Birch Tar and Russian Leather

Matthew Meleg is a gifted perfumer and Birch Tar and Russian Leather is among his best works. This fragrance is reminiscent of great, rough vintage leather scents. It is strongly animalic with castoreum and civet both discernable within the leather accord. Smoke and a vaguely asphalt note from the liberally used birch tar in the composition adds a stern feel to the early stages of the progression, but eventually a nice, somewhat green rose and a Chanel-esque jasmine emerge to set the stage for a warm, sweet vanilla that rounds out the base and softens the later stages of this exceptionally blended fragrance. The net result is an excellent cuir de ruisse which is utterly unique but at odd moments during its progression still inspires reminiscences of vintage Kouros' leather base note, the bootblack and smoke elements of J-Scent's Black Leather and the beastly glory of Areej Le Dore's Cuir de Ruisse. But to be clear, this fragrance smells nothing like the foregoing scents when taken in its totality. As the perfumer himself acknowledges, this is very strong stuff. Projections longevity are significant. Careful spraying is a must or you will choke those around you. This fragrance is best suited for cooler weather. Like all naturally animalic scents, this fragrance will not appeal to every nose, so it is most likely not a viable office scent. I mostly use this fragrance for evenings at home when I can revel in the beauty of the components, the excellent execution and the gloriously animalic notes. Finding appropriate occasions for which to don this fragrance is pointless in a world of blue freshies where inoffensive mass appeal is the fashion. Instead, wear it when you want to surround yourself in glorious old-school rough leather tempered with just a hint of sweet vanilla goodness. I don't think this sort of scent is fittingly gendered--regardless of how you identify, if part of that identity includes a love of animalic leather scents, get you nose on this gem.

This fragrance is just what I wanted and needed, a very rough animalic-smokey leather with subtle florals and an elegant-cozy vanilla. As it develops the gorgeous madagascar vanilla gets bigger and bigger, making the experience sweeter and more comforting. The combination with the florals give it some subtlety and elegance, which balances perfectly with the rough birch tar and castoreum. It really does remind me of Russia and Canada at the same time, rough, cold and rural, but cozy and powerful. A true vintage cuir de russie. If I had to think of a personality it would be of a very charming but authoritarian person, elegant but when it needs to get its hands dirty it certainly does. Very masculine but it has a soft side, and its very kind to those close to him. I think of Tsar Nicholas II when he was in exile, specially because of the association between cuir de russie and russian army boots. Powerful, rural, charming(because of the sweetness), masculine, elegant(to me vanilla is a very elegant note and even more with the florals).

This is not nearly as dark or tannic as I would have expected based on the name. In fact I find it quite smooth and relaxed: a warm, animalic vanilla, with the texture of a malleable resin coated in finely-milled powder. I get a mild dirtiness here, like buttery amber smoke that slides along the back of your throat, coating the palate. It's supple, sensual, and smooth. It has a sort of louche refinement to it, like a handsome regent in a mood to lay about, moving from the chaise to the four-poster and back again, sitting a brief spell at the writing desk, but producing little of import. I'm reminded of Shalimar EDP after it dries down for an hour or two.

I am writing the same general review for my favorite Meleg perfumes - Civet Cat Chypre, Birch Tar and Russian Leather, Honey and Deer Musk, Madeline Peach, Oakmoss Forest Florals, and Mushin. I am very particular about perfume, and it is not often that I find something I really love. I expected to really like 1 out of the 10 samples of the sample set I received from Etsy, but there were 6! They are very special - unique, smooth, well blended, interesting, wearable, beautiful, and addictive! Nothing weird or harsh standing out, and nothing like I’ve smelled before out of the over 1000 perfumes I’ve encountered just in the last few years.

This was one of those where the sample had me clicking “buy” at first sniff. It’s the most gorgeous, enveloping cloud of sweet, warm, slightly spicy, animalic goodness. The leather and birch tar are pretty mild and mostly gone in the first hour and what’s left is the wonder of the castoreum melting into the skin. Absolute love! With four sprays from the sample, my nose was overwhelmed and I couldn’t really smell it. But I could feel that it was there- a cloud of warmth enveloped me all day and into the next. After 24 hours it had calmed enough that I could pick up whiffs from my skin and it continued that way for another 24 hours.