Presence Eau de Toilette 75ml

Dry, dark and distinctly formal, Montblanc Presence Eau de Toilette 75ml is a men's fragrance from a time when wood and spice did the work that sweetness does now. Mandarin orange gives it a short burst of brightness and black pepper arrives almost immediately to dry that brightness out, prickling and a little hot, so the opening is sharp rather than juicy. Anyone expecting a long citrus stretch out of it will not get one.

The middle is restrained almost to the point of being invisible. Orchid is soft and faintly creamy, cyclamen green and cool with a watery edge, and their purpose is to carry the fragrance from the top into the base without drawing attention to themselves.

Then the base takes over for the rest of the day. Brazilian rosewood is dry with a faint spice to it, mahogany smells of polished timber, sandalwood softens the pair with creaminess, patchouli adds damp earth, and vanilla flower lays a thin pale sweetness across the top of them. The result is sober and quite serious, the sort of scent that reads as a suit rather than as a shirt.

It dates from 2001, runs to nine materials, and at eau de toilette strength gives four or five hours with the trail drawing in close after the first. Winter and autumn, offices and evenings, and men who have no interest in smelling sweet. At 75ml it is a straightforward bottle to own and to use up.

Montblanc is German, based in Hamburg, and made its reputation on fountain pens and writing instruments before adding watches to the catalogue; the company is a Richemont division. Perfume has always been a licensed part of its business rather than an internal one.