First Impressions – Nishane, Tauer, Teo Cabanel, Strangers Parfumerie, Liquides Imaginaires, Note di Profumum

Nishane – Ambra Calabria* – I’ve not encountered anything by this Turkish house I’ve at least not liked. Ambra Calabria is no exception. A green, citrus scent with a wonderful sweet amber and vanilla dry down. The sweet notes never become cloying and the fresh green notes combine with the citrus (bergamot) at the top to make Ambra Calabria a perfect companion for warm weather days. Oh, and as a bonus Ambra Calabria like all Nishane scents will last all day. Very good work indeed.

Nishane – Ani* – Ani is another winner from Nishane. A gorgeous creamy vanilla and sandalwood are paired with fresh notes of ginger and blackcurrant. The vanilla is the dominant note, but it’s done in such an interesting and classy way that one can’t help but admire the scent. I think it would suit the cooler weather better, but I’m going to test it out more in the summer to see what I get from it. Another long-lasting scent from the house, with all day performance. Men who are somewhat reluctant to try vanilla should give Ani a go as I think it is perfectly unisex. I see comparisons with this scent and Mancera’s Cedrat Boise, but for mine I don’t see it, and for what it’s worth Ani is a much stronger fragrance.

Tauer Perfumes – L’Air Des Alpes Suisses* – A real departure from Andy Tauer, in this homage to his Swiss homeland. Gone are the heavy resins and ambers of previous creations. L’Air Des Alpes Suisses opens green and herbal with notes of fir and pine needles, it becomes floral and powdery in the mid with notes of lily and a clean orchid note creeping in. Musky ambergris, mossy birch and tonka sweetness add body and depth. To my nose it leans very much on the masculine side. It won’t be for everyone, but I think I might prefer this one to the steam-iron lemon in L’Eau from a couple of years ago.

Teo Cabanel – Cafe Cabanel* – Cinnamon latte in a perfume bottle. Beautifully blended with gourmand supporting notes of milk, coffee, butter, caramel and vanilla. Heliotrope adds an almond – vanilla like touch. Sweet and comforting, and best saved for cooler winter days. Leans on the feminine side but men can definitely wear this. Inspired by the moment of drinking an espresso in an outdoor French cafe, Cafe Cabanel is going on my list as one of my favourite coffee scents. A beautiful gourmand from Cecile Zarokian. Surprisingly, with the heavy gourmand notes it does get quite soft on skin after a couple of hours.

Strangers Parfumerie – SM Cafe** – Speaking of coffee, SM Cafe is coffee done in a very different way, it combines a coffee shop aroma with smoking Russian leather, modern waxy leather, cherry and tobacco. It’s mainly strong roasted coffee but the other notes mean there’s a lot more intrigue, the soft waxy leather and tobacco add a certain smokiness to the composition, and cherry, amber and beeswax bring in a sweetness. Another one to reserve as a winter warmer, for the lovers of strong coffee. Nice work.

Strangers Parfumerie – Cigar Rum** – My favourite from the Strangers Parfumerie scents I sampled, Cigar Rum does exactly what the moniker on the bottle suggests, transporting you straight into the Caribbean with a heady mix of tobacco and rum. Dried fruit, resins and oak add some depth. It’s not a beastly projector by any means striking a terrific balance between the rum and tobacco notes. I think it is one I could wear all year round. Superb work. I notice that there is now an intense version of this scent available. This 2017 release is well worth sampling though.

Strangers Parfumerie – Salted Green Mango** – Salted Green Mango was the fragrance I was the most looking forward to testing from Strangers. Sadly, it’s left me a little cold. There just seems to be too much going on with a mishmash of notes, pomelo, seaweed, sea salt, mango, chili pepper, gooseberry, bitter orange, sandalwood and vetiver not combining well. It comes across as synthetic and screeching. The seaweed and sea salt are certainly prominent. Shame.

Liquides Imaginaires – Fleur de Sable** – Liquides Imaginaires released 3 fragrances this year in their “Oriental Gardens Collection”. Tapis Volant is one of my favourite releases of the year, Fleur de Sable is a mineral like, spicy floral with notes of paprika, Eglantine rose, myrrh, pink and black pepper and salt. The rose and myrrh are the main notes and it is in the same realm as the dewy, smoky rose in Myrrh Eglantine from Hermes, with added body from the pepper and spices, but to be honest I prefer the freshness of the Hermes, and I don’t think it quite reaches the heights of Tapis Volant. It faded from skin within 4 hours.

Liquides Imaginaires – Buveur de Vent** – This is a beautiful herbal green fragrance built around a supple, smoky leather note. Clary sage, juniper, cypress, tarragon and oakmoss give the scent a very fresh green feel, with no detectable sweetness. Very much masculine leaning, and perhaps a touch retro. I think this is a stronger scent than Fleur de Sable, but again perhaps not to the level of Tapis Volant. Certainly packs a punch and is quite long lasting on skin at 10 plus hours.

Note di Profumum Vetta* – Marketed as unisex, but Vetta is a masculine-leaning green, earthy, mossy scent built around notes of galbanum, oakmoss, a smoky incense and a dominant note of angelica. It didn’t project as much as I thought it would, so it would make a perfect everyday scent for those working at close quarters with others. Refined and elegant, very good work.

Have you tried any of these scents? What did you make of them?

Note: Bottle images courtesy of fragrantica. * Tested from a sample sent to me by my Instagram perfume friend, Tete @niche_rare_fragrances. Thankyou Tete for the samples. **Tested from a sample I obtained online.