PLACE DE LA REVERIE
SANTAL DE PARIS

2023

PERFUMER
Nathalie Feisthauer

amyris
lily

powdery notes
ambrette

benzoin
amber
ambroxan
vanilla
sandalwood

‘The creamy sweetness of Sandalwood is adorned with Parisian elegance. Santal De Paris is a sophisticated composition that combines the refined softness of ambrette, the carnal glow of amber, and the sensuality of vanilla, edged with benzoin. An enveloping perfume extract whose majestic aura invites you to dream, like the sumptuous palaces of the City of Lights. Santal De Paris is a tribute to the timeless charm of Parisian glamour. Its thousand shades, powdery, woody, and amber, shimmer like the undulating reflections of the Seine. ‘ – Place de la Reverie (Translated)

Santal de Paris is one of the nicer surprises of the year. This new brand looks quite unassuming at first glance, but the bottles feel great and sturdy, plus Nathalie Feisthauer is an accomplished nose. I stole my brother’s bottle to review it and it turned out to be one of the best sandalwoods available, or perhaps as accurate, one of the best vanilla fragrances.

Because, while this has a great quality woodiness and captures that creamy side of sandalwood well, it’s not a ‘pure’ sandalwood. It’s a lot nicer than most faux-sandalwood-replacements, but it’s not comparable to the more subtle, camphorous raw Mysore oil for example. Instead, it’s vanillic and creamy from start to finish and I would argue that the vanilla scent is the real star of the show here. It’s also significantly sweeter from the start than my favorite sandalwood contemporary, Christian Provenzano’s Santal Indien.

Up there with the best, dense, creamy, vanilla experiences in recent years, like Nissaba Grand-Ile. Not 100% gourmand, but mostly because there’s a growing spiciness and a hint of florals from start to finish. There’s also a faint hint of suede to my nose.

And I think the florals are another star here, that elevates the otherwise pretty common sweet sandalwood profile. What I smell here is something ever so slightly green and quirky, like a banana blossom. I often get banana from tuberose or ylang-ylang (like in Matiere Premiere French Flower) and that tinge comes through here as well. As mentioned, as it dries further, spices become quite prominent, but never in an overbearing or sharp manner.

Overall, this is cozy-central all the way. It retains it’s dense, smooth structure all the way into the late drydown. There is definitely a lot of ambroxan here, to add levity to the woodiness, but it’s all in good balance. The drydown doesn’t feel like straight up ambroxan, nor does the sweetness feel too basic and synthetic; the perceived quality of ingredients I get from Santal de Paris makes it one of the stand-out releases that I’ve tried this year.