Montale
Montale
122 votes
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
The bergamot erupts immediately, almost aggressive in its brightness, clashing deliberately with Malayan oud's dark resinous smoke. Spices flicker through—cardamom, perhaps black pepper—creating a peppery-citric burn that feels more demanding than inviting.
Violet softens the edges considerably, introducing a creamy, almost soapy quality that makes the composition feel less confrontational. Patchouli grounds everything into earthiness, and the oud mellows into a warmer, less medicinal presence. The fragrance becomes more wearable here, more rounded, though the citrus never truly retreats.
Leather takes the foreground, becoming slightly animalic and lived-in, supported by creamy Mysore sandalwood and the gentle sweetness of amber and white musk. The oud persists as a subtle woody-resinous thread rather than a dominant force, creating a skin scent that's warm, slightly dusty, and considerably more intimate than its opening suggested.
Orange Aoud arrives as a deliberately contradictory statement—the brightness of citrus fruit meeting the smoky, resinous depths of oud. This is Montale working within their signature maximalist framework, layering Malayan oud's bitter-medicinal character directly against bergamot's sharp, almost lemony citrus in the opening moments. There's an immediate tension here, one that speaks to a wearer unafraid of olfactory complexity or the slightly rough edges that come with it.
The violet and patchouli that emerge in the heart soften this collision without erasing it. Violet adds a powdery, slightly creamy dimension that prevents the composition from becoming austere, whilst patchouli brings earthy grounding to what could otherwise feel scattered. This is where the fruity accord (88%) becomes apparent—not as a separate sweetness, but as a natural extension of the bergamot and violet's interplay, creating something vaguely floral-citric rather than gourmand.
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4.0/5 (113)