New Valaam

Testing this blind from the sample set, I'm going to have to diverge from the previous comments. I got an immediate casis and civet body, with top notes of yuzu and other citrus with the florals coming to a little later. It is nice, fresh, a little green. After two days of testing, I'd say it is more moderate in the first hour and reduces down to intimate for the rest of the day, with a bit more citrus up front. It's unisex, but maybe the hintiest of feminine. overall, I find the price point a little rich, but I appreciate the more unique blend.

New Valaam from Phronema perfumes is a fragrance inspired by the Alaskan Spruce Island hermitage of New Valaam, named so by holy man and clairvoyant wonderworker Father Herman, a monk who was eventually sainted in 1970. A scent celebrating wildlife and the fertility of nature, it opens with bitter, brittle greenery preserved in a bygone botanist’s notebook: a small curl of fern, fronds fanned into shrunken shadow against the page, crest crumbling into dry dust. But by some manner of perfumer’s alchemy, you can smell where that fern once furled: the dew dewdrops on wildflowers, lily of the valley and forget me nots, yarrow and aster, the faint, wild musk of a snowshoe hare streaking through lichen. In a strange but not entirely unpleasant twist, the scent dries a bit soapy and sour and yeasty, not entirely unlike wet dog ears. This is such an interesting and unique green scent, and though it’s not something I can see myself wearing, it’s nice just to spray the sample and think about it.

Just received this from etsy. Takes a minute to arrive, but I believe he's a one man show. It seems as though he even 3d prints the caps nothing about the presentation feels high end but it's unique in an indie kind of way. First impression of the scent is fresh and beast mode. I bought this for the base notes so I will update when those shine through. So far I get lots of citrus and oakmoss. Very nice start