BORTNIKOFF
COLOGNE CELESTE
2022
PERFUMER
Dmitry Bortnikov
citron
lemon
litsea cubeba
pink grapefruit
beeswax
blood orange
damask rose
red mandarin
rose
cedar
oakmoss
pine
sandalwood
As someone who has generally loved the Bortnikoff ‘colognes’, especially Musk Cologne, I was excited to get into the ‘Three Elements’ trilogy of colognes; starting with Cologne Celeste (which is an Extrait concentration, not to be confused).
Celeste is supposed to represent the sky element, which frankly is not the vibe I get from the fragrance, but I do really like it.
This is very citrussy. Heavy on the citron & lemon, thick, oily, liquid. It also lists grapefruit, mandarin and blood orange, but to my nose, the lemon clearly dominates.
I also get the honeyed sweetness aspect from beeswax straight away, albeit not overly sweet. There’s a lemon hard candy facet here though. Even the medicinal honey-lemon coughdrops.
After the opening, it becomes a bit more…earthy? Listing pine, moss, sandalwood and cedarwood as the base, there’s definitely a hint of a greener backdrop. More reminding me of ‘earth’ than ‘sky’.
I don’t get rose personally on first wear. The biggest development is the citrus losing some of its acidity and becoming a bit sweeter.
Not the most interesting or complex smelling composition, but a ‘beast’ of a citrus with a mossy backdrop. Really pleasant.