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American Perfumer Colorado & Desert Flower ~ fragrance reviews

Posted by Jessica on 26 December 2018 9 Comments

About a year and a half ago, I was aggravated enough by an article in a women's glossy magazine to write a response on my own blog and to encourage a few fellow bloggers to do the same. This article proclaimed the rise of American indie perfumers (imagine that!) and noted their tendency to create fragrances inspired by wide open spaces (because of their "pioneering spirit," apparently). It also seemed to be laboring under the impression that only men are currently crafting, creative-directing, or critiquing perfume in the United States.

More recently, I was intrigued by the launch of a perfume boutique in Louisville, Kentucky dedicated entirely to American fragrance brands. American Perfumer, as it's appropriately named, takes an almost gallery-like approach to showcasing its brands and giving the perfumers themselves a voice through blog posts and podcast interviews. And, unlike the above-mentioned article, it includes a mix of male and female perfumers.

American Perfumer has also begun commissioning a series of limited edition fragrances, beginning with Colorado by Dawn Spencer Hurwitz and Desert Flower by Maria McElroy of Aroma M. Both are olfactory evocations of specific place-memories. I've smelled both over the past few weeks and enjoyed my "travels" with them.

Dawn Spencer Hurwitz describes Colorado as the"fragrance of sunshine through the trees and fresh conifer needles warmed by the sun mixed with the sugary, maple-d amber of the Ponderosa pines." Its composition includes top notes of bergamot, lemon, leafy green accord, blue spruce and neroli; heart notes of jasmine, immortelle, oak, black spruce, sandalwood and cedar; and base notes of pine bark, pine amber, pine moss, fir balsam, tolu balsam, fossil amber and cade.

That sounds like a lot to process, but Colorado feels very legible and, yes, spacious. If it were a film clip, it would zoom out from details to the overall view. It starts off with a very syrupy note of pine sap seeping out from the Ponderosa pine's inner bark and being warmed by the sun. (If you like immortelle, you'll be in heaven.) Then the fragrance "backs up" a bit to share the needles, branches, and towering trunks of the trees, with a smoky wood note and a spot-on evocation of pine bark. Colorado's drydown is a wider olfactive sweep of warm earth, more resins (a gorgeous sweet-yet-dry balsam) and a breath of fresh air and sky over this imagined forest.

Maria McElroy's Desert Flower, the second limited edition in this series, is a floral chypre composed of "rare, vintage Arabian oils," with notes of lina (desert flower), honey, cedar, muguet, flower of honor, oud, vanilla, violet, chypre and amber. Desert Flower's inspiration is a pair of desert memories: a family trip through the Mojave and a later visit to the Sahara. Of the latter, Maria McElroy writes, "I imagine wandering into the endless desert; its violet shadows and silence, its sand and sweet flower aroma swirling and lifting to cloak me with mystery and nostalgia."

Desert Flower is sensual yet diaphanous, with its delicate white floral notes balanced by a base that reminds me of sandalwood incense. Many white floral scents feel too prim and soapy, too overblown, or too animalic for me, but Desert Flower is none of the above. There's a hint of honey along with the namesake desert blooms and the "sand" is fine and cool; this is definitely a desert at twilight, not in the heat of midday. 

Desert Flower has a 1970s vintage feel, something that's hard for me to articulate exactly — in fact, this fragrance itself is hard for me to describe. It's linear yet nuanced, understated but definitely not dull. Like Colorado, Desert Flower is impressionistic in the way it conjures up a specific locale, yet it's more intimate and meditative.

Both these scents suggested their locations so well to me that I felt the need for a change of wardrobe: Colorado seems to require a comfy (yet durable) flannel shirt and hiking boots, whereas Desert Flower really should be paired with a Talitha Getty-style caftan. Even though I'm more of a homebody, I've been enjoying these "travels." I look forward to seeing and smelling American Perfumer's next venture with another indie scent-creator. 

American Perfumer + Dawn Spencer Hurwitz Colorado is available as 30 ml Eau de Parfum ($125.00, edition of 50); American Perfumer + Aroma M Desert Flower is available as 30 ml Parfum ($150.00, edition of 25). Both are exclusive to American Perfumer.

1. For full disclosure: Maria McElroy and I first met years ago when she was showing her line at a shop in New York. I liked her work, so I kept showing up at her store events and studio events. We've come to know each other through ongoing contact in New York's tight-knit circle of perfume-lovers. As usual, however, I wouldn't bother to review this fragrance if it didn't truly appeal to me and/or give me something to think about.

Possibly of interest

Zoologist Snowy Owl ~ new fragrance
3 from Dawn Spencer Hurwitz ~ new fragrances
6 from Dawn Spencer Hurwitz ~ new fragrances

Filed Under: perfume talk
Tagged With: american perfumer, aroma m, dawn spencer hurwitz, limited edition

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9 Comments

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  1. chocolatemarzipan8 says:
    26 December 2018 at 3:46 pm

    Colorado sounds gorgeous. I have perused the American Perfumery website and they feature some amazing perfumers. They also carry my current favorite indie house, St Clair Scents… hoping one day you will do a review on the newest release, Casablanca 😉

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    • Jessica says:
      29 December 2018 at 5:18 pm

      I like the line-up at American Perfumer, too! The whole AP project strikes a few chords for me. I had a phone chat with the owner and his approach reminded me of a gallerist representing artists.

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  2. Kanuka says:
    26 December 2018 at 6:57 pm

    The last two years has seen the beginnings of a NZ perfume “industry” ( which still numbers fewer than ten, I think). The market here must be tiny and so some of the perfumers are responding to the all-natural, “green” NZ image creating scents that highlight landscape: mountains, forest, lakes etc. some of these makers also utilise NZ endemic and native plants ( kowhai, manuka, koromiko, taramea). Brands in lude Queenstown Perfumier, Mea, Goldminer’s Daughter. The taramea based scents (Mea) are created by the South Island tribe Ngai Tahu as taramea gum played an important part in traditional Maori scent. I think Curio Noir , in Auckland, is more of an experimental perfumer in terms of creating perfume stories rather than landscpae scents. Abel is an all-natural ( a NZ connection but not based here). It will be interesting to see how things develop…how we develop an identity.

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    • ockeghem says:
      28 December 2018 at 1:08 am

      Oooh, would love to try these!

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      • Jessica says:
        29 December 2018 at 5:15 pm

        New names to me, but they do sound intriguing!

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  3. jackieonasty says:
    29 December 2018 at 11:17 am

    Thank you, thank you, thank you for the shoutouts to Dawn and Maria. Both of their lines are excellent and women in the niche industry need to be recognized. Neela Vermeire, Ineke, Kabeah, and Hi Wildflower are all bringing really exciting work front and center as well.

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    • Jessica says:
      29 December 2018 at 5:16 pm

      I agree…some of them have been doing wonderful work for years, and some are interesting newcomers, and they deserve to be celebrated! I’ve been a DSH and Aroma M fan for ages so I was excited to learn that they were the first participants in this series.

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  4. therabbitsflower says:
    29 December 2018 at 2:39 pm

    Very nice reviews. I’d love to try these, but they don’t offer samples. Maybe they’ll be offered at the next splitmeet…

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    • Jessica says:
      29 December 2018 at 5:16 pm

      That’s an excellent idea… I hope someone takes you up on it!

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