Dsquared²
Dsquared²
124 votes
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
The frankincense-bergamot pairing initially suggests brightness before pimento's sharp, almost clove-like heat crashes through, immediately establishing dominance. Within minutes, you're struck by something peppery and resinous—a spiced incense that feels vaguely ritualistic.
The tobacco absolute emerges with full confidence, transforming the fragrance into something decidedly smoky and leather-forward. The oud integrates seamlessly with the cedar, creating a woody-leather nexus that feels both sophisticated and slightly austere, whilst the rose stays in the background—a quiet restraint rather than a floral statement.
The leather becomes the dominant voice, increasingly aged and worn-feeling, supported by gaiac wood's persistent resinous quality. Cashmere and musk wrap everything in a soft, almost talc-like veil, though the composition never loses its core smokiness—it simply becomes more intimate, clinging close to the skin rather than projecting outward.
Potion Royal Black is a study in controlled darkness—a fragrance that trades the ethereal for the corporeal. The opening salvo of frankincense and bergamot might initially suggest something approaching luminosity, but the pimento immediately arrests that trajectory, injecting a peppery bite that feels almost confrontational. This is not a scent interested in softness.
What unfolds is a resolutely masculine (despite its unisex classification) meditation on leather and wood, anchored by a tobacco absolute that tastes rather than smells—dry, slightly acrid, vaguely reminiscent of late-night library leather chairs and cigar smoke lingering in velvet. The oud here doesn't announce itself with the typical animalic swagger; instead, it functions as a darkening agent, deepening the woody accords into something almost architectural. Atlas cedar provides geometric structure whilst gaiac wood lends a resinous, almost medicinal undertone—the fragrance feels composed rather than spontaneous.
Add fragrances to your collection and unlock your personalised scent DNA, note map, and shareable identity card.
4.2/5 (379)