Basic Black
Bill Blass (1992)

A multi-ingredient, old-fashioned chypre. Deep. Moderately complex. Mine, is an older bottle. Some of the "sweeter" notes have worn down, so to speak. Earthy animalic. Musty floral. Notes that stand out the most for me: carnation, tuberose, jasmine, sandalwood, and amber.

Good evening fragrance. Cheap enough that one can be heavy-handed with spraying.

Class, pure class...When I wear this extreamly hard to find fragrance I feel as though I am riding in a Bentley on my way to a weekend retreat. It is my favorite fragrance to fall asleep too. I spray a little and drift off into fabulous dreams. I have only two bottles left but wish to get more so that I will never be out of this one.

Basic Black was like the third part of the trio of scents Blass put out in the very early 90s - Nude and Hot being the other two. And if Nude is the sexy one and Hot is the wild one, then Basic Black is the very refined, tasteful and well mannered lady-like one, beautifully appointed and self-assured but also incredibly interesting and well-rounded. Unfortunately, it is also ridiculously hard to find! A soft floral with a semi-oriental feel, Basic Black melds rose, violet (which is quite prominent and at its most powdery loveliest) and ylang ylang with some spices, a little coriander and cardamom. The soft base is mainly oakmoss with lower-lying notes of patchouli (can't even detect it) and sandalwood. The result is something that sits between delicate and confident; the violet-moss combination comes through quite clearly as coolish and powdery, while the spices insert a sense of vitality and worldliness. As with a black dress, one could probably wear this on a very regular basis and never tire of it or find it out of style.