Anatolia

A really intriguing opening to Anatolia - I immediately got cocoa & suede- But not cocoa in cooking where it becomes rich and chocolatey, it’s dry cocoa. As I leaned into that, ‘dry’ was the word that best describes this perfume for me... not the hot sand & dried fruit & spices of Zoologist Camel but cocoa, dust, and incense. I kept reading others smelling cinnamon and couldn’t catch that til I realised it’s DRY cinnamon too! Not spicy cookies but a stick that’s been in the pantry too long and started to crumble into powder. Fava Beans said it beautifully below, it’s dry “in the sense of being an ‘air and fire’ scent, with nothing wet or juicy or sweaty” That doesn’t mean there’s no depth to Anatolia, it’s a beautiful journey with the cocoa, cinnamon and sweet incense opening (unlike Prin’s usual smoky offerings), drying down into leather, suede and Turkish delight. Initially I missed the volume that earth & water notes bring (to continue Fava Beans metaphor) but that’s just because it’s what I *expected* and once I just went with it I realised what a treasure Anatolia is. It’s definitely one I’ll wear a bunch of times so we can get to know each other. I also have a sample of Anatolia Anatolia so I’m super curious to see where that goes!

Anatolia skirts the line between gourmand and leather quite gracefully. It's nearly identical to Turkish Leather, although I feel that this lacks some of the original's longevity and has a smoother, more round character. These could be seen as both a blessing and a curse, as the more modest performance makes it a bit more wearable and the rounded/smoother blend may lack a little bit of a bite (specifically with regard to the leather, the original had a slightly more astringent, birchy leather while here I would describe it as almost suede-like and smoothly fuzzy); Regardless, it's close enough for jazz. There's a lot to like here, and the note-list does a great job of letting you know what you're getting into. Honeyed dates, smooth suede and a subtly earthy almost cocoa-like, oudy-rose undertone. Fairly linear, but in a comfortable way. Definitely the most accessible and crowd pleasing out of the 4 current Prin fragrances, thusly also the least memorable for me and the most designer-like (I can't quite place what this [and turkish leather previously] reminds me of, perhaps Tom Ford Noir Extreme or a rounded-out low-passed version of Traversee du Bosphore...). Nothing not to like, for better or worse.

Absolutely flabbergasted not to see tobacco in the notes. Early March about 8 years ago I visited northern California to see a friend. I'm not a smoker but at one point I recall sitting together on a balcony on a mild northern CA spring day smoking a gas station cigar together. I think it was a Swisher Sweet. Wearing this fragrance on a cool spring day in Kentucky in 2022 I keep getting transported back to how that cigar tasted and smelled. I hope that doesn't throw anybody off from this scent because I do quite like it. It's a sweet, dry, and warm profile that lasts quite a while. It's worth getting a sample of, and for me a full bottle.

[Anatolia] ⚫️⚫️⚫️⚫️⚫️ A very dry and woody experience. IBQ, Ambergris and a slightly sugary, transparent rose atop. Anatolia (ex. Turkish Leather) seems on the surface to be a simple perfume. It is anything but. The further you dig, the more the character reveals itself. Peel back the layers and you’ll find a very rich and complex composition. I sat on this fragrance for a while after I first tried it. I wasn’t a fan of these Interlude incense types at the time. 18 months pass and I’m very pleased with my former self for hanging onto my sample. Anatolia/Turkish Leather is up there as one of Prin’s best for sure.

A rich, fruity leather fragrance. Leather with added fruit which may be dates as listed in the notes. There is also incense and resins and a dash of oud. It is not a typical oud fragrance though, since it is well blended in with the other notes and hardly noticeable. It evokes the scent of the Middle East in a spicy/fruity way and is very wearable. Long lasting and leans more on the masculine side.