Malabar 2017

Launched in February 2018, Malabar was inspired by Indian spices. The Malabar region, commonly called the Malabar Coast, refers to the southwestern part of India. The Indian cardamom was an essential part, as it is an ingredient very used in the routine of the Creative-director of the fragrance, Gabriel Santana. He told me that he usually puts cardamom in various foods and even in his coffee, which is also a very common practice among Bedouins. Malabar has notes of sage, mandarin and bergamot, at the exit; notes of coriander seeds, Brazilian tonka beans, iris and Indian cardamom, in the body; notes of cedar, amber, vanilla, oakmoss and leather, at the base. Before talking about the fragrance and its behavior on my skin, it is worth clarifying some points: Gabriel was not the perfumer, as many are saying around here. Who gave life to this perfume was Edison Fujita, perfumer of Vollmens, which is a Brazilian fragrance house. But it is wonderful to see the grandeur of such involvement because we often extol the "masters" who create the formulas, but we forget to praise who creates the concept and draws the briefing behind hundreds of fragrances of worldwide success. And unfortunately, this type of professional does not usually have his/her name disclosed. Now, with the launch of Malabar and Violette, it is clear the importance of who develops the project and needs to know the market and have contact with various fragrances. And that was easier since Gabriel owns perfume stores that work with the most famous brands, aimed at the general audience, as well as others from the niche perfumery. In short, in this orchestra, the perfumer was the musician, but Gabriel was the conductor. Malabar is a pleasant surprise. It has Arab style, it has quality and meets the most basic requirements of high projection and good durability. I must confess that the citrus output never came to appear on my skin. It is as if everything revolved around the body notes and the base notes, where the coriander is strong and quite spicy; the cardamom is green and aromatic; the amber and the iris bring a powdery aura; the moss gives woody content and, finally, the leather adds a touch of virility and wealth. Do not be surprised if Malabar exhales like a strong incense on your skin. Although it does not have frankincense, the fragrance makes you imagine that hot and gray smoke coming out of your pores. A delight! Malabar follows the genderless style, but it will reach the male audience as an arrow. To conclude, another information full of exclusivity: the fragrance has 23% of essence, which would be enough to be classified as Parfum, according to the standard classification of the world perfumery until recently. But as this market is changing and companies are shaping to it, the Creative-director himself thought it was better to opt for EDP rating, maintaining a more familiar approach to the Brazilian consumer.