Rogue
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
Kaffir lime zings with citric brightness, immediately bolstered by basil's herbal snap—clean and almost savoury, like crushing fresh herbs between your palms. This opening feels deceptively fresh, almost green-tea-like in its astringency, giving no hint of the complexity brewing beneath.
The florals emerge with unexpected complexity as the citrus retreats; jasmine's creamy, almost buttery sweetness plays against ylang ylang's faintly spiced, slightly indolic undertones. Simultaneously, the oakmoss begins its work, introducing a dry, mineral quality that prevents the florals from becoming feminine or powdery—there's something almost intellectual about this heart, green and slightly austere.
The civet and leather come forward in earnest, alongside creeping spice and benzoin's smooth resin. This final phase becomes decidedly skin-scent, intimate and slightly animalic, with sandalwood providing a creamy, almost milky base that lingers close to the body—less projection, more presence.
Rogue arrives as a controlled contradiction—a chypre that refuses the expected floral sweetness, instead pivoting toward something altogether more feral. Manuel Cross has constructed a fragrance that feels anthropomorphic in its duality: cultured yet untamed, luminous yet shadowed. The kaffir lime and basil open with botanical crispness, but this is merely the civilised greeting before the real character emerges.
What distinguishes Rogue is how its heart notes create genuine tension with the base. The jasmine absolute and ylang ylang typically signal romance or softness, yet here they're anchored by oakmoss absolute—that austere, slightly bitter greenness that grounds the florals in something almost herbal, preventing them from ever becoming decorative. The ylang ylang's indolic richness becomes conspiratorial rather than honeyed. This is a fragrance worn by those who understand that complexity trumps conventional beauty.
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Santa Maria Novella
3.8/5 (160)