Profumum Battito d'Ali Perfume Review

Profumum Roma Battito d’Ali Eau de Parfum was a blend of soft cocoa powder with orange blossom and creamy, almost milky, vanilla. It evoked the fading aroma of a baked chocolate-and-orange cake–not so sweet that it was cake-like, because there was a sweet, lightly spiced woody undertone that kept it from being an actual dessert. Profumum listed the notes as: cocoa powder, myrrh, orange flowers, and vanilla. Some retailers also list coconut.

It opened with sharp, bitter citrus that smoothed out with a honeyed sweetness over the first few minutes. There was a delicate whisper of orange blossom, but the sharpness of bergamot came through more readily with the floral quality being quite airy and light. As the resinous sweetness and almost clove-like spice of the myrrh and vanilla combined, the sharpness dissipated and let the fragrant orange blossoms take centerstage.

There was a dusting of cocoa powder underneath it all, and at very brief intervals, it smelled like sweet, creamy lotion over clean skin. The myrrh seemed to be a stronger component compared to the orange blossom, and the vanilla and cocoa created a creamy, almost milky, quality that blurred everything together to the point where individual aspects were particularly hard to discern after an hour of settling on my skin.

I was surprised that the florals seemed to bloom a second time after a half hour on my skin, which reduced some of the honeyed sweetness and introduced a subtle, bitter orange peel. Battito d’Ali was candied orange pieces with cocoa powder and folded into vanilla cream over an undercurrent over spiced, sweet, woody myrrh. It was less like a dessert as it was the aroma that lingers hours after baking something with chocolate and orange together.

Application

For testing, I used 1/3 of a 0.7ml sample vial dabbed to the underside and topside of my wrist area on my left arm. I used an unscented moisturizer prior to applying the scent as this is also my swatching arm (aka, incredibly parched at any given moment) as I found scent did not hold well here otherwise. 

I purchased my sample in January 2022; fragrances are known to be reformulated over their lifetime , so be mindful of when a review was made, e.g. a review from 2010 may not reflect what the same-named perfume smells like in 2022.

Longevity

It lasted for six hours until it was a skin-scent and about 10 hours before it was quite difficult to detect on my skin. The sillage and projection were moderate with the sillage dropping faster than the projection within two hours of wear.

Personal Thoughts

While I don’t enjoy the taste of chocolate and orange so much, I have found that I’m not opposed to it as a note combination in a fragrance! I don’t know if it’s something I’d readily reach for, but I have enjoyed the few fragrances I’ve tried with the duo. The orange here was more floral, and I’d probably go for something a little more candied without the floral aspect at all.

Available Sizes

• 100ml for $275
• 18ml for $93 (harder to find size in the US)
• 0.7ml sample for $6

Where to Buy

• Jovoy Paris
• LuckyScent
• Twisted Lily