Diptyque Orpheon Eau de Parfum is a subtle, close-wearing powdery, musky scent that turns more vanillic over time, while jasmine blooms deep in the background, adding a more generalized sense of floralcy. I wish I had more to say–this was a simpler scent journey and perfect for those who prefer scents that don’t change much over time! These are the notes:

• top notes: juniper berries
• heart notes: jasmine
• base notes: powdery notes, cedar, tonka bean

Scent Development

It opened with the bite of juniper berries–crisp, cool, and pine-like–with vanilla to back it up, offering a subtle sweetness before jasmine bloomed sweetly in the background. The powder ended up showing up after about 10 minutes of the fragrance settling on my skin, which gave it a powdery, musky characteristic that seemed to overwhelm the other notes. Everything that was in the opening became vague and diffused, which resulted in them losing their nuance and coming across as a more generic “clean” scent.

Orpheon was linear on my skin; it had a subtle jasmine and woods undercurrent that was dominated by powdery musk that became progressively more powdery and more vanilla (the woods losing out) by the second hour, which lasted through the drydown. Being linear is not a bad thing so long as one enjoys it. I also noticed with this that it wore particularly close to the skin and seemed subtler, particularly for an eau de parfum.

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. 

Longevity

This seemed to be a near skin-scent from the initial application. At best, it hovered two to three inches above my skin and with no sillage. It wasn’t weak per se, as I didn’t have trouble detecting it on my skin when I put my nose close to my wrist. It was shorter-wearing relative to other eau de parfums I’ve tried, including some from Diptyque, and it was hard to detect on my skin after eight hours of wear.

Personal Thoughts

I’m not as well-versed in this scent family, though it’s not the kind of fragrance that pulls me personally, and if it had slightly more projection and better longevity on my skin, it would seem nice enough for something soft, lightly floral and “clean” with a powdery musk.

Available Sizes

• 75ml for $190
• 0.7ml sample for $6

Where to Buy

• Neiman Marcus
• Nordstrom

Diptyque Orpheon Perfume Review

Diptyque Orpheon Perfume Review