Mr Ford never believes in doing things by half-measures. So instead of giving us just a single rose scent in what is rapidly turning out to be the year of the rose, he’s giving us three. And one of them, Rose De Russie, was the subject of a recent episode of Love At First Scent over on YouTube. If you’d like to watch it, here’s a link: Tom Ford Rose De Russie review.
As you might have guessed from the name, this particular rose has been grafted onto one of perfumery’s most sin-seeking notes: leather. But where the moniker is misleading is in creating a sense that this might have been Ford’s homage to Chanel Cuir De Russie. Despite a faint flirtation with debauchery, the latter always retains an overall air of civilised sophistication, no doubt thanks to its use of iris and a suede-like rendition of its central material. Rose De Russie, on the other hand, is far more interested in the carnality of the likes of Piguet Bandit, employing the boldness of isobutyl quinoline to give us a leather that is far more dangerous and insistent than that suggested by the name and the prettily pink juice.
As it develops, the scent veers closer and closer to its dark leathers (unlike the similar Frederic Malle Rose & Cuir, which achieves its balancing act far longer) and consequently becomes less interesting than at its start. But as an entry in Ford’s ever-growing catalogue, it marks a welcome move away from his 1970s obsession towards an older age of perfumery. I shall be fascinated to see how it fares.
Persolaise
[Tom Ford Rose De Russie review based on a sample obtained by me.]
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