Balade a Cassis

My best friend got this for me while she was on holiday in france. She was warned by the salesperson that buying perfume for others was a dangerous gamble (sound advice) but she has known me and my tastes for 15 years at this point, and by god she did not disappoint. Not the first perfume she's gotten me, but by far the biggest bottle and one of the biggest dents I've ever made in a fragrance. I've got less than a third left and its about time to order another. This was my daily fragrance for a good while. It sits pretty close to skin, others can smell it when they hug me but not when they sit across a table, and it lingers pleasantly on sweaters until the next wash. I wear it in the daytime, mostly to the office, and its pleasant in any season. The weather here is mild, winters don't freeze and summers rarely scorch, so take this with a grain of salt because I live in perpetual spring/fall. Its a dry scent. Androgynous. I'm genderfluid and it works perfectly on both masc and femme days. The sharpness of the pepper hits your nose first, but the sandalwood grounds it and keeps it from tickling your sinuses. Its earthy, with a lovely edge that keeps it strong and assertive. Its not warm like winter gourmands, or bright like summer citrus, or floral like a classic spring. I'd say its spring like how the first vegetables that sprout in spring are sharp, like radishes, peppery and biting. Its not cozy fall like pumpkin spice, its autumnal brisk like the first wind that warns you that summer is well and truly over. I didn't pay for my first bottle, but I am willing to pay for the next one. It seems like a decent price, especially for the quantity. It has lasted me over two years of consistent use.