Incense Suede

It took me awhile to fully appreciate this masterpiece, but this is now my favorite scent. Rich, smokey, medicinal (with a tiny spark of sweetness) frankincense is the star here and if that is what you are after, then you fill get it full force here. The suede is the base in which all the other notes play off of, but this is an incense fragrance through and through and it's the best one I have ever smelt. I wear this in summer and winter, day and night, how much I apply depends on the situation. Long lasting, somewhat linear and always satisfying this is my signature. Ive always wanted this but at $250 a bottle I was reluctant. When it became discontinued I saw it on line for $66 and I bought one immediately. The moment I wore it I was kicking myself for not getting another. I went back to the site and the price jumped to $100, then I purchased two more in a blind frenzy. Hey, $266 for 3 bottles like buying one and getting two free at regular retail right? (according to my fragrance obsessed logic). Now the prices are going up and availability is getting scarce. My advice: If you are a incense freak, splurge now and get a bottle while you can. You won't be disappointed. You will thank me later.

This is more of a response to Voile: You are certainly entitled to your opinion on whether you like the fragrance or not. But you are wrong in assuming that others that don't agree with your opinion are somehow "incentivised" and not authentic. I assure you my review praising this is only motivated by my love for this fragrance. My review is honest and as objective as I can make it. I bought a bottle, then bought another once I had used it up. Also, fragrances can end up at certain discounters for a number of reasons. Demand is one, yes, but Ferragamo in particular recently refreshed their whole Tuscan Soul and Tuscan Scent lines, combining them into a new line called "Tuscan Creations". Many of the older scents live on with a new name: Testa di Moro is the (probably reformulated) equivalent of Incense Suede As such, the original creations had to make way for the new line. So they went to the discounters. (BTW I surmised this from researching the different lines. I don't work for Ferragamo at all. A bit of research on Fragrantica would lead someone to the same conclusion). You are fully entitled to your opinion. Just don't disparage other opinions to make yours seem somehow "better".

Most perfumes are suggestive: this one's evocative. A young tourist walked by me wearing this and I just had to stop and ask him what he was wearing. It's such a beautiful, nostalgic scent this. I'm not sure what miraculous combination of lithurgical incense and perfumery leather led to this, but it's brilliant. It reminded me instantly of rooms in my grandfather's workshop from when I was a child: sawdust, smoke, wood resins, all coalescing into a warm, lived-in smell. I almost had tears in my eyes when I smelled it in the boutique today. I will be wearing this, because it is one of the few ways that I can immediately project who I am and where I come from: this fragrance is a portable force field, a blanket from harm.

Let me add my review to the many glowing reviews. I finally got a bottle of this after smelling it in Las Vegas and being completely blown away by it! It starts off with a smoky incense with a hint of leather, but as time goes on gets more rugged and a nice cedar/pine note comes through. I imagine that this is what an incensed church in a rocky mountain lodge would smell like. rough hewn and woody, but resiny and amazing too. And the bottle is simply phenomenal. It almost feels like a work of art. This and DG Velvet Vetiver are my two major discoveries from my fragrance "haj" to Las Vegas. :-)

I wanted to love this one since I love Golden Acacia. This one is okay IMO. The one thing that bothers me about this one though is, for some reason, after about the first 15 minutes, I smell pencil shavings. Isn't that strange, Remember what pencil shavings smell like? So to me this is a fresh interpretation of luxury pencil shavings. Not sure if anyone else gets this or maybe Im crazy. Not that it's a bad thing. It just is what it is. Update: I have now grown to love the woody pencil shavings note with the leather. Give it a chance..