GUERLAIN
Tonka Sarrapia Extrait 75
2023
PERFUMER
Thierry Wasser
Delphine Jelk
Tonka Bean
BITTER ALMOND
Coumarin
HOT SPICY NOTES
VANILLA
cACAO
Tonka Sarrapia is the first of the Les Extraits Signature collection that I sampled. Arguably the one I was least intrigued by on paper, but at the same time, you can’t really go wrong with tonka.
I’d say the experience with Tonka Sarrapia is a bit more interesting than I expected. Very pleasant, gourmand leaning, actually, very gourmand.
The scent goes far into almond territory. Bitter, metallic at first, but at the same time warm, especially as it dries. It does feel substantial, as you would expect from an extrait; not fleeting or airy, but it is soft and close to the skin. Dense almond paste or marzipan with a milky, buttery scent that wouldn’t feel out of place inside a pastry.
Some spicy touches, but mostly a well blended in cinnamon to my nose. There’s nothing that really sticks out. The most ‘differentiating’ factor is a slight herbal, stemmy green floral tinge. Reminding me a bit of Liquides Imaginaires Blanche Bete or Noeme Aman, but much much more toned down here. I’ve seen it likened to Apres L’Ondee, which I don’t know well enough myself.
This floral tinge fades on my skin and makes way for the even more vanillic-almond in the drydown. On first wear, I don’t really get chocolate from it; I’ve seen people compare it to Gourmand Coquin, but that’s a lot more chocolate-centric (as well as many other facets) to me.
The best tonka bean that I’ve smelled? Likely. Beautifully done, but there are no real surprises and as an overall fragrance, it’s not the most interesting ride. It’s quite linear, in scent and even more so in textures. There’s no brightness or acidity in the opening, the spices aren’t sharp, there’s no significant change into the drydown (7 hours into the wear at the time of writing); just top-notch in quality.
I like it, a lot, but at €550/50ml, I want something more. My working assumption is that this will be the case for most of this line. I don’t really prescribe to the recommended option of layering them; I’m sure it works, but it’s an inherently uncompelling idea to need a minimum of €1000+ in fragrances to create a full experience. Fragrances like Gourmand Coquin/Feve Gourmande, Tonka Imperiale, Shalimar Millesime Tonka or even Oud Nude, and many more offer a much better value proposition to most people for this.
Great to sample though and I do have the hope that some of the other highlighted notes in this collection work better ‘on their own’ than tonka bean does for me.