Acqua di Parma
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
Yuzu explodes across your skin with that distinctive tart-green quality, immediately recognisable as distinctly Asian rather than Mediterranean. The Sichuan pepper crackles faintly at the edges, creating a subtle prickling sensation, whilst the Calabrian bergamot refuses to dominate, instead offering measured brightness.
The citrus gradually softens as violet leaf emerges with its dusty, slightly green character, and the jasmine appears as something delicate and almost powdery rather than indolic. The mimosa adds a whisper of honey without sweetness, and the composition becomes increasingly herbal—more about skin and texture than conventional florality.
By this stage, longevity struggles become apparent; the citrus has largely faded and what remains is a soft, almost imperceptible musk base with traces of liquorice sweetness and sandalwood. What lingers is more the ghost of the fragrance than its substance—a vague warmth rather than a distinct aromatic presence.
Acqua di Parma's Yuzu arrives as a studied exercise in restraint—a fragrance that knows exactly what it wants to say and resists the temptation to shout. Nicolas Bonneville has constructed something deceptively simple: a citrus composition that pivots on the distinctive tartness of yuzu rather than the familiar brightness of lemon or grapefruit. That Japanese citrus carries an almost herbal astringency, a slightly green bite that immediately separates this from the typical Mediterranean bergamot territories. The Calabrian bergamot and Sichuan pepper add texture rather than volume, the pepper providing a subtle prickling sensation—almost imperceptible, like touching crushed peppercorns against your wrist.
What elevates this beyond a straightforward citrus splash is the floral heart's unexpected restraint. Rather than building into a conventional fragrance architecture, the mimosa, violet leaf, and jasmine operate as whispered asides. The violet leaf particularly matters here—it adds a crisp, slightly dusty green character that keeps the composition from becoming creamy or overdressed. Lotus and that violet leaf combination creates an almost herbal dimension, something faintly saline and skin-like.
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3.7/5 (99)