Almost two years ago I reviewed the first six releases from Phaedon Paris. At the time I good-naturedly grumbled at receiving a collection of six new fragrances to assess all at once. Two years later six seems like a bargain in these days of double digit collections being released one after the other. After two years Phaedon Paris has seven new Haute Concentration perfumes to debut and the original collection was trimmed by two, Rue des Lilas and Coton Egyptien, and a new one, Lentisque, was added. Pierre Guillaume has been involved with Phaedon from the beginning and he is the perfumer behind Lentisque along with Rouge Avignon & Antigua in the new line. For the other five fragrances three perfumers joined in; Daniele Maniquant, Anne-Cecile Douveghan, and Catherine N’Guyen. The Phaedon aesthetic is to go for simple constructions with unique ingredients and most of these fall into conventional places on the perfumed continuum.

I’ll start with Lentisque which is M. Guillaume’s aria in green as he uses a large amount of galbanum as a foundation for mastic. As it develops; cistus, cedar and vetiver don’t ameliorate the greenness they kick it up a notch. I found this to be an amazing companion for the heat wave we’ve been having. I have a feeling it will be less enjoyable in the cool but there is still a lot of summer left in my backyard.

For the Haute Concentration line M. Guillaume’s Rouge Avignon did not perform as well in the summer heat. It is meant to evoke a visit to the Supreme Pontiff’s apartment. A very heavy rose turned extremely sweet by raspberry opens this Papal visit. The heart is where M. Guillaume rounds the corner with a cacao and truffle accord that turns Rouge Avignon into an almost rich gourmand before ending on a base of vetiver, sandalwood, and amber. I really enjoyed the foodie heart of Rouge Avignon but I must confess the strength of the rose and raspberry in the top notes took some getting used to. I think I will revisit this in the chill of the fall.

Givaudan meta cloud for Paradisamide

M. Guillaume categorizes Antigua as a fruity chypre and it is fruity but I am not in agreement that this is a chypre on my skin. This is a fruit explosion and according to M. Guillaume it is due to the Givaudan aromachemical Paradisamide. Paradisamide was proprietary to Givaudan perfumers from 2003-2011 when they decided to let others have some fun with it. M. Guillaume was clearly chomping at the bit to feature it in a fragrance.  The Paradisamide in combination with a beautifully chosen bergamot sizzle on my skin as you pick up facets of guava, grapefruit, rhubarb, and currant. This could be a mushy fruit salad but instead it is clean and delineated and it definitely has some of the sulfurous character of grapefruit and the more acrid aspects of guava as contrast also in evidence. The tropical party is leavened a bit by a touch of rose, a bit of fig, a pinch of vanilla along with a cedar and vetiver base. As its name implies Antigua is a perfect beach scent.

Vetiver is a warm weather staple fragrance and the vetiver entry in the new collection, Black Vetiver, delivers a slightly heavier vetiver than you might normally find. The reason for this is there is a “tar accord” made up of pimento and Jamaican vetiver which coat the keynote Java vetiver in a sticky haze of summer asphalt. I wasn’t sure I was going to like this but it turns out to be the most interesting of the new Phaedons from a purely conceptual aspect and my second favorite of the new releases.

Tabac Rouge, travels a well-worn path of combining tobacco and incense. It is fine but it didn’t ever rise to a level of something I would be reaching for when I am in the mood for tobacco and incense. If you like these notes and want a lighter simpler take on them Tabac Rouge could fill the bill.

Hesperys also suffers from a similarity to many other fragrances which recall the Mediterranean citrus milieu. A lemon, petitgrain, and orange opening is bolstered by a very powdery orris and chamomile before finishing with a musky mix. As I mentioned above if you love these kinds of fragrances and want a new variation Hesperys will work.

Sable Marocain is almost a natural partner to Dzhari from the Eaux de Toilettes collection of Phaedon. Dzhari has a rich date accord at the heart of a desert wind. Sable Marocain has you on a horse galloping across the desert. You feel a gust of citrus and ginger flow by you followed rapidly by an even stronger sense of labdanum. This all develops into a marvelously decadent display of cocoa, gaiac, and Copahu balsam while the labdanum persists. This final aspect of Sable Marocain is what sets it apart.

My favorite of the new collection was a surprise to me as with a name like Pure Azure I was expecting a variation on an aquatic theme. Instead I was treated to a fantastic summer floral which appealed to me on many levels. Fig and orange blossom open Pure Azure on a bright accord. Vanilla and jasmine turn things sweeter and deeper. Tonka and a bit of a marine accord cut the sweet without making it go away. For almost the entire time I wore Pure Azure I was in the midst of a grove of fig trees, orange trees and jasmine swirling in and out of each other. I ended up wearing this on a day the thermometer hit 100 and it was perfect for that kind of heat. It wasn’t cloying or too much it was just right.

One of the consistent complaints about the original Phaedon collection was that they didn’t last very long. The Eaux de Toilette collection has been tweaked to up the perfume oil concentration to make them last a bit longer. The Haute Concentration collection is a more direct response to the criticism and these fragrances all lasted the entire day on my skin with average sillage.

As it was with the first collection I tried from Phaedon there were a few which just thrilled me; Pure Azure, Black Vetiver, and Antigua. As a collection it does manage to hit most of the genres it aspires to. I do know that as long as the heat is on the three named above will be in heavy rotation this summer of 2013.

Disclosure: This review was based on samples provided by Osswald NYC.

Thanks to Osswald NYC we have a unique reader’s choice draw. You can choose to win a bottle of Pure Azure, my favorite, or you can make up your own mind and choose a carded set of 2.5mL samples of all seven Haute Concentration fragrances. This is a US only draw. To be eligible leave a comment on which prize you choose and whether you are in the US. The draw will end July 21, 2013.

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

-Mark Behnke, Managing Editor