Flora & Fauna

Given that this is all natural I assume that means real civet musk and not civetone. If that is true I am guessing Manuel used an old forgotten bottle of civet musk he sourced at auction. This is likely the missing ingredient as it would be nearly impossible to source newly made civet musk. I have seen African Civet in Cameroun where I live. Unfortunately, I believe it is commonly sold as bush meat (I do not and have not ever eaten it). Everytime I wear this it is a wonderful experience, seems to have a much fuller spectrum then so many modern perfumes. Beyond love, like or hate, the scent really activates my mind. I daydream about real childhood memories as well as places and experiences I have not had but seem like they existed. My first time eating a fuzzy apricot my mother gave me as a boy; Stone fruit in a wooden bowl in a dusty sunlit artists studio; harvesting apricots from underneath the trees in orchid as a flock of sheep grazes; the smell of a beautiful, well dressed blonde women in the 1980s. The perfume does not really fit my personality and I don't think about wearing it often, but it is always a beautiful experience when I wear it for an evening.

This is Manny Cross's first all-natural scent for Rogue Perfumery, and like Chypre-Siam, this is a remarkably successful attempt to pretty much do a true chypre the old-fashioned way. The textbook definition of a chypre is to use citrus as the opening note; and oakmoss heavily in the basenotes: just as Mitsouko famously mixes peach with its opening citrus, Cross cleverly uses the hard-to-place but delightful smell of apricot mixed with the bergamot to open this. It's a heavenly fruity fragrance: I just love it. Cross really can do old-fashioned chypres gorgeously. I am hard pressed as to whether I should buy a full bottle of this or of Chypre-Siam (although since the price of this is twice of CS due to the expensive all-natural ingredients, my choice has been made for me for now). But these are my two favorites of his fragrances. Update: I had to buy a bottle of this in the end because I love this so much (even though I also bought a bottle of Chypre-Siam). The combination of the leather and especially the apricot note make all the difference for me. This is such a special fragrance--I've never smelled anything quite like it.

There is no doubt that this is one of Manuel Cross's very best Chypre fragrances, actually this is among the best modern Chypre fragrances. It is sad that is is not only no longer being made but is nearly impossible to find. It has sort of a tart apricot mossy leather mix that is electric on the skin. So glamorous! The one set back is I wished it had better longevity although I have no qualms about reapplying it after 3 or 4 hours. The scent somewhat reminds me of Rocha Femme only with Civet and more oak moss. I score it 9 /10 because of the longevity issue. Everything else about it is perfect. It took me two years to find this bottle so now I begin looking for a second bottle or hope that Manny cranks this fragrance back up for a second run. His words to me in an email were as follows: "I unfortunately had to discontinue that fragrance (Flora and Fauna) because a few of the key materials are now unavailable. I’ve been trying to procure more in hopes of running a limited re-release but that is all up in the air right now. " Here's hoping he does find the materials he is missing.

The luxury ingredients in this frag have produced a creamy chypre classic. I did not know that high quality oakmoss has a tendency to come across as a creamy scent. This is amazing, sophisticated and possibly one of the best chypre's available today. Manny once again,"respects the old and brings the new". I still feel this is not getting the love it deserves even though it is rated highly. The other citrus notes enhance the theme and I still haven't figured out which classic fragrance Manny tried to modernize. I suspect it is Mitsouko, if it is; this is considerably better but clearly not as original. So scent and quality only, this is a Masterpiece and a must own for all fine fragrance fans. Since I prefer mostly naturals this is an ideal scent. Possibly the only weakness is longevity, sir-coming to the rumour that naturals don't last. 4.5/5

I've never smelled a vintage version of Mitsouko, but if I'd have to take a guess - this is what I think it had smelled like. A photorealistic, dense, deep, fruity sugary peach accord on top of a bed of the greenest oakmoss, leather and civet. It can not get any better than this if you love chypre. This and Chypre Siam are basically the definition of chypre. It is a shame, that his is a limited release (apparently). I ordered a bottle of Chypre-Siam at a perfumery, they gave me a few 0.5ml samples of different Rogue perfumes (just to get an idea of what the perfume smells like) and I have to say, ALL of them are through and through fantastic, masterful! Manuel Cross has become my favorite perfumer within in a heartbeat, his work is art! Fans of vintage fragrances HAVE to test through this house.