Jean Paul Gaultier
Jean Paul Gaultier
329 votes
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
The geranium flashes briefly—metallic, rosy, with a hint of mint—before the tonka bean crashes through like a tidal wave of caramel and vanilla. There's an immediate sweetness that's almost edible, synthetic musks already amplifying everything into a haze of sugared warmth.
The tonka bean settles into absolute dominance, its coumarinic richness taking on burnt-sugar and almost tobacco-like facets. The sandalwood begins to emerge around the edges, creamy and slightly powdery, attempting to add wooden structure to what remains an intensely sweet composition that hovers close to the skin despite its presence.
A persistent skin-scent of tonka and sandalwood locked in embrace, the sweetness finally mellowing to something more wearable. The synthetic woody-amber base becomes more apparent now, creating a smooth, slightly soapy finish where the caramelised gourmand aspects gradually fade into a musky-sweet memory.
Scandal pour Homme Le Parfum is a relentless sweet assault wrapped in barely-there respectability. Quentin Bisch has taken the familiar geranium-tonka-sandalwood trinity and drowned it in synthetic amplifiers, creating something that reads more confectionery counter than classic masculine structure. The geranium arrives metallic and sharp, its rosy-minty facets immediately smothered by an avalanche of tonka bean that dominates from the first spray. This isn't the subtle, hay-like tonka of refined fragrances—it's the full-throated, caramelised, almost burnt-sugar intensity that borders on gourmand excess. The sandalwood base attempts to ground proceedings with its creamy woodiness, but it's fighting a losing battle against that tonka behemoth, which radiates sweetness with an almost cloying persistence.
The synthetic accord score tells you everything: this is unashamedly modern, engineered for maximum diffusion and contemporary tastes. There's a spicy undercurrent that adds some much-needed tension—likely from the geranium's peppery aspects—but it's fleeting, a ghost in the sugar storm. The woody element reads less like actual sandalwood and more like woody-ambery molecules doing an impression.
Add fragrances to your collection and unlock your personalised scent DNA, note map, and shareable identity card.
Milton-Lloyd / Jean Yves Cosmetics
4.0/5 (103)