I am a sucker for a good bergamot focused perfume. I probably smell no ingredient more that bergamot. It is a staple of top accords of a huge amount of various fragrances. It is so common it is easy to forget it can be beautiful when given an opportunity to shine. Allowing the forgotten ingredient some time in the spotlight.
The most recent example of a fun bergamot perfume has come from a brand I sort of forget about, too. I receive a box of samples from Sephora quarterly. The brand Commodity has been a part of these boxes since their inception in 2014. The overall brand aesthetic is one of creating a minimalistic style of fragrance which reflects strongly whatever is on the label. For the most part I have found this stripped-down style to not have engaged me enough to wear one for a couple days so I could review it. This is not to say that I tossed the strips to the side. Most of the perfumes are done by some of my favorite perfumers and they deliver what is asked of them. When it came to Commodity Bergamot, perfumer Stephen Nilsen turns this style to his advantage.
Stephen Nilsen
The reason there are not many bergamot perfumes is because it doesn’t last very long. Even if a perfumer empties their bag of tricks the bergamot will be gone in a few short hours. Mr. Nilsen does his best to keep the bergamot around. Which is why there are only two other ingredients to note; amber and violet leaf.
The fragrance opens with a giant shot of bergamot. Every time I experience bergamot in this quantity I am reminded of the way light moves on silk fabric with flow and presence. Bergamot is a fast-moving ingredient. To extend its stay Mr. Nilsen uses some mandarin oil to extend the citrus feel although there is nothing like the first half-an-hour as the bergamot shines by itself. As the mandarin begins to become more present violet leaf gives a green platform from which amber eventually warms things up in the end.
Commodity Bergamot has 6-8 hour longevity and average sillage.
There is a shiny fabric called brilliantine that was used in fashion. As I wore Commodity Bergamot I kept thinking this was a perfume of sparkle given flow. It is a brilliant choice for midsummer because its simplicity makes it a refreshing unobtrusive companion.
Disclosure: This review is based on a sample provided by Sephora.
–Mark Behnke
