Multiple Rouge by Humiecki and Graef

There's really nothing else like Multiple Rouge, which has made it difficult to write about. My favorite of the offbeat Humiecki and Graef line, it's somehow simultaneously weirder than it sounds, and tamer. There's no denying it's a big bowl of fruity berries, a sort of study in various succulent hues of red. There's no getting around the immortelle, which, like patchouli, is going to be a deal breaker for some. But somehow, these two, encouraged by a dash of coriander, play nice. Multiple Rouge is similar to the fruitchouli, but something else altogether, thanks to the immortelle and a salted caramel effect.

The berries have a darker quality than, say, the explosive brightness of a fragrance like Byredo Pulp, but Pulp is a useful comparison. Like Multiple Rouge, Pulp is an oversized fantasy take on fruit. Still, for all its outlandish strangeness, Multiple Rouge is a far mellower wear. Moodier, too. Pineapple and peach complicate things, arranging the scent into interesting tensions. This is tart but seasoned pineapple, and a stewed peach. Together they seem to conjure something like apple, if not in the shape of anything you'd want to eat.

There's a savory feel to Multiple Rouge unlike anything I've smelled in a berried fragrance. While it isn't gourmand in any conventional way, it nevertheless feels foody. There's something aquatic going on as well. So: berry, salt, apple, peach, pineapple, ozonic, immortelle. See what I mean?

People talk about Multiple Rouge's sense of playfulness. Beyond words, it's a study in absurdity, fragrance as delighted squeal. Just as many seem to feel the joke's on them, and fail to see the humor. Did I mention the booziness? Those apples and berries are on their way to some kind of special, simmering brew, the kind you find in a Crock-pot around the holidays, spiked to get you through Uncle Ed's second wind; dash of grenadine, dash of cognac.

I appreciate Multiple Rouge's unusualness, but wear it seriously. It's one of my favorite immortelle scents, along with Fougere Bengale, Sables, Eau Noire, and 1740.

Top photo: Bert Stern
Middle: Norman Parkinson
Bottom: Irving Penn

Shopping in LA: Recently Acquired

Los Angeles seemed more congested than ever this last time I was there.  Even getting coffee at the local coffee shop felt like being stuck in traffic.  Line for drink, line for creamer, line for sweetener.  Lots of excuse me please.  It was a hectic trip but a nice one, and going to look at perfume, whether at Luckyscent, Barney's, Fred Segal, or otherwise was always a welcome, if rushed, respite.

I'd never paid much attention to the Humiecki and Graef fragrances and was pretty pleasantly surprised, especially by Multiple Rouge, which is kind of a dream of a thing.  I call it Trashy Sophisticate, the kind of scent that showcases the best of high and low.  Rouge is sweet but savory, so tart (pineapple, peach, red berries, frozen orange) you think you won't be able to take it, even though, for me, it's pure joy from start to finish.  It's said to be linear but I see a lot of development in it, and the coriander and immortelle weave in and out with a subtlety I appreciated, given this isn't exactly an understated fragrance.  I suppose I agree with people who have characterized Multiple Rouge as an aquatic to aromatic fruity thing.  It has tremendous lasting power and good sillage that spreads happy waves around you.  Few recent discoveries have given me this much sheer pleasure.

I'd debated whether to invest in a bottle of Peche Cardinal by Parfums MDCI ever since I received a decant from Abigail over a year ago.  Most of the MDCI fragrances are pretty stunning.  Peche doesn't seem to be the favorite for the majority of those who appreciate the line, but it's always been my standout, and I knew that if I ever dished out the cheese for a MDCI bottle Peche would be the one.  I don't smell the artemesia in the blend - nor the blackberry, past the opening.  I do smell the peach, the coconut, the tuberose, the lily, and the musk.  Peche reminds me a little of Yvresse but it's drier, if no spicier.  This one seems a little trashy to me as well, in a way I really like.  While many of the MDCI fragrances seem to harken back to the forties and before, Peche reminds me more of the eighties - scents like Rumba, Poison, and Giorgio - though I think it's probably an easier wear.  I remember it being stronger in the winter, but everything becomes a bit of a whisper in the southern heat here.  The refill bottle is the most affordable purchase available, and even that is pricey.  The beaded tassel on the bottle helps soften the blow.

I like Le Labo Santal 33 better than I thought I would at first sniff.  I've heard complaints about the woody musky synthetic in the mix, about its insane tenacity, and I see that, but I see that in Ambre Fetiche too and like it there enough.  Santal is best in the beginning, where it feels most unusual, and yet when it dries down it's still better than half the stuff I smell in public.  Santal feels a little like an updated Grey Flannel to me, minus the galbanum, bergamot and sage.  Perfumer Frank Voelkl has done several things I like - Covet (Sarah Jessica Parker), Iris 39 (also Le Labo), and Ambre Passion for Laura Mercier.  All of these share with Santal a sort of tactile persistence, half way between doughy and fungal.  Voelkl has also done a few synthetic amber bombs for Kenneth Cole: Signature and RSVP.  RSVP is synthetically relentless, and Santal is like its dressed up cousin, covering it all up with a suit and a tie.  The real shock to me at the Le Labo counter was the Calone home spray.  All of the home sprays were interesting and like Dyptique's John Galliano I would happily wear them on skin.  Calone is the best.  It has the aquatic influence of Escape and L'eau d'Issey, but it punches things up with geranium and the signature Le Labo musk.  It lasts better than any calone fragrance I've tried, and while not a steal, it's cheaper, for 100ml, than the 50ml bottle of Santal.

Dyptique Olene has been around since the eighties, and though I imagine it's changed considerably since then, it still fits right in with that era's fragrances.  It reminds me a lot of Sung, and is about as much of a powerhouse, but it's kinder somehow.  The jasmine, if no more natural, smells a little less synthetic.  The indole will be a problem for some but does wonders for me.  Dyptique is discontinuing so many of its fragrances (I regret not buying the last bottle of Jardin Clos I saw) that I wonder how much longer Olene will be available.  It's strong, and lasts well.

Other things I saw and grabbed: older bottles of M de Molinard, Balmain de Balmain, Apercu, and Soir de Paris.  I think I'll eventually need to get Czech and Speake's Cuba, which the SA at Lucky Scent says is referred to as Sex and Poop.