Note Pyramid
Black Orchid
Tom Ford Black Orchid Eau de Parfum is the scent that established the brand's fragrance business and it remains the most recognisable thing it makes, nearly two decades on.
The opening is deliberately strange. Truffle is the material that made it famous: dark, earthy, slightly savoury and unlike anything in mainstream perfumery at the time. Blackcurrant gives it a tart edge, bergamot, mandarin orange and amalfi lemon brighten the first minutes, and the contrast between fresh citrus and something that smells of soil is the hook. The middle is a full, almost overwhelming floral. Orchid leads it, with gardenia creamy and heavy, ylang ylang thick and rich, jasmine sweet and narcotic, and lotus bringing a cool watery note that stops the bouquet from closing over entirely. None of it is shy. The base is where it turns into the thing people either love or cannot bear. Mexican chocolate is dark, bitter and dusty rather than sweet, patchouli adds damp earth, vanilla sweetens, incense draws smoke across it, and amber, sandalwood, vetiver and white musk hold everything in a dense, warm, slightly animal finish.
Eighteen materials, and at eau de parfum strength it behaves accordingly: ten hours or more, strong projection for the first three, and a trail that lingers in a room after you leave it. One spray is a decision, two is a statement. Cold weather and evenings suit it, it is marketed to women and worn widely by men, and it is wrong for an office. David Apel and Pierre Negrin composed it, released in 2006.
The designer founded this label in 2005, after years running the studios at Gucci and then Yves Saint Laurent. Its beauty arm followed the year after, developed with the Estee Lauder Companies, and opened with a luxury fragrance.
Please note: images are a guide only. Packaging and bottle design may occasionally differ from those shown due to manufacturer updates or promotions.
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