Pardon

Dear readers, to tell the truth, I didn’t expect to have to face such a disturbing monster and “Pardon” surprised me quite a bit when I smelled it for the first time today. I believe you couldn’t make a better choice if you are passionate about the scents of foliage, earth and soil, and it gives me great joy to have the honour of introducing it to you here. I must confess that some people will find it difficult to wear, as it is polarizing. To some, this perfume will seem rude, but I feel that you will understand it if you love patchouli in all its nuances and accept the challenge. Even if it does not agree with "Kouros (Eau de Toilette) | Yves Saint Laurent", Pardon belongs to that genre of virile perfumes, rich in hints of masculinity. What a very impertinent speech to make, I realize. I apologize, my readers, for the impertinence of this perfume. I apologize for being so flippant. I apologize for being so rude. I apologize if I seemed rude to you. I apologize... And this is precisely what Pardon wants to tell us, starting with a brutal slap and ending with a sensual caress. Chypre, woody, and earthy like the layer of damp peat that covers the floor of a forest after a rain. Pardon means sorry, not surprisingly, because its arrival is bursting, brutal, almost violent, irreverent, and reckless. A hurricane that devastates everything in its path. I’m sure of what I was smelling because something came to light very quickly and then became the dominant note... raw and pure patchouly. Patchouli is the guiding spirit of this essence, rich, warm, moist and soft, it dominates, and it makes you understand who is in charge, as in a role-playing game with the dominator and the submissives. You must be a fan of patchouli to appreciate this essence, since it is evident from the beginning to the end, clear, limpid. A green, musky, mineral scent, full of excitement and sex, something that resembles the primordial calls of the most intimate male parts, odours that in the animal world leave their trail in the air and serve to attract the attention of the partner. Along with patchouli, we find a medicinal and semi-sweet oud note, not sharp, not piercing, not barnyard, not faecal, and not animal. On the other hand, Alessandro Gualtieri’s nose plays a lot with these non-perfumes, which include dirty and unusual notes, and which at the beginning can be unpleasant and create sensations of repulsion, but then create habituation and dependence as soon as you get used to them, and not we can no longer do without it. Sorry, it’s not exactly like a sequence of notes on a staff. Pardon is a set of strong sensations that follow one another and change, different every time you wear it. Its chocolatey facets are the first accords that release and give the opening the bitter, dark tones, typical of dark chocolate, the black one with a cocoa percentage of over 90%, which dries up your mouth when you try to melt it. There is a drunken, pungent note, especially in the first moments. I would like to point out that the essence of the best quality patchouli oil has a smell with marked reminiscences of bitter chocolate. I can confirm the presence of patchouli since I have a 100% extract with the same smell. It is this bitter chocolate aroma that has made the fragrance popular, and it is rounded off with natural woody and floral notes, which do not lack some leathery edges. These scents are intertwined with fat floral touches, those slightly carnal scents of the thick petals of the magnolia, the intense and intoxicating aroma of the gardenia, almost certainly a handful of Arabian jasmine, and a powdery undertone of the iris roots. The latter comes out very dusty, chalky, and not at all similar to baby powder. Many people claim not to recognize patchouli and only perceive a strong chocolate smell, perhaps because they expect the ancient sweetish scents that made it popular in the hippie period, which is absent here. Patchouli is raw without a throwback aroma that reminds the wearer of the essences from the 70s and the 80s. Instead, the powerful chocolatey notes are precisely those of the patchouli oil used in this essence, modern, cleaned, from which all the nauseating sweetness has been removed, leaving only everything bitter, earthy, musky, mineral, and balsamic that can be to extract. As far as flowers are concerned, we are not faced with flirtatious, mushy petals which are often appreciated by the female public, but rather with virile, erotic, hypnotic white flowers, which are inspired by Arabian jasmine and lemon magnolia, with strong impulses towards a predominantly masculine taste. Pardon oozes virility from every pore, at 360 degrees. That kind of brutal and beastly perfumes like "Kouros (Eau de Toilette) | Yves Saint Laurent", as I was saying, and those who know and love it know what I mean. It takes a few minutes before these scents of passion and sex subside a little, leaving room for something that draws a powdery trail, with a balsamic and medicinal aftertaste that at times recalls the pungent smell of iodine and dark amber disinfectants. The dusty notes come from the iris root, which combined with the nuances of chocolate makes the essence very intriguing, elegant and refined. The rough appearance he showed at the beginning is now tamed, more sociable, more gentle, more courteous. The more time passes, the more intense the smoky, non-clerical incense accord becomes, which alternates with sweetish spicy touches of cinnamon. This brown bark stands out, although it remains a secondary and non-protagonist note. It is a type of cinnamon that makes the fragrance richer and warmer without forcing it towards too spicy a direction. Now Pardon releases woody, resinous, perhaps even balsamic and woody scents, with at times powdery touches. On the finish, sandalwood emerges to give creaminess and roundness to the fragrance while the spicy notes fade away. Everything becomes softer, sweeter, and creamier. Despite the modernity of the perfume, I don’t feel the overused notes of Iso E Super or Ambroxan. Sandalwood is warm, sensual, and never treacherous or annoying. The earthy and mineral appearance persists until the end. To my senses, the perfume comes more with hints of incensed patchouli, carnal magnolia, and soft and slightly leathery sandalwood. If the opening is boozy and exuberant, the base is simply creamy, sweet and classy. Don’t let the brash opening scare you because it’s really easy to fall in love with this fragrance. It’s mysterious and incredibly compelling. What I like about this scent is how patchouli is evident throughout the development, and what’s even better, this patchouli feels like it’s made of natural raw oils. Its gloomy and dark character makes it ideal for the colder months. But I think it’s worth a gamble to try to wear it on spring and summer evenings when the air is thinner, cooler, and a little humid. Despite its irreverence, the scent is not suffocating, I would say it does nothing to get noticed, even if others notice it. The projection is not exuberant, and the duration is around 4 or 5 hours. Even if the performances are not insane, Pardon knows how to be subtle and intimate. Another rare pearl that stands out from the crowd. I'm formulating my opinions on a bottle I've owned since June 2024.

Imagine a field with the most beautiful flowers you've ever seen, and then the darkest, thickest rain clouds looming over them. Pardon is a fragrance that caught my eye from the moment I saw the notes, oud with chocolate, cinnamon and flowers. I talked about the fragrance with the person who sold me a 2 ml decant of it and he told me he found it a dark and alluring scent, and he could not have been more accurate. When my mom smelled it (and I have to say I'm surprised she loved it, I expected her to hate it), she said it smelled really manly and mysterious. My grandmother also seemed to like it a lot, as she went as far as asking me what it was called when she usually just mentions in passing that I smell nice. Pardon has a gorgeous floral opening, which is stalked (feels like the appropriate word) by a really dark oudy and creamy scent. It's the type of fragrance you'll have to be wearing a full black outfit to go with it. It's an excellently blended fragrance with a lot of depth, so I'm really struggling to describe the scent, I'd rather leave it at that than doing a poor job attempting to describe it. What I can say is I adore this fragrance and it's made me very interested in trying more from Nasomatto, particularly Baraonda. Performance is really good, although I did spray very lightly as I had heard it's a strong fragrance and it was really hot today, I didn't feel like choking out my family or myself. Despite that, performance has been really good and I never felt bothered by the scent's thickness. In fact, I'd say this could easily be worn in summer nights if you spray lightly, the florals really do help a lot not making this an overwhelming scent. Projection is strong and sillage is dense, at least as strong and dense as three sprays in total can be (two in the neck and one in a forearm). Longevity has been great too, the single spray on my forearm is still easily detectable 7 and a half hours later.

Pardon by the house of Nasomatto is the embodiment of sensuality in a bottle. I got this fragrance for a bargain price of £95 on the website I usually use to buy frags. When I first looked into this fragrance, I was keen on buying either this or black afgano, ultimately both being blind-buys, as I have never tried anything before from this house. Needless to say, this is FAR beyond ANY designer frag in terms of its quality, and perfumery. I went into this with high expectations, and came out more than satisfied. First thing I have to say, this stuff is extraordinarily potent, it's an extrait concentration so the 30mls you get should be enough to last as much as any other frag you have, plus the ingredients used in this frag anyway are far past potent and into their own league. When you first spray on Pardon, you're immediately hit by patchouli, it's not harsh or sharp unlike some other patchoulis I have tried, instead, Pardon manages to reach a level where this patchouli is elegant, and soft whilst still remaining potent. The dark chocolate and cinnamon notes pop out more after a few minutes and that only helps this fragrance retain its beauty. The dark chocolate note isn't one that's overly bitter, it has this photorealism to it alongside the cinnamon which balances out in such a way that's almost orgasmic. I don't get too much florals in this frag, further on in the drydown the florals do become more apparent, and it has this powdery quality to it that makes you want to keep smelling it. I LOVE this fragrance, and I'm personally impressed with this frag being my introduction to the house of Nasomatto. Even though this of course isn't for everyone, if you're able to see the perfumery behind it, I believe it can open the eyes more to enjoying this fragrance.

I went into Pardon curious... and came out completely mesmerized. From the first spray, it pulled me into this dark, elegant atmosphere — not loud, not flashy — just quietly luxurious. The opening gave me a subtle boozy warmth wrapped in cocoa dust and polished oud. Not gourmand in a syrupy way... more like dry dark chocolate shaved over fine wood. As it developed, what really captivated me was the texture shift. A faint peppery dryness emerged — refined, not spicy-sweet — adding a tailored masculinity to the composition. It felt seductive without trying. The kind of scent that makes you feel composed, magnetic, and slightly mysterious. The drydown is where it fully won me over. Creamy sandalwood and tonka take control, smoothing everything into this powdery, skin-like elegance. The oud becomes a shadow in the background — present, but polished and restrained. It stops smelling like “perfume” and starts smelling like an aura. Wearing it, I felt like I was sitting in a dim whiskey lounge — quiet, confident, and completely at ease while others wondered where that warm, animalic glow was coming from. Not animalic in a funky way... more like enhanced skin warmth. Performance is excellent but intimate. It doesn’t project loudly — it radiates. This is a lean-in scent, not a room filler. Overall impression: Powdery elegant woods Cocoa dust Creamy sandalwood Polished oud Peppery dry warmth Pardon feels like velvet, low lighting, and quiet confidence bottled. I’m working through a 5 ml sample now, and it’s already clear this will be a full bottle in my future. Not because it’s loud or trendy — but because it makes me feel like the most refined version of myself when I wear it.

Finally giving my thoughts after owning it for awhile, to start off i get very little florals in the top, the magnolia is noticeable but fades away pretty quick, i get very little cinnamon to my nose as well but the main player in the composition is the chocolatey oud and chocolatey patchouli, and i say that because i dont think there is a dark chocolate accord at its own, i think it's more of a chocolatey oud and a chocolatey patchouli coming together the give an illusion of an unsweetened dark chocolate accord, but it is not an all and all a "chocolate fragrance" i find it to change a morph on my skin, sometimes its more oudy sometimes the patchouli jumps to the front page but it always comes off balanced, never one note taking over the other. i also get slight churchy incense vibes but it seems to be hidden in the background of the composition, and only in the far far (5+ hours) drydown i start getting the slightly creamy sandalwood, in terms of performance its not massive or has insane longevity, projection and sillage, its subtle and intimate, doesn't completely sit close to the skin it has a little bit of pop but it's not in anyway shape or form a huge performer. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ UPDATE:THE SANDALWOOD IN THE BASE IS FUCKING GORGEOUS, it's absolutely my favorite part of this composition!!