FRAGRANCE | Parco Palladiano X: Olivo by Bottega Veneta is a handsomely elegant frag for the fine gentleman

I got this bottle of Bottega Veneta's Parco Palladiano X: Olivo from a fellow fraghead at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. It was practically still full, with only a few sprays spent. I knew nothing about it but I was curious because I don't see olive used as much in perfumery. Anyhow, it became a gateway fragrance for me, introducing me to the Italian fashion house's Parco Palladiano line. It's like Bottega Veneta's version of Tom Ford's Private Blend or Chanel's Les Exclusif lines, if you may. 

The box looks neat and is thick. Though I'm not a fan of such vertical lift-top boxes, I like the bottle. Thick and sturdy, it's made of clear glass with diamond-shaped patterns that mimic the brand's signature woven leather design seen in their bags and other leather goods. I like that it has its own identity, that it doesn't resemble some other perfume bottle.

This was one of those loves at first sniff for me. I inhaled it and my face instantly lit up. The opening is an aromatic, slightly herbal, green accord covered in sweet resins. Curiously, at least two of my colleagues commented that it's boozy although I don't see that here. Anyway, after coming on strong, the sweetness diffuses shortly but doesn't totally leave. This allows the inherent bitterness from the green accord to become a little more perceptible. 

I don't know if it's the power of suggestion but I soon detect some olive coming through along with a woody companion. I think it's olive but at this point, I'm second-guessing myself because I'm not sure how olive should smell like in a wearable fragrance. So far, the only scent association that I can conjure up is The Body Shop's Olive Dry Body Oil. The olive here definitely doesn't smell of either olive oil or pitted olives soaked in brine but suffice it to say that it does smell good.

The volume of the sweetness is turned up again as vetiver becomes more apparent. It's that familiar treatment of vetiver to me: sweetened, dark, smoky, and with absolutely no annoying sharpness at all. It's along the lines of Bel Ami Vetiver by Hermès and L'Occitane's Eau de Vetyver, only a bit sweeter and less smoky. Later, the sweetness recedes yet again, leaving an aromatic woody scent that's almost dry and with a bitter green overtone. This goes on for hours on end, projecting quite nicely all throughout. It can be a little strong in its first couple of hours but eases into something less loud thereafter.

Parco Palladiano X: Olivo's overall scent profile is very classy and masculine, giving me some Molton Brown's Londinium vibes to some degree. It radiates a rather formal aura although I don't see it out of place in more casual settings, provided it's not too hot and humid. Younger guys are less likely to warm up to this fragrance, at least from a mainstream perspective. As someone older, however, it's something that's right up my alley. Still, this is a quality frag that's definitely worth trying.