I’ve sampled about 11 different labdanum absolutes from various sources and they’ve all been a little different in color, thickness, and most importantly, scent. I’ve been using one that is very nice but more on the sweet side; the new kilo of labdanum I just got from France is not quite as sweet and is very beautiful. I’m hoping they will continue to offer this for some time since it is one of their specialty products. Labdanum absolutes vary in the amount of muskiness, sweetness, floral nuances, etc that they have in their scent, but they all have a sweet ambery fragrance that makes a wonderful base note. Which one you prefer is really personal preference. (Note that although cistus essential oil and labdanum absolute both come from the same plant, Cistus ladaniferus, their scent is completely different.)
I’m going to try this new labdanum in all my scent formulas that contain labdanum and see on a one by one basis if I prefer it to the one I’m currently using. I need to determine the correct conversion ratio since the odor strength per gram of the two is a little different. I’m trying it in the new Tabac Aurea formula, which had contained a slightly drier labdanum than my usual one, so the switch should be ok since this one is drier too.
So, I’m continuing to work on the new formulas, tabac and gardenia, while starting to go through the older formulas to work in the new moss and labdanum. Neither one should cause major changes in the scents; it’ll be subtle.
Thought this looked like an interesting collaboration between Luca Turin’s Flexitral company and MIT to model the olfactory process:
http://www.perfumerflavorist.com/fragrance/research/37572479.html
And from the previous post, I realized I forgot another men’s scent I tried recently and liked very much: Annick Goutal’s Duel. It has a lovely mate note and soft sueded leather. I love mate absolute, as well as a mate tincture that I’ve made. Mate has a deep, earthy tea note with medium lasting power. In Duel, the tea note lasts quite well for me and is wonderful in combination with the soft leather. It’s a dry and masculine scent, with subtle hints of tobacco and some orris in the base as well, but it’s the tea and soft, smooth leather combo that captivated me.
