The history of the English perfume house Atkinsons starts in 1799 when young James Atkinson from rural Cumberland came to London to make his fortune. In his luggage he kept recipes for his perfume creations, a stock of rose scented bear pomade and his companion and mascot – a real brown bear. The bear is a big attraction in London, the pomade goes like hot cake – to cut a long story short, of course James had to be patient, but in 1826 he was designated official perfumer of the royal court. Amongst his admirers were dandy Beau Brummel, Napoléon Bonaparte, admiral Nelson or the Russian tsarina Alexandra.
After a long winter dormancy the traditional perfume house celebrates its relaunch in 2013. My favorite scent from this line, The Odd Fellow’s Bouquet, fits perfectly to this year’s mild autumn. The intensive Eau de Toilette mingles through the air like an elegant cigar in the fireplace room of a traditional British gentleman’s club. I smell oriental tobacco with a slightly honey note. Golden tea in a delicate porcelain cup, newspapers rustle. You get whiskey, sweet almondy heliotrope, soft labdanum and to add some depth and opulence a pinch of pepper and bits of ginger. The Odd Fellow’s Bouquet is warm like an open fire, spicy like Christmas cookies an all in all just awesome! To those who love Ambre Narguilé by Hermès I highly recommend The Odd Fellow’s Bouquet. And I want to mention that perfumer Fabrice Pellegrin also created the wonderful Volutes for Diptyque last year, I wrote about it here. And now spritz some The Odd Fellow’s Bouquet on a cashmere scarf and go for a stroll through the autumn leaves.
The recomposition of the velvety rose-meets-patchouli scent Fashion Decree by Karine Dubreuil, that has already made the heads turn at the court of Queen Victoria, is an autumn staple too. Opulent and nevertheless light-footed it combines the sweetness of roses and Chinese magnolia with earthy patchouli.
These perfumes fit for gentlemen and gentlewomen, of course.
Last but not least I want to rave of the vials, because the heavy silver lids with the Atkinsons emblem are gorgeous and look so very luxurious and elegant. Maybe they are the most beautiful flacons I have ever had my hands on for the last years. They make a perfect still life on your dressing table. By the way, the emblem is adorned by two bears. Who would have thought? And bears are always very welcome in Berlin!
Category: unisex
Year: 2013
Perfumer: Fabrice Pellegrin
Notes: tobacco, heliotrope, ginger, pepper, benzoe, labdanum
