This month as promised I am talking about a spicy orange fragrance – L’Artisan Perfumeur’s Seville a L’Aubage.
The addition of spice notes can give both depth and warmth to fragrance so in searching for a spicy orange, my requirement is for a fragrance that retains a discernible orange note and balances well with the spicy element in the blend. Factoring body chemistry and personal preference, an orange fragrance that had a spice element as opposed to a spicy fragrance that had a citrus element was not easy to find. The spice element if from frankincense which being a resin is not strictly a spice but indulge me.
Seville a L’Aubage is a fragrance that was created by a master perfumer (Bertrand Duchafour) for a perfume blogger (Denyse Beaulieu). Behind the fragrance is the story a lustful encounter with a Spanish man during holy week in Andalusia. It is a beautiful story which you can find all over the internet, but I find having such a detailed description is like having a prescription for how it is supposed to make you feel and I don’t relate the story to the fragrance so I won’t be making further reference to it.
When initially sprayed, the incense / spicy element with a minor hint of sharp citrus hits you first. I find it quite intense – like when you first step of the plane in the Caribbean and you are hit by what feels like a wall of heat and humidity. Stick with it however, the creamy orange blossom takes centre stage and the incense has more of a supporting role. This fragrance has a real warmth on the skin that you don’t pick up on a blotter. On my skin the frankincense element smells faintly clove which is why I think of this fragrance as a spicy orange. This fragrance does not smell of Christmas or church to me it is more old but not antique furniture.
The longevity on this fragrance is fabulous. I can get nine or more hours and whilst it is bolder then my usual choices it is not overpowering. It is attractive rather than pretty and definitely style over trend. Seville a L’Aubage wont be for everyone but if you like a bit of spice and complexity in your fragrance, it is definitely worth a sniff.