JAR
FERME TES YEUX
PERFUMER
Joel Arthur Rosenthal
leather
spicy notes
woody notes
After two years and two failed attempts due to the boutique being (temporary) closed, I finally managed to have an appointment at the JAR boutique in Paris. I usually don’t write reviews for fragrances that I haven’t worn at home and sat with to analyse, but given the rarity, I figured I’d use this opportunity. Mostly to speak on the ‘JAR experience’ and to briefly discuss the 4 fragrances that I tested (I wore 2 on skin and my friend wore the other 2 on skin).
THE EXPERIENCE
I have to agree with a lot of what I read about visiting JAR by others online: It’s absolutely worth doing, as a true fragrance enthusiast, but it’s… somewhat awkward. I was with a good friend and the gentleman that showed us the fragrances was perfectly pleasant, welcoming and kind. Yet, the difference between a visit at JAR and the consultation I had at Henry Jacques or Krigler that same weekend are incomparable in terms of comfort and feeling at ease. Whereas I would easily recommend Henry Jacques to anyone remotely interested in fragrances, I would only recommend JAR for us that are knee-deep in the matrix. I felt that by the end of the visit, we’d build some rapport with the consultant and the conversation flowed more naturally, but when it came to the actual testing of the JAR fragrances initially, it felt a tad awkward, like during my first ever visits to more formal niche stores (or during COVID times where you weren’t allowed to touch bottles and browse the shelves by yourself). Which may be a good or a bad thing depending on how you look at it; at least it’s memorable, because of it.
In case you don’t know: Joel Arthur Rosenthal is a jeweler by trade; doing a lot of celebrity work and fragrances are as far as I can tell a side/passion project, which means that hype or sales numbers aren’t a top priority. The online databases list only 8 fragrances, of which only 4 were still available in the boutique when I visited (March 2025). Technically 5, as there is a more expensive, aged/vintage version in a more decorative bottle of one of the fragrances for sale as well. The fragrances are not sold online and can’t be shipped out later. You can only get them while you’re there and I believe the policy is still so that you can only buy 1 perfume per visit. Prices ranged between €470 and €500-something…under €600) per 30ml at the time of my visit.
Generally, the brand is shrouded in mystery. The boutique is easy to miss. There is a small bottle displayed, but otherwise it’s an unassuming storefront with a closed door and a small doorbell. Behind its door is a single accessible intimate room with a table in the center, where you are presented the fragrances. The sales assistant will not tell you anything about the notes. Meanwhile taking photos and other distractions are discouraged.
The vision behind this ‘non-marketing’ and mystery is to let the fragrances speak for themselves and only sell to someone who is present and picks the fragrance that he or she likes, based on their own experience; which is a respectable approach. It also prohibits reselling and people spending a lot of money, that end up not enjoying their purchase.
THE FRAGRANCES
If I’m being 100% honest, the fragrances were pleasant and one stood out as most interesting for me, but the overall experience as far as the scents go didn’t wow me. I wouldn’t say I was disappointed per se, but they didn’t exceed my expectations either. Being as picky as I usually am (and I’m sure many potential customers for JAR will be), having only 4 fragrances is a bold choice. As mentioned above, I visited Henry Jacques and Krigler before and after it, which have a much bigger range of fragrances, but also, on average they were more to my liking. I feel like the JAR experience as described above set the bar really high and when it came to the fragrances, they didn’t feel as ‘different’ or ‘elevated’ as the mystery surrounding them was.
DIAMOND WATER: The most conventionally pleasant, but also least special one on first impression. Style-wise, this was not what I was expecting from JAR, so smelling it first set the tone a bit off. I mostly smelled clove/eugenol. It was very sweet, with perhaps tonka bean, incense. Spices, but not dry. Dare I say, mass appealing? I’m assuming based on information available that this has carnation at its heart, but I could also see fans of vanilla tobacco scents with clove enjoy this. Generally, more casual (niche) fragrance wearers would likely be drawn to Diamond Water more easily than the other 3 that I smelled. I really liked this scent, but it’s not what I would consider purchasing a JAR for.
? Golconda? Jarling? I must excuse myself as I’m actually not sure which this fragrance was that I tried… I want to say Golconda, but I could be mistaken and the Jarling notes could make sense too. Either way, this was a fragrance that seemingly overlapped a lot with Diamond Water. Golconda is centered around carnation and Jarling has heliotrope, star anise, vanilla & spices. I could definitely see that with what I smelled; with again to my nose a lot of clove and a warm spicy edge to it all, but lighter and more subtle this time. I also smelled this one the least so take it with a grain of salt, but given that there were only 4 fragrances, this one felt a tad redundant to the more pronounced Diamond Water.
JARDENIA: Arguably the most talked about JAR. It’s undeniably beautiful. Also quite weird to call it Jardenia (centered around gardenia), if the whole approach is to not lead customers on by disclosing notes… Initially I got a lot of tuberose from this. Green tuberose, very similar in the opening to a Frederic Malle Carnal Flower. I’m not overly familiar with gardenia, but Jardenia is less vanillic than the gardenia’s that I’ve tried prior. It was my friend’s favorite and it seems to wear nicely on her skin, growing more creamy (and she found a lot of mushroom quality in it, as have others online). As a moderate appreciater of this style of tuberose-ish florals, it didn’t register directly as an upgrade to the Malle or other options for me. I probably don’t do it justice, but alas, that was my first impression.
FERMES TES JEUX: This was by a margin the most interesting one to me. The least mass appealing by the same margin as well. Opening with a pissy, civet-style vintage powdery vibe. I was reminded mostly of the opening of Maitre Parfumeur Cuir Fetische. It left a subtle, but long-lasting trail of lightly animalic, warm skin. Like taking the fiery animalic amber of a fragrance such as Roja Parfums de la Nuit 1 and tone it all the way down to a soft skin scent. I also get this from the skanky jasmine in my vintage Jean Patou Joy. A bit raunchy (in a good way) and sensual; a mix of warm skin, warm breath & flowers melting in high Summer heat, but with moderate, soft projection to keep it civil. It’s the only one of the 4 that moved me on first impression.
