Isparta 26

These last few months I've been doing a lot of sampling, and I've found a lot of great scents, but Isparta is the first sample in a while that I've used all the way up - I just kept thinking about it and reaching for it in the morning until there was nothing left; I'm wearing the last of it today. So it goes without saying that I like it very much! It's an interesting fragrance, with lots going on, and always evolving. It starts off with a blast of pure patchouli, damp to the point of smelling just a little mildewy, but not in a bad way. This is an accord that I can take or leave personally, but I admire it for its for its daring - so dirty and green at the same time! For me, it starts to get really good about half an hour in, when the rose starts coming out. Isparta did immediately remind me of Portrait of a Lady, which I also love, especially at this point when the patchouli is on the way down but still strong. But this one is more wearable: softer, a little sweeter, a lot less strong. I guess its because of the berry note, which together with the rose beautifully balances out the sharper notes. The oud's also very nice here, but then again I haven't really tested many rose/oud combinations, and haven't had a chance to get sick of them like another reviewer mentioned: I really like it! The drydown is also nice: a dustier aspect of the bittersweet combination from before, closer to the skin, but lasting all day. I'm starting to think PG might be one of my favourite houses - I've been enthousiastic aboutic almost everything of theirs I've tested so far. This one is going straight to my wish list as well.

Wow, this is fantastic! Rose and red berries...patchouli and moss...peru balsam (earthy cinnamon).....ambroxan (velvety amber)...a touch of oud and a little musk...all done right. Juicy without being too sweet, everything is nice and balanced. Almost like a slightly sweeter Portrait of a Lady "light". By no means is it a dupe of POAL (which is a masterpiece and POTENT) but it is a more affordable alternative with a similar vibe. Isparta is over $100 less for 50 ml and you get a similar feel. I have been trying a ton of rose fragrances for a few months and Isparta is one of my favorites. I am a sucker for a jammy rose with patchouli or oud. Just beautiful. Longevity is incredible and sillage must be also because I got a compliment from a stranger while shopping. Unisex for sure. One of my new favorites! * * * * * * Edit: In response, the reason why many people compare Isparta to Portrait of a Lady is obvious, they share many of the same notes: Turkish rose, patchouli, red fruit, ambroxan, benzoin, cinnamon, incense, "oud" (POAL is just oud-ish and not actually oud), etc. It puzzles me how so many people do not understand that "reminds me of" is subjective and individual. Just because a scent doesn't remind one person of something doesn't mean that it doesn't for someone else. It is easy to see why Isparta could remind some of POAL. Please understand that a "reminder" does not mean "total dupe". Ever see someone who reminds you of someone else? Does that mean they are twins? No...it just means a reminder is there.

This is another outstanding creation by Pierre Guillaume! Is this guy married and even somewhat attractive? I am in love with him I think.... I definitely thought of Portrait of a Lady upon smelling this on my skin. It's the rose and patchouli combo. Yet they are distinctly different too. While I find POAL to be a little too patch-heavy, rough around the edges, a little raw or unpolished, and a sillage monster, I find Isparta 26 to be tamer, (ironically) more lady-like, smoother, and sweeter. The rose is somewhat ethereal and subdued in this creation. The patch is not the dry and dusty kind, but the dank and mildewy kind--my fave! Rather than jammy rose, I smell extremely realistic sun-ripened raspberries, so full of juice that they easily stain your hands when you pick them. They have not been refridgerated, and they have begun to mold a bit. The raspberry note does not smell like cold medicine like it does in every other perfume I have ever smelled that had raspberry in it. Amen to that! The drydown is totally different from any other rose/patch perfume I have tried. Must be the sweetness of benzoin, for there is a vanilla-amber creaminess to it that is so nice. Sometimes I think there is something green about it too, but extremely subtle. The perfume is not my favorite type to wear, I find the rose/patch combo just ok, but I can not stop sniffing myself when wearing this. Mr. Guillaume, if by any chance you are out there reading this, PM me. I worship you!

My first try from Parfumerie Generale, Isparta came highly recommended from the online fragrance community. Rose is the predominant aspect of both the opening and dry down, and it's pleasant, and sweetly accompanied by the red berries in the opening that color it well without giving it a dessert- or jammy-like sweetness. It's a fruity yet reserved sweetness. I'm fortunate to not to be overwhelmed by the patchouli in the dry down, as I mainly get a combination of benzoin, incense, and balsam. So the overall experience, while rose-dominant, is characterized by the red berry mix at the opening, as the note breakdown indicates, followed by a resinous, woody dry down for the most part. Isparta cleverly walks the line between sophisticated and playful, as I might enjoying wearing this out to a party as much as I would sitting around the house. At $150 for 50ml, this is a nice fragrance but I'm not sure it's completely worthwhile, given that its performance is very good on longevity but not so much on projection, though for that reason, it has yearround wearability. Isparta is also pretty much a unisex fragrance, with redeeming elements that work for men and women alike. A clear winner, with the only variable holding me back from proverbially "adding it to my list" being the performance:price ratio. 8 out of 10

This is just beautiful. There's a unisex neutrality within the base and body of this perfume that turns feminine at the top when you get a whiff of the tart red berries, which keeps the rose/wood/resin well-lit the whole duration. Isparta doesn't need a handful of florals or sweetness to communicate that energy, it's just the berry (smells like raspberry?) putting in hard work. I wasn't expecting to like this as much as I did, because I find rose boring when used as a centerpiece anywhere else, but there's a resinous juiciness to this one that just smells different. This makes me envision the words "desert rose". It's like vines of roses climbing up a white clay wall in a North African desert city. Pots of resinous tree sap sit at the ground by the sand, which is just barely blooming with coastal foliage. It's not exactly earthy but it's atmospheric, coolly balsamic. It speaks to an oasis within a barren, gorgeous land but doesn't bowl you over with aquatic or fresh notes. I think it's suitable for all occasions, but particularly a Mediterranean vacation. It's the exotic touch rose hasn't had in any other fragrance I've tried yet. Maybe unisex leaning feminine.