CHRISTIAN PROVENZANO
Santal Indien EXTRAIT
2023
PERFUMER
Christian Provenzano
bergamot
saffron
neroli
orange blossom
amber
vetiver
tonka bean
cedarwood
vanilla
sandalwood
musk
This is the 2023 Extrait version of Santal Indien (2020). And finally, my chance to try Provenzano’s work for his own brand. Provenzano has been one of the best (and busiest) perfumers in recent years, with my favorites being Boadicea Blue Sapphire & Electimuss Pomona Vitalis. But even for a more affordable (and in my experience, mostly derivative) brand like Spirit Of Kings, the talent Provenzano has for immaculate blending is clear. I’ve always heard good things about the quality of CP Parfums, so I was excited to dive in.
And what better way than with a sandalwood fragrance. A note that is beloved by many, including me, but rarely faithful to the actual scent of sandalwood. And I’m often a bit underwhelmed by sandalwood-focused fragrances. Here, I am not.
It has the lactonic, smooth facets of most “perfume sandalwoods” for sure, but also the more woody, spicy and camphorous side of the sandalwood. And less of the sugary and honeyed emphasis that a lot of sandalwood alternative ingredients bring to the table.
Santal Indien is subtle and wears smooth and softly, but up close, you get a distinct Eastern accent to it, with saffron as one of the main players and clear stand outs during the wear. On the other hand there is the slightest citrussy hint that I only get when I smell my skin directly. If I had one criticism about Santal Indien, is that I wouldn’t have minded some more brightness/citrus/bergamot to make the wear a bit less linear, for example, the way the also excellent Une Nuit Nomade Nothing But Sea And Sky.
The wood feels clean. Cedarwood is also listed in the notes and the overall experience ends somewhere in between the cleaner, fresher cedarwood and the sweeter sandalwood.
Santal Indien does get quite sweet as it dries, with a vanilla creaminess added to the woods, but less so than most alternatives. It feels like it’s a combination of wood and vanilla in the drydown, not one sugary sweet or full-on creamy vanillic accord (a good much sweeter sandalwood is Place de la Reverie Santal de Paris).
And again, it’s subtle. This is an understated, contemplative, relaxing type of fragrance that you could wear in any type of situation. And that’s everything I wanted from a sandalwood. I can see it being underwhelming to some, because of how singular it wears, but I think it will appeal to sandalwood lovers.
Up there with my absolute favorite woody fragrances that I’ve tried. Santal Indien goes somewhere on my wishlist (edit: about two years later I added a bottle to my collection).
