Three years ago, I reviewed Amouage Jubilation XXV for Men, the scent released by the perfume house founded and owned by the Sultan of Oman in the Middle East. It’s a very heavy fragrance that, to this Westerner, seems far more appropriate for winter as it wraps around you like a blanket. It has top notes of labdanum ciste, coriander, orange, davana, frankincense, and blackberry; center notes of honey, bay, cinnamon, orchid, rose, clove, celery seeds, and gaiac wood; base notes of patchouli, opoponax, myrrh, atlas cedarwood, musk, moss, ambergris, oud wood, and immortelle. We went through it so quickly that there hasn’t been any around for awhile as it can be impossible to find in the United States. (Despite my urging for too long to remember, my favorite source of Creed and Bond No. 9, Hall’s in Kansas City, still doesn’t carry it even though they have the clientele.)
[mainbodyad]Last week, I decided I needed to cross some things off my tertiary task list and ordering a new 100 ml bottle of the Jubilation XXV was one of them. There are very few authorized dealers in the country, but they do exist. The exciting part was the price hasn’t changed much ($300 per bottle), so there hasn’t been a lot of inflation as there had been with a few of the other top-tier fragrance brands.
Since the new bottle arrived, we’ve gone around spraying ourselves with it non-stop for the past 72 hours, constantly enraptured by the magic applied to our wrists. This stuff is intoxicating. I know it’s thick, to people who grew up in the French school of scent, almost to the point of being offensive, but just like foreign food or music, you have to appreciate it for what it is.
One of the handful of authorized dealers in the United States is an online store called Lucky Scent. They sell the real stuff, not old stock or liquidations. They will provide a 0.7 ml sample for $4 if you are curious about it. Or better yet, buy a bottle of something you love and you can request quite a few free samples. To the sub-community of fragrance collectors out there, it’s worth the risk. This is not a scent for all people – you’re either going to love it or loathe it. It will make you either want to put on a cashmere sweater, throw yourself in a big leather chair, and look over your portfolio to count your dividends as you breathe deeply some of the most exotic ingredients on the planet, or spray yourself down with cold water so you can inhale without choking, crying, “Get it off! Get it off!”. I haven’t found much in between. It’s either bliss or agony depending upon your orientation to things such as Frankincense.
My second favorite in the Amouage line for men is Reflection, which, like Jubilation XXV, reminds me of “Christmas and Cash” according to my notes. It seems like a younger, more carefree brother of Jubilation XXV. I’m going to have to pick up a bottle of it, too, now that I remember how fantastic this house is on the men’s side.
I still need to check out Penhaligon’s, which many of you have told me I must research. I figure now that I’ve acquired most of the Acqua di Parma I desire – with only one or two left to fill in the collection (there was an Oud I wanted I found when we were in Southern California last month but I didn’t want to deal with bringing it back or shipping it) – I’m hoping to get around to this one next.
Any more suggestions, send them my way and I’ll keep sharing my exploits as long as you all keep sending me your stories; some of you have amazing fragrance cabinets!
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Reader Comments (9)
Comments are presented chronologically, with replies indented beneath the comments to which they respond.
Brett
July 27, 2013
Joshua - a few quick questions: Are you concerned about the degradation of the oils in your collection? Do you take any specific measures to extend the life of your fragrances after they're opened? How does the shelf-life of a higher quality brand (which I assume would have a higher concentration of essential oils) compare to the basic, entry-level department store offerings?
Joshua Kennon
July 27, 2013
Replying to Brett
1. The oils do have a shelf life to some degree, but on the other hand, some fragrances actually become different and better with age. Something like Original Santal by Creed will lose its "sparkle" in the top notes after 4-5 years (if the bottle ever lasts that long - around here, they rarely do because that is one of my go-to Christmas scents, haha!) So it depends on the specific fragrance. Creed, for instance, says on their blog that most of their scents will last for at least six years or more.
2. The fragrances are kept in a cool, dark place. That is why most collectors, myself included, have cabinets. Light and humidity can do tremendous damage if left unchecked, aging the scents much faster. (Bond No. 9 has an advantage in this department because most, not all, of their fragrances have darkened bottles that don't allow light into them in the first place.)
3. The length of time a scent last depends on the ratio of base, middle, and top notes and the concentration of the actual fragrance. Read this quick rundown and you will never have any questions about it again. For a fragrance house like Creed, all of the scents are Millesime strength, which means they last far far longer than what you can get in normal household brands. Really, read that linked rundown article. It will help a lot.
Sometimes, the best scents in a given family are actually not the expensive ones. If you layer and mix fragrances, there is a base vanilla that I found out about from one of the collector sites that costs a few bucks and is only available at discount drug stores. It's perfect as a foundation for putting the more expensive stuff on top of it. But the bottom line is, once you get passed the "you're paying for name only" brands, yes, there is a huge quality difference among the niche houses and the mass produced stuff, even for a brand like Chanel, which releases different strength concentrations of the same scent depending on whether you are buying it at a mid-tier department store or the flagship Saks.
kevm3
July 28, 2013
I really like Eau De Cartier Relaxante, but it may be very hard to find. Another interesting one is Cartier Declaration d'un Soir
kevm3
July 28, 2013
Replying to kevm3
Another one to try out is Bond No. 9 NY Oud
Joshua Kennon
July 28, 2013
Replying to kevm3
I haven't tried either of those; thank you very much for the suggestion!
Matt N
July 29, 2013
I bought some Jubilation XXV about a year ago after I stumbled on your last post about it - I love it and I know what you mean about cashmere sweaters! I really want to get my hands on some Bond no. 9 Saks 5th Ave - seems like I'll have to wait until next time I'm in the states though, can't bring myself to pay $150 shipping!
Joshua Kennon
August 14, 2013
Replying to Matt N
Hey! I just saw this morning that Saks is having a sale for UK customers and I remembered your comment; wanted to point it out to you just in case you hadn't seen it. At this moment, orders over £99.00 received a flat shipping rate of £9.95 from the United States, you have to use coupon code UK13 at checkout. I took a screenshot for you. To make sure it works in the cart, switch to UK shipping at the top, black bar of the Bond No. 9 page here.
Michael
March 22, 2016
Replying to Joshua Kennon
I'm enjoying our writings and have learned a great deal, thanks! Being a fragrance collector, I would recommend you trying Amouage Dia Man, and Neela Vermeire Trayee and Ashoka. Jubilation XXV was created by Bertrand Duchafour and he also created Trayee and Ashoka, if you're a little more adventurous and like rose, i would also recommend Mohur EDP. Chanel Bois des Iles and Coromandel are also superb.
kevm3
July 30, 2013
Let me know what you think when you smell them. If you aren't averse to checking out designers, there are some very interesting scents among them.Some of the more distinctive ones that avoid the 'acqua di gio' aquatic, 'D&G light blue' citrus, or light, sweet, fruity smell that are so prevalent these days include: Burberry London -- this is one of my favorites. Prada Amber and Prada Amber Intense are both very distinctive colognes and definitely worth a smell. Prada Amber has been described as smelling like 'very expensive soap.' Amber Intense, I can't really describe it, but it's quite a different take on the original.. Fahrenheit Absolute is very interesting... sort of a cinnamon/leather smell. Very distinct.
I haven't yet smelled any Amouage, but out of the Creed line-up, my favorite is Virgin Island Water. Aventus is definitely a huge compliment getter though. Bond no. 9, my favorite is NY Oud and Success is a Job in NY.
I'm on the search for a nice vanilla based fragrance to round out my line-up. Any suggestions?