Cosa Nostra

Cosa Nostra Parfum was launched in February 2021 and it is a creation of the perfumer Renato Lopena. It is part of the collection of authorial fragrances of his independent brand, Wren Atelier, founded in 2020. The inspiration came from the movie “365 DNI” and its central character, Massimo Torricelli. The fragrance of Cosa Nostra is classified by the perfumer as powdery, bringing top notes of Sicilian bergamot and cognac, over a warm and boozy heart with notes of Bourbon whiskey, in addition to a metallic accord, gunpowder accord, and leather. At the base, the composition ends with notes of vetiver, tobacco, amber, cedar, and musk. By touching the skin, even the shyest man feels that his self-esteem has risen. And this comes from a cultural and affective effect of the male universe that has been selling, for decades, an image that the man of power does not impose respect, but fear, smokes cigars, serves himself expensive drinks, asks for favors by blackmailing, and abuses force when feels betrayed. Look at the ingredients list above and see how it all fits, perfectly, with the context of the aforementioned movie and so many others that portray the Italian mob in the way we always hear about it. In fact, Cosa Nostra is precisely the name of a criminal society that developed in the first half of the 19th century, in Sicily, becoming the true origin of what we know as the “mafia”. Returning to the fragrance, a lot of what I feel revolves around the boozy and spicy nuances that exude with consistency. But what makes this composition sensual, and challenging is the smell of raw leather, which gets an aspect of burning incense and goes through all the stages of evolution, which seems minimal, but is treacherous. And in this plot, which could be in any book or film, the final nuances of tobacco merge with the initials, of cognac, and create a continuous effect of attraction for the primitive, the rude. Anyone who has tried any of the woodiest fragrances from the Fueguia 1833 Patagonia brand will identify with this masterpiece by Renato Lopena Jr. Undoubtedly, this perfume is an artistic trait that reveals the attraction we feel for what is beautiful, wild, and indomitable. After all, brutes love it too.

Almost my entire collection consists of explorations of smokey, leathery and animal notes, the works of known and relatively unknown perfumers from many countries. Cosa Nostra is possibly the most interesting of them all. At first I didn’t take Cassiano’s discussion of brutality in this fragrance very seriously, but after getting to know it, I realize he is exactly right. There is a hard, unforgiving side to it that doesn’t want to let go. In the long evolution on skin though, it becomes something nostalgic and quite profound. The initial blast of smoke hits with terrible intensity, very realistic. There may be bergamot present but on my skin it’s only fleeting, drowned in the explosion. A whisky accord surfaces a bit later and then the central premise of the fragrance, a tough leather, comes to the fore. The feeling is of strength and passion. Hours later an unsweet amber unfolds and here the nostalgic, addictive part of the fragrance resides. Cosa Nostra performs very well, appearing through the day as it completes its dramatic journey. Spectacular.

This is very masculine and has lot of macho man character. The opening is WILD gunpowder, cognac and whiskey, it then dries down to a BEAUTIFUL BEAUTIFUL vetiver and tobacco note that harmonizes with my skin. Im not familiar with the movie that inspired this perfume. But all I can say is this perfume evokes wild and beautiful.

If chaos, anguish and love is a perfume. This reminds me of an organized mess. Traffic. The smell of non-airconditioned bus or an overused commuter jeepney that blows out black fumes! An abandoned warehouse full of shady men in uniform. Filipino gangster. Or... The annoying relative but is the life of the family gathering. Your chronic smoker and alcoholic friend you can't live without. Your tambay neighbor who has a pleasing personality but is coming in and out of the prison due to misdemeanor. The EX you left behind but you keep on coming back despite checking all the red flags. It is the job you hate but pays the bill. This is ambivalence in a bottle. A combination of cognac, whiskey, leather, gunpowder, METALLIC NOTES and tobacco. This screams MAFIA! Overwhelming leather, bitter, smoky, the smell of ashtray, old wood that comes of as incense. Very boozy - not the ladies' drink but the drink you gobble up when you are in despair - when your ex left you and you devoured all the available alcohol you came across but you survived. It is not for the faint of heart. It is not for everyone. Not a safe blind buy. Collector level perfume. Not for everyday use. Of power and mercy. Ungraceful and wild yet acceptable and tolerable. A love that cannot be. An exquisite pain. Artisinal.

Wren Cosa Nostra (2021) - leather smoke - @renatolopenajr ‘s perfume starts boozy, a mixture of Bergamot, Bourbon and Cognac accord. Yet it quickly smoothens having an herbal fougere top that reminds me of #pourunhommedecaron ‘s Lavender. In its heart, I get hay-like Tobacco, but with a twist of adding a Gunpowder accord that creates this 3D smokey effect. Its base has Leather, woods and I also get a hint of salty-skin musks. Reminds me old west movies: bars, gun fights, and leather jackets. Technically good as the perfume remains radiant and balanced making it quite versatile, even for humid and tropical weather.