1805 Tonnerre Review

My least favourite of the Beaufort trio, 1805 Tonnerre jarringly juxtaposes the phenolic, smoky scent of birch tar with a sharp, ozonic-metallic-citrus accord built around Floralozone (vel.sim.), rose oxide and lime. 

Like surface cleaner sprayed on a recently used barbeque.

Nose: unkown

House: Beaufort London

Release date: 2015

Notes (per Fragrantica): lime, smoke, gun powder, blood, brandy, sea water, amber, fir balsam, cedar.

Vi et Armis Review

The perfume-formerly-known-as ‘East India’, Vi et Armis (Lat. ‘by force and arms’) is to my nose the most successful of Beaufort’s current lineup.

Here, the thematic birch tar is allied to a powerful tea note that results in a smoky black blend. A judicious amount of ethyl maltol sweetens the deal and helps bring out the tea note’s fruity overtones, while frankincense links to the woody, resinous base that’s much better incorporated than in Coeur de Noir.  

Nose: Unknown

House: Beaufort London

Release date: 2015

Notes (per Fragrantica): black pepper, tea leaf, whisky, incense, opium, tobacco, birch, agarwood.

Coeur de Noir Review

The red thread running through all three of Beaufort London’s début offerings is birch tar and how much one enjoys these fragrances will likely depend on one’s tolerance for the overtly meaty, smoky qualities it expresses at higher concentration.

Coeur de Noir is the most singular in its darkness. Riding shotgun with the birch tar is a significant dose of isobutyl quinoline which not only develops the former’s leathery facets, but brings with it a pungent, earthy greenness. The listed notes speak to a myriad ideas but unfortunately, these are under-developed and smothered by the aforementioned materials. So it is that the ‘rum’ note, built with ethyl acetate, fails to convey much booziness at all by instead being a mere ghostly presence, and the ionone+vanilla ‘paper’ note is fairly illegible as such. The exception here is the nice addition of ginger whose warm, amber-like sweetness works, for a short while at least, as a counterpoint. The cedar too, is very clearly detectable, but its persistence is unmatched, meaning after a good few hours on skin/a few days on paper, all I smell is a dry, powdery woodyness.

Nose: unknown (brand owner Leo Crabtree)

House: Beaufort London

Release date: 2015

Notes (per Fragrantica): rum, ginger, ink, paper, leather, vanilla, cedar, tobacco, birch tar.

XX±Latex Review

In a line that flies as under the radar as Uèr Mì, it’s surprising to see space given over to a fragrance that’s more conceptual than it is wearable.

XX±Latex is profoundly unsettling, moving from a waxy green, aldehydic top spiked with metallic rose oxide and marine notes to a pungent, indole laden heart that has herbal undertones. Perhaps banking on the fact that few people would endure the scent for the duration of its natural life, the base consists of a monster musk complex whose dry-cleaning vibe ultimately feels like a letdown.

Nose: Antoine Lie

House: Uèr Mì

Release date: 2014

Notes (per Fragrantica): sea notes, vinyl, saffron, aldehydes, rose.

NO±Suede Review

Of all the materials selected for the Uèr Mì line, suede is perhaps the most straightforward to interpret given the existence of such convincing specialty bases as IFF’s popular Suederal. 

Much like Sonia Constant’s Golden Boy (Dueto, 2011), NO±Suede enlivens the titular suede note with saffron, thereby adding a spicy, hot pleather dimension. The composition then turns dusty and oddly camphorous before drying down to a sweet, musky base featuring vanilla and a nice presentation of guaiac.

Nose: Antoine Lie

House:Uèr Mì

Release date: 2015

Notes (per Fragrantica): saffron, plum, lily-of-the-valley, guaiac, incense, leather, suede