Laboratorio Olfattivo Miss_U collage image by Michelyn courtesy of the brand
When I look up from my pillow I dream you are there with me.
Though you are far away I know you’ll always be near to me.
I go to sleep, sleep, and imagine that you’re there with me.
I go to sleep, sleep, and imagine that you’re there with me. – “I Go to Sleep” by Ray Davies
Laboratorio Olfattivo Miss_U image via @laboratorioolfattivo
The sensation of absence can be difficult to describe. It can encompass a complicated range of responses that meander from heart-pounding realization to the empty ache of not being able to hold, touch or speak to a loved one. For me, at times it is like a repeating murmur of “not here, not, here, not here, not here …” that leaves me glassy and confused. At other times, though – usually when the years have bestowed their smudgy softness – it is a rueful smile as I remember the feel of a particular hand on my shoulder, the sound of a dog’s curious snuffle, or the peculiar lilt of a voice or laugh. My solace often comes from poetry, music, art, nature, and, of course, fragrance. Because nothing brings us back to a time in such a direct and personal way as a specific scent. And this is what Laboratorio Olfattivo endeavours to create with Miss_U, a close-wearing, warm, woody-citric scent that feels like it is whispering to your skin.
Luca Maffei via @lucamaffei Instagram
Independent nose Luca Maffei, who created both Miss_U and Tiglio Mirabilis for Laboratorio Olfattivo in 2023, has become one of our most elegant perfumers. His work has an impressionist’s grasp of chiaroscuro and brushstroke, a tightrope walker’s balance, and a pianist’s dexterity. Miss_U is described as “an absence that becomes a presence” and wears like a heartfelt hug. This is a slow burn fragrance that starts off vanillic and powdery, before becoming a citrusy guaiac fragrance with unexpected, subtle touches of glove leather and spice.
Laboratorio Olfattivo Miss_U image courtesy of the brand
Initially, I thought this was going to be a skin scent in the vein of Byredo Blanche. The opening is dominated by that vanilla-face power note and a splash of sweet mandarin juice, but it doesn’t take long for the woods to move in. The musky powder slowly gives way to piquant dabs of Sichuan pepper and the sweet tang of mandarin. Wait a while for Miss-U to warm and open and guaiac starts to take over in the perfume’s heart. It develops quite fully, and I can smell the various facets this lovely, gentle wood often loses in perfumery: its redolence of old paper, whiff of vanilla, and creamy, glove leather. At this juncture, I stop and wait a few minutes before testing the fragrance again. On my wrist, it has warmed into guaiac augmented with small pinches of pepper, but the bitter chocolate aspect of patchouli is now discernable. A while longer and the cocoa note becomes more prominent, fusing with vanilla, guaiac and pepper so that it feels cohesive and comforting. The citrus of the early stages hovers unobtrusively but keeps the fragrance glimmering.
image by pixels
Fortunately for me, I detect no ambroxan in this fragrance (that aroma chemical is my bête noire). I also don’t pick up the cinnamon listed in the notes but suspect it is part of the spicy aspect that manifests in the perfume’s center. As it wears over the course of the day, Laboratorio Olfattivo Miss_U really grows on me. It doesn’t get in the way, but projects just enough that I feel cocooned by it into the evening. And every time I come back to it, raising my wrist to my nose, I breathe in gently spiced guaiac, cocoa powder, and that off-sweet, mellow smell of candied orange rind. It is graceful, addictive and consoling, the sort of fragrance I would reach for gratefully when tired, down, or feeling a bit Zen and not wanting my feathers ruffled by a look-at-me-fragrance. You know how wrapping yourself in your favourite cashmere sweater feels on a rough day? The embrace of an old friend? Or re-reading a cherished passage under a spreading old tree while the breeze blows gently? That’s what Miss-U smells like. It is a blown kiss in a bottle.
Notes: Bergamot zest, yellow mandarin, cinnamon, Sichuan pepper, ambroxan, black agarwood, patchouli, vanilla, guaiac wood.
Disclaimer: Bottle of Miss_U generously provided by KAON, distributors for Laboratorio Olfattivo. Opinions, as always are my own.
Lauryn Beer, Senior Editor
Bottle of Laboratorio Olfattivo Miss_U, image courtesy of the brand
Thanks to the generosity of KAON the distributor we have a 100 ml bottle of Laboratorio Olfattivo Miss_U for one registered reader in the EU or USA. You must register to be eligible. Please leave a comment saying what sparks your interest based on Lauryn’s review of Miss_U and where you live. Draw closes 9/12/23.
Please read reviews for Laboratorio Olfattivo Tiglio Mirabilis, Vanhera, Nun and MyLo, also composed by 3x Art and Olfaction Award Winning Luca Maffei
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