By Thomas
I recently took up chess again and remembered how clumsy I was (am) at the game. After a few well-deserved smackdowns, I started watching other games and noticed that there is a set role that each player assumes (white: attack, black: defend), and that there are openings and counter-openings where the first few moves of the game develop the pieces for the mid-game.
Most people have a few set openings that they are familiar with and use constantly, but once in a while you get a curveball that either surprises and succeeds, or goes down quickly in flames (Larsen-Spassky, 1970…if you’re interested). Palisander is one of those curveballs, and fortunately for us, it succeeds rather well.
At first whiff, there is no pine, no bergamot, no rosemary – nothing pungent (i.e. - attention getting). It’s a mild, earthy, scent that I thought I’d recognized right off the bat. John Varvatos? Nope – not quite. Turned out it reminded me of a shaving soap scented with Sage, Cedar, and Sweetgrass. I love that soap, and this scent is a brighter version of that great scent. As it turns out, Palisander is another name for Brazilian Rosewood, for what that’s worth.
Development…comes eventually. By starting with sweetness, sage and cedar, you’re pretty well into the heart when you spray it, so there’s not much in terms of development for a while. At 3 hours or so, pepper and incense notes come forth – the incense reminds me of Messe de Minuit without the heaviness – the pepper and cedar keep it fairly lean and upright.
The pepper/cedar/incense note goes on for a little while longer – but the curtain falls on Palisander too soon for my taste. Wears close to the skin, I think due to the lack of pungent opening notes. By lunchtime the sillage is largely gone. Without the heavy musks or ambers, you can’t expect this to stick around a long time, but still…I would have liked it to loiter a bit more. A good, low-key scent, great for those who actually like the people they carpool or play chess with.
Year: 2001
Perfumer: Yann Vasnier, Francoise Caron
Notes: Palisander Wood, Red Cedar, Red Chili Peppers, Saffron, Myrrh
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