It’s hard not to anthropomorphize perfume sometimes. In my cinema of perfume, Bogue Profumo Maai is the blue blood, pants-wearing contessa who bursts into the drawing room after a day in the stables — having parsed her time between the horses and the groom — and fires her gaze over the room. She tells one guest to sit up straighter. To another guest, she sneers, “You again.” Then she leans into a vase of tuberose and orange blossoms, and her expression transforms from harridan to angel.
Antonio Gardoni, the founder of Bogue, created Maai, and it was released in 2014. Its notes include tuberose, rose, jasmine, ylang ylang, civet, castoreum, hyraceum, dried fruits, sandalwood and oakmoss. Maai intrigues and repulses me at the same time. It’s huge — full of personality — crude, yet made with beautiful materials. It has old school chypre structure and new world trust fund insolence.
After reading Luca Turin’s four-star (of five) review, I scrambled to get my hands on a decant. In his review, Turin compares smelling Maai to a front row seat at the Vienna Philharmonic after listening to two months of ring tones. I get that. Maai smells real and unapologetic. It’s big. I love his comparison, and anyone who has seen a live symphony orchestra understands the full-body delight of the first delicious minutes as you acclimate to the real thing after a steady diet of CDs.
Maai delivers an opening that blends herbal menthol notes with citrus, while the show to come roils beneath. Within moments comes the tension of soapy clean musk and virginal flowers against animalic notes that could be textbook definitions of castoreum and civet. (For those newer to fragrance, imagine the scent of feces and bad breath. For real.) It’s rude yet intriguing. When I smelled Maai’s sweet-indolic combination, it reminded me of something. Then I remembered. I’ve had a sample tube of vintage Jean Desprez Bal à Versailles extrait rolling around my desk for a while. Maai could be Bal à Versailles with hipster credentials. But Maai is painted with a trowel, not a fine-tip brush like Bal à Versailles. Oakmoss fetishists, the moss is there, but it doesn’t cloud the entire composition and is a supporting cast member rather than the star.
As Maai wears, the animalic notes fall away, leaving a clean-mossy floral scent. Eventually, that morphs into sandalwood, and Maai’s schizophrenia dissipates into a sweet-woody trail that would be welcome in any bus or café. Despite its whopper construction, Maai only lasts about four or five hours on my skin.
I’m glad I have a decant of Maai, but I don’t feel compelled to buy a full bottle. I prefer the more elegant construction of vintage Christian Dior Miss Dior or Bal à Versailles when I want a hit of animalic chypre. On the right person, though, MAAI would bring down the house. I’d love to know that person. I’m just not sure I could spend a whole evening with him.
Bogue Profumo Maai Eau de Parfum is $180 for 30 ml and $280 for 50 ml. It can be found in the US at Luckyscent, in the UK at Bloom Perfumery, or in Italy at Antica Profumeria Al Sacro Cuore.
Angela, you really put into words how I felt about Maai — that contessa is real!
I am not sure for how long I was able to smell it on me (it was long), but I clearly remember that the salesperson sprayed it on my woolen scarf and that thing lasted for over a week.
I can imagine it lasting a long time on fabric! You were lucky to get to test it. I don’t think the Bogue fragrances are easy to find.
I tested it in Italy (and even there, the availability appears to be rather limited — the salesperson was proud for carrying it).
Again, great review, Angela!
Thank you!
I am in love with this perfume. It is unforgiving on a wrong kind of day, but then comes another day and it is just perfect, strangely enough it mixes well with super hot New York summer… and I am already through my tester, I probably need a full bottle of it…. though in reality I probably do not need a full bottle of anything, but then again it is just so good
Your thought process exactly mirrors the one I have every once in a while with particular fragrances!
Feces and bad breath. Yep. That’s what I got. I’m open to animalic scents, but this one was downright awful me. I got a sample and wore it one day thinking: this is interesting. I hesitated to keep it on, but was intrigued to find out where it would go on my skin. Unfortunately, it ended up being a total skank fest. It went back and forth between soap, moss and feces on me and the feces won. My fiance and I both agreed I smelled like cat poop and in the worst way possible. It just didn’t work on my skin at all. I was running for the shower when we got home so I could wash it off.
No doubt about it–Maai has the strongest animalic notes (in a civet-y way, otherwise MKK wins) of any fragrance I’ve worn. I thought Bal a Versailles or l’Air de Rien might have won that title, but no. The floral-soapy notes help, but may not go far enough on some skin!
Hmm. I found it more elegant than Bal à Versailles, which I always thought of as having a slight streak of silliness to the skank — *definitely* would not have described it as fine-brushed, but I’ve never tried the extrait. I can see the insolence in Maai, though.
Bal a Versailles can smell so different depending on its age and formulation, in my opinion. The vintage extrait I have (and used up) is the skankiest I’ve smelled, but the candied floral notes are so delicate. My Bal EdC, on the other hand, is a kitten.
I wore Maai the other day and agree that it does surprisingly well in the heat. I don’t get much in the way of indoles (thankfully, maybe I’m becoming anosmic because that’s usually a deal breaker and I’ve loved several things lately that are described as very indolic) and only mild animal warmth. Of course, the smelliest fecal perfume skank is a breath of fresh air to me so YMMV. I still hate the smell of cat crap, kittens mean more box scooping than I’ve become accustomed to so I’m positive about that, so I’ve not gone completely out of my mind. Honestly, I think it’s the strong, mildly jarring moment of white flowers that have kept me from grabbing a FB so far. It is going to sit on my wish list for a bit but merits at least a decant for me.
Decants are brilliant for figuring out if a fragrance is truly worth the outlay for a full bottle. But I’m surprised you don’t get that *boomph* of civet and castoreum! Maybe you’re the person Maai was made for.
I went and put a dab on and in wrong, it’s the slightly astringent citrus in the opening that I don’t love. Odd that I find it too clean to begin with. I’m still finding it otherwise swoon worthy though.
As for the hipster thing, I’ve apparently spent enough time in Austin that I didn’t realize the long-haired and deliberately disheveled but otherwise squeaky clean look was really such a big thing until I saw it in a high-end clothing ad. It must be coming to an end though because I saw a couple of cute country boys not quite rocking it the other day in a small town cafe. That usually signals the end of a trend. I do hope shaving comes back in style soon but I’m not holding my breath.
The not-shaving thing mystifies me. How do they keep that two-day stubble so pristinely two-day all week?
Hi, Angela.
Oh gosh, Bal a Versailles with hipster credentials really sums it up for me as well. I really like Maai, but I think it is far more dense than Bal a Versailles.
I honestly have no understanding of the hipster head scruff with the depilated torso, but ok! All I can think of is Mexican Chihuahuas.
In Portland, it’s all about men with buns, and I’ve even seen some alarming ear hair.
I should clarify: I means buns in the hair, not the other kind.
the man bun is indeed a trend…let’s pray the visible ear hair doesn’t catch on!
I’m hoping it’s a passing fad, too! Ick.
Yeah, I’m older so I’m just trying to accept it. I’m thinking that maybe younger women find it attractive. (Do you?) Then I also think that maybe we’ve gone beyond that dynamic, which could be a good thing.
I’m indifferent to the man bun, really. I see where it could be practical if you have long hair and it’s hot out. Where I draw the line is dreadlocks on white guys. Fortunately, that trend seems to have faded.
White boy/white girl dreadlocks . . . still a thing among hipster outdoor-sport types in mountain towns, sorry to say. Fully loaded with tats and gauged earlobes, too.
I really commend you guys. The rules and the boundaries have exploded, and it couldn’t be easy.
Even though Maai doesn’t really sound like my cup of tea, I now want to try it as some sort of macho (macha?) challenge: Maai vs. My Perfume Eating Skin. Seriously, on me MKK = Love’s Baby Musk and L’Air de Rien = boozy raisins. Time after time I will find a perfume I like, but it will just not last long enough to be worth my time, or money.
P.S. Have only seen the occasional man-bun in Vancouver so far…
I’d love to know what it does on your skin! As for the man buns, beware, they’re on their way…
I got a sample last winter from Luckyscent and fell in love with the fragrance. I could not wait to get my FB and I still enjoy it even though it is not something I reach for every day.
You are right, Bal a Versailles is what I immediately thought of when I first sniffed Maai; while Bal is, on me, sweeter and smooth, Maai is much more “in your face”. Thankfully the heavy animalistic notes don’t seem to come through much with my chemistry.
It sounds like you wear Maai perfectly!
Nice review, Angela. MAAI scares me (like Musc Tonkin which I gave away without even smelling). I will happily skip this and move on.
If an assertive animalic facet will bother you, then, yes! best to move on.
Great review, Angela! Maai also reminds me of Onda extrait, and I prefer Maai.
As much as I admire Maai, I think I prefer Onda. They are both loaded with character! That’s a good thing.
Maai, Onda, Bal de Versailles….that would be a Friday project to remember – Wear the skankiest perfume you have…with pride!
We could rove around in packs wearing these perfumes! 😉
Scary!
And report back as to what people say! That could be some entertaining reading.
I have a sample of Maai, and I really like it. But I think my chemistry plays down the animalics quite a bit (JAR Ferme Tes Yeux wasn’t even as scary as I expected).
I have a vintage mini of BaV, and I love that too, though they are very different. I think of BaV as the aristocrat to Maai’s operatic diva. I also really liked Musc Tonkin. The thing about these (except the BaV, which I like to wear in the fall), is that as much as I like them, I’m not really sure when I would wear them. I guess “whenever I darn well please” works, but I always wonder if the way they smell on me, to me, is how they would smell to other people in my vicinity. I could be traipsing about thinking I smell awesome, leaving horrified onlookers (or onsmellers, I guess?) in my wake.
I know what you mean about wondering how other people will process how you smell. Most people aren’t super sophisticated about fragrance, so anything you wear that’s more challenging than the department store hit du jour might cause a little flummox, anyway. You may as well go for it!
This one was total love at first sniff for me. Life had thrown a huge curve ball around the time I got a sample, and when I dabbed a liberal amount of Maai, I instantly felt like queen bitch instead of overwhelmed mouse. Given I am rather shy and quiet out in the world, I love perfumes that are big, showy and make a statement (I liberally doused myself in Diva edp before bed, for instance, and hope to be buried with whatever remains of my Fracas and L’Arte di Gucci a la Warhol), and Maai instantly went on my must buy list. I will let her cuddle up with Absolue Pour Le Soir on the top shelf of my cabinet and they can swap stories about all the horrified or mystified reactions they’ve received.
I love it that you have a wardrobe of perfume showstoppers! I think Maai will find good company in Absolue pour le soir.
OMG! This is the last of my 6 samples I ordered and I saved it for today. I had liked some…she came to stay; disliked others…moon fever
But this baby is right down my alley
I am thinking kismet brought my nose and this review together and yes I am in for an FB!
I hope you and Maai have a long and prosperous life together! (And don’t you love the word “kismet”?)
Angela
Kismet is a great word. I lived in the Middle East for several years, so it resonates with Inshallah
I am also fond of “bittersweet” the older I get the more everything becomes bitter sweet. No wonder Joni Mitchell used it in A Case of You.
Thank you for teaching me “Inshallah.” “Bittersweet” is such an evocative word–and Joni Mitchell is such an evocative artist. I need to listen to more of her.
Agreed!
Sounds Terrifying.
There’s no doubt in my mind that some people would rather stick their head in the toilet than wear this.
Great review Angela! It sounds,as you say, intriguing. However the 4-5 hour part worries my scent gobbling skin chemistry.
I was surprised that it didn’t last longer, because it felt like it had the makings of an all-nighter.
It does linger nicely on clothes, though, and I did get more like 6-7 hours when I tested it in cold weather, though that was dabbing and not spraying.
I was afraid it would be Secretions Magnifique all over again, but ended up more with an SL MKK experience. At first I paused, then closed my eyes and fell head over heels. 😉
I’m glad you love it!
For others reading this, just to be clear, Maai’s animalic notes aren’t body-odor-ish like MKK or nauseatingly fetid like Secretions Magnifique. Instead, they’re more the “poopy” kind.
On the right person, though, MAAI would bring down the house. I’d love to know that person. I’m just not sure I could spend a whole evening with him.
1) This perfumes sounds like a hot, long night of ….you know what, and all the scent after before a shower and stumble to awkward brunch.
2) Is this available at The Perfume House (on Hawthorne?)
To me, Maai is more indolic than “sexy body” smell. But I’d be interested to see what you think!
As far as I know, The Perfume House doesn’t carry Bogue. I had to order a decant from a split group.
I managed to sample this at Bloom perfumery in Covent Garden yesterday……was so looking forward to this BUT….. It was very very pissy on my skin…please excuse the language but no other way to describe it. I left it on my wrist for a couple of hours but had to wash it off…..it sort of depressed me! Strange effect but I was having a lovely day and every time I caught a whiff of it …and there were plenty…..it’s strong…..it sort of brought me down. Just as well really I bought some new boots in Russell and Bromley instead:)) This one is a big no no for me.
It was a lot more fecal than urine-like on me. It sounds like boots were a much better purchase!
I’m way late to the party on this one, but I got a sample from Lucky Scent, where I had asked for something: big, beautiful and intimidating, as I was having a rough time. And I got Maai. OMG. Loved it! I could not get my hands on a FB fast enough. It does remind me of a love tryst in my closet between Bal a Versailles and my Absolue Pour le Soir. It was a Postman Always Rings Twice kind of affair, messy, and with broken crockery, but what a love child!
I think I can pull this off. I can literally come back from riding my horse bareback, my jeans sweaty and caked with horse hair, chastise a neighboring surgeon for driving too fast, then fall into my way cheesy, hidden papasan chair for a headphone session of Victoria’s beautiful 17th century chants.
This was a great find! Especially going into fall. Thanks for the fabulous review. I LOVE the anthropomorphisment….no, anthropomorphication….:)
What a fabulous description of Maai you give! It sounds like it’s perfect on you, too. I can imagine you in your papasan chair, all fragrant, listening to the beautiful music…