Bois de Babylone Eau de Parfum

Unexpectedly great! Sweet and aromatic - almost verging on soapy at times, thanks to that freesia note - but with an oddly convincing (though synthetic-seeming) woody undertow. I thought II picked up a hint of nutmeg but that may have been an exceptionally discreet suede colliding with well-reined-in elemi. As with a lot of Weltons, there's a distinct tinge of the upscale spa-hotel about it, but it has a stronger and more special presence than many of their equally elegant but more (mostly) anonymous clean-tea treatments. Close your eyes and it's not far-fetched to summon up a fragrant, sweetly-spicy carved wooden box for precious small things bought in a middle-eastern market. Definitely not as dark as ebony and without a hint of stinky oud, though - this is a milder and kinder sort of timber altogether. Doesn't smell much like it, but that sort of 'clean wood with extra class' aura reminded me of Maitre Parfumeur et Gantier's Bois de Turquie. An exceptionally well-groomed rich guy's shaving foam might smell like this, and I mean that with admiration. Still eminently unisex and nichey and distinctive enough that the stiff pricing might even be justified. Give it a try if you get the chance - a genuinely pleasant surprise.

I picked this up at Jovoy in Paris. A wonderful, sophisticated wood. Has a great dry down with amber hues.