Tom Ford Fall 2013 (Model: Soo Joo Park)

One of the unofficial signals that we are headed into the fall season of fragrance is the release of a set of new Tom Ford Private Blends. For 2013 the four new Private Blend fragrances are grouped under the name of Atelier D’Orient. The four fragrances are inspired by the “sublime beauty, enigmatic sensuality, and exquisite luxury of Asia.” Each fragrance is meant to capture a singular quality. As a collection the Asian theme is well threaded through all four fragrances and despite four different perfumers being involved there is a coherence within the collection which owes to the ongoing creative direction of Tom Ford and Karyn Khoury. You may not like all of the Private Blends but there is a consistent aesthetic and quality applied to it which has allowed it to claim a space all of its own and that is, in my opinion, due to Mr. Ford and Ms. Khoury. For Atelier D’Orient they tapped some of the crème de la crème of Givaudan’s perfumers and each delivered on the inspiration laid out for them.

Maggie Cheung as Su and Tony Leung as Chow in "In the Mood for Love"

The inspiration for Fleur de Chine was the 2001 film by Wong Kar-wai “In the Mood for Love”. The story of two lonely people who desperately failed to find a connection is one of the best movies of the twenty-first century. The muse for perfumer Rodrigo Flores Roux was actress Maggie Cheung as Su. Bold floral patterns and dark red lipstick were what this Fleur de Chine would be all about.

Fleur de Chine rides a fizz of aldehydes into a lightly floral opening of magnolia, hyacinth, and hualan flower. Singly each of these notes have a distinct lightness of being but together they harmonize into something stronger and so what early on seems flimsy develops a spine and really takes hold. Much of the films inspiration takes place while going and coming from a neighborhood noodle shop. It makes sense to use a jasmine tea accord to center the heart notes and use a bit of wisteria and peach to sweeten it further. Deep down in the heart is a hint of a lipstick accord like a red rim on the end of crushed out cigarette; only there to be noticed if you’re looking for it. The base notes are very Asian as clean woods of cedar and hinoki are rubbed with benzoin and styrax to add a hint of resin. Fleur de Chine is another example of M. Flores Roux’s mastery with floral notes and just like the couple in the movie I find myself looking forward to the next time our paths cross.

For Plum Japonais perfumer Yann Vasnier was asked to take a heart of Ume (plum) and swathe it in the scents of the Silk Road. In the press release Plum Japonais is described as being created for “true scent connoisseurs” (?!). What Plum Japonais does is keep layering on the big spice, wood, and resin notes emblematic of Orientals. This can be a tricky balancing act of how much is too much and for some this going to be just what they want and for others it is going to be over the top and too much.

Plum Japonais starts with a combo of three of my favorite spice notes; cardamom, saffron, and cinnamon. M. Vasnier uses the syrupy nature of immortelle as a matrix to bring all of this together. The opening of Plum Japonais is spectacular but the rest of the development is not as interesting as the heart of plum seems to be almost a passing nod to the name of the fragrance and it is barely there on my skin. The remainder of Plum Japonais falls into a typical Oriental base of oud, fir, vanilla, amber, and benzoin. M. Vasnier balances these notes well and you can tease them out or just let them form a very extroverted Oriental accord. I think a lot of people are going to be bowled over by the opening third of Plum Japonais and, rightfully so, it is fabulous. I would’ve liked the rest to have been as interesting and I have to ask “Where’s the plum?” as it really never showed up on my skin for any appreciable amount of time.

114.365 Sunlight and Firelight by =Project-27

Rive D’Ambre is inspired by the Asian “tradition of presenting precious citrus fruits as gifts” The idea was to wrap those citrus fruits in a warm Oriental blanket of notes. Perfumer Olivier Gillotin does this beautifully and Rive D’Ambre was the Atleier D’Orient fragrance which took me the most by surprise as M. Gillotin does a wonderful job of taking the citrus and creating an Oriental eau de cologne style of fragrance.

M. Gillotin uses a classic set of notes in bergamot, lemon and bitter orange to be his citrus openers offered up as sparkling gift to the senses. Cardamom, tarragon, and a tiny pinch of spearmint prepare the transition from sunlight to firelight. M. Gillotin uses a sharp cognac accord to signify the change and out of the alcoholic haze arises the amber, benzoin and tolu balsam elements of a full Oriental base. This all goes together incredibly well and Rive D’Ambre stands out because of it.

Marlene Dietrich as Shanghai Lily in "Shanghai Express"

My favorite of the Atelier D’Orient Collection is Shanghai Lily and even though the press release doesn’t mention it as the inspiration this feels symbolic of the character Shanghai Lily played by Marlene Dietrich in the 1932 film Shanghai Express. In short Shanghai Lily is one of the premiere courtesans in Shanghai in 1931 civil war China. This movie is really the culmination of her early collaborations with director Josef von Sternberg who understood it was all about how you used shadow and light to frame his star. That use of shadow and light is on display by perfumers Antoine Maisondieu and Shyamala Maisondieu. Although as with Plum Japonais I don’t find any lily to speak of here.

Team Maisondieu open Shanghai Lily with a bit of olfactory shadow play as they take orange and pierce it fully with clove then sprinkle pepper both black and pink on top. The early moments feel like a row of flashing lights in my stateroom as the train speeds past and the orange intermittently stands up to be overwhelmed by the spices. The citrus light is surrounded by the spicy shadows. The heart also similarly works as the light qualities of cashmeran and vetiver get surrounded by the floral powerhouses of rose and tuberose in their darker aspects. A decent amount of indolic jasmine accentuates the shadowy aspects. Guaiac tries to hold the light in the base but benzoin once again forms the linchpin note and castoreum along with frankincense provide the shadow. Shanghai Lily was the most consistently interesting of these four fragrances but couldn’t we have named this something else if we aren’t going to highlight lily?

I think this is a really well executed collection which actually understands the meaning of that word as they all do display obvious nods to Oriental touchstones. I will be wearing many of these as the calendar turns the page and there is a bit of a chill in the air.

Disclosure: This review was based on samples provided by Tom Ford Beauty.

–Mark Behnke, Managing Editor