Forrest Gump tells us that ‘life is like a box of chocolates; you never know what you’re gonna get.” When it comes to my favorite perfumers that isn’t usually the case; I tend to know what I am going to get. There are a few collections which do create a Forrest Gump-ian sense of surprise. One is the Les Infusions de Prada. Some of this is due to the aesthetic in-house perfumer Daniela Andrier brings to this collection. They are meant to be gauzy opaque constructs focused on whatever the main ingredient listed on the bottle is. The line has missed for me when that transparency turns to near insubstantial-ness. I have found it frustrating chasing wisps of what I sprayed on just a few hours before looking for what I was enjoying. The ones which I own are the ones which have overcome this. I think I’m going to break that streak with the latest to be released, Infusion de Mandarine.
Daniela Andrier
Mme Andrier has spoken in the past of seeing Les Infusions as her version of perfume watercolors. Infusion de Manadarine might be her version of a still life of an orange. She has assembled all the pieces of an orange growing on a tree, translating them to a perfume.
To start she makes a top accord which accentuates the bitter nature of the rind. There is an acerbic orange nucleus around which green foliage is also present. We move inside as the juicy pulp appears through a clever neroli blended with carrot seed. This is an abstract version of the fruit itself gorgeously realized. Right next to this is the slightly indolic orange blossom reminding us of the nascent orange to come. This is the type of accord Mme Andrier excels at. She chooses the soft warmth of opoponax to provide the base note for this to rest upon.
Here is the drawback; Infusion de Mimosa has 5-6 hour longevity and moderate sillage.
As I mentioned this collection misses for me when it is so transparent it almost isn’t there. Infusion de Mandarine is one of those. If longevity is important to you then this is going to be a non-starter. For me it usually is, too. Except in this case the overall effect is so beautiful I am overlooking it. I am on the dregs of my press sample and will be going to the mall to pick up a bottle because I think when the thermometer reaches triple digits this summer Infusion de Mandarine is going to be the ideal cooler.
Disclosure: this review is based on a sample I received from Prada.
–Mark Behnke
