Sometimes I get a craving for plums…
Montale Dark Purple opens with rose and red berries. And it’s distinctly Montale. I would swear it has oud in it but I realize that Montale uses rose in everything that now my brain thinks of rose-woods as oud because of this brand. So, yeah, Dark Purple opens as a fruity Montale-ish rose-rose geranium-oud. It’s very loud, metallic and chemical-y. I don’t mean this is as a necessarily bad thing. This has become Montale’s signature. With time the scent gets sweeter reminding me of raspberry jam, rose and cotton candy. Throw in some plums for fun. The heart of this is fruity and sugared. The dry down is a ton of white musk and an almost medicinal oud and camphoric patchouli.
What I find interested about Dark Purple is that it smells much better from afar than it does up close. I get compliments on it, but I admit that I grow very tired of it very quickly since it is so loud. Because of this, this may be a good perfume to dab on…unless you like loud perfumes or you are trying to make a grand entrance into da club. These days when I hit da club, I hope that people will leave me alone as I drink my over-iced cocktail in a shadowy corner by the dance floor and wish upon a star that I won’t attract the one straight guy there…
Notes listed include fresh orange, rose, geranium bourbon, patchouli, red fruit cocktail, grey amber, teak wood, and white musk. Launched 2011.
Give Dark Purple a try if you are looking for a more feminine oud. Or if you like perfumes like Montale Roses Elixir, Tauer Une Rose Vermeille, HEELEY Agarwoud, Ramon Monegal Cherry Musk, and/or BLOOD Concept O. Dark Purple is unisex but I do feel it leans more towards the feminine (in comparison to other Montale roses) because of the fruits.
Like all the Montales that I’ve tried, this one has above average projection and longevity. And lots of sillage. Tons of sillage.
And the bottle is purple, in case you didn’t notice that 😉
A 3.4 oz bottle of Dark Purple retails for $170 on Amazon.
Victoria’s Final EauPINION – “Red fruits” have been added to Montale’s signature rose-oud combo. It’s loud, brash and a little fruity. (No, I’m not describing one of my friends). – Oddly one of those that people compliment me on even though I’m not in love with it. It must smell really, really good from a distance.
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I do like the Montale rose-oud signature (black oud is one of my top 10 perfumes)..but I don’t feel compelled to try this..Is it similar to Oud rose petals or black aoud?
I feel like once you’ve found one of their Rose/Ouds that work for you, don’t bother with any of their others. They’re all so similar. You’re not really adding anything “new” to your collection.
Yes, it’s like those 2 but with an addition of berries and plum. Not as dark as Black Aoud and not as rosy as Aoud Rose Petals, but shares the same DNA.
“loud, brash and a little fruity” – this perfume is me personified.. I will have to dig up a sample.
Ron Slomowicz – Notable Scents recently posted..By Kilian Musk Oud Fragrance Review
Hey, I said I wasn’t describing one of my friends!
I’m really on the fence with this one. It’s not bad but I think I may be Montale’d out. Not of the house but of their loud rose-woods blends.
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