Counterplay

Scent Profile

Top notes: Bergamot, Saffron, Cardamom, Black Pepper

Heart notes: Rose, Labdanum, Orris, Incense

Base notes: Oud, Sandalwood, Amber, Musk, Patchouli

Why We Carry This

The saffron-rose-oud architecture here is a studied response to the dominant Middle Eastern accord, tightened and modernized. Sandalwood and leather in the base keep it grounded rather than grand.

Character

Accords: Woody, Amber, Warm Spicy, Oud, Smoky, Floral

Perfumer: Christelle Laprade

Launched: 2024

Saffron and pink pepper in the opening are metallic and warm simultaneously, bergamot keeping the top from turning entirely opaque. Rose enters the heart with an unusual partner: oud that reads clean rather than barnyard, giving the floral a structural backbone it would not have otherwise. Leather and sandalwood in the base settle the composition into an amber warmth that wears close and long.