La Perla by La Perla

It’s a beast. I love that a luxury lingerie brand smells like secretions and dirty vegetation. It starts with obvious clove and lemon; if you don’t sniff it again, you might think you’ve put on a classic citrusy men’s fragrance. The opening is an illusion; after a few minutes, mind-blowing animal notes kick in, leaving you blind with their intensity—like smoked, sweet excrement mixed with algalia leather, incense, and dampness, reminiscent of La Nuit de Rabanne and Montana’s Parfum de Peau. Even though it doesn’t list animal notes, it smells like dirty, sweet civet. Once La Perla settles, it reveals itself as a worthy book-style chypre à la Paloma Picasso (I love her reviews), but more acidic and spicy with pepper, clove, a less earthy patchouli, and a sharp, macerated moss. As a cousin to Paloma Picasso and evoking the dirty Parisians of the era, it works great alongside certain Sisley scents, which are more forested and vegetal. It’s a huge fragrance, with less fame than other 80s chypres, but it can look them in the eye without shame. P.S.: It’s said that current bottles (the polished version of the classic flat jar) contain water; for those interested, the good one is the one labeled ‘La Perla Body Silk’.

Obsessed with the 80s and after trying countless perfumes from that era, La Perla was one of the few classics I couldn’t find. It was impossible to get, not even bottles with a little bit of juice left. My connection with Fragancias always involves coincidences, and I was lucky to find a full bottle with its box at an old perfume shop. Upon analyzing it: it’s extremely dark and powdery. The resemblance to Paloma Picasso is huge, but even if it’s hard to say, La Perla is bolder, featuring incense, pepper, and a prominent patchouli that challenges the nose. It has a histrionic rose where the patchouli or pepper can tip the scales, making it dramatic; here, Paloma is more articulate and balanced. I decided not to buy it and then regretted it. Its dramatic side convinced me, but it was too late. It’s like the 80s version of Agent Provocateur. I’d recommend it to anyone who likes Paloma Picasso but wants something more intense.