Fougère Classique

Fougère Classique unfolds as a deliberately austere meditation on the fougère tradition, stripped of florality and reconceived as pure architectural woodsmoke. Luca Maffei has constructed something almost monastic here—the opening frankincense and fir balsam create a resinous scaffolding that feels more apothecary than perfumery, whilst pink pepper adds a whisper of spice rather than brightness. What's genuinely arresting is the Bushmans Candle in the heart, a deceptively simple note that functions as a smoky anchor, preventing this composition from drifting into abstraction. Instead of the traditional fougère's grassy tenderness, you get a profound earthiness where labdanum and oakmoss become the real protagonists—they're not decorative but deeply integrated, lending a leathery, slightly resinous warmth that recalls old library bindings and cedarwood smoke.

This is the scent for someone who finds typical fragrances exhaustingly obvious. It appeals to the minimalist, the art-school aesthete, perhaps the architect who appreciates negative space. Wear it in autumn, when its woody density doesn't feel oppressive but rather companionable—a second skin rather than a statement. There's a masculine slant to its character, though it refuses gendered softness entirely; it's uncompromisingly itself. The patchouli and vetiver provide earthed stability whilst the cashmere wood lends an almost creamy counterpoint to the smoky elements. It's a fragrance that rewards proximity—this isn't a sillage beast, and therein lies its charm.