I’d read a lot of positive feedback about Clue Perfumery, a new niche house from the US, based in Chicago. Flaconneur had posted on the brand last year on his blog https://perfumuschicago.wordpress.com/2024/08/17/get-a-clue/, and it had piqued my interest. As my sister was returning to Australia from New York in July, I thought it might be a good opportunity to send her some samples to take back to Australia. Unfortunately, the brand’s discovery set was sold out, but I was able to procure a sample of their latest scent, Dandelion Butter. I’ve been wearing the sample over the last couple of days.
The brand lists pollen, dandelion green, dandelion, snapped stem, sap, and butter in their note pyramid. There’s no mention of fig in the notes, but Dandelion Butter smells very green and figgy in its opening. Indeed, I can see why some folk have listed Philosykos as a smell-alike. Perhaps it’s the sap note that’s giving off that milky, green fig quality. But I wouldn’t write this off as a clone of the Diptyque; that would be doing it an injustice.
Dandelion Butter doesn’t highlight woody notes like the Diptyque. It certainly diverges from any comparisons with the Diptyque quite promptly. Though it never loses its green qualities, after a few minutes, it starts to take on a smooth buttery texture. The buttery aspect has a savoury leaning. Then the introduction of the pollen note brings in a honeyed sweetness. The sweet and savoury angles make for an interesting contrast against the bitter, green, sappy top.
It’s not an overly complicated perfume, but the interesting contrasts and textures make for an intriguing profile. I mentioned the smoothness of the butter, but I detect something fluffy and dusty, too. I see yellow and green colours when I wear this perfume. I’m even more intrigued to try their other wares now that I’ve sampled Dandelion Butter. I notice a suspiciously high number of reviews on Fragrantica for such a small brand, though. Still, I like Dandelion Butter. I have an inkling this may be their most mass-appealing offering, however. Other, more challenging scent discoveries lie ahead. I’m eagerly awaiting a stockist here in Australia picking the brand up sometime soon.
Have you sampled the brand yet?
Here’s a link to the brand’s page https://www.clueperfumery.com/products/dandelion-butter
Note: Images are my own, other than the bottle image, which comes courtesy of Clue Perfumery.
Here are some other images that resemble Dandelion Butter.
I’m thrilled that you’ve had the chance to try at least one of Clue Perfumery’s products, Daniel. I’ve been diligently checking the Clue website and Lucky Scent for the availability of the sample set, but unfortunately, it hasn’t been available since my last post in August. However, I checked just now, and Clue now indicates that it’s available. I’ll definitely place an order as soon as I return from my upcoming trip. I hope it’s still available when I return.
When I think of the smell of dandelions, I remember them being acrid and slightly latex-like. As you suggested, this might be the reason behind the drawn similarity to Philosykos. I’m eagerly looking forward to getting my hands on the complete sample set. The names of the samples got me curious: The Point, Morel Map, With the Candlestick, Warm Bulb, and Dandelion Butter. I’m glad you had the opportunity to sample Clue!
Thanks for the recommendation, Flaconneur. Yes, their discovery set seems to be in high demand. They’ve received a lot of traction very early. Ah, I was wondering if you’d sampled the brand since your introductory post, and now I have an answer. The names are very interesting. I hope you enjoy your sample pack and the rest of your trip.
Haven’t tried anything from Clue yet, and frankly wouldn’t be intrigued by a name such as Dandelion Butter, but your description of the fragrance sounds interesting. I sometimes wish it were easier to smell perfumes without knowing their names first, to avoid biasing the first impression.
Fair enough, Nose Prose. Yes, that would be such an interesting exercise to sample without having the names or the marketing material in front of us to prejudice.
This brand is new to me. I like the sound of your description of Dandelion Butter. Beautiful captures, as always!
Thanks very much, Tetê. Yes, they are quite a new brand, but seem to be enjoying some early success.