Mitsouko Eau De Parfum

The only Chypre I will ever Love. Seriously. I hate chypres. They bring me back to my childhood in USSR when "Shipr" was habitually drunk by men with alcohol dependancy. My farther never like the chypre profile, and neither any one of my close family. I "met" Mitsuko when I moved to London 19 years ago (give or take a year). I was at Guerlain stand, in a weird mood and didn't like anything. I was offered a test strip with Mitsouko on it. It close to knocked my shoes off for all the wrong reasons, and yet I bought it. It stood neglected on my perfume table for years until recently I decided to give it another go. It was like an arranged marriage where both sides have to work at building up the relationship. But we built it. And we are officially IN LOVE. Mitsouko opens up with some of the punchiest bergamot and citrus notes my nose ever beheld. If you are hungover, jet legged or had a sleepless night - it will get you up, like those weird priests resurrecting the mummies in Hollywood movies. It is as close to an electric current going through your muscles as the perfume can get. You are UP! Your senses are on and the engines are roaring. That note lasts a good two hours or so. Sometimes it can become rather annoying, but there is no getting away from it. Then come spices and vetiver. They are supposed to be at the base, but to my olfactory senses, they push the "heart" aside and jump the queue. They blend seamlessly with the citruses, colouring the air around me (have you ever heard of the titanite/sphene gemstone?) in sparkling golds, greens, oranges and terracotta crystal hues. This is unique. No other perfume I know or have worn makes the complexity of notes so exciting, frustrating and mysterious. At this point I sometimes wonder why am I wearing a male perfume? There are no florals, not suppleness or roundness. Everything is razor sharp and sounding like clashing of samurai swords. Another hour or two go by. And then I can feel ylang-ylang and jasmine. They are not their usual selves - seductive, enchanting or enveloping. They are sharp, bold, confident. They finally step into the composition and take their places with full intent to keep them come what may. The contrast between the male and the female is most certainly exciting. Is it a battle of the sexes? To me it's an Argentinian tango, where both he and she are in balance, take their turns at advance and retreat and end up in perfect synchrony and magic. This is my favourite part: - different yet aligned, bitter with some sweetness, brash yet elegant. The scent's projection is confident, but measured. You will not suffocate others with it, and you will not forget what you are wearing. I prefer the way it sounds on the cooler points of my body, then the warm/pulse points (but that is my personal preference). I love the way I turn heads when I am simply passing by people on the street or bus stop. Heads turn, nostrils flare and a genuine bewilderment blooms on the faces. Never irritation or annoyance - a genuine surprise and attention to the sillage that I am leaving in my wake. The dry down becomes more and more floral with bergamot clinging on to make sure the composition does not turn girly or boring. By the end of the day, I don't even want to go in for a shower as I want to discover what other facets Mitsouoko will come up with. This is not an easy perfume. It is an acquired taste and a philosophical contemplation on life and its contradictions. You will either love it or hate it, - therefore it is a true art.