Tackling the Classics: Angelique Encens by Creed

Once long ago for a song I got a decant of Angelique Encens by Creed. It was almost on a whim that purchase and now looking back I really wish I had gotten more. Angelique Encens has now been discontinued by Creed, in the weird Creed fashion where it apparently goes into their "vault", and is then released once a decade as a limited edition. Whatever, Creed. I will stop my annoyance with Creed and go to the actual scent.

Angelique Encens is truly worthy of the adoration that those who have smelled it bestow on it. It is simply one of the most beautiful delicate dry interesting takes on incense out there. The beginning of Angelique Encens for me is the sweet entrance of angelica, a note with not enough love in perfume as far as I am concerned, easier on the nose than anise with a green sweet gentleness that perks up your mouth when you smell it. It is then followed by a soft marshmallow vanilla and a very soft dove grey amber, what then follows is the most interesting use of a cedar incense. The use of the cedar incense offering a unique spark to Angelique Encens, it keeps the scent balanced in a world of ethereal and cool.

While many associate this scent with Marlene Dietrich, the scent was made for her by Creed, I have always had other images in my head with this scent. The softness of it so wonderfully hazy that it makes for something more comforting than noir. It is a misty gray scent, all softness, but never overt.

Try if you like: L'Heure Bleau by Guerlain, Jicky by Guerlain, or Chergui by Serge Lutens.
first image provided by fragrantica.com 
second image: Fumee d'Ambre Gris by John Singer Sargent

SOTD: Angelique Encens

I really did not think I would like Creed's Angelique Encens that much considering the first fragrance I ever tried of theirs was rather hellacious on me (Fleurs de Bulgare), but last night I received my swap sample of it and I was blown away. This is what I wanted Frederic Malle's L'eau d'Hiver to be, this is strangely beautiful comforting cool incense, it is white marble with blue veins come to life, in a way it reminds me of L'Heure Bleue, but this actually works on me. Really if I were to describe it, it is a combination of L'eau d'Hiver and L'Heure Bleue, but ironically timeline wise, L'Heure Bleue is the grandmother-Angelique Encens the mother-L'eau d'Hiver the grandchild, what is strange though is this scent seems to straddle luminously feminine and yet I can't help but want to say it is androgynous. What I adore is it keeps the beautiful delicate green note of angelica through out, surrounding it with wonderfullying dry incense and cashmere like heliotrope tinged vanilla. I suppose I expected the cold Commes des Garcon's Avignon, instead this is somehow this is unearthly and comforting. Thank you Marlene Dietrich.

image provided by artnet.com

image: Illusion by Louis Icart

SOTD: Figue Amere

Today I am trying on something that I didn't really consider much of because I tried it on in the middle of Winter, Miller Harris's Figue Amere. Right now I am quite enjoying it, this may be the greenest fig scent I have ever smelled, I am picking up hints of angelica. When I tried it on in Winter all I got was an incredibly dry scent full of cedar, but now it is wonderfully green with sap. And I was right there is angelica in this beauty. I am going to have to give this one more testing. Bizarrely lush in a very dry way.

image provided by http://www.filmkultura.hu/2005/articles/reviews/index.hu.html

image: Kardhal, Mexico (1998) by Flor Garduno