Montale Patchouli Leaves Eau de Parfum starts off with a dark, earthy patchouli–damp soil, earthy, and cool–but is quickly warmed up with with vanilla and amber before drying down to a mostly amber, vanilla, and musk skin scent. The patchouli was the main attraction for the first hour or so of wear, but the amber ended up being the most noticeable aspect for the remainder of the development. The notes are listed as: patchouli, vanilla, amber, white musk, and labdanum.

It opened with dark, earthy patchouli with a loamy quality that has a smattering of cocoa powder. There was a modicum of vague sweetness, which gave credence to the chocolaty aspect of the patchouli, but it was still more accurately described as dark and earthy, soil-like and cool. It was not the darkest, dampest patchouli I’ve come across but not so dry that it was more chocolaty than earthy.

Deeper, spiced resins emerged after 10 minutes of wear, which significantly clawed back the earthiness of the patchouli and gave it more of a leathery aspect. The spice was assertive enough that it made me think there was clove included. Golden amber felt like it fought against the patchouli, as the two felt distinct and less harominzed, but two hours in, they came together, though the amber dominated. Soft, oaky woods and a musky undertone were also apparent at this point.

The drydown warmed up as the amber continued to grow in strength, while the vanilla was richer and more noticeable with most of the patchouli worn away.

Application

For testing, I used half of a 1ml 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. 

Longevity

It lasted for five hours until it was a skin-scent and about eight 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 the first hour of wear.

Personal Thoughts

It reminded me of Jovoy Psychedelique, which was ultimately too earthy and too soil-like for too long to win a place in my fragrance stash, for its opening, but Patchouli Leaves has the patchouli more mingling with other notes, like amber and labdanum, but I would have loved to have the patchouli linger longer with the amber, rather than have it become more of an amber fragrance overall.

Available Sizes

• 100ml for $170
• 0.7ml sample for $4

Where to Buy

• LuckyScent

Montale Patchouli Leaves Perfume Review

Montale Patchouli Leaves Perfume Review

Montale Ristretto Cafe Intense Extrait de Parfum begins with a sweet, jammy rose that sits on top of a frothy, caramel macchiato; the rose dominates for the first two hours before the coffee and its accoutrements started to strengthen as the drydown was creamy coffee with toffee syrup and amber.

• top notes: Italian black coffee, Turkish rose water
• heart notes: rose buds, roasted coffee beans, dry woods
• base notes: vanilla, white musk, toffee, amber

It opened with a burst of a tangy rose liqueur, then a rich, espresso wafted upward after two minutes of wear. It bloomed with sweeter, jammy rose with milkier espresso, now nutty and slightly bitter, behind it. The coffee aspect felt more like a caramel macchiato–milky, caramelized, and darkly sweet; initially, it was not so noticeably caramel, just lightly so, but it thickened and sweetened over time. The rose remained at the forefront with the macchiato warm and fluid underneath.

After two hours, roasted coffee came through the rose with a chewy, toffee-like syrup, a bit of spice, and further creaminess as the macchiato thickened as the caramel melted through it, and the fragrance shifted from rose-dominated to the rose being a subtle force in the background of the coffee. Spiced, resinous amber joined the milky, caramel coffee, which made the caramel more like toffee, thicker, chewier, and denser. The drydown was warm, milky coffee with toffee drizzle and ambery undertones.

Application

For testing, I used 1/3 of a 1ml 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. 

Longevity

It lasted for six hours until it was a skin-scent and about 12 hours before it was quite difficult to detect on my skin. The sillage and projection were high with the sillage dropping faster than the projection within four hours.

Personal Thoughts

The rose was jammier than I’d like and stronger compared to the coffee, which wasn’t wholly unexpected based on what I read on the fragrance prior to sampling. I really loved the drydown of coffee, toffee, and creamy vanilla with amber peaking through–the amber and the coffee mixing together was heavenly.

Available Sizes

• 100ml for $215
• 0.7ml sample for $6

Where to Buy

• LuckyScent

Montale Ristretto Cafe Intense Perfume

Montale Ristretto Cafe Intense Perfume