Agatha Ruiz de la Prada
Agatha Ruiz de la Prada
88 votes
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
The citrus trio arrives with almost pharmaceutical intensity—bright, peeling, almost medicinal—whilst that troublesome stench note lurks menacingly beneath, suggesting something's fundamentally askew from the outset. Bergamot dominates initially, rendering this phase bracing rather than cheerful.
Violet leaf and champaca flower emerge to complicate matters considerably, introducing an almost soapy, green floral quality that wrestles against the developing spice (nutmeg intensifies noticeably). The fish accord becomes apparent here—a salty, mineral undertone that's genuinely challenging, lending an animalic wetness to the proceedings.
Asphalt and labdanum resurface with remarkable prominence, creating an almost tar-like dryness that eclipses the earlier floral sweetness. Tonka bean attempts sweetening the proceedings, supported by creamy vanilla and cedarwood, but the base retains a forbidding earthiness throughout, more mineral and woody than traditionally comforting.
Gotas de Color #SuperSmile is a deliberately provocative fragrance that mistakes audacity for sophistication. Dmitry Bortnikoff constructs something genuinely unusual here, though whether that constitutes success remains debatable. The composition opens with an almost medicinal citrus blast—grapefruit and bergamot rendered sharp and insistent—before pivoting into its most compelling territory: a green, animalic heart where champaca flower and violet leaf collide with something decidedly unsettling. That "stench" note in the top and the inexplicable "fish" accord in the heart suggest Bortnikoff was attempting something transgressive, a fragrance that refuses easy comfort. The oakmoss-laden base, reinforced by asphalt and resinous labdanum, grounds this chaos in earthy chypré territory, though the tonka bean sweetness threatens to render the whole affair cloying rather than cohesive.
This is fragrance as statement rather than seduction. The woody-spicy accords dominate with almost aggressive singularity, whilst the chypré backbone (52%) lends vintage credibility. It's a scent for those who've exhausted conventional elegance and seek something tactile, slightly off-putting, occasionally brilliant. The interplay between champaca's honeyed richness and violet leaf's bitter greenness creates genuine tension. This fragrance doesn't coddle—it confronts. Wear it when you're uninterested in being universally liked, when you want people to ask what you're wearing with genuine curiosity rather than polite recognition.
Add fragrances to your collection and unlock your personalised scent DNA, note map, and shareable identity card.
3.8/5 (169)