FRAGRANCE | Sampaquita EDP by Ormonde Jayne: The name can be misleading

We got Ormonde Jayne's Sampaquita because we thought it was nice to have a fragrance centered on the national flower of the Philippines. I'm confused, though, because it's always been sampaguita to me (with a "g" and not a "q") and not once have I come across any reference to it as how Ormonde Jayne spells it. Just the same, we went on with it. 

The opening is citrusy, green, and sweet. Shortly after, a barrage of different florals come in, with my feeble nose trying to pick them apart in vain. Then for a moment I detected the sampaguita, as if it was struggling to stay afloat, before it was swept away by the strong floral current. Even the citrus and the green accord are overrun by the florals although the latter remains a quiet undercurrent for the most part. I was miffed not because it's a bad scent but because the sampaguita is muddled and totally lost in the blend.

The floral sweetness soon increases and any hopes I had left of the sampaguita resurfacing and taking charge have all been completely dashed. I feel like all the petals have been plucked from their stems, and then mashed and swished together in this homogenous but nonetheless beautiful blend. Later in the game, a light musk joins in. The resulting scent carries a mild vintage feel to it, a subtle callback to fragrances of yore. Sampaquita starts off with moderate power but quickly loses steam within an hour or so. As a skin scent, though, it lasts for hours. 

To say the least, I'm disappointed with Ormonde Jayne's Sampaquita because it fails to capture the essence of this tiny but fragrant white flower. By comparison, Rogue Perfumery's Jasmin Antique does a far better job, a near-perfect embodiment of sampaguita's sweet and tender aroma. From where I come from, they're normally strung together in small garlands and sold by kids on the streets. Eventually they make their way to Catholic religious figures at home or even on many a rearview mirror of cars, buses, and jeepneys, where a rosary or some laminated religious image also usually hangs. Sampaquita gives me none of that.

However, once I look past the name—albeit begrudgingly—Sampaquita is a lovely fragrance. It predictably leans feminine, a little mature even, and can easily work as a year-rounder, especially for more formal affairs and settings. If you love florals, and as long as you're not looking for a sampaguita (jasmine sambac) scent, this Ormonde Jayne creation is worth a try.