Opium Secret de Parfum

From time to time, a friend, also a perfume lover, sends me some perfume decants from his collection and I recently received one of this flanker from Opium, released in 1992. Opium Secret de Parfum has the signature of the original Opium, but in a soft, smooth, rounded way... the spicy notes of the original have been softened, giving more space for balsamic tones, of benzoin and vanilla, and resinous, of myrrh and opoponax, which are harmonized with spicy bitterness marigold, together with the woody of the patchouli. All of this makes the perfume not only incredibly comfortable, but also long-lasting. The resinous bitterness prevents it from turning into gourmand or just a cloying candy. Its aroma is very pleasant, relaxing and meditative. It warmly surrounds you with its balsamic, amber base. Some fresher and more floral notes are not overlooked, such as orange drops and a lighter touch of bergamot, giving room even for a light florality coming from jasmine and rose. In Eau de Parfum concentration, its scent is intense, with great sillage, yet mild. A deeply balsamic myrrh adorned by the marigold. Mature, elegant and attractive. This is the most beautiful version of Opium I know. A scent of noble resins that slowly leave the skin... a narcotic delight that I just can't stop wanting to feel. Opium Secret de Parfum is about that. About keeping this secret, which some rare fragrances have... presence, but gentle... subtlety, but remarkable. Perfumes are no longer made like in the past.

Oh soooooo nice!!! I have a very small vial that came in a vintage gift with purchase set from Saks that also came with Opium EDT, some lotion, and shower gel. This smells the most like the Opium I remember from the early 80s, when I was a senior in high school and would spray with abandon even in the midst of a summer heatwave!! I need to seek out a larger bottle. I love the resinous quality, and while I do not want to make light about the reality of narcotic addiction, if I close my eyes, I can easily conjure up a fantasy image of some decadent, silken, pillowy opium den. It is that good. If that imagery turns you off, give it a try anyway if you get a chance. Just because I'm debauched doesn't mean everyone is! ;) PS - have the vintage EDT on one hand and Secret on another. Secret is much softer, and less challenging than the EDT. Both will forever be a part of my collection. It's becoming more difficult for me to purchase the fragrances of today with their stripped down, smell alike, poor longevity inferiority when there are so many glorious vintage perfumes available. Not all the new ones, not niche as much, but in general. You can have your Black Opium and it's flankers and enjoy them, because it's all subjective anyway. But to me, THIS is a perfection.

If you're hankering after Fate Woman, this is extremely close, and while they're both discontinued, this one can be found for under 100 euros whereas people are trying to sell Fate for five or six times more these days. This is missing the chili note, and smells more vintage but I guarantee if you love one you'll love the other, and the dry down is virtually indistinguishable for me. I have the EDP in the tall flacon btw. Update: This is one of those rare perfumes that keeps getting stronger as it dries down. I've had it on for a couple of hours now and while it seemed ethereal and delicate at first, now it's absolutely BELTING out all over the place. The marigold and myrhh are the strongest notes for me in the drydown. Of course being Fragrantica, the notes are wrong. There is also very prominent clove, getting more and more pronounced as it wears on. This is where is diverges again from Fate Woman, as I don't get even a hint of cinnamon here.

OMG! Ths is absolutely massive! Yet it's still a little more reserved and feels less raw and sexy (for want of a better word) than the original Opium which is an immense, classic perfume. This is much more of that kind of hardcore chypre with apricot powder and a carnation sort of feel to me. However running quite prominantly unerneath it's a huge amber accord and I can get that myrhh/opoponax could be driving the whole thing. That unpretty 'wild flower' effect of Opium comes through too, the marigold accord perhaps? I mean I doubt you'd even be visiting this Fragrantica page unless you're a hardcore perfumista and if you find a well kept sample or bottle of this I almost guarantee that Opium Secret will deliver a proper perfume experience and something you will somewhat be expecting. You'll love it basically. I know I do.

This actually was released in 1993, not 2003. It was (and is) Opium Eau de Parfum, in a 'peek-a-boo' sort of container. Somewhat softer and more tender than the eau de toilette of the time, but otherwise very similar. Excellent longevity and sillage, as all vintage versions of Opium had. If you come across it today for a reasonable price and you love vintage Opium, grab it. There is utterly zero chance of getting a reformulated version as it was only out for a couple of years, and it's all wonderful. Puts the modern L'Oreal garbage versions to shame.