Red Island

Scent Profile

Top notes: Bergamot, Black Pepper, Coriander

Heart notes: Ylang-Ylang, Clove, Jasmine, Vetiver

Base notes: Sandalwood, Cedarwood, Amber, Musk

Why We Carry This

Ylang-ylang is a polarizing material, and Red Island is built around its most distinctive quality rather than attempting to moderate it. The clove-cinnamon support in the opening and heart keeps the composition grounded in something recognizable, and the benzoin-amber base gives it the longevity that the tropical floral accord requires to make a full statement.

Character

Accords: Woody, Warm Spicy, Aromatic, Floral, Amber, Earthy

Perfumer: Alienor Massenet

Launched: 2016

Red Island, named for the red laterite soil of Madagascar, opens with ylang-ylang and clove in a combination that is specific to the Indian Ocean rather than the more generic tropics. Ylang-ylang at concentration has a dense, almost narcotic sweetness, and the clove adds a warmth and spice that sharpens the floral note rather than sweetening it. Cinnamon in the heart moves the composition toward a warmer register, vanilla and tonka bean arriving in the base to deepen the sweetness, benzoin and amber providing the resinous foundation that makes the drydown genuinely lasting.