Boy, did this delivery ever make my day today. I’m practically giddy and have a renewed energy coursing through me this afternoon. In the past few months, I have become obsessed with Dior Homme Parfum 2014. A fragrance I put off trying for years (regrettably), until recently, due to my fear of the iris note and a bad experience I had with a fragrance featuring that note at one point. But of course, upon finally realizing my love for the fragrance, I think we all know how hard it is to find that discontinued gem these days, and if you do? Well, say goodbye to your wallet! I bought a bottle of Leather Intense from Alexandria Fragrances, which is their dupe of DHP, and while it is a GREAT stand-in, it’s still just not quite DHP. Anyway, a couple months ago, I was looking at some old decants that I hadn’t touched in a while (like a couple years) and I came across a sample of Boadicea the Victorious Harmonious that Mr. @Renato Carotti was kind enough to send me back in my early days of collecting. I remembered thinking it was ok, but it was a bit too complex and nuanced for my novice nose, that really didn’t know what to think of it at the time. “I certainly wouldn’t wear this,” I thought. As I popped the cap off of the sample (which had evaporated into a now tiny amount of syrup-like, thick fragrance oil) I was immediately struck by the similarity to DHP 2014. I sprayed (squirted) some of this treacly substance onto my arm, which seemed to never dry, as it was basically pure oil at this point, and I fell in love with the stuff just like I had with DHP. They were virtually identical! They have their subtle differences. Harmonious is smoother and a bit more nuanced, but the dry-downs are essentially the same to my nose. And the best part? It’s still in production! Now, Boadicea fragrances are not cheap either, but I had worn DHP and Harmonious enough now to know that either one would be a signature scent for me. So at this point, I was willing to pay a little more than I might normally spend on a bottle. However, I was able to find an incredible deal, and from a company that I trust very much and have built a good relationship with. So, to my surprise, it’s only the 3rd, or so, most expensive bottle I’ve ever bought.

One of my drivers was heading to Vietnam for a month to visit his fiancée, and since he knows I’m into fragrances, he gave me a call before he left and asked if there was anything I wanted him to look for. Of course, that sent me straight down the rabbit hole. I immediately started researching niche fragrance houses in Vietnam and came across one that really caught my attention. I even found the perfume shop that carried the line. The problem? They don’t ship to the United States. Well, problem solved. I had somebody going to Vietnam. I sent him the information, and he actually went looking for the store. He told me it was tucked away on a small street toward the back, but once he walked inside, the shop itself was absolutely beautiful. He also noticed that most of the other people coming in were foreigners, which told me right away that people are starting to discover what is happening with fragrance over there. Before sending him, I started digging through reviews and decided to have him pick up three of their most popular fragrances: CO CUNG DA YEN HOANG TRA When he got back, I came home and immediately started smelling all three. First impressions? I really like them. These aren’t fragrances that smell like somebody simply copied what is already popular in Europe or the Middle East. They have their own personality. They’re unique, interesting, and all three smell extremely good to me on the first sniff. And the presentation? That was another surprise. Absolutely beautiful. The bottles and overall packaging make the whole experience feel much more special than I was expecting. This is exactly why I keep saying that Asia is going to become a much bigger part of the fragrance conversation. There are houses coming out of Vietnam and other parts of Asia doing things that a lot of fragrance enthusiasts in the United States haven’t even discovered yet. That is one of the things I still love about collecting fragrance. Even with all the bottles I’ve smelled and owned, there are still entire parts of the world producing perfumes that can completely surprise me.