Macaron Bourbon

I have a weakness for Nicolai Parfumeur Creations. I love the quirkiness of their fragrances and the risks the perfumers take with notes and accords. I love the bottles and the atomizers are the best! Most of the fragrances I've owned and/or sampled have been favorites of mine. In an effort to expand my very limited "rose-centric" fragrance collection, I bought a decant of Macaron Bourbon. To my surprise, I really like this stuff. However, I'm not sure if it's me, my chemistry, or I'm growing NOSE-BLIND. But I have a hard time detecting much fragrance after the wonderful initial application spray (and only about 5-10 minutes in). Love the opening of notes which include a wee-bit of almond, DAVANA and rose. The opening is crisp, a bit fresh, dewy and a little green. Within minutes, a lovely rose note pokes through. There's also amber, vanilla, some resinous tonka in the drydown. But on my skin, all of the loveliness ends literally within minutes. There is definitely a citrusy, or bitter-green note repeating throughout the drydown, which I attribute to the tonka. A really nice offering! Just wish it projected more, lasted longer.

A spicy rose surprise! But in the best way possible. I see the negative remarks and unfortunately this is where a fragrance name and cultural references can build a certain expectation and also interfere with the overall perception of a scent. However I do agree that this is not a gourmand fragrance. This is a spicy woody floral. The most famous macarons in france are made with rose oil so this fragrance is a nod to that specific variety of macaron. Just as in Olivier Cresp's Akro Crush creation (which has a lychee rose impression but otherwise goes down a very different path olfactively than Macaron Bourbon.) There is a very jammy, almost raspberry jam impression that is saturated and quite overt within the overall character of the fragrance. The davana here is quite apparent and lends to the depth of this gem. Then there is the spicy, boozey, warm base that drives the depth even further, creating an addictive draw that keeps me coming back for more.

I love it! Rummy opening is just prelude for gourmand almond-vanilla fragrance, which is as sweet as provocative. Roses are jammy, but not sirupy- it keeps its elegance. The base isn't about caramel, more about the musk, patchouli and tonka. It makes the scent deep, actually. It should be celebration of pastry-making but the composition is more than that: it offers feminine, graceful perfume which is optimistic and addictive. Sweet seduction - the light version! --- Strong projection, longevity almost 7-8 hours.

I really like this one. It somehow does translate the colors of a display of assorted macarons into an olfactory language, but the prominent rose note gives it a kind of tanginess and keeps it from being overly sweet. Gourmands don't always move me, but this one is a delight, as it stretches the concept into something unique and really lovely.

The opening is a battle for dominance between a beautiful dark liquor note and a synthetic rose accord (think Atomic Rose, or Montale's Roses Musk). A background of sweet and nutty notes play support. The only thing remaining in the dry down is the rose which at this point is remarkably similar to Penhaligon's Cairo.

Weirdly, this scent reminds me of sparkling champagne with maybe a raspberry in it.:) I don't find it sirupy at all, sweet yes but rather fresh, while still being more suitable for autumn then for summer to me.:)

On my skin, this is the airiest, dewy young rose, with touches of rum and almond I adore. Sadly, I chew through this one, and within ten minutes, she’s a mere memory.

Wow, I just sampled this and here are my first thoughts though I might have a change of opinion later on in future applications. Initially, I could smell that rum and almond. Then I was introduced to the rosy sweet spicy portion. I am not a rose lover, so I am sensitive to the note. I detected it, but it is not overwhelming. I actually believe that it makes the spicy- sweetness lighter and more interesting. I am about 2 hours in and now I smell a fruity patchouli. Another fragrance that has a lot of development. I enjoy the evolvement of the stages so this appeals to my tastes. It has a lot of warmth. I find it to be more masculine leaning but it is sweet enough to be unisex. I am a woman, and I would wear this in cool fall weather or in winter. I feel as though I go through a journey with this fragrance and so far, it is an enjoyable ride.

Wow, so many of the reviews of this one are unnecessarily harsh! I agree, it doesn't especially read as 'gourmand', yet there is a candied sweetness to this rose, painting a picture of an enchanting pink and red macaron display beckoning you with its sweet and pretty offerings. Macaron Bourbon is primarily a rose perfume, which initially disappointed me, but as a rose lover I can accept this for what it is and enjoy wearing it. It's a very jammy, sweet rose that lasts ages and projects well -- just like the other two gourmands in this collection. For Nicolai, this is a far more whimsical, youthful and playful offering than their typical creations. I'll enjoy the 15 ml I have but won't re-purchase. Still, this absolutely merits a higher rating and is worthy of more consideration!!

I’m not too sure what this fragrance has to do with macarons, which I think of as crunchy and light and kind of insubstantial as far as desserts go. This is a dense spicy rose floating in a syrupy liqueur. It’s a heavy fragrance, with pretty intense sillage. I like it, although there’s many rose fragrances of this type that are better, but it’s not bad. Mostly I’m confused by it, it doesn’t seem like a fragrance that belongs in a trio dedicated to gourmands. Rather, I think this could have really fit into a trio of fragrances dedicated to the different aspects of rose. There could have been a light lemony rose, a velvety jammy rose, and this spicy liqueur rose. That would have made sense.

I honestly don't understand the low ratings of this perfume. I've been enjoying this and I'm not a rose lover. It's a jammy, fruity/floral and complex. Not gormand, but sweet. And not too heavy or overpowering. It reminds me of a sweeter version of Le Labo Rose 31.

Syrupy roses over patchouli and piercing amber-woods - it’s not a bad fragrance per se, just why make it? It has zero Nicolai DNA and I can’t really imagine that admirers of their signature fragrances (like myself) would want to buy it. I was puzzled just the same with Jo Malone’s Intense collection - Velvet Rose & Oud in particular. Winning over new audiences perhaps? But at least VR&O came out in 2012, while a release like this in 2024 feels obsolete - this profile had been covered amply. Haven’t tried Nicolai 2025 creations yet, but I really hope Madame Patricia still has something up her sleeve - she has created a unique and remarkable brand and I really wish them well and not to run out of ideas!

Objectively this is a good perfume. It’s rich and well made, you can smell it different notes when it dries down. But it’s definitely not a safe blind buy. I noticed that I really don’t look rum in fragrances and also not a huge fan of almonds. For me it has an after smell like when you eat praline with alcohol and I really don’t like that. It’s kind of lovely for a second and then for me it’s like sour almost vomit inducing. But that’s just me because of the rum. I think gourmand especially macaroon and praline lovers, vanilla enjoyers would love this.

Macaron Bourbon opens with a delicious, fairy-tale whiff of spun-sugar roses, deepening slightly into liquored rosewater. Yep, "gourmand" branding aside, this is all rose. A rather sweet, bright-pink rose. Does the world really need another rosewater scent? No. Can you go to Jo Malone and get exactly the same thing? Yes. But does it smell good? Yep.

100% Radical Rose (Matiere Premier) knock-off. Zero creativity. Good for other brands, but a shame for Patricia Nicolai. Rating: 3/10

I don’t smell pastry or caramel. I just smell rose and nondescript booze. Not my thing.

This is syrupy and sickly sweet, with a hint of something lightly spiced and comforting underneath. I want to power through the headache stage to potentially experience the nice bit, but the rose is screeching sharply and medicinally, and I am really tempted to scrub this off.

Nothing to do with macarons imo, super boozy fragrance with some fresh green opening turns into a heavy spicy rose with tonka. I tend to really dislike rose scents like this unfortunately. And this is no exception. Name is not applicable, quite masculine I think.

I smell mint mouthwash - yeah, MINT. I feel like Fragrantica's listed notes for this one are gaslighting me. Not a safe blind buy.

I second everything Tessture said below. Where’s the rose, the almond ? They should have named it « Macaron aux Bois qui vrillent le nez » aka Macaron SCREAMWOOD. This one REEKS of those modern "amberwoodywhatever" fixatives that burn your nostrils and crush all the other notes. The only one worth it in this "gourmand" collection is Saint-Honore. Pavlova is merely OK and resembles a dozen other things (THOO Keep Glazed for example), and you can also sense a tiny bit of murderwoods trying to jump at you. I hate those materials so much. I used to blind buy Nicolai with confidence before, because even if some were not my style, they were always elegant and of high quality : Le Temps d’une Fête, Odalisque, Sacrebleu, Ô Soleil, Kiss me Intense, Juste un Rêve ... I have a ton of them. But it seems they jumped in the Xerjoff/Initio/Mancera/Fragrance du Bois bandwagon so I guess I’ll stop blind buying Nicolai in the future. What a shame.

I can not believe how much I actually HATE this fragrance... this is coming off spicy-fruity but the fruits are still sweet tho. Thing is - there's no actual fruit notes listed. I guess that makes sense because it doesn't have a specific fruit scent but the sweet Caramel with the Davana may have been reading that way to me?? This fragrance is loud and obnoxious and the 1 spray I put on my arm is constantly beating me over the head... You would have to like spicy-Rose Patchouli fragrances to like this I guess. MANCERA Roses Vanille is so much better than this - I do not see the resemblance. If I do a Rose-Patchouli - I reach for Fenty or KAYALI Elixir 11... also something similar-ISH but much better is NISHANE Tero. How can a "Macaron" fragrance be so terrible!?? SCRUBBER!!!

Why don't I see Intense café among similar perfumes? This is an almost exact dupe and both are unbearable to my nose. They are both supposed to be gourmands with a touch of rose but my nose perceives them as super smoky incense, burnt wood and kind of roses an older lady would wear.

I’m sorry but as a full bottle owner of Fig Tea by Nicolai I really wanted to love this Gourmond collection, but I really don’t. This one is the worst of the three. Smells cheap but of course like every perfume I dislike, it seems to last forever. Had to scrub this one :(

Macaron Bourbon opens with a jammy spicy rose prominent, the clove and cinnamon enhancing the rose, but not dominating it. After about 20 minutes the alcohol/rum note emerges to balance the sweetness and ground the scent. The almond note also emerges as an airy counterpoint to the sweet spiciness of the rose. The final drydown reveals more of the patchouli and tonka, again balancing the other components. It's artfully blended like all of the Parfums de Nicolai fragrances that I have tried. It took 3 wearings for me to fully appreciate Macaron Bourbon and to really love it. It's not an instant 'must have' type of scent, but give it a few wearings to learn all of its sublteties. It's quite unisex, not too sweet at all, and would be a great date night scent for fall and winter. I get 5 hours wear from this fragrance.

Another of my favorite houses falls to the popular demand for Spiky Woods. I read all about powdery almond, boozy vanilla, jammy rose...it's all murdered by screamwood. Even my boss, how has no nose for fragrance was made queasy by the overpowering, screaming sharp woods. Somewhere under that is a soft almond-y vanilla cookie but overall this is horrible horrible. Just a travesty of creative perfumers. WHY?

Nicely done slightly syrupy spicy rose. Many seem to dislike but if you consider the rose lychee delina profile so popular these days this one probably won't appeal to that crowd. I think it's a lovely interpretation of rose, not too sweet, not too spicy. A rose that isn't super sweet or fruity in a more vintage style profile. Very nice.

A tart rose that turns into the juiciest rose possible. This isn’t a mature, powdered, vintage, granny rose... its a dewy, sweet, almost edible rose dipped in delicious lemonade and sangria, which is probably spiked with bourbon. The almond and caramel are semi muted and provide the perfect amount of sweetness. Classy and long lasting.

In the heat and on my skin, this is a sweet and sour jammy rosey macaron, with a good lasting power. It seemed the best out of this new collection, but at the moment, I would not run to buy a bottle. Honestly, Delina and Delina Exclusif have done this type of profile much better and smell even more delicious and complex.

Least interesting and original of the 3 desserts. Hard candy rosy-fruity patchouli. Top notes smell bit oudish (Oud Ispahan). Patricia's La Viest est Belle. Semi mainstream, semi niche. Huge staying power.

Sadly I just get the smell of spilled fruit IPA in a bar, with a fairly demure rose at the base. None of the sweetness and certainly nothing resembling a macaron.

The way the rose hits me it reminds me of habiscius mahajad a lil bit. Like a slightly boozy, sweeter HM.

This is the nastiest rose I’ve ever tried in a while. A real scrubber