MANCERA
SAHARIAN WIND

2020

Spicy notes
Leather
Bergamot
Pink Pepper

Cypress
Lavender
Lily-of-the-Valley

Woody Notes
Tobacco
Amber
Vanilla
Patchouli
White Musk

Saharian Wind feels like a bit of an outlier in the Mancera range. Although, there’s still a bit of ‘Mancera DNA’, in the sense that woody, fruity, floral etc. all blend together, making it hard to distinguish some of their (and Montale’s) releases. In the case of Saharian Wind, it really works, as I feel it’s sort of a shape-shifter in both scent and texture, resulting in a quite unique scent profile.

It’s mainly a tobacco scent for me, but it has a ton of nuances. It opens with a bright citrus, lavender, spices and it has quite a sharp, masculine touch. It’s not a fougère, but it has a strong aromatic tinge.

As it starts to develop, it gets more interesting. The aromatic edge remains, but the spices get softer and tobacco and leather come forward. It’s a great contrast between warm spices and tobacco versus fresh aromatic and cypress scents. It gets a bit vanillic as well, but doesn’t get nearly as sweet or warm as most fragrances in this style.

Texture wise I get a similar contrast between richer, denser, darker elements and an overall ozonic light feeling. It keeps Saharian Wind rather versatile, but strong in performance; I wouldn’t wear this in high heat, but it’s perfectly suitable for Spring and Summer nights, as well as colder weather. It leans strongly masculine, but women that like tobacco and leather scents could pull it off as well.

I think Mancera knocked it out of the park with Saharian Wind. I can’t compare it directly to anything; some wafts remind me of a lighter Teo Cabanel Barkhane and a much fresher Tauer L’Air Du Desert Marocain, but neither are close overall.