meets patchouli in a characteristically sumptuous Sorcinelli creation. Whereas LAVS and Reliqvia maintain their churchy origins, this one plunges into the boudoir, with a sensuous vanilla note and delicious wafts of come-hither ylang ylang and a distinct hint of leather in the dry down. Quality, ingenuity, delight.

I think I agree with another review saying that this scent doesn't really know what it wants to be. While I am going back and forth on this one, I’m finding it paradoxical. A blend of tackiness and solemn sincerity. The top note blast of jasmine and vanilla come off as vapid, superficial, and almost like a cheap cleaning product against the deep, elegant, serious heart of amber, smoke, and patchouli. Off the bat, it doesn’t feel cohesive and maybe it’s not supposed to. The florals are too candied and sarcastic against such a rich and beautiful base. It’s like a Bath and Body Works just opened up in a newly-defunct old church and all the customers are old chain-smoking aunts wearing vintage chypre. As it dries down a little, the sickly-candied flowers taper off a bit, yet somehow it all still feels tongue-in-cheek. There is still a linger of something insincere. Something cloying and disrespectful to the gravitas and elegance of what this scent may truly want to be. Or what I want it to be... I don’t absolutely hate it, but you will not catch me wearing this in public. I don’t think this one would read well on a passing-by level. Might just be interpreted as a urinal cake. There is a real beautiful scent down deep, but it is not easy enough to find through the tacky veneer of ill-fitting soapy flowers and out of place vanilla. Like wearing a jacket where the sleeves are just the tiniest bit too short.

So, I REALLY wanted to love this one and I thought I would based on the notes. Nearly all the listed fragrance notes check off for me. I was hoping this fragrance would be a wonderful, smoky, incense with subtle floral and patchouli undertones. And I LOVE THE BOTTLE! But for me the opening is an overwhelmingly sour and smoky note, which I suppose is the myrrh. After initial application, I thought the persistence of this sour note was going to make me ill. I hung in there and eventually a slightly smoky, pale incense note emerged along with other woody notes and a bit of vanilla. I was hoping for the appearance of something floral, (jasmine, lily-of-the-valley, ylaing-ylang) that would send this fragrance over-the-top. But sadly on my skin, these notes never clearly emerged. The performance on my skin was extremely poor with longevity being under 2 hours. Silage is absent. And after 2 hours or so, I detect a VERY faint smell of light florals and sour myrrh but ONLY if I press my nose into the application point. While nice enough (I suppose), I could never justify the price point for this perfume when it is not true love. Reminds me of Carolina Herrera Gold Incense during its middle and dry~down phases (the amber, vanilla, balsamic, I suppose). I already own Gold Incense and I rarely, if ever, wear it. Disappointing to say the least...