INITIO
PARAGON
2022
Bergamot
White Sage
Lavender
Plum
Palo Santo
Black Pepper
Sandalwood
Oud
‘PARAGON, goes beyond the skin all the way to the soul and leads you to another dimension : plenitude. PARAGON houses the botanical soul of Palo Santo and white Sage. It draws in the beneficial properties of these sacred plants, whose use has been secretly passed down through initiation ceremonies dating back to the first lines of Inca shamans. PARAGON is a vibrant and faceted scent. Pairing the soothing influence of Bergamot and Lavender with the force of Pepper, stimulating the mind and opening the heart.’ – Initio
Initio is a house that I haven’t explored much before, although I wasn’t convinced by the few that I tried. Paragon seemed interesting based on the notes, so I ordered a sample… and interesting it is indeed.
Paragon opens very weird to me. You get the lavender and plum straight away, as well as brightness, but I also get a sweet herbal kind of candied quality. It smells a bit like candy and a bit like medicine. It’s an unusual mix, kind of in the vein of what Dior Sauvage Elixir did with the sweetness, but it works out a lot better in Paragon. It even reminds me in the slightest of Versace The Dreamer for a moment.
Within about 20-30 minutes it seems to come together a lot more. A spiced plum syrup, but dry. With a smooth woody backbone. It’s touted as an aromatic (masculine leaning) and it’s easy to see why, but the sweetness is unlike what you’d usually find in this style. Paragon is as close to a sweet contemporary scent, as to a retro aromatic to me, but it works very well.
I like the combination a lot, especially from after the initial minutes until about 1-2 hours in. Sweet, fruity, woody, but still with a touch of freshness throughout. It feels like a festive, Holiday-spicy desert kind of vibe, when you picture them with (pepper)mint. I think you could almost market this as a gourmand, albeit it very herbal.
As it dries down further, the smokiness from the palo santo comes through and it becomes more of a woody scent.
An interesting release, that I think continues Initio’s run of mass appealing and pleasant scents, but keeps it a tad more unique. I much prefer this over the popular Oud For Greatness.