The 24th fragrance release in the Parfumerie Generale line of fragrances just might be the greenest fragrance I’ve tried in a long time. As the weather begins to change, I yearn for the green scents of spring. In Papyrus de Ciane, Pierre Guillaume, has managed to bottle the smell of early spring by returning to something old. The something old is the base “Mousse de Saxe”. Mousse de Saxe was a well known base back at the turn of the 20th century and one of many bases that were used to add different nuances of moss to a fragrance. This is all according to Octavian Coifan who has a well-written history of this base (http://1000fragrances.blogspot.com/2010/01/mousse-de-saxe-de-laire-story-of-famous.html). What is quite amazing about M. Guillaume’s resurrection of this base, is that it is during a time where IFRA regulations are severely impacting perfumers; the restrictions against oakmoss creating grave concern as to if this raw material will exist in coming years. Yet, with a limited palette he has proven that a great perfumer can work with the materials in front of him. Papyrus de Ciane has a depth to its greenness that green fragrances in recent years have not been able to capture. Papyrus de Ciane consists of five notes; it includes galbanum, broom, mild plant note, Mousse de Saxe, and the synthetic musk Silvanone Supra. These five notes create a lush greenness that takes a base of the early 20th century and mixes it with a synthetic from the early 21st century, creating a modern " green piece", with a nod to past chypre glory.
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The top of Papyrus de Ciane starts with galbanum strong and delineated. Galbanum with this intensity is rare to find and M. Guillaume wisely leaves it to carry the early part of the fragrance. In reading interviews with M. Guillaume, he claims there are more than the five listed notes in Papyrus de Ciane but really these five are the most forward notes in the fragrance and as the galbanum recedes a bit, I feel a touch of light lemon floating around. The heart is the mix of broom and plant notes. This is where the fragrance turns towards the smell of a spring field full of grasses and other plants. It is a pungent, lively accord. If you’ve ever stood in a field after an April shower and the sun has come back out and is drying things out then you’ve experienced the middle of Papyrus de Ciane. The base is the mossy character of Mousse de Saxe plus the synthetic musk and this is where Papyrus de Ciane truly astounds. The Mousse de Saxe is recognizably mossy but yet it has an added complexity that I’ve only come across in some of the great chypres like Rochas Femme. The Silvanone Supra adds a whiff of sensuality and animalic aspects, but it is mainly there to add depth to the Mousse de Saxe and that it does in a quite special way. It is this last part of Papyrus de Ciane which persists on my skin and I can’t get enough of it. For those of you who find floral notes getting in the way of a green accord, Papyrus de Ciane might be just what you are looking for. M. Guillaume has created a study in green that never turns sweet or powdery on me and even though it has #24 on the label…. it is one singular sensation. Papyrus de Ciane has good longevity and modest sillage. Disclosure: This review was based on a sample purchased from The Perfumed Court.
– Mark Behnke, Managing Editor