Morning fragrance friends! Today I’m trying Parfum d’Empire Cuir Ottoman for the second time and, yep, I love it just as much as I did the first.

It opens with a rush of vanilla that at first has me on guard, but settles into a gorgeous suede, jasmine, and incense mélange. STUNNING. These are literally 3 of my favorite things. The leather is not at all overpowering - it is incredibly refined, sophisticated, and luxurious. It is a buttery suede handbag, hand-stitched and smooth as a baby’s bottom. The incense winds its way around everything else, intoxicating and enticing. Jasmine also plays an important supporting role, lounging nearby with narcotic indolence. The opening vanilla takes a back seat, but is subtly present.

The interplay is shifting but smooth - it begins with more suede than jasmine, but then evolves into more incense and jasmine, with suede playing contralto. About an hour later, iris floats in on powdery wings and blesses the convocation.

I have been damnably impressed with everything I’ve tried from Parfum d’Empire. Not everything is my cuppa, precisely, but pretty much every fragrance with notes I like is one I’d happily wear. And Cuir Ottoman is one I’d happily buy.