Prométhée by Olivier Durbano

*****

Year: 2014

Notes: myrtle, Russian sage, pink pepper, nutmeg, fennel, lavender, Caucasian lily, daffodil, cistus, fenugreek, labdanum, myrrh, olibanum, styrax, cedar, vetiver, ambergris, musk

Turning his attention to Greek mythology, instead of precious gemstones, Olivier Durbano's Prométhée gathers its inspiration from the famous Titan (and son of Iapetus), Prometheus.

Coming across as a woody-aromatic, it's primarily about the fenugreek – sandwiched between a layer of spicy, herbaceous and floral chords, and another layer of woods, resins and musks. With a peppery-aniseed leaning, the composition exudes a dark, leathery and immortelle-like aroma, with most of the components embellishing the star note. This is especially true of the floral heart, which isn't sweet, fresh or floral by any means. Instead, the mid notes provide an extra aromatic dimension to the proceedings, albeit in a desiccated sense.

As it further develops, a warm creaminess gradually peeks from the earthy, woody and mossy tones, with the composite aroma now being highly reminiscent of hay (probably courtesy of the emerging grassy vetiver). With a subdued styrax smokiness, any evident sweetness is very Lutens-esque in a fruity-resinous manner. And it's only towards the drydown when the fenugreek slowly surrenders its dominance to the sharp woody muskiness of the vetiver, ambergris and musk.

Compared to the previous releases from this French niche house, Prométhée marks quite a stylistic departure (or, quite possibly, a brief detour) that one considers more appealing. Overall, it's slightly richer, less sweet and better executed, with far less emphasis on the frankincense. While one doesn't really consider it bottle-worthy, one still found it more pleasurable and satisfying to wear than most of Olivier Durbano's previous (and cheaper-smelling) outings.

Projection ranges from moderate to low, with staying power of around six hours.

Lapis Philosophorum by Olivier Durbano

*****

Year: 2013

Notes: grapefruit, rum, wine sediment, white truffle, menthol, juniper berry, calamus, mesquite, Oman frankincense, myrrh, opopanax, oakmoss, ambergris, musk

Inspired by the mythical Philosopher's Stone (an alchemical substance capable of turning an inexpensive metal into gold or silver), Lapis Philosophorum is Olivier Durbano's ninth fragrance release.

It starts out with a tart and mentholated booziness, which includes a creamy truffle accord amidst the rum and wine sediment. As a warm, woody, fruity and cinnamon-like aura soon takes hold, it becomes clear how crucial the calamus is to the composition. The resinous components aren't particularly smoky, and one would even go so far to say that the frankincense is merely an obligatory note. But, somehow, all the accords throughout work together seemingly well.

With green aromatic subtleties infiltrating a woody-musk foundation, it's moderately robust with average sillage. And even though one isn't a fan of this house, one certainly has to give Lapis Philosophorum some credit for its interesting structure.

Heliotrope by Olivier Durbano

*****

Year: 2012

Notes: red mandarin, elemi, olibanum, red pepper, ginger, saffron, angelica, magnolia, heliotrope, myrrh, benzoin, nagarmotha, cedar, sandalwood, ambergris, musk

According to Walter Schumann's 'Gemstones of the World', there are close to 200 different varieties of natural gemstones in existence.

With the release of Citrine, one presumed that the Bijoux de Pierres Poèmes series had come to an end. After all, the collection was always meant to have consisted of seven fragrances, based on various gemstones. With regards to Heliotrope, the goalposts have now been moved. So much for art over commerce...

This creation isn't named after the flower but is inspired by the heliotrope stone, also known as the bloodstone. And just like the colour of the juice, the spicy resinous opening is vermilion, fiery, raspy and flamboyant. Sadly, it rapidly evolves into something mundane, slightly gaudy and is unsatisfyingly wispy on the skin.

Although heliotrope is listed, it's not as gourmand as originally expected and slots in very comfortably with this house's olfactory style. It's resinous, warm, red berry-like but, at the same time, rather inoffensive. Once again, Olivier Durbano disappoints with this olfactory effort but, then again, one wasn't really expecting much.

Citrine by Olivier Durbano

*****

Year: 2011

Notes: Sicilian lemon, wild orange, elemi, ginger, pink pepper, carrot seed, mimosa, rosewood, guaiac wood, myrrh, beeswax, ambergris, musk

Being the final instalment in the regarded Bijoux de Pierres Poèmes series, Paris-based jeweller and perfumer Olivier Durbano presents his olfactory interpretation of the seventh gemstone, Citrine.

Commencing with a sweet and vibrant opening, it's largely a woody-citrus affair with a touch of elemi. Strangely enough, the ginger, black pepper and carrot seed are too preoccupied playing hide and seek, while the elemi dramatically lowers its volume within moments. The woods and myrrh attempt to provide further body, but it's a futile effort since the overall composition smells both anaemic and trite.

With unsatisfactory sillage and average longevity, even the pleasantly understated beeswax and musk drydown can't prevent this underwhelming series from ending on a pathetic whimper.

Pink Quartz by Olivier Durbano

*****

Year: 2010

Notes: bergamot, pink grapefruit, Somali olibanum, ginger, saffron, palmarosa, Damascus rose, Indian rose, Indian rosewood, myrrh, benzoin, patchouli, ambergris, white musk

Pink Quartz is Olivier Durbano's sixth instalment in the Bijoux de Pierres Poèmes series, and is classified as a spicy-chypré.

Personally, it smells nothing like a spicy-chypré but is far more within the confines of a floral-oriental. One can't detect much ginger but the presence of the saffron provides a certain degree of spiciness to the early stages of its development. With fleeting citrus top notes, a tart rose accord initially prevails. But there's also something decidedly thin (rather than ethereal) about it – coming across as more designer-esque than niche.

The unveiling of frankincense redeems it from descending into an abyss of mediocrity, by providing extra body and a resinous facet to balance out the tart sweetness. Soon, the frankincense becomes the main focal point as the rose transforms into a fresher and more subdued aroma. With restrained woody and resinous notes, the drydown sees the gradual weakening of the rose and frankincense against a sweet musk base.

With moderate longevity, it fails to provide anything memorable or substantial, other than offering incense lovers more choice. In addition, one really doesn't consider it to be worthy of its retail price.

Black Tourmaline by Olivier Durbano

*****

Year: 2007

Notes: coriander, pepper, cardamom, cumin, frankincense, smoked wood, oud, leather, patchouli, amber, moss, precious woods, musk

Black Tourmaline is, undoubtedly, the best release from this house to date. As the name suggests, it's truly a dark, evocative and gothic incense scent, which leaves the unwearable birch tar smokiness of Tauer Perfume's Lonestar Memories completely in the shade.

It's a distinctive and compelling creation, which opens with a burnt and smoky aroma of birch tar, frankincense and pine resin that's not as harsh as Lonestar Memories. The addition of spices and oud provide an element of exoticism, the leather and woods add a self-assured aura of masculinity, while the amber and musk contribute a degree of warmth and sensuality that's devoid in the many of its peers.

The charred, austere and dry aspects of the composition are perfectly balanced with sweet and spicy accords, imposing an irresistibly turbid and mysterious woody-aromatic. While its development is relatively linear, it also possesses substantial sillage and very good longevity (at least six hours with a moderate application).

Black Tourmaline isn't an archetypal incense fragrance, strictly based on olfactory associations with churches, temples or monasteries. Instead, it's a surprisingly delightful incense rendition that's bold, rich and edgy. While some may not find it particularly versatile, let alone wearable, it does require an adventurous soul to wear it on a frequent basis.

Although one has yet to acquire a bottle, one certainly feels that it's only a matter of time...

Rock Crystal by Olivier Durbano

*****

Year: 2005

Notes: coriander, cardamom, pepper, cumin, orange blossom, olibanum, frankincense, myrrh, benzoin, cistus, cedar, everlasting flower, vetiver, oakmoss, sandalwood, musk

For its expensive retail price and general lack of tenacity, Rock Crystal finds itself in the unfortunate position of fighting a losing battle, especially when it comes to selecting a fairly robust incense fragrance.

The opening is a creamy orange burst that hastily retreats for the spices, frankincense and cedar. This stage is almost as fleeting, before the emergence of some cistus and myrrh is drawn to the fore. With underlining base notes of everlasting flower, oakmoss and vetiver, these accords work together to accurately mimic the aroma of clean leather.

Overall, it's well-composed but also woefully insubstantial, with gentle sillage. While this austere and resinous scent remains a worthy incense offering, it simply doesn't possess enough depth to enchant.

Jade by Olivier Durbano

*****

Year: 2008

Notes: mint, green tea, Chinese cinnamon, cardamom, star anise, jasmine, iris, amber, immortelle, patchouli, vetiver, yerba mate, moss, musk

For a green scent, Jade is a very strange creation indeed and almost beyond conventional classification, as its composition isn't strictly of the herbaceous or aromatic variety.

Instead, its opening is dense, slightly mentholated and musky, smelling similar to a handful of glistening green jellybeans – sweet, slightly acidic and somewhat spicy. The combination of green tea, mint and various spices evoke a vague Far Eastern theme, which recalls Amouage's Epic Woman and its equally unique use of a green tea accord. However, Jade is less resinous and sophisticated, as well as being significantly sweeter.

Although the florals remain discreetly in the background, the jasmine is occasionally detectable. The infiltration of the woody notes prevent it from becoming too sickly sweet, while the maté provides a level of continuance to its spicy celadon-esque aroma. Even though no frankincense is listed, there's definitely a perceptible trace (but only just).

Jade is a fragrance that's very tough to pin down but, while it's both unique and intriguing, is still very wearable. However, one wonders if the end-result could have been a lot better if the sweetness was tempered further, by a greater presence of the resinous qualities (from the array of green and woody notes) the composition has to offer. Still, it's certainly one of the better offerings from this house.

Amethyst by Olivier Durbano

*****

Year: 2006

Notes: bergamot, grape, raspberry, pepper, frankincense, jasmine, orris, vanilla, vegetable amber, Brazilian rosewood, sandalwood, musk

Amethyst is a fruity-incense scent, possessing a distinctive and juicy grape accord that's strongly reminiscent of something smelt many times before (Christian Dior's Poison? Escada's Magnetism for Men?). With a woody and smoky base, it's somewhat captivating in its own simplistic way. However, it isn't terribly compelling either (although the faint woody vanilla drydown is one of its minor highlights).

While it's not an outstanding composition, it would still make a pleasant office scent (albeit rather an expensive one). Projection is minimal but it's hardly detectable after a couple of hours.

Turquoise by Olivier Durbano

*****

Year: 2009

Notes: turpentine, rose berry, coriander, juniper berry, elemi, Somali olibanum, fragrant reed, fucus seaweed, lily, lotus, everlasting flower, honey, myrrh wood, ambergris

Turquoise is a peppery-incense aquatic that initially came across as amateurish, cheap and overwrought. But, upon testing it further, one is surprised to discover that it doesn't smell as bad as originally thought.

It's bad enough when a niche house releases an aquatic fragrance but it's even more confounding when nothing groundbreaking or distinctive has been brought to the table. But, in it's defence, the addition of fucus seaweed and frankincense appears to be, in theory, relatively unique.

However, with so many aquatics already employing prominent woody or peppery notes, it's not as unique as it tries to make out. In addition, the marine aspect of the composition smells no different from a generic calone-riddled designer alternative (especially during its somewhat smoky drydown).

While it's not a complete disaster, one remains nonplussed as to who would be interested in buying a bottle of Turquoise, when there are several cheaper interpretations available.