Parfumeur Createur Patchouli Intense

Patchouli Intense is a beautiful and unusual take on a patchouli-dominant scent. After a lull of sorts in my Nicolaï discovery set (nothing bad, but several unremarkable scents), PI is another masterpiece from the repertoire of the formidably talented Patricia de Nicolaï. A multifaceted scent, it is at times aromatic and herbal, becoming balsamic and featuring some amber and woody nuances along the way. It shares facets of the chypre and fougère families without truly adhering to either scent profile. Patchouli is placed firmly centre-stage here, and it somehow feels different to other patchouli scents. I have long found patchouli to be a challenging but ultimately rewarding note - I used to dislike it, and avoided scents containing a prominent patchouli note, but now I count it among my favourite notes. Le Labo Patchouli 24 and Perris Monte Carlo Patchouli Nosy Be (and, to a lesser extent, Frédéric Malle Monsieur) are my favourite patchouli scents, and I would now put PI up there with those.

I used to like a long lasting frag, till i met this. Patchouli Intense has a great performance, i mean really great! IMO its how EDP concentration should be, and other brands should have this frag's standard on making their EDP. The projection and sillage are not in beast category, but its close to be called a beast. Just from 2 sprays on my arms, almost choked me in my bedroom, i had to wash it off. Lesson learned, this is not a small room frag. Im not a faint hearted, im used to strong frags such as Unique'e Luxury's line, Xerjoff Alex II, Amouage Royal Tobacco, and many more; but Patchouli Intense somehow choking me in a small room.

Working from a sample. But as the kids say, this slaps. I really enjoy it. A bit pricey but great if you can get it at a discounter. The notes work well together and the patchouli shines. I normally try to find more affordable opportunities. With this, it makes a hard argument just to get it. I picked up SAP patchouli intense extract. It is potent at first. But it comes off sour to me during the opening. Great to compare the difference in quality. They do not have the same notes but wanted to try based on name alone. Go ahead. Splurge a little for this version.

I have to address a couple of comments here because I cannot tolerate people calling this a fougere.... Not every lavender is a fougere... and yes, patchouli is overdosed here and it is green. can't you just admit that a great perfumer like Patricia is masterful enough not to create another reminiscence type of patchouli??? Instead, she created a greener patchouli, more round, extremely sophisticated, and with a beautiful oriental finish. This is an woody-oriental, just like Coromandel is. If Patricia wanted to make it a fougere, she'd have done it!

My goodness, what a delectable thing this is. I’ve been pretty blown away since acquiring a bottle. It has the Nicolaï signature all over it, with certain accords that immediately remind me of my beloved New York Intense. But what a patchouli!