Guest review by Thomas of Houston
My test for buying clothing is simple. If I smile, I buy. If I wrinkle my nose, or squint, or frown – back to the rack it goes. This test isn’t as reliable for perfumes because they take time to reveal their secrets. Right from the bottle Baladin (Nicolaï) presents a bitter, herbal smell – tarragon, pepper, oregano. Not bad, if you’re stuffing a turkey. But my nose wrinkled.
The good news (since I bought this one blind…) is that within five minutes, the scent expands with the addition of burnt sugar and a bit of basil to round out the reedy herbal opening. The tarragon is still there, but it’s rounder and more balanced with the added sweetness. It feels like the slightly dour guest has now settled back into his chair instead of perched at the edge of his seat.
After a couple of hours, vetiver enters through a side door, and slowly makes its way to join the tarragon. Light leather notes fade in and out – sometimes I notice them, other times not – but between the vetiver and tarragon there’s not much room for the leather. It’s a bit like pulling fresh herbs from the garden and occasionally catching a whiff of the glove you’re wearing. Later on a bit of lemon turns up to replace the tarragon, and things get a bit cleaner, more tidy.
Through the hours, Baladin never relaxes. Lots of masculine scents lean back and eventually throw their arms along the back of the couch, but not this one. It’s well-made, a bit formal and tightly-wound, a man who’s never inappropriate but doesn’t smile often enough to be missed when he’s gone.
Year: 1994
Perfumer: Patricia di Nicolaï
Notes: Thyme, Tarragon, Leather, Vetiver
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Thanks to Thomas for the review of this great classic!
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