Dries Van Noten Par Frederic Malle Perfume

 When Frederic Malle releases a new scent, any fragrance lover stands up and takes notice.  Dries Van Noten for Frederic Malle certainly cause for excitement here at my desk.  This new scent is also the beginning of a new series, Perfume Portraits. 

Malle says "In 2010, ten years after founding Editions de Parfums Frédéric Malle, I decided to start a new perfume collection, the purpose of which would be to translate the world of people and brands that I admire into scents: Perfume Portrait by Frédéric Malle."

Dries Van Noten, the esteemed Belgian fashion designer , is the inspiration  for Dries Van Noten par Frederic Malle.

Dries Van Noten, Frederic Malle

Dries is  based around pure sandalwood and that note informs the whole fragrance from beginning to end.  The fragrance is rich , spicy and a little smoky but not heavy. It's cozy , radiating warmth despite some cool notes peeking out here and there. The clove and nutmeg  alongside the sandalwood help achieve this.

I get very little of the floral notes , and as it dries down the vanilla comes out. It's a milky but not too sweet vanilla . The cool , green feel flashes in and out and reminds of  rooty iris .

My initial thought was it's a perfume that reminds me of a well used library,  fireplace going, hard wood floors and dusty volumes of leather bound books. It doesn't exactly smell like that , mind you, that was just the picture that formed for me.

It very much is a comfort scent but in no way boring. It's also mostly linear, meaning there aren't a lot of changes from initial spritz to drydown. That is  not a bad thing and in no way takes away from it's beauty. A scent done well is done well no matter how many or little notes play out in it and it is easy to tell quality is  very present in  Dries .

Dries took 18 months for perfumer Bruno Jovanovic to create  and the cues that Malle gave him included themes the designer was known for like Indian embroidery, along with the Flemish dessert of speculoos biscuits and waffles. Jovanovic then came up with creating it around natural sandalwood.

Full note list:

Bergamot oil (Calabria),
Lemon oil (Calabria)
Saffron
Nutmeg, Clove

Jasmine absolute (Egypt)
Sandalwood oil (Mysore)
Patchouli Heart,
Violet wood

Vanilla,
Sacrasol (Sulfurol) (* this is  a nutty note)
Peruvian Balm
Musk cocktail



 Dries Van Noten par Frederic Malle is exclusively at Editions de Parfums Frédéric Malle, 898 Madison Avenue, New York and all Barneys New York Stores and Barneys online.

Retail: 50ml Spray: $185; 100 ml Spray: $265