XerJoff
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
Crisp lavender and lemon burst forth with bergamot's luminous sharpness, whilst myrtle adds a green, almost herbal bite—like walking through a Mediterranean hillside at dawn. The opening is bright and almost Mediterranean-clean, before pink pepper introduces its first whisper of spiced warmth.
The florals finally emerge fully: orange blossom and ylang ylang create a creamy, almost sensual middle ground, whilst cinnamon and pink pepper dance around them with constant motion. Iris dusts everything with subtle powder, and spikenard—earthy, slightly resinous—adds an unexpected depth that prevents the heart from ever settling into prettiness. This is where Esquel becomes genuinely compelling, neither purely floral nor purely aromatic.
Opoponax brings honeyed amber warmth, tonka bean adds soft vanilla sweetness, and patchouli-vetiver creates a dry, slightly burnt undertone that grounds everything. The spice never fully departs, merely softens into the amber-musk base, leaving a skin scent that's intimate and contemplative—present but not demanding.
XerJoff's Esquel arrives as a contradiction wrapped in spice—a fragrance that refuses to sit neatly in any single category, which is precisely why it compels. Jacques Flori has constructed something genuinely restless here: a fougère with the temperament of an aromatic spice market, where lavender and myrtle provide the skeletal framework but pink pepper and cinnamon constantly agitate against it, refusing domestication.
This is a scent for those who find themselves equally at home in a botanical garden and a spice bazaar. The interplay between petitgrain's bright, slightly green citrus and spikenard's ancient, almost medicinal earthiness creates an unusual tension—one that feels lived-in rather than composed. There's an iris presence that adds a subtle powdery restraint, keeping the exuberant florals (orange blossom and ylang ylang) from overwhelming into perfumery's standard pretty-floral territory.
Add fragrances to your collection and unlock your personalised scent DNA, note map, and shareable identity card.
4.1/5 (152)