Mistral Patchouli
Atelier Cologne (2013)

Mistral was a good name for this (now re-named Riviera) because it really does smell like a bunch of garrigue herbs - anise, wild mint, mastic - and tangy citruses bruised and whipped up into the salty sting of the Mistral wind that occasionally pummels the South of France. A colleague of mine once brought me into the Garrigue that lies to the west of Montpelier and first, I am ashamed to say that this was when I learned that the garrigue was not some vague perfumery term for the type of sunburnt, anisic herbs you smell in Eau Noire but an actual physical type of eco-region in Southern France, and second, there really is a special scent on the wind there.

For me, L'Eau Trois and Eau Noire really capture this scent, as do many of Marc-Antoine Cortecchiato's creations for Parfum d'Empire. Mistral features a great deal of this 'air' - it smells like anise, pepper, crushed geranium leaves, mint, and pastis, cut with the sharp horny outer peel of pomelos and inedible citrus like bergamot and citron. The dankness of the patchouli is there alright, but you catch only glimpses of it now and then through the gauzy haze of herbs and citrus peel, and even then it is hard to tell where the patchouli begins and the camphor of the mastic begins.

I have only two caveats. First, there is a lingering sourness to the citrus plunged into white musks here that reminds me of linens washed in rainwater and folded away damp. This is not an unfamiliar accord to me - I smell it also in Musc Panache and Gatsby 22. This type of thing is 10% refreshing and 90% wearying to my nose. Second, and perhaps the nail in the coffin, I am not overly fond of Atelier Cologne's habit of drenching most of its lighter, citrusy fragrances in that Iso E Super-y white musk nonsense. I feel personally affronted by 'niche' fragrances that lay out all the exciting stuff in the topnotes and then default to an exceptionally lazy and boring paint by numbers basenotes accord. Atelier Cologne is, of course, not the only brand to do it, but it is a frequent offender (oh, the glory of Orange Sanguine for all of the five minutes it sings before collapsing into white musk). To its credit, Mistral Patchouli is far subtler in its transition to the Iso E Super and musk, and the herbal freshness up top is really invigorating, so it gets a pass.

Okay, first off, I don't like patchouli much by itself. Therefore this was a very pleasant surprise. Woody incense with patchouli blended perfectly so that it's a smooth fragrance of resins, wood and incense but somehow very light and airy the whole time. Really really nice fragrance.

Mistral patch stands alone in terms of uniqueness. I got a very fresh, green citrussy opening and then a clear chinese-five-spice blend. Checking the notes I see star anise and the note is very well realised. It must be this that gives an Asian culinary feel because my brain keeps picking up ginger, lemongrass, Kaffir lime leaves.

The consensus is that the citrus is pomello / grapefruit and the whole scent is much more complete than p.p. checking the notes makes me feel not so crazy that I keep thinking of L'instant Guerlain EDT because that classic is build upon a structure of green-citrus > anise > patchouli. The named patchouli is nothing dominant here (as in L'instant extreme)but gives a slight dirty contrast to the more obvious citrus. This reminded me of a L'instant flanker, let's say L'instant d'0rient!

Other scents coming to mind included very distant memories of Gucci Envy, penhaligons Bayolea (lemongrass in an EDC) and the ginger freshness of Dior Homme sport flankers.

I highly recommend checking out this unique gem if overwhelmed at the AC counter. Simple, but invigorating and unique. 79/100

FYI, this perfume has been renamed Patchouli Riviera.

This kicks of with a pleasant mix of black pepper and citrus (mostly grapefruit on me). Green kitchen herbs come in next (maybe basil and definitely rosemary). As the citrus fades, it makes way for a polite patchouli, made especially green by the herbs, without any of the oil or dank that patchouli sometimes carries. Hours later, it dries down to a mix of patchouli and iso e super, so it keeps that peppery overtone, but gets more creamy and smoky with wisps of incense.

With all this talk of citrus over herbs over smoky patchouli, this sounds like it should be a hardcore powerhouse, but it's actually very light and airy. Not weak by any means, but "chemically buoyant", if that makes sense as a description. I've quite enjoyed it - I thought it might be a bit thin for winter, but it's been perfect, though I imagine it could also work in hot weather. Nice!

The initial blast is present with a fresh citrus mix, tangerine, pomelo and bigarrade with touches of petit grain, which is counterbalanced by an aniseed impression that, on me that it, is in the background compared to the citrus storm.

The drydown develops a floral sideline - iris, geranium and whiffs of oleander - but the citrus still rules. A restrained bright spice note comes and goes - light with a touch of clover - but this is soon pushed back by the emergence of the patchouli. This patchouli has very little to do with the dark, harsh and smoky patchouli à la Tom Ford's Purple Patchouli or Le Labo's Patchouli 24; this one is bright, light, acerbic and crisp but not that sharp; it is a bit like crisp gusts of wind down the Rhône Valley, and whiffs of benzoin give is some added depth.

The base continues the citric-patchouli theme, but adds neroli and a touch of a green vetiver to it; the latter is again night and lacks and earthy component.

I get moderate sillage, good projection and eight hours of longevity on my skin.

And interesting summery scent for warm days that has an original twist. 3.25/5.

This is my signature spring scent and in my top 3 of all Atelier Colognes fragrances (with Emeraude Agar for fall and Oud Saphir for winter). It sure helps that I am a huge anis aficionado, a love which started with the Anis de Flavigny bonbons in my mother's car and came to devotion when trying out Pastis, Ouzo, Raki and Absinth while travelling Europe as an adolescent. It smells a bit like a cold Pastis with a good squeeze of pomelo in it. I usually do not like perfumes which smell like food or beverages, but I am happy to make an exception for anis. The smell of anis evokes solitary travelling and discovering new places, therefore I think it was the perfect choice for Atelier Cologne to choose Anis to evoke the French Mistral sea wind, which is a sharp, cutting wind instead of a gentle summer sea breeze. M.P. is not a sweet, licorice or Sambucco alike anis, but tart and sour. It reminds me of a spray of cold sea water on my face when sailing in late spring. Luckily the fragrance does not smell like sea water itself, as these sea scents usually smell very chemical. M.P. smells very natural. Rather than a perfectly photo-shopped image of the sea, M.P. evokes a man's confrontation with the sea with a few brush strokes in green and blue.