the different company – This Side of Perfume

Jasmin de Nuit by The Different Company

May 26, 2016

Notes: Egyptian jasmin, amber, blackcurrant, star anise, spices, cinnamon, cardamom, and sandalwood.

Jasmin de Nuit was originally released in 2005 so it’s not new, but it is new to me. I love a white floral for spring/summer. Anything featuring jasmine or lily of the valley is just fine by me. However, Jasmin de Nuit is different for a jasmine scent, and different even for a floral scent because, well, it doesn’t come across as very floral. It sounds a bit odd, but I’ve grown to like this scent, and I even like it for the warmer spring weather.

Luckyscent lists the spices in Jasmin de Nuit fairly far down the note pyramid, but I find the opening to be mildly spicy and fizzy (from the cardamom). I will note that Fragrantica lists bergamot and mandarin orange in the top notes, which I can definitely sense. The opening here is not distinctly floral. Instead, it’s airy, spicy, and almost tangy. The jasmine appears after a couple of minutes as a soft and almost sweet presence. After the initial opening, the fizzy, tangy aspect calms down and Jasmin de Nuit transforms into a beautifully subdued and smooth blend of jasmine and amber. The amber gives off a soft powdery quality. It stays very close to the skin for me and almost takes on a comfort scent vibe.

At first, I thought the scent would fade away at this point but, luckily, there’s more! The cinnamon makes a return appearance and it’s more intense and long lasting this time around. Jasmin de Nuit kind of teeters on the edge of a gourmand scent at this point, but I find that the jasmine turns it up a notch just before heading into the dry down. Also, the jasmine becomes just a touch indolic at this point, and it’s that hint of dirty floral that keeps the composition from going into full edible gourmand territory. The dry down is even more warm with sandalwood and just a hint of patchouli building off of the amber. The spices and the jasmine settle into a sweet blend, that almost comes across as vanilla but, again, not edible.

Jasmin de Nuit can be deceptively simple at times but it’s actually a really interesting blend. It’s a fragrance that’s named after a white floral, but is determined to come across as everything but floral, and constantly flirts with the gourmand. Logic tells me that this is more of a cold weather fragrance, but there’s something so appealing about wearing the warm jasmine/amber blend in sunny weather. As it wears very close to the skin anyway, I think you can get away with it. It’s probably not an office scent, but I don’t know that it’s explicitly a date scent either. It’s sensual for sure, but also a little bit too weird to be a full-on sexy scent. I’ll just have to use up the rest of my sample to fully figure this one out!

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The Different Company is a niche perfume line from France. In the US, samples and full bottles are available from Luckyscent, which is where I got my sample.

The image and info on notes are both from Luckyscent.

Une Nuit Magnétique by The Different Company

April 23, 2015

Notes: ginger, bergamot, blueberry, Egyptian jasmine, Turkish rose, tuberose, plum, benzoin, patchouli, amber, musk, and woody notes.

Une Nuit Magnétique could be just one more in a long line of fruity-florals with a patchouli base but, as the brand name implies, this scent is a little different. The specific notes used here make the difference, specifically the blueberry/plum fruit accord. Une Nuit Magnétique was released in spring of 2014. It was composed by Christine Nagel, and it’s the last project she completed just before joining Jean-Claude Ellena at Hermès. I’m glad she had time to compose Une Nuit Magnétique because it’s a fun little treat of a fragrance.

I sense the blueberry note right away in Une Nuit Magnétique’s initial opening. It’s tart and fresh, and buoyed up by a touch of bergamot. I was worried that this opening might have a little too much going on with the ginger, bergamot, and the tart blueberry (plus any lurking aldehydes) but it’s more smooth than anything else. The blueberry develops to be less tart and more of a sweet, ripe fruit. I get the impression of purple-tinged juice even though this fragrance doesn’t actually have a purple hue. In fact, during this opening stage, Une Nuit Magnétique reminds me of a cocktail I once had composed of blueberry juice and champagne. It’s smooth, just a touch sparkling, and good enough to drink.

The florals gradually make themselves known and form the heart of this composition. I have to admit, tuberose doesn’t always agree with my skin chemistry. It comes off a bit waxy to me here, like a crayon. Oddly, it’s not unpleasant, and it’s certainly not the worst experience I’ve had with tuberose. The ginger is actually more apparent to me here at this stage than during the opening. I think that really helps round out the composition and prevents my nose from getting stuck on just tuberose. The jasmine comes off as quite warm and blends nicely with the ginger. The rose is subtle for me, and I suspect that’s due to the seamless blend of the composition.

The patchouli in the dry down here has to be one of the lightest and most subtle patchoulis I’ve encountered. The base is mainly characterized by a warm, sweet amber and the echo of ripe fruit. The plum gives off more of a dense fruity vibe, while still calling back to the tart blueberry of the opening. Une Nuit Magnétique wears lightly on the skin, sort of like a translucent veil, and it remains light even through the dry down. I’ve found this makes it ideal to wear out to eat since it doesn’t overwhelm the food or the surroundings, but is still noticeable.

The slightly tart opening paired with the sweet dry down lends Une Nuit Magnétique a flirtatious character. I’ve already mentioned cocktails once in this write-up, and I think this is a great scent for happy hour or going out for drinks in general. Christine Nagel pitches it perfectly: it’s sweet but not gourmand, breezy and light on the skin yet still noticeable. And this light nature ensures that it doesn’t become sticky-sweet or cloying. It’s a lovely fragrance overall, and that bright blueberry note is the stand-out.

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The Different Company is a niche perfume line from France. Full bottles and samples are available from Luckyscent, which is where I got my sample.

The image is from The Different Company, while info on notes is from Fragrantica.