MASQUE MILANO
L’ATTESA
2016
PERFUMER
Luca Maffei
bergamot
neroli
champagne
iris absolute
orris
tuberose absolute
ylang-ylang
sandalwood
oakmoss
leather
L’Attesa was “the” occasion, the right brief to come up with something exceptional. That was to be MASQUE’s signature iris. More than that – Alessandro and Riccardo wanted to create an unprecedented iris+champagne combination. From the very beginning of the project, Luca’s formulations were elegant, as he was working with an absolutely amiable raw material, which is iris; he selected a orris with 15% concentration of irone (one of the highest you can get) – fatty, dusty, powdery…oh, so elegant and pleasant! He added iris absolute from Florence. It’s a completely different both in nose and in the formula because it gives power, sillage and longlastiness. Although Iris is a primadonna, which doesn’t love to be surrounded by other prominent flowers, its floral elegance is certainly enhanced by the skilful addiction, in the background, of the tried-and-true triptych: tuberose, ylang-ylang, sandalwood. Luca mastered this passage, which perfectly completed the iris side of the fragrance. To recreate the champagne note, Luca employed a super-critical CO2 extraction of a blend of different kind of (previously fermented) beers, that has a bitter taste of hops, animalic nuances, but most noteworthy the beer yeast note; while it is listed as a top note, this material contributes to the volume in the drydown and has a nice powdery facet that perfectly matches the powdery facet of iris.’ – Masque Milano
I shared a top 50 iris list, with L’Attesa at #5 being the highest ranked that I didn’t own… which was unforgivable to some of you, so I’ve righted my wrong and now it has joined my collection. Here’s why it’s so good (and why I still ever so slightly prefer Xerjoff Irisss).
L’Attesa is one of those quintessential iris fragrances; a reference point for many as far as contemporary iris goes. It’s very focused, clean and it doesn’t distract too much from its beautiful iris core.
The distraction here comes by way of bergamot and ‘champagne’. I always felt the champagne sparkle in this has been a bit overstated; I don’t get much of it even 5 minutes in, perhaps a hint of fizziness. The brand refers to ‘yeast’ being the essence of this facet. The bergamot is a tad less present than in Irisss, in which I’ve grown to love it more and more.
Instead, this is a full on carroty, slightly green iris. A notch brighter and fresher perhaps than the earthier, more full-bodied Irisss, as L’Attesa goes almost soapy on my skin.
Texture wise it’s very classy. It’s powdery, but also buttery smooth; here is where L’Attesa and Iris both stand out for me.
A bit softer than some of it’s carroty counterparts. Almost like a soft, petal-like floral facet of iris that’s more prominent as well. L’Attesa utilizes tuberose and ylang-ylang as florals too, but I don’t really get their scent.
Easily one of the best iris creations on the market and with the 35ml option available, an easier one to recommend trying. Definitely my favorite Masque Milano as well and it was time it joined my collection.
