BDK
GRIS CHARNEL
2019
PERFUMER
Mathilde Bijaoui
Cardamom
Fig
Black Tea
Iris
Bourbon Vetiver
Sandalwood
Tonka Bean
I have to be totally honest and say that BDK didn’t quite live up my hype prior to Gris Charnel. The other one that I absolutely love is the underappreciated Nuit de Sable and I can appreciate the hyped Pas Ce Soir EDP, but I’m not the biggest fan of the popular Rouge Smoking, Velvet Tonka or Creme de Cuir.
Gris Charnel had a leg up already though, just by looking at the notes. Fig, tea, iris, sandalwood & tonka. It adds cardamom and vetiver for a greener tinge, but the fig really stands out and makes this fragrance for me. It starts spicy, but it’s like spices drowned in semi-sweetened milk. It’s a warmer, more cozy fig as opposed to the fresh, green or fruity ones that we often get in fragrances.
It’s a milky and woody fragrance that gets sweeter over time. In a way similar, but the total opposite of Le Labo Santal 33. They have a similar woody vibe, that’s not quite sandalwood to my nose, but the BDK doesn’t have the industrial tinge, the harsher spices, the cooling effect or the notorious cucumber, and instead opts for a much more soothing, warmer and sweeter wear. After some hours the greener vetiver base really starts to push through, but even as someone who’s not a fan of green, it’s beautiful and comforting.
The fig is definitely adding to the silky quality of this fragrance, as it’s a rather milky, oily one. The (green/black) tea is there, but only adds a very subtle touch. I do not pick up on iris much. Instead, I get a slight booziness from this more so, but no idea where that originates from. It’s all in moderation though; its a comforting scent with no rough edges aside from the cardamom.
Gris Charnel is versatile modern stand-out in my opinion. I also love the bottle design and it has one of the best pressurized atomizers in my collection, which is something I think should be the norm at niche price points.
Sidenote: I much prefer this Gris Charnel over the 2022 Gris Charnel Extrait. The Extrait takes a similar DNA in a more fiery, harsher and ambery direction. The Extrait leans a tad masculine, whereas the original is straight down the middle unisex. They can co-exist, but I’m good with this original.