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I think many of us have a box or bowl of perfume samples that we’ve tried once or twice, weren’t quite<\/em> sure about and plan to try again someday \u2014 the “purgatory basket<\/a>,” as Robin dubbed it years ago. I can never resist trying rose-inspired fragrances, even ones that I have a sneaking suspicion I might not actually like, so I inevitably end up with more than a few semi-forgotten rose samples rattling around my desk.\u00a0<\/p>\n Here are brief reviews of four scents I recently plucked from sample limbo and gave another wearing.\u00a0<\/p>\n Eau d’Italie<\/a> Rosa Greta<\/span><\/strong> was released in spring 2017 and I received a sample in a gift-with-purchase bag about a year later. It was developed by perfumer\u00a0Fabrice Pellegrin<\/a>\u00a0and was reportedly inspired by a romantic villa on the Amalfi coast where Greta Garbo liked to retreat with her lover Leopold Stokowski<\/a> in the late 1930s. Its notes include lychee, white tea, rose, cedar and Ambrox. When I applied Rosa Greta to my wrist, I thought, aha! \u2014 could this be a (relatively) affordable alternative to\u00a0Maison Francis Kurkdjian \u00c0 la Rose<\/a>? It start off as a dewy, softly fruity rose. Unfortunately, this rose ends up cocooned in clean, sheer musk. Nice enough, and very office-appropriate, but I can’t imagine Garbo wearing it.\u00a0<\/p>\n MCMC Fragrances<\/a> Maine<\/span><\/strong> (released in 2010) was also inspired by an amorous holiday, this one on the island of North Haven off the Maine coast. It’s a composition of rose absolute, local clary sage, sea air and wild myrrh created by MCMC founder Anne McClain. Maine has a true rose heart with delicate herbal and ozonic notes flickering across it like shadows. I’ve tested Maine multiple times in the past and I remember the clary sage being more distinct when I first tried it, but my memory could be playing tricks on me. In any case, a simple yet beautiful rose perfume like this is harder to find than you may think.<\/p>\n Next up: Ex Nihilo Rose Hubris<\/span><\/strong>, developed by perfumer Olivier Pescheux<\/a> and released in 2014. It includes notes of\u00a0lychee, fenugreek, Rose de Mai, labdanum, oakmoss, patchouli and musk. I haven’t been impressed by this brand in the past<\/a>, so when a friend shared a few Ex Nihilo samples from a NYC fragrance boutique, I pushed them aside for the time being. Rose Hubris turns out to be a contemporary rose chypre, sharp and greenish, yet more transparent and easier to wear than Serge Lutens Rose de Nuit<\/a> or Sisley Soir de Lune<\/a>. It’s an interesting throwback. Strange, for a company that strives to appear “disruptive,” but there you go.<\/p>\n My last rose trial for the week was Atelier des Ors Rose Omeyyade<\/span><\/strong>, which appeared in an online gift-with-purchase packet last December. Rose Omeyyade’s notes include raspberry, rose, pink pepper, patchouli, gaiac, brown sugar, amber, sandalwood, and oud; it was developed for Atelier des Ors by Marie Salamagne<\/a> and released in 2015. (Its name alludes to the historical caliphate of Umayyade<\/a>.) Rose Omeyyade starts off with a jammy, red-winey “fruitchouli” rose (reminiscent of Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Malle Portrait of a Lady<\/a>?) that turns piercing and woody, even somewhat medicinal. That effect may be due to the oud in this composition, which has a distinct Band-Aid-like smell.<\/p>\n So, what made the cut? I ended up purchasing (finally!) a roll-on of MCMC Fragrances Maine for myself. I’m going to use up the Rosa Greta sample (it should be a nice easy option on a warm day) and pass along the other two samples to friends or coworkers. I can’t love every rose perfume that crosses my olfactory path, but I feel oddly relieved to have reached a personal verdict for four more of them.<\/p>\n Eau d’Italie Rosa Greta (100 ml Eau de Parfum for $160) is available through\u00a0Luckyscent<\/a>. MCMC Fragrances Maine (10 ml Perfume Oil for $45, 50 ml Eau de Parfum for $95) can be ordered through the\u00a0MCMC fragrances website<\/a>. Ex Nihilo Rose Hubris (50 ml Eau de Parfum for $225, 100 ml Eau de Parfum for $325) is available at Saks Fifth Avenue<\/a>. Atelier des Ors Rose Omeyyade (100 ml Eau de Parfum for $275) is available through\u00a0Luckyscent<\/a>.<\/p>\nPossibly of interest<\/h2>\n
Anna Sui Thorn of a Rose, Utopia Mist & Mystic Luna ~ fragrance reviews<\/a><\/div>A handful of roses ~ fragrance reviews<\/a><\/div>