L'Arbre de la Connaissance by Jovoy

*****
Year: 2011

Notes: citrus, fig, leaves, patchouli, sandalwood
L'Arbre de la Connaissance begins with a lot of promise but quickly fails to live up to the opening.

After the (fruity) nail polish remover top notes dissipate, what follows is probably one of the best fig aromas ever encountered – a forest green freshness, fused with citrus, fig and a fruity aldehydic note. The citrus is relatively reserved, the fig is more woody than fruity, and the leaves provide a dark and rich verdancy to the proceedings. With coconut nuances, throughout the composition's lifespan, the green aromatic aspect is highly captivating. Unfortunately, minutes later, things start to go seriously wrong...

As it enters the heart, the general aroma suddenly smells more plastic-like, with an aroma chemical fruitiness (highly reminiscent of peach) infiltrating the creamy greenness of the fig. It's a strange combination that results in an unbalanced composite aroma of the two. By the time patchouli surfaces, only the coconut aspects of the fig remain. When it reaches the drydown, all that's left is a generic mishmash of fruits and woods, with creamy sandalwood flourishes.

Developed by Marc Fanton d'Andon, it could have been a lot better had the artificial fruitiness been toned down, with a greater presence of complementary notes for the fig premise. As it stands, it comes across as a wasted opportunity.

Diffusion is moderate, persisting for up to five hours on the skin.


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