Pulp and Chembur by ByRedo : Perfume Reviews

Word on the street is that Ben Gorham is one of us. Yes, the ex-professional basketball player is really a perfume junkie, a fragrance nut, just like us. Mr. Gorham founded his own company, ByRedo (By Redolence) in 2006, and started testing the scented waters first with high quality candles, room sprays, soaps and body products. Earlier this year, he launched his first personal fragrance line, a collection of five unisex fragrances in Eau de Parfum concentration, named Green, Chembur, Gypsy Water, Rose Noir and Pulp. While the company’s logo bears striking resemblance to that of Parfumerie Generale, and the bottles themselves are quite reminiscent of the ones in the Frédéric Malle line, the premise behind the scents sounds very promising: They are all based on Gorham’s memories, little snapshots of life, places and people, that nose Jerome Epinette was entrusted with, in order to encapsulate them into precious, scented liquid. Now that is memorable. And so are the two scents I’ve had the pleasure of testing more extensively, Chembur and Pulp.

· Pulp: Even though I don’t generally get along with overly fruity scents, one of my most surprising discoveries this year was that there are indeed certain fruity perfumes that will beguile me. The first one this year was Tigresse, which I am sure you are all tired of hearing me go on and on about by now. The second contender certainly has to be Pulp, a scent I felt a certain attraction towards from the moment I first smelled it. This is an intense, no holds barred, incredibly bright and colorful fruity scent that is bound to fill any old grey day with sunshine. It is as summery as they come and then some, actually managing to smell deliriously, ecstatically happy. The most attractive feature of Pulp –aside from its happy, sunny disposition, that is- is this lovely, jammy accord that makes it feel absolutely edible. Lovers of fig fragrances who have grown tired of the one-track-minded, single note scents populating the market like mushrooms in the last couple of years, will find a new friend in Pulp, which makes a striking, utterly green fig note its star attraction amidst all the psychedelic, exotically sweet extravaganza. The lovely interplay between fresh fruits, caramelized sugar and slightly dissonant minty undercurrents manages to keep me interested for hours, until finally the scent turns earthy and slightly woody. I am quite intrigued by the fact that this is marketed as a unisex fragrance – I can’t imagine a man wearing this to work for example. Then again, this is not a work type of scent anyway, so why not be daring? If you are after something youthful, luscious and fruity, this is most definitely worth a try!

· Chembur: Chembur is a northeastern neighborhood on the outskirts of Mumbai, India, where Gorham’s mother was born and raised. Throughout his childhood, Gorham paid several visits to Mumbai, often enjoying beautiful picnics with his family in Chembur. The memory of the temples and shrines, the incense in the summer heat and the colorful garlands of flowers are all encapsulated in this perfume, possibly the most beautiful scent this Stockholm-based niche line has to offer. The opening is marvelous, all zingy lemon that is at once fresh and marvelously oily, like rind shavings, balanced by a rising warmth and sweetness. The heart is pulsating with deep incense, dark and delightful, hugged by mellow resins. A sharp vetiver note I absolutely adore cuts through the softness like a dagger of sadness through the heart. The base notes manage to retain a burning incense quality, while at the same time interjecting some much needed solace with a deep, sweet, musky-myrrh accord. A truly beautiful fragrance that stays close to the skin, a slightly unsettling and very moving companion for the colder months of the year.

ByRedo fragrances can be purchased from Cow in Stockholm, Colette in Paris, Les Senteurs in London, Barney’s in New York and Skins in Amsterdam.

Images: www.byredo.com, Flickr, originally uploaded by Roswitha Schacht and Utpal.