Rosamunda

In this work, like the combination of rose and spice of the almost unknown to the general public, Marie Duchéne is a Nose esteemed and loved by experts in the art of perfume. His rich curriculum boasts collaborations with prestigious Italian and international Maison, including Laboratorio Olfattivo, a happy and extremely creative association that has led to the birth of jus rich with emotions like Alkemi, Cozumel, Noblige and, lastly, Rosamunda. The saffron present in the olfactory pyramid stands out and makes the rose less dark. It is a carnal pink, spicy, warmed by the uncanny oud. But it is an ephemeral rose that little cries and little remains, so bright as to be impalpable after a few hours. The name instead recalled to my mind a tune listened to in childhood ... (from Wikipedia)Rosamunda is the Italian name of a polka that became famous during the Second World War. The music was written by the Czech composer Jaromír Vejvoda in 1927, arranged by Eduard Ingriš and presented under the title Modřanská polka. The first text was written in 1934 by Václav Zeman and the title changed to Škoda lásky (Italian: "Sin of love (I felt for you")). The polka became so famous that, in 1938, more than a million copies of the records were sold with the German version. In 1939 just before the end of the war, Shapiro Bernstein bought the license for the US market and edited the song with the title Beer Barrel Polka, arranged by Lew Brown and Wladimir Timm with the text and English title. Later it was included in the repertoire of great musicians like Andrews Sisters, Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman and Billie Holiday. The Andrews sisters recorded two versions, the second version titled Here comes the navy became an unofficial anthem of the United States Navy in World War II. After the Second World War the American text of Beer Barrel Polka echoed and in the Czechoslovakian discography the new title Pojď sem s tím sudem ("Come here with that barrel") based on the title and American text entered. In 1954 the Italian-American accordionist John Serry organized the accordion song for the sextette and recorded the song for RCA Records (RCA Thesaurus, 1954) In Italy it is possible to hear it in the repertoire of many "smooth dance" orchestras. In 1995 he accompanied the cosmonauts of the Discovery spacecraft. It should also be remembered the improper use of this motivation, in the Nazi Lager, spread in precise moments of the day, especially in Auschwitz. At the sound of this merry march the concentration camp inmates were led every morning to hundreds at a time - and strictly in line - to be gassed and then burned (Primo Levi: "If this is a man"). In France, Olympique Marseille football fans use this polka with French words "Ce soir on vous met", during the games played at the Vélodrome Stadium.

At first I thought it is too similar to Lady Vengeance, but when I did a parallel comparative test, I learned that these perfumes, although sharing the same vibe, are not that similar after all. Whereas Lady Vengeance (and Lady Vengeance Extreme for that matter) is a dense, sultry, velvety, sweet composition, very feminine and vanillic, Rosamunda leans towards the unisex, woody, dry direction. Comparisons aside, Rosamunda is a great perfume and one of the definite winners among the abundance of spicy and musky roses scents. The composition is very balanced and harmonious, it can easily become "the one" for you if you want to buy only one perfume from the spicy-woody-musky-rose range. It is warm and woody, featuring fresh roses with wine facets (not boozy, just dry like rosé wine). I like the oud note here, it isn't medicinal, but has a slight tar quality, which smells "industrial" in the best possible way. However, it's just me, I am sensitive to oud and usually feel it very clearly. My friend who sampled Rosamunda told me that she did not feel any oud at all, and the most prominent woody note for her was sandalwood. The spice isn't overpowering either, it's very balanced, but still there (saffron). Nice sillage and longevity, it is not overly strong, but still lasts good 6 hours on me.

Portrait of a Lady Light to my nose. I love it! In the beginning it smells a bit sour but that disappears quite quickly.After that it's a soft rose/oud scent that lingers around. Longevity isn't very good but it isn't very bad either. Same as PoaL this could be worn by men and women. I bought the 30ml for 40 euro's in the Netherlands, not a bad price imo. Edit: It also reminds me very slightly and strangely of Nasomatto Baraonda but without the boozy accord, must be the rose.....

@JBird very interesting your point of view. I dont detect any "cheap" qualities on this one. Really good Rose fragrance with not just the freshness but with the dirtiness from patchouli and oud. I find it very unissex and great quality. You wore it as a SOTD? When i first smelled it, i had just sprayed on my hand and i didnt care much. Found it kinda boring and "cheap". But when i wore it i changed my mind

A great jammy rose with patchouli and oud in the background. In the same ballpark as Montale Black Aoud but with less oud. Great quality.