1969 Parfum de Revolte Histoires de Parfums

Source: www.ufgrangehall.com

1969 was the first perfume I owned from Histoires de Parfums and it entered my life around the beginning of my entry into the "niche" world of perfumes other than Serge Lutens. In contrast to some of my early buys, I've grown to enjoy and appreciate it more than my inexperienced nose ever did before. 

Where before my green self could only smell a fruity chocolate, I now think of it as alluring and spicy, the gourmand notes still present but intertwined with newly recognised notes, 1969 has grown in attraction, the good projection and longevity being plus points as well. Cloves, cardamom and licorice dominate the opening, spicy, herbal and thoroughly invigorating. A fuzzy soft peach and sweet, fresh roses appear after half an hour of wear, the spiciness abating with their appearance but the scent still retains its oriental nature, warm and sensual. 

After the fruit and floral notes are settled in, a dark semi-sweet chocolate emerges and 1969 becomes smoother and creamy, a spiced chocolate that smells different to Arquiste's Anima Dulcis, another spicy chocolate that I adore. The spice in Anima Dulcis smells like how chili tastes or smells, raw, sharp and fiery whereas the spiciness in 1969 are the unmistakeable cardamom and cloves, aromatic with a slightly peppery tickle to the nostrils, the combination of both spices makes me think of mulled wine and Turkish coffee! 

As 1969 dries further, the spices remain as a lingering pleasant aftertaste and leave a rosy sweet and musky dark chocolate behind. Anima Dulcis on the hand becomes a powdery chili chocolate in its drydown, the makings of a comforting mug of spiced cocoa. Both scents are utterly blissful in their own way but I find 1969 a tad seductive with her sweet bits and spicy muskiness, the earthy patchouli in the drydown adding some darkness to her already interesting nature. Anima Dulcis on the other hand is more like her name, a genuinely "sweet soul" that is relatively uncomplicated chili and chocolate, what you see (on the note list) is what you get.