Cover photo by Ciro Morra on Unsplash
The attraction exists, muffled beneath the noise, the pointless banter, the dimness of the room. Nothing whimsical about it. Quiet, almost imperceptible, but there nonetheless.
A spontaneous encounter sets it off on a cold night in a tiny bar.
Drunk on potions and atmosphere, you lock eyes in a dark corner. The fragrance makes its introduction almost immediately, as intimate as the taste of her lip gloss: mandarin and sugar. Bright. Sweet. Intoxicating.
Maybe it is rushed?
A subtle rose note soon emerges, smoothing the edges of the encounter. You become subdued, hedonistic, your intentions clear. Somewhere between the drinks and the glances, you realize you’ve finally met your match.
You can’t remember how you got from the bar to her room. The sheets are pure white. You feel unworthy.
Then lucky.
Nothing but passion through the night.
By morning, the room carries the scent of burnt vanilla. You touch her skin, and a dense cloud of tonka bean settles around your temple.
For that brief moment, even in defeat to desire, you realize everything is perfect. This is Memento.
A fragrance that takes its heritage and DNA from Arabians Tonka from the house of Montale .
Memento leans heavily into sugar and tonka, making its intentions brutally obvious. Its approach is straightforward, almost unapologetic, with a sweetness that feels more natural than synthetic.
The profile is linear, dense, and overwhelming. The more you smell it, the more you suspect that is entirely by design. The core DNA doesn’t chase complexity.
Perhaps that’s what makes it interesting.
In a world obsessed with complexity, Memento finds its character purely in excess. It may not be the easiest fragrance to understand, but it is certainly one you remember.
Beloved,
Amos is not a poet. He hardly writes anything beyond emails and texts, and even then, he claims it is a gruelling task. However, when he is particularly moved, he writes some of the most lovely, atmospheric prose I have ever read from a self-proclaimed non-writer. Unfortunately for us, he has no desire to explore this talent except when inspired by his one and only muse: perfume. I have since convinced him to at least share his reviews on my blog, rather than keeping them confined to the ephemeral space of WhatsApp statuses. I hope you enjoy his writing as much as I do.
– Tama
