Julia Melnykova, phot by Frederico Martins for Vogue Portugal, August 2013

Olfactive Studio is on a roll. The photography-inspired house has reeled out a number of lovely fragrances, but none better than it last two perfumes, 2017’s Woody Mood and Flashback in New York from earlier this year. These are perfect cool weather scents: rich, dense, balanced, with lovely, specific and affecting touches. Now, Creative Director Celine Verleure adds the line’s first three extrait perfumes with the Olfactive Studio Sepia Collection. Created by Bertrand Duchaufour, the three perfumes are Vanilla Shot, an incense-y gourmand; bright, spicy Chypre Shot; and, my favourite of the three, Leather Shot, a rooty, smoky leather. Each takes inspiration from the abstract nature photographs of New Zealand environmental artist Martin Hill.

Leather Shot by Martin Hill

The Martin Hill photograph associated with Leather Shot shows a beach with dark, moist sand surrounding a circle of driftwood, A rocky outcrop off the receding shoreline on a fading afternoon. You might expect this to be a woody, even aquatic scent, but what Leather Shot offers is a gorgeous, smoky leather-iris confection accented with spice

Celine Verleure and Bertrand Duchaufour 

The Sepia Collection perfumes are housed in elegant burnt orange leather cases that make them look like vintage hip flasks. But open up Olfactive Studio Leather Shot, and, instead of the boozy leather you might expect … holy smoky iris, Batman! What comes out on the skin is an exotic cocktail of cold, rooty iris shot through with with a tart beam of bitter orange. This is one of the most arresting openings I’ve ever smelled in a leather-themed fragrance. And it just gets better from here.

Gloria Grahame Song of the Thin Man (1947)

I pick up the damp smell of cedarwood after rain. The dark grey iris purrs like a film noir femme, smoky and autumnal, cloaked in fog and full of strange allure. The floral note stretches out like a luxuriating cat. It is cleverly underpinned by black tea and dark green, loamy vetiver to create the smoky effect rather than the more predictable and aggressive birch tar. If up Olfactive Studio Leather Shot stopped short in its development right here, and remained a sooty iris, I’d be happy to wear it on dim, rainy nights in a silk dressing gown while channeling Gloria Grahame.

Lisa da Fonssagrives, photo by William Klein for Vogue, 1958

But now comes the leather. Betrand Duchaufour has a particular agility with this ingredient, often showcasing its elegant aspects (Ann Gerard Cuir Nacre) and its affinities with dark flowers, such as The Different Company’s I Miss Violet. But where I Miss Violet heads into the woods, Leather Shot saunters down a backlit city street after dark. This leather is decidedly uptown; elegant, velvety, with a charry touch of tanned hide that keeps it from overt femininity. As the leather moves in front of the iris, spices accompany it: a small pinch of cumin adds a warming touch, while a dusting of cardamom deepens the sootiness of the composition.

For Leather and Lace, photo by Jack Ferlise

Well into the wee hours, up Olfactive Studio Leather Shot clings like the catch of an old song down an alleyway. This is a perfume made for shadows and oblique angles, mood music and night. I’ve been waiting for years for an iris and leather perfume that didn’t play favourites with either note. In Olfactive Studio’s new stunner, I’ve found it.

Notes: cardamom, cumin, bigarade, leather, iris, black tea, sandalwood, cedarwood, driftwood, vetiver.

Disclosure: I received my samples from Olfactive Studio; opinions my own

Lauryn Beer, Senior Editor

Olfactive Studio Leather Shot

Thanks to the generosity of Olfactive Studio, we have an avant premier bottle of Leather Shot for one registered reader anywhere in the world. To be eligible, please leave a comment saying what appeals to you about  Olfactive Studio Leather Shot based on Lauryn’s review, and if you have a favourite Olfactive Studio perfume. Draw closes 11/24/2018. If you would prefer a sample set  of  the three Sepia Collection fragrances Vanilla Shot, Chypre Shot and Leather Shot please let us know.

We announce the winners only on site and on our Facebook page, so Like ÇaFleureBon and use our blog feed … or your dream prize will be just spilled perfume