FRAGRANCE | Civet de Nuit Extrait de Parfum by Areej Le Doré shows why you shouldn't be afraid of animalics

I can't seem to keep up with Areej Le Doré that I've half-given up on chasing each new release from the house. Competing with the guaranteed demand surrounding his limited creations can be taxing, so I've sat out most of his recent offerings. Besides, I don't always have $300 to $400 to spare for a single bottle, so when Civet de Nuit was announced, I looked away. But then the forces that be seem to have conspired that I now have a bottle.

For this release (which isn't part of any collection), perfumer Russian Adam collaborated with his friend, Sultan Pasha, who's renowned for his precious (and pricey) attars. The presentation follows the style of ALD's recent releases. The ridged, flat circular bottle is the same but instead of gold or silver, the cap and label plates are coated in black. The box is still the cushioned type and with separate slots for bottle and cap. Even though the bottles from Areej Le Doré's 6th Collection are still my favorites, this presentation is still more than good overall.

As for the scent, I wasn't quite sure what to expect. The name appears to suggest a fragrance built around civet, which is both exciting and scary for me. I do enjoy animalics but I don't think I can ever warm up to anything that's overly so. While I braced myself for something that's in-your-face, maybe even urinous or fecal (or at least remotely so), I was surprised with how pleasant Civet de Nuit turned out to be.

The fragrance has a neo-classical appeal to it. Its opening is characterized by an aldehydic, moderately sweet floral (heliotrope, according to the box). It paves the way for the civet and musk that are slowly building up, as if it's perfuming the halls to drown out any unwanted funk. For the record, it never actually gets funky, not even remotely. The civet and musk here are softened but without necessarily stripping them off of their character, so instead of punching you in the nose, they maintain a nice, animalic hum all throughout. 

Meanwhile, more florals are introduced and I specifically pick up ylang-ylang. It's not that much of a standout but is recognizable enough up close to me. The scent gradually ushers in a powdery character, contributing some dryness to the composition and easing some of its weight. And just as the florals slowly wither away, I start detecting hints of dried tobacco and oakmoss. While the oakmoss seems uninterested in asserting itself and is thus lost in the blend rather quickly, the tobacco willingly flexes its gorgeously bitter flavor. The bitterness is a fitting counterpoint to the ensuing sweetness brought about by the medley of resins that appear shortly. With the sweetness expertly controlled, the resins manage to impart a full-bodied, balsamic quality to the scent without being cloying.

At some point, I pick up something chocolatey, which I suppose is a product of the tobacco's interaction with some of the notes; I just can't tell which ones. But whatever, because it goes so well with the powdery musk and the humming animalics. After a while, the chocolate mellows and I get more of the tobacco and sweet resins again, with the powdery musk and civet as constants. This development plays in a loop for some time until the scent settles into Areej Le Doré's signature musk, with traces of the composition's earlier elements occasionally coming through.

Civet de Nuit is testament to Russian Adam's and Sultan Pasha's skills that have only been honed through years of experience. It's one complex and beautifully crafted fragrance, a veritable example of how something built around animalics can also be very wearable for men and women alike. While it's not uber dense, I don't see it fit for warm weather unless you're in an air-conditioned environment. Projection is largely moderate but the scent itself legs out for hours on end. All in all, I'm very happy with this.