Photo:  © Isabella Blow: Fashion Galore! Edited by Alistair O’Neill with photography by Nick Knight 

I have wanted an opportunity to review Ormonde Jayne fragrances for ages and never found a window of calm, despite being a huge fan of Creative Director Linda Pilkington’s luxurious and hushed fragrances. I have a fierce passion for her close and embracing  Ormonde Jayne Tolu… a scent that seems to whisper secrets to skin. Her Frangipani is also heaven sent, tumbling blooms tossed with plum and orchid oil. Linda is about the combination of sensual French classicism, quirky British craftsmanship and the alluring glamour of oriental perfumery. Combining these elements seamlessly in one line is ambitious, but the quiet, determined frisson that the fragrances diffuse is proof that Linda Pilkington’s long quest to become a perfumer was well worth the struggle.

Linda Pilkington and Perfumer Geza Schoen on the Orient Express

Ormonde Jayne’s Black Gold is new and exclusive to Harrods, starting life on the Orient Express (appropriately enough) as a conversation between Linda and Harrods Merchandise Manager Mia Collins. The talk was of oudh – a favourite of the Harrods clientele but rendered with grace and harmonious sensuality, light years away from many of the bitter or faux oudh formulations that proliferate the niche market. Linda and perfumer Geza Schoen have focused on the finest materials available to them and this is reflected in the luxury price of £420 (approx 701.00 USD as of today) for a 120ml bottle eau de parfum. This may seem an excessive price for fragrance, but in this increasingly plasticized and synthetic world, it can feel almost sexy spending money on scent with heft, refinement and absolute soul.

 Mysore Sandalwood

Haute quality sandalwood should flow like cream across skin, radiating a latescent odour of calm and anchorage. Due to the restrictions of harvesting and the cost of the raw material, many fragrance houses use aromachemicals such as Ebanol, Fleursandol, Javanol and Polysantol to enrich their perfumers’ palettes, suggesting holographic sandalwood effects in their juice. But nothing really comes close to the effect of real sandalwood. It is the difference between simple wool and the languorous thrill of slinky cashmere.

Ormonde Jayne Black Gold Perfume

Santalum Album or Mysore sandalwood is one of the most aromatic natural sources of sandalwood in the world. The problem is sustainability. Demand outstrips supply and over the years this has driven up the prices to extraordinary levels. The yield is approximately 1kg per 20kg of wood, using a hydro distillation process. Linda has apparently used a second distillation of the final rectification, where only certain ingredients are collected at a very precise boiling point. This results in a final product of unparalleled purity and aroma. Linda said: ‘Finding a sandalwood 20 classes better than other sandalwoods… and that voyage was the lengthiest… was the most enjoyable aspect in the creation of Black Gold.’

Tao Okamoto by Lachlan Bailey for Vogue China’s December 2012

Black Gold itself is quietly majestic, a scent of sweet, subdued darkness. The first impression I get is antique lacquered wood and a scent of plum compote, flavoured with star anise. The wood note is distinctly Chinese to my nose, cellar-old, cinnabar red and dusty. Oils glisten on the skin where I spray and my wrist is gently sticky, such is the concentration of the perfume. As the scent develops, a sweet, nutmeg-tinted Pekoe note rises through. I think this is the slow bloom of the carnation absolute unfurling its clovey sugars. Ambrette, schinus molle (an aromatic Peruvian pink berry), patchouli and a haze of precious oudh add facets of nutmeg, tannin, mace and smoked black tea to the body of this complex scent. It is to Linda Pilkington's and Geza Shoen’s credit that the much-vaunted absolutes are assembled and layered with dexterity and luminosity.

Natasha Poly by Willy Vanderperre for Vogue China November 2012

I find lovely layers in Black Gold, the lacquered woods and the odour of heritage stately rooms, untouched by time. The drydown is languid and regal, moving slowly as if weighted down by scented silks and the workmanship of a thousand nimble fingers. I know the oudh is important, but ultimately for me this perfume is about sandalwood, glowing and soothing with reassuringly deluxe effect. I imagine everyone has an idea of what they think sandalwood smells like.

Photo:  © Isabella Blow: Fashion Galore! Edited by Alistair O’Neill with photography by Nick Knight

Somehow this shifting elusive elixir manages to capture the enigma and creamy comfort of one of nature’s most sensual raw materials. As the hours pass, the wood becomes ghostly and close, I love this fading heat and final moment of sweet departure from the skin. Black Gold is a truly beautiful manifestation of woody desire.

– The Silver Fox, Senior Contributor and Editor of The Silver Fox.

Disclosure: I received my sample from Ormonde Jayne

Editor’s Note: For an in depth understanding on the sourcing and high quality ingredients used in Black Gold, please read Linda Pilkington’s detailed notes here. Art direction: Michelyn Camen, Editor in Chief

Thanks to Ormonde Jayne we have a worldwide draw for a generous sample of Black Gold which is a Harrods Exclusive. To be eligible, please leave a comment with what you found interesting about The Silver Fox’s review, your favorite Ormonde Jayne perfume and where you live. Draw ends 8/18/2014.

We announce the winners only on site and our Facebook page, so like CaFleureBon and use our RSS option…or your dream prize will just be spilled perfume.