Lilacpond

Hello hey!

It wasn't really yesterday since I wrote something about fragrance on this blog. Not the day before either. But here I am, ready to say a few new words about fumes. 

Montale Intense Café, ever heard about that one? Of course you have. It is one of the most popular sweet-spicy/coffée/rose/oud perfumes on the market and many compares it with Yves Saint Laurents Black Opium, with Intense Cafe as its older (and more powerful) sister. If you happen to be a fan of Black Opium, I definitely think you should give Intense Cafe a good try. 

 

Intense Cafe was launched in 2013 with Pierre Montale as the nose behind the fragrance. At first spray, the scent opens up very very sweet (but not sickenly sweet thank godness!) with a hint of spice in the background. My mind wanders more towards the smell of burnt sugar at a funfair or something, than to the intense bitter smell of coffee in a coffee roastery. I had to go out to the kitchen and put my nose directly in the coffee jar to compare that smell to the scent on my newly sprayed wrist. The coffee is there but it is so well blended with the other notes and just perfectly balanced by the sweetness of vanilla, that it doesn't take over and becomes bitter. Another star in Intense Cafe is the rose. The rose is beautiful, lush and sugar coated, and what comes to mind is a the bold petals of a flower in dark magenta. What last on my skin the last hours after the coffee and rose has left the scene, is a soft, heavenly vanilla that makes you go into instant cozy-mood. 

 

 

The longevity of Intense Cafe is fantastic. Too many perfumes have the peculiar disadvantage of leaving my skin after just a few hours (I think I need to get better at uising body oil or cream, since perfumes doesn't last long on dry skin!) but this will sit on my body for at least 8+ hours. If you want to smell like a coffee roaster or love putting your nose in a jar with freshly ground coffee beans, than I think you might be a bit disappointed. But if you like your (cup of ) coffee well balanced with a heavy amount of sweetness, then you should go for Montale Intense Cafe. Since our perception of smell is highly individual, this picture (and the rose) captures the aura of this fragrance (click on picture for link).