Monday, December 8, 2008

Alessandro Dell’Acqua (woman) by Alessandro Dell’Acqua : Perfume Review

Born in the picturesque, stunning city of Naples, Alessandro Dell’Acqua hasn’t had an idle moment in the world of fashion ever since he received his degree in graphic design from the Accademia de Belli Arti. Having designed for several prestigious brands, including Iceberg and Mariella Burani, Dell’Acqua finally conquered the hearts of the Italian public with the launch of his very own prêt-a-porter line in 1996, which instantly made him a household name and an instant success. His first, eponymous fragrance (Alessandro Dell’Acqua), launched in 2001 with ad campaigns fronted by Helena Christensen and shot by photography giant Helmut Newton.

Alessandro Dell’Acqua has a rather strict distribution, and as such cannot be found as easily as most department store scents – I have never seen it sold here in the Netherlands for example. I was lucky enough to receive a bottle of this from a wonderful, lovely reader with whom I often exchange perfumed thoughts and sample packets. I was not familiar with the perfume, so it was the first thing I tested when I opened the packet, and despite its simplicity, I fell in love with it instantly. The official notes are quite deceptive: Geranium, Pelargonium, Sweet Pea and Coriander up top, peony, hibiscus, rose in the heart and incense, sandalwood and musk in the base. If one would only go by the official notes, the best guess would probably be that this is a rather heavy, sweet floral, but this couldn’t be farther from the truth! The official description of the scent however, touting this as a perfume “to be worn like a second skin” is not only faithful to the nature of the scent, but also completely accurate. Alessandro Dell’Acqua is indeed one of those wonderful fragrances that blur the lines between where one’s own skin scent ends and where the perfume begins. It is one of those fragrances that is unlikely to elicit a compliment about how good your fragrance smells, but rather one that will definitely incite others to proclaim that you smell great. It is a fragrance that is unashamedly, all about musk. From beginning to end, this rather linear scent revolves around its heart of beautiful musk, which is extremely evocative of clean, warm, sweet smelling skin. The smell is comforting and sexy at the same time and wears so comfortably it would be easy enough for me to forget I’m wearing perfume at all, if it wasn’t so addictive! I literally can’t resist smelling my arm over and over again just to get closer to the comforting, clean sensation it produces. Stunningly, each and every time I marvel at its ability to smell so human and so realistically like feminine skin, without a single hint of animalic tendencies. Aside from musk, Alessandro Dell’Acqua features the sensual floral scent of Sweet Pea and slight hints of powder, but what really adds to the experience and truly makes this juice complete, is the use of incredibly long-lasting aldehydes. Beautiful and mysteriously vague, slightly metallic and cool, the aldehydes give this perfume an essential lift, rendering the musk quintessentially effeminate and yes, chic. This utterly personal scent has quickly become a firm favorite of mine in the musk family. Beautiful!


11 comments:

Perfumeshrine said...

This is fabulous and so few people know it or talk about it! I feel it's one of the most likeable "clean" fragrances out there (on the other hand I found Look so meh...).

rosarita said...

I'm so glad to read this review! I've wanted to try this for ages, but honestly forgot all about it in the constant onslaught of sampling and reading about other, newer scents. Thanks for reminding me to give this a try, it sounds just lovely. I'm a huge musk fan.

Anonymous said...

Dear Divina,
I'm so delighted that you love this fragrance and that you gave it such a positive review - also that your readers with more knowledge than I hold it in such high regard. Enjoy!

Divina said...

Helg, I am very happy to read another confirmation of how gorgeous this scent is. I am not surprised you like it: you are also a musk lover! As for Look, my feelings are: not bad, not great, just good.

Divina said...

Anita dear, I do hope you will like it! It truly deserves more attention, I am surprised to find this is the first review of it! I've missed you btw! *hugs*

Divina said...

Oh, Anon, I was reading your comment and it took a couple of seconds before the coined dropped and I realized who you were ;) I love you sweetie, thank you so much for your wonderful generosity. And you have MARVELOUS taste in perfume.

Divina said...

*Coin, even. Why can't we edit our comments? Bleh.

Anonymous said...

I just brought Alessandro Dell Aqua yesterday and I love it. There are so many unique notes in the perfume which appeals to me as I hate smelling like everyone else.Musk is a very animalistic and sensual ingredient, I enjoy smelling the scent over and over again as its very natural and elegant 10 out of ten.

Divina said...

Hey Anon, I'm glad you're enjoying it. I think it is a very beautiful everyday fragrance. I receive compliments on it all the time when I wear it.

tess dwyer said...

alessandro dell aqua is such a contradiction as you spray it the scent is very classic fresh and clean like a comforting warm bath but the underlying notes of insence sandalwood and musk make it dirty in a good way. great to wear out to dinner, day or night.ga

Divina said...

Hi Tess, nice to get a different point of view on Alessandro dell Aqua's drydown. Thanks.