Pétale Noir
Agent Provocateur (2012)

Petale Noir isn't floral. It is FLORAL!!! Eight flowers and violet leaves are the only notes listed in the top two levels of the pyramid – not a herb, spice, wood, or sweetener in sight. It's difficult for me to separate the individual floral notes out of the massive bouquet accord, and, considering the power of the florals, I don't want to try to separate them. I'm not sure how I feel about such a militant attack from the garden world: The floral tidal wave gets easier to take as it settles down, which is about a half hour. But it also gets more characterless: Hmmmm... Maybe I enjoyed the flower power more than I realized.

The remainder Petale Noir is nice enough but…unremarkable.

Two floral lovelies greet at the entry to this olfactory edifice: hyacinth and magnolia - and especially the hyacinth is lovely, and both compliment each other well.

In the drydown they continue, and ylang-ylang and osmanthus add a hint of sweetness; but the quality of these notes is not as convincing as in the top notes.

The base is a pleasant attempt of amber and leather, quite generic and distinctly dull on my skin. The sillage is moderate, the projection limited and the longevity five hours - a but disappointing.

Apart from the floral beginning, the rather synthetic components remain a bit colourless and never reach a really convincing level of depth. Not bad, but the opening blast only brings home the goods.
2.75/5.