ELECTIMUSS
BLACK CAVIAR

2019

PERFUMER
Marco Genovese

caviar
oud
cedarwood

lavender
sage
rosemary

vetiver
patchouli
oakmoss

‘This aromatic, oceanic fougere is opulent, complex, harmonious and surprising. The luxurious saltiness of caviar blends perfectly with the sage, rosemary and lavender to create an aromatic heart resting on a woody earthy base with oakmoss and patchouli. Oceanic lavender fit for an emperor. With great flourish and a fanfare of flutes, drums and trumpets, Emperor Severus served caviar to the most revered guests in garlands of roses. And he wasn’t alone. Emperor Nero was famous for his hedonism, he was a true epicurean and a connoisseur with a great appetite and extravagant tastes including caviar a timeless luxury.’ – Electimuss

Electimuss is one of the more talked about newer niche brands. A couple of fragrances were released in 2014, but the brand reappeared and took off in 2019. Black Caviar is one of the fragrances that I heard about and considering that it includes caviar in the notes, it piqued my interest.

I must preface the review by saying that I don’t eat, let alone smell caviar, so whether or not it captures the essence is something that you’ll have to find out for yourself. What I can say is, that I expected it to be a bit fishy and salty and I know people have called this a salty fragrance. To my nose, it’s barely salty and there’s no fishiness at all. At best, a mineralic quality.

It leans in the direction of a (masculine) fresh aromatic more than it does aquatic to me. I get a little bit of a metallic, inky vibe from it, but that could also be my mind making the connection to Zoologist Squid (the two share similarities, but barely and I find Black Caviar to be much more wearable and enjoyable). The aromatic aspect is prominent on my skin; lavender, sage, rosemary. I picture the herbs laying on old, dark wood, with a breeze from the ocean nearby. I think the quality of the wood notes elevates this fragrance a lot. The patchouli seems to move it into a dry and more powdery drydown, but the scent largely remains the same throughout for me.

I have a feeling that this fragrance would be perceived completely different if it didn’t have caviar in the name. To my nose, it’s a pleasant, well-blended composition, that has interesting features, but ultimately is not as eccentric as people make it out to be. I see it as as a really nice aromatic scent that mostly middle-aged and older men will gravitate towards. It’s quite versatile; it’s not a just a fresh basic scent and it’s strong enough for colder days, but it has a cool, metallic tinge that I believe would work well in warm weather. Performance is really good, so overall this gets a thumbs up from me.